The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-03-07
ClIILDREN'S LIVES IN PERIL
OgERCROWDIN0 IN THE SCHOOL
ROOMS or a or EXT CITY.


Tue sun Siiii Further Inve-tianting sub
scr fblf uu ht to Intcrcat EVcrv Well
wlsher Of his tncc-Its I attest Discoveries.
The principals of primary schools and
rr,mnry departm cnts Of grammar schools own
tnat IL la TN measure, necessary to crowd their
cl sgcs For every teacher Of a primary cliss
III re must be an average attendance Of 30 chill
drcn, ana "a the iittir ones arc very susccutihle
to extremes of weather and to sickness, " re-
qures a rcri.ter OF ~ or - chil ron 20 secure
the average Of 80. In the grammar DEPARTMENTS
the average attendance required l. only 81
children to zach teacher, and with these older
ones 1t is necessary only regi'ter Ave six In
excess Of the required number to keep within
tho rule. The injustice goes still further az
cording TO the primary teachers, inasmuch as
the teachers Of the grammar classes are paid
much larger salaries than they, after the chill
drcn-who come to the primary schools lacking
IN every requirement-have been moulded and
broken In, and made vastly easier OF manage
ment.
Grove street school house, IN the Ninth Ward
IL not large enough to accommodate the child
rem that attend It. In the primary department
80 children, or thirteen classes, are provided
with only eight rooms. Two OF the surplus
classes are Instructed I'm the main room, and
double class nils one side OF the gallery. For the
! nlth class n has been found necessary To use n
dark playground room that has one window close
against an adjacent building and another ouen-
ing into one Of the Jauitor's inner bedrooms. IL
Is an outrage to Keep children for hours at "A
| time in sucn a room. One of the gallery rooms
| Is very dark, and two or three OF the classroons
| Will not Omit Of ventilation. Fifty or sixty
| OF the pupils in this department are III with
| throat affections. The grammar departments
| up stairs, are equally crowded, and each
| floor the assembly rooms are used by two OF
Principals saw that two classes cannot he prop
| erly Instructed In the same roOm-the constant
Il a. moo IN arN ut Il
| tract both from their studies-yet In one half
| the primary schools from two to ak classes are
taught together IN the assembly rooms.
The part of tue school house invest Thirteenth
street, which Tue primnry department Of Gram
| mar school is occupies ~ the ground floor,
which in other school houses IL used for a play
ground, janitors dwelling, and for store rooms
and u usually considered too low. dark. md I'M
wholesome for tho daily confinement Of chill
| dren. In this school. the children play IN an
| un-heltered and uncovered ward. unless the
weather Is Indictment. and then they have either
TO stay indoors or huddlc together under a shed
! that lines the yard. The six low-cctled and
| dark rooms occupied nv the PRIMARY depart
| neni In this building contain about NOcbildren.
| None Of the rooms eau bc properly yeutlted
| willie the children are In them. and mono Of
| them present two sides to the outer light and
! air. When the school WAS visited, every window
| was closed, aud the air was close aud impure
ALTHOUGH the 500 children IN the primary de-
| partment " Grammar School rs. in West Thir-
teen,h street, are III ten cl 'sses, they arc pro-
vidcd with only six 81 IS rooms. Glasses We
| TO be doubled, therefore, In one Of the rooms.
| md three classes are obliged 20 use the main
even screens are used to divide The classes. but
| the different studies. the frequent conflicts he.
| tween the teacher and her pupils, and the thou
| sand episodes Of school life In each class, are
| permitted to disturb and distract the other
classes. Measles, scarlet fever, and whooping
cough have diminished the attendance at this
| school.
Measles, diphtheria, and whoopinR cough be-
gan their work among the Youngest children IN
the primary department of Grammer School %,
In West Thriieth street, and haze proceeded
ertdu lily through the school. OBTAINING nearly
100 children at their homes. Every class In the
DEPARTMENT has room to itself, aud tho school
house Is detached from the neighboring struc-
lures, so that lignt and air are plenty, but two
OF tue front class rooms have only one window
each AMI cannot be ventilated.
The primary department Of Grammar School
~, In West 1wenty-fourth street, has only eight
class rooms, although It's zoo childr-n are IN ~
classes. The i've surplus CT sses are retained by
putting two into the dark galleries, In which the
children are seated with their backs to the
scanty light, and three classes iuto the main
room. Unfortunately for the helpless children
II has been decided 10 make instruction rooms
Of the two dark and damp store rooms ON the
playground door. Years ago six such rooms Ia
this building were in use, hut under a whole
some excitement on the y IT OF the people they
were abandoned. Now that public attention
has been withdrawn from the subject, at least
twenty grammar schools have returned TO the
u~c Of such cells. About 100 Of the pupils nj
THIS school are az present sick NJ homo with
measles aud the prevalent throat diseases.