Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1877-09-15
\ Mornings Jaunf Round the Pub
lie schools.

Last Thurday under the cOmpe-
tent guidance of Prof. Brooks, our
city superintendent, and in cOmpa-
ny with Mr.. t. M. Riley, our broth
er editor, and Mr.. John Moore, one
of the Board of Directors, we spent
the morning in visiting and inspect
ing the different buildings in which
our public schools are conducted at
the hours when teaching was going
on. We desire that our readers
should be informed of all which we
learned during our jaunt and, if pos
sible, that they may become as
much interested in the matter as we
were.
Third Udrd iSchOONThis was the
first establishment we visited. We
found at it Miss Kate Rogers teach
ing geography to a large class of lit
tie people, and in small recitation
room in the rear the Rev. Mr.. Gold
instructing another in mental arith-
metic. Both teachers were doing
well under great difficulties the
building is very much too small for
the purposes to which it is applied,
and the order which was preserved
in room where, with the closest
economy of desks, the children
cannot move without pressing on one
another, was wonderful. In the
winter time the evil, if not RENE
died, will be seriously aggravated,
as the doors and windows will then
be necessarily closed and Ventila-
ton sufficient for health in such
crowded room will be impossible.
We much wish that our citizens
would do as we did-visit these
schools sometimes, They would re-
ceive welcome and the utmost
courtesy from the teachers and SUI
perintendent, and we are satisfied
that the defects thus made known
would be promptly remedied.
We next visited the basement
of the Methodist Church in which
the two higher classes are taught
under the tutelage Of Professors
Brooks and Yarrell: A class was re-
citing United States history to Prof.
Yarrell when Wearrived, being very
properly required to read audibly
the lesson before answering queS-
tons about it. The questions when
asked We're, on the whole, correctly
answered, though Il little too much
by rOte; we would have liked to see
ideas elected more than words.
This will doubtless he improved as
time goes on. The room is spacious
enough for its present purposes, but
the light is not good, and in the
winter, when the doors have to be
closed, it will be very dark indeed.
The yard is very well arranged for
the separate recreation of the sexes;
only spaceis unavoidably restricted.
We ventured to suggest some calls
thenic arrangements on the girls
side and a horizontal bar on the
boys side. \ subscription was
started for the purpose on the spot;
of course the editors were bled, and
they bled like-turnips. Calisthen-
ic exercises are to be introduced i'm
mediately.
Next we proceeded to the colored |
public schools taught by Mr.. Jack
son, himself an intelligent cOlored |
man, in the basement of the cOlOred |
Methodist Church, on Franklin !
street. The first impression we re-
ceived was that, in regard to space,
light, ventilation and all other quail
titles that constitute a good school |
room, the cOlored children are much /
better off than the white, and it is
all to the credit of their own race
the room is granted rent-free by the