The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1878-04-06

Ever since the committee on public buildings
gave the hearing upon the Bracket street
school house, upon the premises, they have
been over run with proposals for remedyiug
the evil which exists there. These proposals
have come from different sources and in as
many dfferept ways. Ooe man would assall
the individual members on the street with
offers. while another would address long CON-
muDications to the chairman, and still another
class have been writing aponamous communi-
cations to the Mayor, telling him W hat his duty
was in the matter or offeringI to cure the evil
for SO much money. One practical man who
has looked the matter all over says that he
VIII guarantee to purify the old building per-
fectly for So 600. His plan is to remove the
vaults to the rear of the lot, dig out cellar uu-
der the old building. and put 10 heating and
ven,ilating apparatus, and the evil is cured.
Every sort of heating or ventiating apparatus
known to the couatry has been recon- mended,
but, as one of the committee said, ''ventilators
don't veptilate."
Carpenters and bailders have been particu-
larly anxious to try their skill to remedy the
evil The most of them very naturally recon-
mend new building. One firm is willing, at
any time, to give bonds to erect good substan.
tial brick building capable of accommodating
600 scholars for something less than $4,000.
This is the lowest figure that any parties have
offered to build structure of this kind for, but
large number have bid lower on cheap build
ings. The bids have run up as high as $40 0OO
One ambitious builder wrote 10 the committee
that the people in that district would not be
satisfi d with any cheap affair. and they might
as well give up all idea of erecting such
structure at once He then proceeded to give
his plans for a building and closed by saying
that he should be pleased to build Just such
school house for $4,000 His school house
would be Of brick, three stories high, aud with
basement in which would be a boiler for
warming the building by steam He would
have the building divided on each floor by a
wide hall, aud then each side divided in the
middle, making four rooms only on each floor,
thus giving each room windows on two Sides
The building is to be about so by 80 feet and is
to be well supplied with fire escapes. On each
floor there is to be an iron balcony run clear
around the building with iron steps leading to
the ground SO that in cass of fire the children
will have abundant means of escape. He
thinks that in this way three story building is
as safe as any. If the committee should en-
gage this man, it is hardly likely that they
would approve of his style of fire escape for
children TO use.
There probably never was time when the
building could be erected as cheap as at present
and one practical member of the committee
says that some of the bidders have offered to
put up buildings for less price than the mate
rial would cost. The committee have held sew
eral meetings recently and at each session have
tried to arrive ct some conclusion, but without
any results They have so many offers that it
is hard to tell which it is best TO accept. They
will hold another meeting the FIRST of the week.
when it is thought they will decide what to do
in the matter. 1t is really the most trying case
Of the season, SO far, and the verdict of the
committee is aDxiously looked for By all who
are interested 10 the school interests.