Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1879-02-25
.. Interesting Case.

n
r.oE Only throysaoat cur Own, tut other States,
YES tried b.ftro his houor, Judge Sangster,
0? The Csunty C5u!!. yesterday, On appea! IRON
| G d.ci.i5E: CT Justice Aus:ine, OF Alexandra
e;uoly. The case Hai one 10 Which me OF
| figo dollars and COST had beea imposed on Jas.
Il. Clements, teacher Of Walker school, near
B1!stoo, FIR assault aud battery, 10 striking With
his is: R3b:rs La Veitch, a WILL gTowa young
man Of Il, aud ? pupil 10 said schcol. He
All: rumhc: Ct ether pupils. both boys and
girls teatdedto the facts 10 tho case IS cid also,
| ihe tcacher himself, aud there vas remark.
able agreement ia the testimony. ltappcared
that yCuag Feitch had written note contaln'
ioc some improper language, AID passed 1t to
his c3u.io, Arthur Y eitch, little boy OF IL, IN
ghCs3 l2ads hlr. Clements discovered It, when,
il rs:y &c :! question, Lee Fcl;ch aVcwcd INC
authorship. Mr.. g. then called him up and
orquired Why hc wrote il, when he replied Tor
fuo," 81 the same time. according tc some
witnesses, locking around at The boys aud laugh
lex. 1no teacher then said: she'll have to
whip y5u ani stopped to get & switch, when
Vci!c1! sad no you dent CT guSs you wont,
acccriing: 10 bis owu account and that II
three o.her boys; caught Nlr. C.'s lett hand,
which vas circhcd, but according to the teach,
CT, three girls and orc or two boys, sc!z2I and
brpke the switch, AID placing bis hand 90 the
teachers shoulder forced him back against az
ora.n. which stood upon tho 6ais. Thcreupon,
Mf. G., helievioe himself ia danger Of bclog
, taken al 3 disadvantage AID overcome, struck
the uuri With bis fist between the eyes, and
caused his ucse to bleed. Young Fetch then
submitted, and was whipped With another
SWITCH, ;r.e: watch he was allowed 70 70 out
anl WISH. lie has attended the school regular
y ever SIEGE aud behaved in a Very becoming
mapucr.
An effort vas made to prove conspiracy
among tho larger boys to whip the teacher, but
a. !to witness failed TO councct Fel;ch Tlth H.
his tcsim0ncv Vas otiac'ed to. The defence
D?57c1, hlTayar. by pupil and sn outside
, witness, that Eeilch had declared that Mr..
C.cIacnis should not Whip hin, and it was
, proved that Dir. 9. said, alter baViog iuticted
| the punishment, ut nybody wants 10 light,
: can whip him" or words to that cfftc;. A
. d!agram Of the schoo'room was exhibited, the
, icf.pcc contGuGiag thati /. showed that tho girls
, a!ou0 could see Inc affair well. the offending
pnf:i ba!as between tho teacher and tho other
boys; but one Of the latter ooatendcd that all
the girls put their heads down on tho desks aod
could act see st all. John h. Fcbrey, eGq, a
trustee, was called for the prosecution; he tesl'
fed 10 some complaints against Clements for
s:verc pu13Iling and 10 his havicg advised q
.Dilsr ccarso. Geo. Il. Adams. esq chair
uan Of TIC district school board testified that
the board had, icC three years, forbidden cor
,aral parish rept 10 the schools under its dire
csiop, but owice to tho lax discipline which
had resulted from the otdcr. had rcsclnded IT,
. and after consultation with the superintendent,
ordered moderate corporal chaslisement to be
4 "a ,b., fnoc bnri ind
= Walker school Has q iocly conducted one,
rigain: tho best ruolic schools in Washington
Or Alexandria.
Superintendent Carne, testified that lie had
been Z teacher nearly th!r'y-two years. he
considered corporal punishment 10 schools nc
crssary There might he exceptional teachers and
!. J cxca2tioaal schools which c1ud dispense With
it, but he had ucVtr seem thap; cXcoptit might
be, when al! bad boys could b., expelled; but
tfas only shifted the trouble to the community.
The teacher should punish moderately but
r3us! maintain lis authority and make the
ottandiug pupil submit OF oil hazards, should
= nc resist punishment, or show fight. lilo fully
endorsed Mr.. Adams statement as to the dis.
, ciplIne Of Wa.kerscho0l.
Harvey Baly, esq, trustee corroborato Hr.
Adams tyilenc, as TO thu action Of the district
school board 10 relation to corporal punish.
met.
Leonard MarpurS, esq, summed up the evil
deGcc in !a7og q tho accused, IN u very neat
through b7iof speech The case, he said Was q
+ very im portaG. ore, Involving 10 less conse-
! qgercca them the preservation Of morality and
: Dr0p:c discipIi1c ia The public schools. He
da,l. upon tic evidence CT tho yourg ladies' IN
; fasor ct their teacher, AID asked verde: for
, him thereon
Charles J., Stuart. esd, followed, Oh the
same side, 10 remarkably clear address to the
: ilfy Upon the public schools. he said, the
C3inu?onaco!th relics for the virtue and intc'li'
eeacc of har future citizaps. and the end 10
:, view Is impossible Ct attainment, unless the
;; teachers be clothed with the authority to- en-
force sa'ulaIy discipline. No man, it may be
wishes his child corrected by another, but the
Wise Man said long ago, spare tho rod a5d
sp0iI the Child" cad the lew invests the teach.
or with all the power Of a parent. lo is al
most sovereign in the school room aud his pu'
pits must submit. 20 Ills authority, or be forced
TO do 30. Il one may refuse, 80 many another
and all order will te at an end. DIR. Clements
had not aa'cd ii q raveDgefCl, angry manner,
but in sill kicauass, not only TO his other pupils
but e7en 10 youos Veitch himself, who had
been an obedicn ard dociIo pupil ever since.
Eimcn1 Burke, csq, CommonWealth's At
torncy. closed the case. Selling upon hlr.
Stuar!'s assertion that Inc teacher is sovereign
10 bis sphere, lie ecquanlly appealed to the
iary to SANCTION 10 such dOc:rioe. M public
otic2r vas sovereign; all were servants; Only
The people, represented by The Jury, Wero SOW
crcso. lie denounced corporal punish
men: ia the schools asserting that the
school, law gave the teachers right to sus-
peod only, aa! that even admitting that ho
could lawfully whip. Mr.. Clements had trans.
crossed Inc bounds Of moderation. He strongly
advocated mora suasion alone 10 school manage.
mcnt.
Mr.. Stuart tan asked the following instruc-
tiGn TO The jl7y, which jadge Sangster grant
Cd. viz:
That teacher has right to chasiisc
pupil for roisc2nlcct without the consent of his
parents.
Tie case VAS then. submitted TO the jury,
aud aiicr remaining out nearly an hour, they
returned aud reported that there Vas 20 pros.
l. 4