Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1885-12-15
CITY AND DISTRICT.
THE NIGHT SCHOOL OPENED.
scenes At the Franklin Building Last
Evening.

THE NIGHT SCHOOL OPENED.
Scenes At the franklin Building Last
Evening.
ONE HUNDRED WHITE BOYS ANXIOUS TO
LEARN-A SMALL ATTENDANCE OF GIRLS
WHAT THE BOYS AND THE TEACHERS SAID.
fringe of dusk objects ran around the rail-
Ing In front of the Franklin school building last
evening, and similar clusters. like black spots,
could be seen in the dim light on the steps and
sidewalks. A closer inspection showed that
tnese objects were boys who were waiting for
the doors to open for the first session Of the
nisht school for wife children. Nearer the
ooor STOOD q few girls, who rather timidly stood
apart and seemed to shrink from observation.
ferhaps 1t was the gloomy night or the fact
that IL was a new experience, or may be the
policeman at the corner had something to do
with it; at any rate, the groups were very quiet
occasionally a laugh could be heard and voices
sro 1a caia out Jim. are You there?' "Where
and then there would be quiet again. broken
only by the murmur of voices
O.. w =, nat 40 you do during the day?' asked
STAR reporter OF a well-dreSsed bow about six
teen years of age, who was waiting with the
Il am learning to lay bricks" was the reply.
and then he went on to say that he had rot
been ahle to go to school since he was q small
boy. Presently the door opened and
THE BOYS WENT TROOPING IN.
and were shown to room on the second floor,
in the south end of the building. Supervising
Principals Stewart and Gage were present and
also Mr.. Quinby, who is the principal of the
night school, with his assistants, Miss NJ G.
Kelly. and Miss Flora Henley. The boys ali
crowded into one room, and the fifty six seats
were unable to accommodate more than half
the number. When they had taken off their
hats and came in the light a very good idea
could be obtained of the personnel Of the new
school. The general impression obtained from
their faces was favorable. AS one of the teachers
remarked, they were nice looking boys. They
seemed to have faces of more than usual intelli-
gence and were well dressed. In age they ran
from about twelve years to twenty-five or thirty.
There were but few of the latter: Perhaps
twenty was the maximum aye. There were
several mustaches and one bald head, the
latter evidently premature, but the majority
corner by themselves, and numbered ten or
twelve. They were evidently shop girls. and
one of the teachers said that she hoped more
girls would come, and special efforts would be
made to induce them to come.
DIVIDING THE SCHOOL.
AS soon as they were all seated Mr.. Quinby in
order to grade them into two schools invited
those who could not do addition and substrac-
ton to go into the adjoining room. The re-
that those who felt themselves wanting in these
respects were the older ones. This rather crude
grading had the effect OF relieving the over
crowded room. and as Others came dropping in
beiore the evening closed, nearly all the seats
in both rooms were taken, making the number
OF scholars about one hundred, which is a very
good beginning for the enterprise.
~ think that more would be here" remarked
MIR. Stewart "but tor the tact that this season
occupied that many have been taken from the
DAY schools; After the holidays there will be
large attendance"
In the second room the lady teachers supplied
the boys with paper and asked them to write
their mum $, the letters of the alphabet and the
numerals. Only one boy was found who could
fol In,
hand writing. There were three boys discovered
who also attended the day schools, and they
were allowed to go home.
SUPERINTENDENT POWELL EXAMINES THE
BOYS.
In the other room, Mr.. Powell, the su-
perintendent of the public schools, came
in and put the boys through an oral ex-
animation in arithmetic. in order to as
certain what course OF instruction should be
adopted. After they had wreStled with such
questions as how much a gallon OF milk would
he ut seven cents quart, and y bushe OF pea
nuts at ten cents peck, and endeavOred to ten
his horse would eat I'm three weeks If he fed. him
aha hai peck Tires lines , day. Mr. Powell said
and there he picked out boy who looked
rather vacantsat these questions and sent him
into the other room, but as rule nearly every
hand went up when he asked what the answer
was. Some OF the boys when they answered
rose in their places, showing their public school
training. A STAR reporter asked Il large num-
Der of boys what they did during the day. One
bright looking little fellow in knickerbockers
said that he was in q lawyers office, another
boy said that lie run an elevator; then there
were paper hangers, uphOsterers. messengers,
pages, clerks in stores, and it seemed as If
nearly every trade and occupation was repre-
scented.
WHAT THE TEACHERS SAY.
"There ought to be a school like this" said
Mr.. Stewart, sin every district in the city. 1
think that there are n great many boys and
men near the navy yard who would be glad to
attend such a school. He would need more
room and more teachers. This school, as it is
ought To hive another room to be used tor Il
course in this school include writing and the
simpler form. OF housekeeping and business let
tiers, aTi; hnCtic and reading.
''At first" said Mr.. Quinby, the principal,
"Our aim will be to give instruction in only the
possible to get any very accurate grading of the
scholars We have only two rooms, and must
teach them all together, but that may come
after awhile"
The teachers are paid from a fund which the
Indies interested IN the enterprise have pledged
themselves to raise. The principal gets $3.50
per night. and his two assistants 81 so There
will be three sessions of two hours each Il week,
or every other night The District furnishes
the rooms, light and heat. The favorable i'm
preston of the scholars which the teachers
gained at first remained throughout the even
Ing. 1t was generally supposed that like most
night schools, there would be rather y rough
element but the contrary ne (.lSa