Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1890-06-30
ALEXANDRIA, "A.
MONDAY EVENING, JUNE 80.

Oup PuBLIC SCHOOLS Twenty years
ago there were hut two free schools for White
children In Alexandria; the Washington
with about a..hundred boys. and the female
school connected with the orphan asylum,
having lees than fifty girls. The children CT
the city were educated in private schools @
all grades some ofthem as good as could De
found anywhere, others were taught by par
sons wholly incompetent. There we're four
male academies having from fifty to hue
dred students each, aud ssVen female semi
naries with numbers ranging from thirty TO
seventy. Now, Washington school mas
eleven teachers and is attended By nearly
six hundred boys, aud Lee has seven, With
an attendance If nearly four hundred. VI
the male academies but two remain, DoIh
heavily reduced 10 numbers, and that whicn
was then the largest ls now supported al
most entirely, and the other at least partla'-
ly. by an Increase of students from aoroao'
or the female seminaries three only survive,
though q fourth has since been established,
and TWO of these are. ALEC, largely aided by
nupils from abroad. For colored children
provision was then made by northern socse-
tics in houses built by subscription ana
with the aid of the "Freedmen'5 Bureau
They were very pretensious, claiming 70
be normal and high schools, though they
Taught children the elements OF learning,
and young negroes with piles OF books they
could scarcely carry went through the
streets day by dag to them, aud thought thSy
: were making wonderful progress in all soris
of ologes while they could scarcely read
English understandipely. These schools
made strong efforts to continue their exist
enca at The expense of the people OF Alex.
exandra, but the school authorities were
firm in rejecting them and their northern pa
irons refused to continue their benefactions
1t must be admitted. however. that they
were ssrvceabie in their day, for they
taught many the rudiments and some OF
those afterwad DIS 80 built upon that know
edge as to become valuable teachers in our
present system. Now. our public schools
occupy the sans buildings with six teachers
and upwards of three hundred boys in
Snowden School and ak teachers and about
the same number Of girls In Halloweil.
There are some people in Alexandria. as we
suppose there are everywhere else, VINO
think nothing they have at home can poss
bly, be equal to what they can get abroad,
ard who take advantage Of the loose way in
which admission o public schools in Wash
ington is granted, to send their children
there, totally unaware, it seems OF the de-
monstrated fact that pupils from our schools
going to Washington are invariably placed
one grade higher. while Washington child
rem removing here, invariably 60 one
grade lower, and that one OF our academies
has almost twice az many students from
Washington as 1t has from Alexandria. This
arises partly from a different method Of
grading adopted here, arithmetic being
made more prominent in the lower grades
than In Washington, and from the fact that
having no citynormal school fertile sweet girl
graduates for which we have been obliged to
fad places, we have been able TO exercise
more judgment in the selection of our teach
ers, and have made few changes. OF the
eight white teachers originally employed
twenty years ago, two are still in service,
the principals of the two schools; the rest
all resigned after various terms of service.
three because of marriage, one on account
of impaired eyesight, and two from Inability
to control their schools. OF the six coloref,
but one remans-the principal Of
Hallowell School one was forced
away By negro republican politicians
who made it "hct" for him because he
thought it best, on one occasion, to vote the
democratic ticket; one resigned because of
imperative home duties, and another BIZ
cause of marriage, fourth was dropped for
insnbordination, and fifth died. Several
of the present teachers have been in service
eighteen years snd many ten and fifteen.
They were originally selected from among
the best OF the private teachers and have
taken every means of improving themselves
in their profession. The then Senator from
this district insisted upon the appointment
of practical teacher of long experience for
Superintendent, instead of q lawyer or
clergyman, and except during the Malone
regime, when, fortunately for our schools,
we secured an equally compstent man, he
has been retained in office by successive adj
ministrations, and highly intelligent
board of trustees. half of them either teach
ers or x-seschers was appointed. and. from
the beginning, festina lente-mske haste
slowly-was the motto, and thoroughne,s in
everything was insisted upon. so that while !
come clamored for bogus high school, the
foundations Of real one we're being slowly
end surolu laid he othar |