Morning journal and courier., 1890-08-16

individual pupils being promoted who had not reached the 60 per cent. standard re- quired by the board, and gave the details of case where marks were: In Latin 69, Greek 32, geometry 8: average, 36. This student was afterwards given pri- vate examination by Mir. Whitmore's son in geometry and then marked 79 in that study, just bringing him to the required 60 per cent. It appeared further that MT. Booth, the instructor in geometry, was | asked to allow MT. Wnitmore's son to ex- | anime him after giving him private lessons for some time and the above mark was given by him, though the regular instrue tor, Mr. Booth, could have given the ex- animation if he had been told to. MT. Booth regarded the boy as insubord mate and the most unsatisfactory scholar he had. MT. McAndrew also regarded him as unruly and reported him to MT. Whit more, giving him ten demerits which the latter took off. MT. Whitmore stated to the board as his reason: 'I excused the from school" Further reports of this case showed partially towards him in
 matters of scholarship and discipline
 treating dissatisfaction in the matters of
 teachers interested. sAn instance was also
 given of another boy being admitted to
 the high school by MT. Whitmore's direc- ton without having passed any examina- ton in one study. It was also shown that last year when there was no question of
 haste in preparing the examination papers,
 that finding large number of the class, l something like 120, had failed of the re- quired sixty per cent, MT. Whitrnore stated in teachers meeting that he could not go to the board with that record,
 that he would lose his situation,
 and requested and suggested that the 1 teachers should revise their marks, | which they did, and changed | them so that sixty nine that had not passed
 were allowed to pass MT. Liefeld, who 1 was present at this meeting, did not re-
 member this expression but remembers that MT. Whitemore said ''he would abide
 by the decision of the teachers if it cost
 him his position" The markings of the l individual teachers were made directly
 upon the written examination papers as written by the pupils and from these were
 copied upon the blanks prepared for this
 purpose, and these constitute the official
 records of the markings of the class. It l was in this transference from the examl-
 nation papers to the records that the I charges above referred to were made. MT. Whitemore further instructed the teachers | not to keep any records of the papers
 handed in by them because Git made | trouble afterwards" And it was further shown that this year the examination
 papers on which were the only
 original records of the teachers
 marks, except those of MT. Marble,
 who disobeyed the. injunction, were burned on commencement day imme-
 diately after the records were thus made up contrary to the usual custom of keep
 ing them until the beginning of the next term The reason given by the principal l for this unusual haste was: "It was sug- gested that we had better get these papers | out of the way" ssthat the examination
 had been little irregular, the papers had been made out in hurry and it was thought best to destroy the papers," and in spirited interview with MT. Marble on
 the subject of his marks, in which he ac-
 cused MT. Marble of lying, he (Mr. Whit
 more) said the papers would not be acces- sible, and there would be no investiga; l ton.
 In the matter of the selection of speak CTS at the graduation exercises this year, 1 the committee on schools investigated
 somewhat and had been assured by MT.
 Whitmore that he did not know who wrote
 the essays from which the speakers were l to be selected, and that nobody kney them
 it was done in such way that it was i'm
 possible for anybody to know. The com
 mittee on schools were distinctly led to in
 fer that the usual method was pursued o1
 committee selected to examine the essays
 who did not know who the writers were
 and, in explanation of the course pursued
 in former years, Mrs. Lockwood stated
 that a committee was agreed upon by the
 class and the principal of the high schoo
 to determine a certain number Casually
 about fifteen) of the best essays written by
 the first half of the class. The essays be
 ing handed in under a non-de- plume
 which was also written upon
 sealed envelope containing tho uame of the writer and tho envelopes not opened until the selections
 were made The successful essayists the1 read their essays to the committee ol schools and the superintendent who de
 termined upon the commencement speak f CTS. Mir. Adams stated that this year h.
 knew positively who wrote each of the es
 says, the pupils consulted him about tn essays, he criticised and talked with then
 about their work, they were all handed il !: to him and he was told by Mir. Whitmor
 to select out forty of the best and hant
 them to him for his criticism and approval
 MT. Adams made objection to being givel
 so much responsibility, and MT. Whitmor
 told him that ''he didn't care mucl
 about the old fashioned committee; tha
 there was no rule of the board governin, , the matter; that it was simply custom
 handed down from former times; that i was one of Mir. Curtis notions, ant he would follow his own no , tion." MT. Whitmore then took tn
 essays and named the twenty successful ones ill the competition to come before tn
 committee, and from these the speaker were chosen. It was further shown tha
 certain boys were selected who had beel , in the school but very short time, to
 short, indeed, to be entitled to Il technica : rank. MT. Whitmore protested strongl , in reply that he did not know who tn essayists were until after the choice ha, , been made.
 The matter of Mrs Lockwood's resigna ton in consquence of not having bee r given the duties to which she had been aI s pointed by the board was investigated a a one session, and while the board was satis 3 fled of the justice of Mrs. Lockwood's con @ plaint, as she had been definitely engage t to take up other work, it did not seer n necessary to prolong the session s of the board in matter tha l could not be remedied. Mir. Whit s more, however, claimed to be tn !, sale authority in the assignment of teacl h CTS to work, and resented any suggestion 0 from the superintendent in the matte l. and while not repudiating the anthorit l | or the board, ne so arranged the Schen a of studies as to nullify it's action in th s case In this connection, she testi6e g she bad reason to believe that some of tn n best teachers of the school in former yeal @ had been driven to sever their connectio d by reason of the principals arroganc . l toward them, and this was subsequent F confirmed by Mr. Dutton.
 The statement has been made that ' large part of the disorderly conduct of tt e scholars was owing to the absence of SUI e port of the teachers by the principal their attempts to preserve discipline.
 g MT. McAndrew stated that he had bee e told by other teachers many times of il e stances where marks had been taken 0 1T from boys, without consulting tI > teachers who had given them, entirely frol IS the statements of the boys complained 0 0 Scholars were not made to feel that 1T was an important matter to be reported n him. The announcement was made e the school publicly that no scholar nee d stay after school for any teacher, and @ the same address the statement was mac [, that 'he had teachers who did wrong eve1 day of their lives" It was clear that u 'e scholars learned to rely upon Mr. Whi n more to get them out of difficulty in ma le ters of discipline. It is MT. McAndrew 5. opinion that while two years ago, when le entered the school, there were instances 's more fragrant violations of discipline, b1 e that now the disorder is more general ths T before. Mrs. Lockwood stated that ''tl IS tone of the school is lower than it used