Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-12-19


Most Of the shops that form the industr;.l
part of the plant are located in q large one
stored building built on three sides of a square
in the rear Of the boys quarters. forming the
extreme northern boundary of the establish
| ment There are Eve Of them here where the
boys are trained to be tailors, timers, cobblers
carpenters and harness makers. The black
smith shop Is in a stone building rod or SO to
| the west but the superintendent will soon
| move il into the new boiler house and turn the
| old stone structure over to the boys OF the Y.
d: {. A., who have agreed to furnish it.
The industrial classes of the girls are placed
in the dining hall building and are largely
ntilitarian; that 10, they produce goods for
home consumption The sewing room and Q
tailoring or dressmaking establishment are on
the second floor; the school kitchen used for
the classes in cooking. while the girls are given
courses in the laundry and ironing room. A
graduated student has charge of the bakery,
with two student apprentices as assistants.
! Journeymen printers are turned out from
tne school printing office, which is located in a
| large and well-lighted room over the boiler
plant Here q couple of dozen boys set type
and manage the presses that produce the Job
| work for the school well as q little weekly
news sheet called The Helper and a monthly re-
| view entitled The Reohndn.
Small wages are paid in the shops, so az to
| remove cause for complaint that the pupils are
forced to do the labor OF the institution, as
well rs to afford some incentive for earnest
| work These compensations range from to
| IL cents for each half days attendance in the
shops. The money is put to the credit of the
pupils in the school bank. The girls get no
wages except as mattresses in the dining rooms.
| THE BOYS BAND.
Avery creditable band of about twenty pieces
furnishes music for the school on all occasions
1t Is at present led by bright young Oneida
named Dennson Wheelock. who has finished
| ms course at Carlisle and is now attending law
Lectures at the Dickinson College: He has re-
Gently secured full set Of new silver
work has managed to drill his COM
panions into the production OF some very
excellent music. Indeed, while the pieces
that they play are of light, lively char
acter. they could easily give handicap to the
average town or village band and beat it out.
Wheclock is very clover performer on the
cornet, and accompanies the school in
singing whenever it assemblies in the
chapel. He is also the major Of the bat
talon, though it is but seldom that he is
called upon to exercise his military duties.
| The boys are very devoted to their work of
making music and take much time as posi-
Die for practice. They have room set apart
for them In the gymnasium building and they
are blowing and footing at all hours when of
| duty. On Saturday the captain-he is seldom
| or never addressed Capt. Pratt-asked one
| OF the boys to go to The station with three
others to get a trunk, offering a compensation.
| The lad replied that he would like to earn the
money, but that he belonged to the band and
there was rehearsal called for q few minutes
later and he must decline the job. This was
nammon dowred by music.
The gentle air of melody is utilized very
largely in prying open the hearts of these boys
and girls. 1t Is given to then in all forms and
lnace 30 much part Of their daily lives that
they come to love it and 10 seek for it. No
more poten. softening influence can be found.
AT meals grace Is sung i'll unison by the Ell tire
school before a crumb OF food il touched. Mu-
sic Is taught in various forms in the classes and
In many cases some natural talent is found and
developed.
There is a choir of about thirty or thirty-five
| voices. led by one of the matrons and accom-
panied by teacher on the piano and Denison
Nheelock on the cornet The leading soprano
Is little Pueblo girl, who wears glasses. whose
voice has an excellent range though omewhat
small power. She sang a solo On the Saturday
night Of the commissioner s.visit that would
have done credit TO some comic opera singers.
There IL another soloist, an Apache girl. whose
voice is full. rich contralto. As rule the
girls are better singers than the bows, whose
voices range too low to be of much use except
in chorus work.
The school sings readily from the HYMN
books, though Of course, only the Oldest pupils
have learned to read music. and the little ones
join In whenever they find familiar strain5.
TRIBES MIXED TOGETHER.
S'SA my tAhSiCht uADcs are Represented at
the school, but there are no distinctions of any
kind to mark them. In fact it is the aim of
the superintendent. to break down all tribal
lines and autagonisms and to make all the pu-
pills feel first that they belong to the general
class OF Indians and then that thev are mem
bers Of the great family of Americans. He is
succeeding very largely in this, though. of
course, there is perhaps more companionship
between boys and girls who come from the
same agency than among those who hail from
widely separated sections. Yet in the assign
ment OF rooms to pupils it is usually the case
that those OF the same tribe are not put to-
gether. Such combination as a Pawnee an
Oneida and Sioux in the same room is not
unusual and in many cases the most startling
associations are formed, with Indians bunk ing
together of tribes that have for generations
been at war with each other.
SOCIETIES, ETC.
There are several societies organized among
the pupils. Foremost among these are the
band which is treated elsewhere; the Y. NJ C.
A, which is in excellent standing in the state
organizations; a branch of the Kings Daugh-
tiers, which does some good work in keeping
the girls occupied in vacation time: two debat-
Ing societies that are desperate rivals on fire.
quent occasions, and an athletic club that CON-
prlses gymnasium club. base ball team and
foot ball eleven. The boys take naturally to
the Indian clubs, ami last Saturday night five
OF tnem gave an exhibition OF artistic club
swinging in the enter tainment in honor of the
commissioner.
The Y. NJ. c. A. affliates with the branch in
the town Of Carlisle and that formed by the
Dickinson College students. Union meetings
OF these are held three times each year. at the
various rooms. That at the school occurred last
Sunday. Gen. Morgan delivering an address
The foot ball and base ball teams compete
with those OF the town at frequent intervals.
and there is always a great deal of uncertainty
as to the results A few years ago some of the
boys played lacrosse. the native Indian game
OF ball, but 1t did not grow in favor in compe-
htion with base ball and SO it died out. This
presents an odd spectacle Of evolution.
FARMING OUT
Capt. Pratt's appropriations and accommo-
dations are sufficient to provide for only about
$50 pupils, but he has managed to take nearly
600 in altogether by building up his system of
farm employment. 1t was started several wears
ago and has become so successful and SO widely
known that he is constantly in receipt of letters
from well-to-do people all over Pennsylvania
and the neighboring states asking for reliable
Indian boy or girl When such letter comes
he first makes inquiries by correspondence as
to the character of the applicant and then he
picks out a worthy pupil whom he thinks
would be satisfactory and offers him the place.
Seldom does he receive a refusal The wages
offered are not very large, but as the bows and
girls have seldom before earned any money at
all they are eager for the opportunity In
some cases nothing is paid. but the pupil IN