The Portland daily press., 1892-01-15
WASHINGTOI'S SCHOOLS.
They Are Good, But OVereroWded in
Every Department.
scores of People Who Pay No Taxes in
the pistrictlof Columbia Take Advan-
cage of It's Creditabie Educational
Institutions-In Franklin Park.
tsnecial Washington letter.

fTlRf OF COlulu W1AA0Ai ID now III UIlC
hands of the district commissioners, is
an exceptionally interesting public doc
ument.
The superintendent says that congress
has provided literally for the erection,
extension and improvement of school
buildings during the past few years
and that most of the schools are taught
ON full time. Nevertheless, it is fact
that a number of schools above the
second grade have been restricted to
halliday time because OF the fact that
there is not sufficient room in the school
buildings to accommodate all of the
pupils He says that there are over
fortv-ive thousand children attending
these schools, while there is only room
to accommodate about thirty-one thou
sand of them, so that in order that all
NAV attend one-third are given only
halliday time. That is to say that
pupils of the third grade can occupy q
room from nine o'clock until twelve,
while pupils of the fourth or fifth grade
NAV occupy the same room from one
o'clock until four in the afternoon. It
is desirable, indeed necessary, that
there should be an additional eight
room building in each Of the school di-
visions of the city, while number of
schoolhouses are needed in the growing
suburbs.
One thing that stands out most prom
inent in the report of the superintend-
ent is the fact that SO many non-resi-
dents of the District of Columbia claim
and are accorded school privileges for
their children. There are over four
hundred members of the house and of
the senate and fully six hundred en-
ployes of the capitol and its adjunets,
who pay no taxes whatever in the Dis
trict of Columbia, yet demand the priv
ilege of sending their children to the
public schools. 1t is impossible for the
school authorities to distinguish be-
tween the real and temporary citizens
of the national capital, as we have no
polling precincts, no voters, nor other
means of ascertaining bona fde resi-
dents. Therefore it happens that any
family residing in the city, whether
temporarily or permanently, is assumed
to have the right to send their children
for instruction in the various grades of
our public schools.
Quite number of the children grow
to young manhood and young woman
hood under the tutelage of District in
structors and are fitted for admission
to the high school. The superintendent
calls attention to the fact that the pres
ent high school building is not large
enough to accommodate the constantly
increasing number o. pupils advanced
to that grade, and he. recommends the
establishment OF other coordinate high
schools as very desirable adjuncts to
the. present educational machinery.
The plant for coordinate high schools
will be found to be exceedingly expen-
sive, and it is not at all likely that the
present congress, either senate or house,
will be inclined to deal literally with
any matters whatever, not even for the
educational advancement of the rising
generation
There is spirit of economy in the
air of the national capital; but it is a
cheese-paring spirit, sort Of save-at-
the-spigo t-and-waste-at the bung-hole
economy. Therefore it is not like
ly that the recommendations for the es-
tablishment of coordinate high schools
will be favorably acted upon by con-
gress. 1t is shown by this same report
that congress has heretofore insisted
upon limitations in the salaries of
| teachers, SO as to make 1t
utterly impossible for the superintend-
ent to employ the number of experts re-
CURED for well-equipped high school.
This may seem strange as a corollary
of the fact that the children of our
statesmen are being educated in these
schools.
1t will be interesting, especially to
my younger readers, to know the cur
riculm adopted by the high schools OF
the District OF Columbia. The first
years work is: In the academic branch
English, history, algebra, Latin, lee
lures on physiology and physical geog-
raphy.
Scientifc-German, lectures on phys
iology and physical geography.
| Business branch-same as above,
with bookkeeping, business arithmetic,
lectures on physiology and physical
geography by advanced instructors.
The attendance upon the schools dur
ing the past year has been exception
ally good because it has been uniform
ly regular. The increased attendance
was peculiar in that it was confined al
most wholly to the upper grades. This
was not because of the crowded condi-
ton of the schools of the lower grade,
nor was it because the lower grade
schools received less care and attention
than those of the upper grades. The
superintendent in his report is unable
to account for this peculiar fact.
The good people of Washington arc
suffering from the same affection which
pears SO heavily upon the fathers OF
| families in almost every considerable
| city in the United States. Every year,
for some reason Or other, and from
some motive more occult than trans
parent, the teachers discover what
seems to be a necessity for a change in
the kind of text books in common use.
For this reason secondhand books can
not be bought and the older children
| cannot transfer as precious legacies to