The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-01-09
HOBOKEN SCANDAL.
Disgraceful Conduct of a
Ianitor in Public School
No. 2.
PRESIDENT RUSS'S CHARGES
Principal Lycett viii Have to
Answer For His Neglect-Jani.
tor Merely Reprimanded.
PRESIDENT RUSS'S CHARGES
Principal Lyeett Will Have to
2.


There is about to be a generous shaking up
In the public schools Of Hoboken directed
towards the principals. The Board of Edu-
cation is about decided that the principals Of
the schools do not report to them certain
happenings in their schools as required, and
last night they made an example of one prin-
cipal, John w. Lycett, of School No. 2
President Russ drew up a series of charges
against the principal, and iutimated that
there would be more to follow if thi ngs
were not improved. The charges are as fol-
lows
TEE r
Under Rule s., | hereby charge Principal
Iohu w. Lycett with failing TO report to the
on Teachers. Salary and School
Government, the following dslinquencies on
the par; Of Jauitor Mccarthy of School No. 2,
"a Failing to report. his absence on various
day ) between the first day OF Novsmbsr and the
fifteenth day of the same month OF 1873
% Failing to report that the fires in the
stoves and furnaces Of No. 2 School were not
lighted a sufficient length OF time before school
ims In the incoming of January 3, 1884. and that
9n The said daY The rooms OF SAID school were
not heated q sufficient length OF time in the
morning to have the rooms comfortable aud
sufficiently warnl for The reception of pupils by
or before {, 50 A. NJ.
90 Failing TO report that the said schoo !
building is generally kept In a filthy and un :
eleanly condition aud more particularly on tn e
SAID third day of January.
"a Failing to report that the said Janitor had
repeatedly appeared at the scnool in an intoxi-
gated condition and more particularly on the
third day OF January.
90 That the said principal violated rule 20 in
failing 10 report neglect on the part OF Janitor
Mccarthy.
o. That School No. 2 was closed on the morn
ding of January 3, 1894, without good aud suf-
6rfanf rAason- r| ne
ID That School No. 2 was closed on the mora
ing of January 3 without the reason therefore
being reported 20 the board at this. Its next
regular meeting.
RUSS SERIOUS ACCUSATIONS.
Trustee Hicks took charge of the gavel
While President Russ got pon the floor to
speak ON the resolution. He said, with con-
siderable animation:-
Il am convinced that the way to strike at
the root of these evils is to strike at the head.
Things that happen never come before our
notice until dragged through the mud and
mire, finally reaching us through the agency
of the papers. | thank the papers for this.
But | declare it is better for such things to
come through the proper channels, Nc
earthly should have oeen warmed when he
was found derelict. If Mccarthy was sick
/ find good cause for his absence. But this
board was never aPprised of his sickness as
it should have been, and for each days
absence u ianitor is deducted in pay unless
sufficient reason is given. Sometimes the
condition of the school Is bad. Sometimes
Janitor Mccarthy is not as sober as he should
be. | blame Principal Lycett more than amy
one else"
Principal Lycett sat in the rear of the
room, his eyes fixed upon Mr.. Russ. His
face was pale and he was slightly uneasy.
Mr.. Russ continued:
If Mr.. Lycett had warned Mccarthy the
latter would have done better work. Not
alone is this principal at fault, but l intend
- - Lis, % 1r-ar ofha.c
We hear of these things only from the OUT
side. It's a shame. The man in charge of
No. 2 school is the man to blame in this
matter-Lycett.
TEACHERS DEsPIsE HIM.
His conduct is outrageous. The teach
ers despise him. They hold him in con-
tempt, everyone. The truth. l may say,
never goes through his lips. He never
speaks it; he does not know what it is. |
say, the quicker we bring these men up and
severely deal with them, the better it will be
for all concerned. | make a motion that
this matter rest with the Committee on
Teachers Salaries and School Government
The motion was carried.
Charges were preferred against Janitor
Mccarthy i'll not having the fires lit in No. :
school on January ) so that the scholars
could attend school. The temperatures of
the rooms up to noon was too low to admit of
pupils sitting comfortably in their rooms.
les POLITICIAN.
Janitor Mccarthy said when called TO ex-
plain, that be came to the school at one
O'Clock that morning to start the fires. 'The
morning was heavy" he said, "and the fires
did not go as they should have. l sat in a
chair when they smoked, and would not
burn, and went to sleep until six O'Clock.
Then the fires were out. | was not drunk
that morning. I had the fires started up
again by nine o'clock, why had some by
six, and at ten o'clock the building was warm
enough all over"
Trustee Sanford saidMcC arthyshould have
had the fires well started at one o'clock, and
moved that as a punishment he be suspended
to February l. Trustee Heating came to
MeCarthy's rescue by saying that as the only
complaint was not kindling fires in time he
considered it a trivial charge, and moved
that the board President reprimand Nc
Carthy. This was done. In talking to him
President Russ said he felt assured il Nc
earthly had known the matter would ever
come before the board it would never have
happened.
CHRONIC coMERs.
The board intends to get at teachers who
are chronic Late corners. HAS Illlstee Hess
moved that all these teachers give excuses
in each instance when such things happen.
He gave a report of the minutes the teachers
were late during December, amounting to
LOO minutes. The board left the matter
with the Committee on School Government.
When a claim of Contractor A. w. Clay
tons was presented, lTuSIee lAeiu Saiu ne
was against paying it because, he claimed,
Contractor Clayton owed a balance to the
board. Trustee Cannon said Clayton did not
owe any money to the board The claim was
ordered paid
WILL LOOK UP H LAW.
Mary F~itzgibbons requested that entrance
to the Normal School be granted her.
Trustee Hess objected, arguing that only a
pupil from the High School could enter the
Normal School, and Miss Fitzgibbons was
not a High School student. The matter was
referred to experimenting Principal Rue
and the Committee on Normal Schools.
County Superintendent Houghton, not
satisfied with the privilege granted for the
use of No. 6 School for the county examiiia-
ton on February 5 and 4 On condition that
4 no class be dismissed, endeayored to have
the matter recousidered by requesting that a
class lie dismissed. He thinks this should be
done, but tue communication was not COLI
;idered, having been settled before,
The committee appointed to examine into
class grades and report those not up to the
required average, reported that they bad
found tue schools ia an unsatisfactory con
dition in this respect aud recommended that
the principals of the various schools make
examination OF the grades and report be-
fors February Ia TO the board. After that
time they viii be held responsible for the
grade average. The board then adjourned