The sun., 1896-06-20
,MEllkISET3lEEElM

S3tSzsss
TEE ''PLAY ROOM" GRAMMAR scHoor. eo,
Il seems that the first OF this remarkable
series OF penics took place some three weeks
ago In Grammar School "a, which is at Broome
and willett streets. There are over thou
sand girls in the primary department of this
school, and they arc like nine-tenths Of the
children in the east side schools, in that they
are the daughters of ignorant parents, full OF
Old World superstiuons. The news Of the
panic in tho Broome street school was sup
pressed at the time. It was small affair
COMPARED with yesterday,s and Thursdays
pupils I Of tSis school % have been be- me Questioned %
Of them seems to know just who started It.
Ono girl insisted that it was o youngster in
nSsr was IN ali
i vas HsSrew Sri From ether thing h;s1
heard at home that the millennium-or rather
the jewish eouivalent..was coming and that
prior to its arrival the devil was coming to re.
to paradise. The youngster told this story In
the school and the result was soon apparent.
expected visit Of the devil. and worked them
selves UP to such q state Of nervousness. that
play room one afternoon. shrieking at the top top
Of her lungs thas she had Just seen the devil.
Although this trouble was soon suppressed,
tho damage was done, and the story spread all
the sSos. s Il s shspsr. Of
story gradually increased in horrible details
Gns hs. s6 the
Grsmmar School %. at Mulberry and Bayard
stress. was the second school 10 suffer from
Kss ,ens ao1en Ss haa
on Thursday. week ago and calling out that
she bad seen IN the play room E; ghost With blue
Had there been more children around. there
would undoubtedly have been panic this time,
had seeTe ali to s ha'
Yesterdays outbreak was pndoubtedly the
seSco OF on AND
ran around bawling out for somebody 10 save
them from the devil. 49,.
we're W two IDIOTS o one % whose cries Of There 'i he
is on the roof !" and Fire started the young
dued. The other increased the excitement
by telling mothers that their children had been
the school. There were two more such IDIOTS
at yesterdays panic
and Sae a se
on, the east side. The general arrangement OF
the play rooms rooms Is the same % , as in the he other
dark corners. enticing to an alarmed imaStna-
tion.
Stanton street Side Of the fbuildins, and the
to play around and talk before beginning their
:.edS sronnd Ss the dn M Fg t Geae e
and play in the .t street: Miss Julia a: Bell;
the pcHsPH S & hS Pfa%46S as tsHd the
children around easly 30 as to get them out Of
Yesterday morning twen ty We little pale faced
girls stood In group around the Play room
@ sas them @ talking, and heard one little girl say;
al hfd around h only for the
pIeecemen 'twould have carried them all of"
stct"rs % an tina that IL iva waved ed it 'GHaE around an
Ground naa91 an aTHgna an that fome of the girls
''Yes, an it climbed up on the roof. too. A
ss% # sag gt in in s ts gno9S G to
ON on about % his @ work. When So O'clock sounded
he opened the play room door, =, but the children
elowly, and. once inside. sat around whisper
just how The trouble started or who started
It Wade does not know. He was sitting on
stool on the sidewalk In front Of the pl lay room
'sli "Ths % devil Is here! The devil is hcre!''
came ors yss and Su sS5tE OF fee
when the little ones rushed In into their midst
ing in the doorway. held back the others who were
trying, to get ont: TAe policemen on duty at
but he could do nothing with them, and he
finally gave IL up and sent In an alarm TO tho
station house. In the mean time men and wo-
men poured ont MT OF the tenements, a. and Sr There
the school in less than ten minu.es.
Sergeant Lane got tho alarm at the Union
Market station house, and hustled out the re-
IN short Iio order. When tho police got to the
school a man had just been shouting, There
he isn' and Fire !" at the top of his lungs. and
things were worse than ever. Another man,
who Ia described as n tramp with great black
whiskers and a..scarred forehead, had been in
his face hOrr bly,. Miss Bell and severa Of
tho teachers arrived at about tue same time
utes' work they succeeded in calming down the
panic-stricken children and their foolish moth
ers. As fast as group OF youngsters was
calm. Miss Bell hustled them or into
classroom in charge n u teacher, and set
them TO singing. In this way the youngsters
were gradually got into the school. where Miss
Bell didn't give them a chance to do anything
Iout sing for half an hour.
The policemen had a lot OF work getting tho
parents and relatives to go home, hut ihnlIy
dispersed them all. None of the children was
hurt except for few scratches, but dresses
hopelessly iniyee up and sCattcr,d.
Superintendent Jasper OF the Public Schools
said yesterday that ne had had no ofnclal re:
ports of hS bss1S about G e s" %r hi
fear OF the devil which seemed 10 exist among
the east side children. am,
Tho fact that no children were % ,t Killed IN
hs he sSS due sGs oni
children are carefully trained aud drilled,
and IL Is Impossible for any serious panic 10
occur II the teachers are present. The worst
tSaehsrs arrived. AS soon as the children saw
the IsAchsrs they Gained down ana were soon
controlled. ! cannot und"rsthnd this devil