Evening star., 1896-12-28
A Defense Of the System in Use in
Washington.
ANSWERING A RECENT CRITICISM
All Modern Buildings Provided With
Approved Appliances.
FRESH AIR AND HEAT

ton of. school houses, made the assertion
that there is no regulation in the Dis
trict respecting the heating and ventila-
ton of school houses Only in the High
School, he said, is there any system here
OF ventilation, in the other buildings ven
tilation being obtained mainly by opening
windows.
Mr.. w. b. Powell, superintendent of the
public schools, was present at the meet
ing, and he took occasion to deny the
assertion of Mr.. Pennell that there is In
the District public schools no system of
ventilation. In conversation with a Star
reporter today Mr.. Powell again asserted
the District public schools have a system
of ventilation. and while the authorities
do not claim that il is a perfect one they
do claim that II is the best obtainable un-
der all the circumstances. The system
provided, he explained, is the Ruttan, and
not only are the new school houses pro-
vided with it, but 1t has, he said been
introduced into many of the old buildings
Not satisfied with this, he remarked the
authorities, after investigating the sub
ject, reinforced the system by the EN-
ployment Of what is known as the far
system, and the last three school houses
built were so supplied. The authorities
are still considering the matter and will
neglect no opportunity to further improve
the ventilation of the school houses. The
good, excellent in many of the houses, and
will compare most favorahly on the whole
with school houses elsewhere.
BY the Ruttan system, explained MIR.
Powell, the air Is received from below
and passes over furnaces which heat it,
Then 1t is carried into the rooms above
the heads of the children at the sides
passing out of the rooms through perfor-
ated baseboards, and passing under the
floors to exhaust chimneys which are kept
hot by furnaces provided for that pur-
pose, the furnaces always running. There
are two exhaust stacks chimneys, said
Mr.. Powell, 10 every eight-room school
house here, each stack exhausting the air
from four rooms. In the new buildings
this same system is in operation reinforced
by fans in the Geld air chambers the fans
being driven by gas engines. and the con-
tracts for the houses i'm course of cree
tion provide for the employment of this
combined system of ventilation.
Mr.. Dodge's Statement.
Mr. w. c. Dodge, who as former mem
ber of the board OF school trustees was
largely instrumental i'm introducing the
present veEtiiatng system into the public
schools. has written to The Star in regard
to the statement made at the Civic Center
meeting as follows:
IF this statement had been limited to
the score of one and two-room buildings
IN the county, and TO a few of the larger
buildings erected prior to 1884, l do not
think 1t would be far wrong, but when ap-
piled TO the large number of eight room
buildings erected since that time Il conveys
very erroneous idea.
AS chairman of the committee on build
inss and. repairs in the school board in
lSS2-3 / gave special attention to the sub
Jects of heating and ventilation. with the
result that in 1884 We secured the adoption
of what was known as the Ruttsn-Smead
system of warming and ventilation, which
no Lx.an IsaI II.
ings since erected. In brief. this system
consists in providing each building with
two ventilating stacks, generally four by
SIX feet in area, extending from the base
out above the roof to receive from the
various rooms the foul air, and convey
1t TO point above thereof SO it may not
by any means be returned to the building.
To secure a strong draft in these stacks
a small furnace or heater is located in
the base OF the ste ok in most cases, though
in some of the more recently erected build
ngs fans have been substituted; and where
power Is convenient fans are undoubtedly
preferable, because they insure a more
positive movement of the air When the
city is supplied in all sections with the
electric current, as il should and we hone
soon will be, that viii furnish the SIM
plest means for operating the fans.
"A special feature of the Smead system
immense heating surface, and in bringing
In a very much larger volume Of fresh air
than usual, the idea being to supply a very
large volume of fresh air at a spring tenn
perature, instead of a small volume at a
high temperature, as is the case with
ordinary furnaces as generally used. Not
only does this give a much better supply OF
fresh air, but il gives II in a better condi-
tion for respiration, as the moisture which
the air naturally contains is not ex'rac ted
from II to near as great an extent "a wher
highly heated. IL being a well-es IA Dlished
fact that the dryness of the air increases
huh ftraer tn ta,.. ..
crease of temperature. Air should be fur
nished in the rooms as nearly as possible
with the same degree of moisture as IL
ordinarily has outside, and for that reason
provision should be made for mostening
the air when highly heated as dry air
has great affinity for moisture taking II
up from any and all substances with which
IL comes in contact When highly heated
air is inhf led 1t absorbs the moisture
from the mucus membranes of the nostrils
throat, SC, and hence ii is that furnace
heat so often produces bad effects. especial
ly where the volume of fresh air supplied
is small. and it enters the room at a high
temperature. This the Smead system seeks
to avoid.
Another feature of this system con-
sists in taking the foul air out at the bot
tom Of the room, by which means all parts
OF the room can he uniformly heated, and
which is a very important feature.
The General Principle.
simply because IL has been expanded by
the heat, and is, therefore, lighter than the
cold or surrounding air. If now The warm
er air be brought Into a room at or near
the floor. and an opening fer the escape of
the foul air be located at or near the top
of the room, The result will be that the
warm, fresh air VIII pass through tn.
room in a direct line from the inlet TO the
outlet, leaving the air in all other portions.
of the room comparatively unwarmed and
stagnant. Ii, on the other hand. there is
no escape for il above. the infiowing fresh
air will ascend TO the ceiling and spread ou,
In a horizontal strata over the entire room:
and as the warm air continues 10 flow in
the horizontal stratum will become con-
stantly deeper until the room IS filled uni
formly from ceiling TO floor, thereby in
suring the same degree of temperature al
all sides q the room. Another important
result of the downward movement of the
air is that the particles of dust, germs
ETC., stirred up by the movement of the
feet upon the floor are carried downward
and out, whereas by an upward caarrent
they are carried up past the face and are
necessarily Inhaled with the air more or
less. Having thus explained briefly what
the system adopted IS, now let us see how
1t operates; and fortunately 1 have the
data furnished. by disinterested outside
parties by which to do IL.
I'm 1855 city in Massachusetts concluded
to build fine High School building and
81.