The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1896-01-15
MANUAL TRAINING SCHOOLS.

MORE WAR ON THE WORKING CLASS.
A Few years ago there was great
mo vement, among the well-tO-dO
classes, to resist the effort of the
workingmen to preserve their status
as American citizens, by keeping up
their wages, so that they could feed
and clOthe and educate their children
and "live like white men," Those
who had themselves crawled up the
ladder high enough to be out Of the
class of manual workers were iEdig-
nant that their less fortunate fellows
should try to mount single one of
the steps below them. The old spirit
OF an exclusive caste took possession of
them. They failed TO perceive that
the best country to live in is that in
which everybody is we'll enough off to
be good customer for the mercantile
and professional classes; prosperous
enough to be content, and therefore
peaceful; and educated enough to
know his own rights and respect those
of all other men. But this inhuman
desire to kick down the ladder they
had crawled up by actuated the we'll
TODD to establish manual training
schools" in the cities, where the
trades could be taught. The working
class desired that there should not be
so many competing with each other
as to break down the wages Of all; but
the ill-advised, wOuld-be arts tOcrats
desired to flood the labor market and
smash the wretched to greater depths
of wretchedness. st. Paul had some
Of these little lordlings and they es-
tablished Manual Training
School," and now the taxpayers have
the burden of this white elephant on
their hands, and lit is useless for all
practical purposes, and is eating its
big stupid head off.
The Retrenchment comm ittee made
the following report as to this school:
This school is conducted in sep
arate structure, erected especially for
its accommodation. The purpose is,
as its name indicates, to give to pu-
pills taking high school courses of
study, training in the elements of the
mechanic arts. To this end, work
shops or laboratories have been fitted
up, in the building, with various tools
and implements, for working wood
and metals. Skilled mechanics have
been employed to instruct pupils in
the mode Of using TOOLS and Of manip-
ulating materials. These teachers
are understood to be men without
scientific training, and with merely
practical knowledge of their respec-
r.
seem to be much above the wages
they would receive in private employ
mentS. Accurate mechanical drawing
is study in the school. 1t is not
the purpose, nor within the capacity
OF this school, to turn out artisans.
Pupils could not quit the school as
skilled workmen in any trade. The
purpose is rather to round out the
education of the pupil. by training the
muscular sense, and giving him a
practical knowledge Of those general
facts about the nature Of materials,
and the modes Of working them, that
all handicrafts are concerned with.
The chief cause Of the large cost per
pupil OF carrying on this school, is the
fact that the attendance is SO small
could be taught at but slightly, if any.
per cent Of the boys taking high
school instruction. resort to the
Manual Training School. This is
chiefly because so small q proportion of
the pupils an our high schools expect to be-
come mechanics. The superintendent
of the city schools could not give the
committee the names of any Of the boys
no,c IN the high schools. ,cho plan learminy
trades after finishing their studies. The
rlncipal of the Manual Training
School has the following information
touching the present occupations of
fifty-one former students OF that
school, and of the plans of 143 now at
tending there. The tifty-one former
students are occupied as follows:
At college. Ill
DCU us Us )
CuINcF us =
Mechanical engineers. ............. 4
M"rCtidHU .... ........... !
NicTkS ii
IIuSlICCI L
oh, ov,tn