The San Francisco call., 1896-09-20

steal. If you meet such one you may
know it has never been in kindergarten.
| think you will now understand why I
am so strongly In favor of kindergartens."
In the same line is the opinion of Chief
OF Police Crowley, who said:
81 can cheerfully bear witness to the
good accomplished by the establishment
OF the free kindergartens in this City.
My opinion is based on reports that have
received from police officers."
That hundreds of citizens hold similar
views is proved by the fact that the many
kindergartens of this City are kept open
at yearly expense of 30,O00, all OF this
| being derived from private subscriptions,
as the kindergartens have not been en-
grated on the public-school system as
they should and ultimately will be.
The Golden Gate kindergarten Associ-
alton has made thorough investigation
of the careers of the first 5000 boys and
girls who passed through the kindergar-
tens and were received by the schools.
The police records of this and neighbor-
ing communities were searched and but
one of the kindergarten children was
found who had ever been arrested. That
one was half-witted boy, who was subse-
quently committed to the asylum for
feeble-minded children instead of being
sent to prison, he can hardly be counted
against the kindergarten.
The total number of children trained up
! to the present date is 24,000, and good re-
ports are heard from ali. Some of the
first graduates of the first kindergartens
established on Barbary Coast, the worst
part OF the City, have grown to manhood
and womanhood and hold respectable po-
sitions in the community. One is prac-
ticing attorney of acknowledged worth
and ability. These children of the poor
are, generally speaking, bright enough.
What they need is helping hand in the
road to correct thinking and correct Iiv-
ing. This helping hand the kindergarten
extends.
Professor Joseph O'Connor, principal of
the Horace Mann Grammar School, SAYS
that he greatly favors the kindergarten
system for the children of the well to do
as well as for the poor. Indeed he cannot
see why condition of prosperity should
deprive any child of the great advantage
of such training. Accordingly he has
been instrumental in engrafting some of
Froebels methods upon the work of the
primary grades of the public schools. All
the public school principals and teachers
agree that the kindeigartens are blessing
to the community.
1t is well-known fact that from a single
neglected little girl in New York there
has come during the past fifty years an
army of 1000 criminals and paupers, en-
failing an expense of hundreds of thou
sands of dollars to the taxpayers Of that
State. Considering this fact, who can es-
innate the expense saved to California
and to San Francisco from training into
ways of virtue and well-doing "a, 600 chill
dren gathered in localities which produce
a large share of our criminal population.
Without doubt kindergartens are cheaper
than prisons and more effective than re-
form schools.
Another phase of this work is that the
homes OF these children are frequently
bettered by the good influence of the
you gest tots in the household.
A clean baby is a splendid object lesson.
and the feeling of pride rearoused in the
mothers heart has often been known to
extend to other members of the fam ily
circle. and IN some cases actual revolutions
for the better have taken place. involving
not only the older children but the par
ents as well.