The Saint Paul globe., 1897-06-09

the Commercial club, last evening, to
protest against the closing of the Me-
chanic Arts high school and to urge
the adoption of new city charter
under which the present school system
can be maintained. disposed of the
questions in short order. A series of
resolutions were introduced by Oliver
Crosby, and, while there were a num-
Der present who showed a disposition
to have them taken up section by sec
ton and all reference to the new char
ter eliminated, this action was voted
down, and the resolutions adopted by
almost an unanimous vote.
A representative audience of $50 per-
sons, including a number of ladies,
was present when r. c.. Hine, vice
president of the Commercial club, call
ed the meeting to order. Mr.. Hine stat
ed that the meeting was called to pro-
test against the proposed consolidation
of the Humboldt, Cleveland and Me-
chanic Arts high schools with the Cen
tral high school, and any action the
meeting might take would be forwarded
by the Commercial club so far as it
was within its province.
GustaVe Scholle, a member of the
school board, who was the first speaker.
said:
Ehc action of the board las. week was sim
ply that majority voted to consolidate the
Two branch high schools, the Humboldt and
the GleVeiand and the Mechanic Arts high
school into the Central high school. The ac-
tlon was taken on account of the fact that
we nave for the next year a total income
for school purposes of $36S goo. Last year IT
cost US $455, 600 to the schools large
discrepancy, which has to be made un in
some way, and the board is making all sorts
OF economies to meet the reduced amount
lnat we expect from the taxes This action
on our part was simply beginning. We did
IL last week, as we wanted to give the teach
erS a chance to get other positions and the
further economies will be taken un at our
next meeting. personally objected to con-
solldatng the Mechanic Arts high school with
the Central high school. The saving that
would De made would amount to about $4,000
Whlcn, IN my opinion, is a very small sum
compared to the loss to the city of the Me
chanic Arts high school. think this consolida-
ton VIII lose its efficiency. We have not the
room in the building to do the work We
have the basement, but the facilities are not
as good as in the present building. The
management Of the Central high school is not
in sympathy with Mechanic Arts high school
work. Most of the boys who go to our high
school are beginning to understand that the
Mechanic Arts high school offers them
greater inducement for future work than our
Central high school does. The Mechanic Arts
high school is virtually boys school-the
boys high school. And if we had the room
and had the sympathy in the Central high
school, | think it would be for the best inter
est of the city to have the Mechanic Arts
high school Placed in the Central high school
but under the circumstances, for the saving
OF So 000 L did not consider 1t was a wise
move to make and that is why | voted
against it. But you must understand that
the members of the board simply look at it
from a business basis. We have so much
money, and we have to do certain things with
that money. Is it wiser to cut off certain of
the school year or cut off some of its
branches? We will have to cut off at least
one month from the next school year. no
matter what economy we make.
Oliver Crosby followed inspector
Scholle and first read a communica-
ton from Superintendent Curtis, which
outlined some of the reasons for the
introduction and continuance of
manual training as part of the high
school curriculum. According to Super
intendent Curtis:
READS FROM PROF. CURTIS.
The first was for the sake of bodily culture.
Almost all the traditional high school work
was in the direction of bodily destruction. 1t
was proven by the brief experience with
manual training schools that boys and girls
could do better work if they devote a portion
of their time to shop work
The manual training schools brought into
the secondary or high schools a vast number
of boys and girls who would otherwise drop
!
school course. portion of these leave be-
cause of the general impression that what
follows in the high school has no practical
bearing on their future life work. Another
class largely boys, leave because they have
no interest in the studies which constitute the
regular high school course.
Manual training will teach boys and girls
| to entertain real respect for honest labor
! We live in day when the conflict between
| labor and capital is taking ominous FORM a
day in which the struggle between the masses
hn NJ i01Ta dirlcr don
! This comes from the fact that two false lines
of education prevail. The illiterate voter is
l. beng taught by demagogues that the intel
! lectually or financially favored classes enter
! tain contempt for labor On the other hand
! our sons and daughters being educated
to believe that true gentility and manual
| labor are incompatible. Under these condi-
tions the so-called learned professions have
been crowded and mercantile pursuits have
been overcrowded, while we have been obliged
| to import from foreign lands our skilled
Workmen our master artisans and di-
rectors of manual and Industrial efforts. We
must teach our boys and girls that labor is
| honorable in just the degree that it is intel
ligent.
Manual training strengthens the moral nat
ure plants the habit of industry and prevents
social disorder and crime.
| The relations of women TO new economic
| and social conditions demands this Industrial
| training if either ethics or religion are to
be conserved. A vast body OF young women
| in this country go annually to lives OF shame
! SOIely DSCduS6 tHey lack INC bldlnlHS
would enable them to obtain an honest living
and keep them out of the environment which
eventually works their ruin. Many ordain
themselves to be miserable wives and
wretched mothers because they lack training
which preserves the integrity of the home.
MR.. CROSBY CONTINUES.
Continuing, Mr.. Crosby said:
! have with me here a lot of figures that I
! have collected, and which present a pretty
strong argument in themselves. 1 also have
here four letters, one from Boston, one from
| Philadelphia, from Providence and one
from Indianapolis. All from directors from
| the mechanic arts schools in these different
| cities. The sum and substance of those let
! ters are about this: In Boston they have an
average attendance Of 245 pupils, in the Me.
chanic Arts school, In Philadelphia 772,
| Providence 264, indianapolis $50 and in St.
Paul we have 275.
The cost of maintaining these schools is an
! interesting item, and particularly so at this
time. 1t used to be thought that our Me-
chanic Arts school cost too much. But. IL
you compare the cost of our school here with
the amount of money spent in the Eastern
] cities, the result Is quite noticeable. Last
year in Boston, the cost per capita In instruot-