The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-12-22
NEW YORK's TRUANT SCHOOL.
A Place of Mild Detention, but Not of
Punishment.

PuulSnuhcht'
New York Evening Post.
Truancy is often the first step in crime.
Stealing lead pipe ard "pinching'' off the
corner grocery are the next stages. and
then follow the bigger crimes that make the
fmll-hedged felTn In In fact the incorrglplss
bears in his face the strongest testimony
against himself-the criminal conformation.
At the truant school on East Twenty-first
street this fact becomes plainly apparent.
though its pupils are probationers only. not
tried and tested incorrigib!es by any means.
About so per cent. of them, however, be-
come so. The other so per cent. are dis
charged back into the common schools or
into life as cured. At present there are
was onened last Nav New York S first tru-
ant school, though Brooklyn had one twen-
ty years ago. 1t is cross between cor
re"tion institution and an ungraded school.
Most of the pupils are detained in mild can
tivty. hut day punils are taken Also and
some of these come long distances to at
however. is a great traveller, so this part
of his punishment IS not p punishment at
all. The boys who live in the house do the
homework. and a certain amount of class
work is done nv all; reading. writing. draw
ing and the like. and sewing too. for the
manual training that 1t gives. These boys
are markedly awkward in ANYTHING that
Quires delicate or complicated mental or
muscular action. They are primitives. in
ant and lageard behind the race. dull pupils
always. aVerse to. often utterly incaDable
Of. mental effort and always far behind the
average common SchOOI cnld IN the matter
of mental attachments. TO be sure the tru-
ants truancy NAV account in mart for this,
hut then. on the other hand IL is more often
due to It. to the ridicule which his dull wits
bring down upon him from his more intelli-
gent schoolmateS. till he is driven out Of
school. For this reason. Mr.. Locke. who
has charge of the truant school. favors the
establishment in every school district of I'M
graded classes. where the merely dull tru-
ant could be sent to receive the special at
tertinn which his special case requires. and
which the common school cannot give him,
end where he would vet be deprived Of his
liberty. made a semi-pssorer Of hence to
one of his associations a seTni-criminal at
once Confinement in the trdant school is
not, however. always an objection to the
truant himself A good story is told by OFF,
Ger Morris of boy he put away there.
who on returning. said to him: THAT
warnt no punishment. fer fair. De bed
was fine. and de food was out or sight. Dey
give me bread an coffee an oatmeal fer me
breakfast. while ter hum gets bread wild
out oatmeal an coffee, an l sleeps on de
floor
The flag that flies over every school build
ing during school hours is no empty emble IN.
Patriotism as symbolized in the stars and
stripes would seem 20 be almost a cult in
the schools and within them. as without
the colors are conspicuously visible some
times in such prCfusion fairly to offend
with a suggestion of SPREAD aglSism. In
one school. indeed. the spread eagle itself is
actually visible in prOpria PERSONAL fine,
big bird with outsDread wings and defiant
beak, and in his hooked talons the two
striped and starry flags. In another school,
at assembly time, the room fairly bristles
with banners Two big ones hank the prin-
cipals desk each class has its banner;
pictures thereof are on the walls, and be-
hind the principals desk hangs the framed
diploma of the League of the Red, White
ard Blue" an order established in the
school admission to which requires that
candidates should know by heart the six
following patriotic songs: America" The
Star-spangled Banner" THE Flower OF
Liberty" ..The Red. White and Blue
Hail. Columbia" THE American Flag"
This is girls school. too
Every principal OF school IS required 10
give once q month in assembly the Salute
to the Flag" which consists in a presenta-
ton of the colors, the whole school STANG
ing and saluting in military fashion and de-
claiming brief pledge OF allegiance II