Evening star., 1898-11-22
THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Board Of Trade Committee Submits
Its Annual Report.
INCREASING DEMAND FOR FACILITIES
Superintendent PoweIPs Views ot
Certain Local Conditions.
QUESTION OF NON-RESIDENTS

The annual report of the committee on
public schools Of the board of trade has
been submitted by Chairman A. P. Far
don, and will be incorporated in the eighth
al nual report of the board, which will soon
be ready for the printer. In part the report
is as follows:
Your committee on public schools, in its
last annual report, confined It's recommen-
dations to the manual training branch of
instruction, indorsing the recommendation
of the District Commissioners for an ap-
preparation of s250,OOO for two buildings,
one for the white and one for the colored.
The recommendation of the committee was
Subsequently approved by the board of
trade, and by its aid jointly with the Com
mlssloners, Congress appropriated $4,000
with authority to procure a site and ar
range for one building, the cost not to ex-
ceed S125,OOO. A suitable site has been pur-
CHASED, at an expense Of about $4S,0tt0. The
commissioners now ask of Congress the ad-
oltlonaI appropriation OF $4,000. Your COM
mittee feel gratified that it's efforts with
our national legislators were not in vain
we received the half leaf and long for the
other half-for the manual training school
for the colored.
Your committee are in doubt whether the
S5,00O asked for the erection and equip
ment of the building will be sufficient. A
model building should be erected here at
the national capital which should be equal
II not superior, to any in other progressive
cities Of the country, to meet the present
and future demands for this important
branch of public education.
The IncreasinY Demand.
The rapidly increasing population of the
District and the laudable interest by all
classes of our citizens in public education
OF necessity create an increasing demand
for school facilities. This demand should
be met without hestancy to the end that
appropriations sufficiently liberal shall be
made that no one within our borders shai!
be denied or abridged in school facilities
from the age the child receives its first
impression to the point at which those i'm
pressions fructify and fit the child for act
i've life The state should not only furnish
public education to all who knock at the
school house door, but enforce it by COM
pulSory laws.
Your committee are gratifed and proud
70 report That year by year school facili-
Ties nave increased, bringing equipped
buildings, improved methods of teaching,
with an ADLER corps of teachers. We are
not ashamed of any part of our system of
education, but are willing to compare it
with any other locality in our country.
Good as it is, there is, however need and
pressing necessity for greater facilities
While it may be affirmed that in this Dis
trlct children have not been denied schoo.
must be said that in some instances chit
dren have not been able to have proper
facilities on account of this lack of room.
Even taking the system as it now exists
1t calls tor two sessions per day in all the
grades except the first and second Owing
to the lack of room ii is found practica Bile
to extend school facilities to children in the
third and fourth grades in some instances
only by having halliday schools. 1t is
far better that the erection of school build
ings should be in advance of the school
population. In other words, it is better
to have too much room than to have not
enough. If we had an enforceable com
pulsory law-as we should have-that every
child should receive for certain number
of days in each year either public or pri-
vate schooling we would be greatly lacking
in room. AS it is there should be no
abridgment in facilities for daily attend
ance in the first six grades; If any shall
suffer for want of room (Which we hope
in the future will not be the case) let it
be those in the higher grades.
Replies From Cities.
Your committee in its Investigations of
public instruction have received in answer
to certain inquiries replies from the super
intendents of public schools in twenty-five
cities In different sections of the country
and in none OF them are nonresident chill
dren allowed to attend without the pay
ment of cost of tuition or stated sums from
SIS to $50 per school year or an average of
about $50 per year. Worcester, Mass, the
lowest, Chicago and Alexandria the highest
$50.
THE District of Columbia seems to be the
one exception, and that without authority
of law, where non-residents are permitted
to attend our schools. Several hundred
are now attending not only the graded
but the high, manual training and COM
mercial schools. Unquestionabiy We should
welcome to our schools all children that
permanently or temporarily reside here.
Whether we should throw open our school
doors for the free education of those who
reside Lot for single day here, but come
and go daily from their homes In neighbor-
Ing states, is a question worthy Of con-
Sideration.
Your committee approve and recon-
mend the Endorsement of the board Of trade
of the estimates made by the board of
school trustees and approved by the Com
missioners, to be submitted to Congress
The creation of the office of assistant
superintendent, as asked for. is absolutely
necessary, as all the time of the super
intendent is required and should be given
to the purely educational part. The in
CT ease for the vising principals, for
increase in number of teachers (36 in alb
an incr reased appropriation for the teachers
of night schools. The small appropriation
for the kindergarten last year was only
sufficient to initiate the work. and an ap-
preparation Of $4,000 should be made to
put it upon a permanent basis.
Fund for Repairs.
1.-THE $4,000 asked for repairs to school
buildings will all be required to put and
keep them in proper repair and sanitary
condition. The s75,oo0 for the erection Of
manual training school building should
be early appropriated by Congress and
made Immediately available. The new
school buildings asked for are needed, the
full amount of the appropriation asked for
each building should be granted-not re-
duced, as In many cases heretofore-with
the result that lots of limited dimensions
for buildings had to be procured with in
sufficient ground about them for proper
light, ventilation and yards for the chill
Gren during their recreation"
The report is based upon subordinate re-
ports from subcommittee, very few of the
recommendations of the latter however.
being incorporated in the official report as
printed above.
In the report of the subcommittee on pri-
mary schools the following data is given
concerning the Washington schools:
I'VE have S94 schools of all grades of
which 234 are compulsory halliday schools
-1S4 of these being white and 100 colore5
These compulsory halliday schools com
prise more than one-quarter of allan ag-
gregate of not less than II 600 pupils who
in the most receptive and impressionable