Worcester morning daily spy., 1898-03-08
THE CITY COUNCIL.
Big Crowd Awaits Appointment
of License Commission.
EAST SIDE HIGH SCHOOL.
Councilman O'Connell Makes a
Plea for His District.
Committee on Education Reports Favor
ably on Several Schemes for Better
Educational FaclIities-Parks Com
missioner Hart's Nomination
Confirmed.
EAST SIDE HIGH SCHOOL

The meeting of the city council Mon
day evening, attracted ali unusually
large crowd of interested taxpayers, the
lode stone that drew them to the city
hall being the expected appointment OF
the license commissioners by Mayor
Dodge The crowd was not disappoint-
ed, but it was very much surprised in
the appointment of Deputy Sheriff
James Early to fill the place occupied
last year by Matthew B. Lamb. 1t was
accepted as a matter of course that Gen
Josiah Pickett and Hon. NJ. V. B.. JEFF
ferson would be reappointed.
Outside of the appointment of the IL
cense commissioners, the most interest
ing matters considered We're projects
for lettering the educational facilities
of the city. The much discussed ques-
tion of where the new school house for
the Belmont street district should be To-
Gated was settled by the committee on
education, which recommended that in
stead OF locating the house on the lot
at the corner of Edward and Earle
streets, it be located on a lot on East
Kendall street, which it is proposed to
buy for $6072. So The same committee
reported favorably on additions to the
(ireendale and Lake View school houses
and on the establishment of eight deliv-
cry stations for the Free Public Library
and the establishment of two free read
ing rooms in outlying sections of the
city.
The question of better high school ac-
commodationS was brought up by Coun-
Gilman O'Connell, who introduced an or
der, directing the committee on educa-
>
high school accommodations of the
school committee, relative to the pur-
chase of a lot of land at or near the
corner of Vernon and Ward streets, as
a site for a new high school building,
and report to the city council as soon
as possible
In offering the order, Councilman
O'Connell said he did so in view of the
agitation now going on for new high
school house At the last meeting of
the school committee, the city council
was subjected to severe criticism for
not providing suitable high school ac-
commodations but as a member of the
city council committee on education for
the past two years, he wanted to explain
that the city council was not opposed
to providing suitable accommodations
for the high school pupils. The COM
mittee on education was in favor of Civ
ing the pupils the best that could be
given, but the request of the school
committee for a site near the English
high school was denied, because the
members of the city council did not be-
lieve it was wise to further concentrate
the high schools, recurring the pupils to
go to one section of the city from all
sections of the city.
He believed the time has come when
Worcester is large enough to locate its
high schools where they Will be most
accessible TO the people. Today the
children are obliged to come from all
sections of the city to the centre, and
the condition of things has changed
since this was desirable. The city has
now grown too large to require this,
and he offered the order at this time
to see If it is not possible for the peo-
pie of the east side to aave high
school building near them. There is
no question about their needing such an
institution. Next year the city will be
obliged to house many high school chill
dren in the grammar scaools, and in
the section which he represents the
school committee purpose to put $50
children, who are to enter the high
school, into the Ledge street building
This should not be allowed, and unless
there is an attempt to better this con-
dition of affairs, things will be worse
in the future, as Is shown by past eXpe-
rience. Twenty-Five years ago, when
the high school was built on Walnut
street, Mayor Blake, who fathered the
scheme, was said to be crazy for putting
up such large building, but now it has
been outgrown and it has been found
necessary to erect a second building.
Even that is not enough, and at the be-
ginning of the next school year it will
be necessary to place 450 children in the
grammar school houses, when they
should have a high school building 10
on ff Gor1tr oh hot Il, ,.s+,
council must erect another high school
building unless it wants to be behind
The times and behind the other cities of
the commonwealth in the education of
the children.
The present condition of things de-
n1ands the erection of a new high school
house on the east side of the city, east
Of the Boston and Albany Railroad
tracks. The roll of the English high
school today contains the names of 173
pupils who live in that section of the
city, and the classical high school roll
contains the names of LAG pupils who
live there. If a high school is built in
that section of the city, there will be a
great many more pupils waiting for ad-
mission by the time the house is finished
and he did not think that 500 would be
TOO large a figure to place the number
at.
OF the 10 ninth-grade rooms in the
NlNS. S6NSu VI lIlGIl dIG III IOQG ScnOOlS
on the east side three in Ledge street,
two in Millbury street and one each in
the Quinsigdmond and Lamaftine street
buildings. There are 2S3 pupils in
these seven rooms, and if the statement
is. correct that seven-eighths of the pu-
pills who graduate from the grammar
schools enter the high school, then there
will be 245 pupils from the east side
seeking admission to the high schools
at the opening of the next school year,
and that number will be greatly in
creased by the time a new building is
ready for them. Twelve years ago,
when he was pupil in the public
schools, there was only one ninth-grade
room on the east side of the city where
there are now eight, showing that the
people Of that section of the city are fn-
terested in giving their children good
education. He suggested the corner OF
Ward and Vernon streets as a site fol
the new building, because there were
many available sites in that neghbor-
hood, one being lot owned by Council.
man Innlan's father, on Pattison street
and another at the junction of the two
streets named. These were not all by
any means, as there were several other
desirable lots that can be purchased
much cheaper than the lot adjoining the
English high school building. In any
A man stands no chance of being
elected to the mayorship of city unless
he enjoys the confidence and esteem OF
his neighbors. Geo. w. Humphrey is
the popular mayor of Swanton, Ohio
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