El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1898-09-29
THE CITY SCHOOLS.
DepIorable Lack OF Accommoda'
lions.

that must be met and met quickly, II
this city is to retain the respect OF its
own citizens and that of the country
tributary to it. The problem is that of
providing rooms and seats for those
children who are entitled to public in
structiOn.
At present every inch of space in the
buildings owned by the city is being
utilized the city Is compelled to renttwo
buildings at an annual ex-
pense of $3.50 to $500, and still, with
overcrowding everywhere to the ut
most limit, fourscore children will be
compelled to go without schooling this
wear because there is no room for
them. These fourscore are children
who live in this city, whose parents
help to support the city-not outsiders
who come here for the purpose of tax
ing advantage of our superior schools.
No single teacher ought to have con-
troll of more than thirty-five or forty
pupils in order to insure the best re-
suits. No teacher can handle more
than that and do the children justice.
What do we find here? The average
number of pupils to every teacher in
the Ell Paso schools is fifty. The rooms
in the school buildings we're never de-
signed TO hold SO many. The increase
in seating capacity has been made pos
sible only by crOwd1ng the seats and
desks 80 close together that there can
be no comfort: by sacrificing every pos
sible inch of breathing space, store
| space, corridor space; by making five
rooms out OF space intended for three.
This year the schools have fourteen
hundred pupils enrolled, three hun
dred more than were enrolled last year.
The school board has discussed som e.
| what the matter of provision for this
ever increasing company OF children,
agai il st whom q great wrong is being
committed by neglecting to give them
education-sn opportunity that is
supposed to be guaranteed to every
| American citizen.
| Let us glance for moment at the
problem bpresented. The greatest
pressure in found in the lower grades
| and at the Mexican school. The Mesa
school is filled full, and no more pupils
can be accommodated there under pre-
sent conditions. The Central school
is greatly overcrowded; enough is
said when the statement Is made thai
there are about five hundred aud fifty
children in that building. The San
Francisco street building, rente c
adobe, ototally .unfit for the purpose o.
| school room, being very long and
very narrow, is OvercrOwded. The
Mexican school, whose capacity has
been added to by process little shor'
of magic, cannot accommodate another
pupil. Fifty are waiting now for ad
mission-hfty little Mexicans. VIZ
say they are an ignorant race
why?
| There are more phases to the pro
blem than present needs alone. The
city is growing at a marvellous rate
The number of families is inc leasing
surprisingly. Moreover, Ell Paso II
rapidly acquiring a reputation for hun
dreds OF miles around. on account OF III
| schools, which, however faulty they
are in some particulars, are vastly
superior to most of those about us
This reputation has resulted
and will result in fal
larger degree, in causing people foi
miles around to send their children
here to b. educated. These children
of course pay tuition. They general J
bring with them a number of their i'm
mediate fsmi Y, adding that much tt
the home market of our merchants
The fact of these outsiders COMM
here, even for the school season only
lis a great thing for Ell Psso from al
| Advertising standpoint. 1t should bs
encouraged. But now we have pt
room. We can not even take Ameri
can scholars from Juarez, except a yer.
few in certain grades. because we have
| no room
Enough has been said to demonstrate
that additional accommodations fol
our pu bile schools, desirable for thit
years session, are imperative it vi
hope to meet the conditions of mex
wear as they should be met. There ar
| various ways in which the problem 10 a.
be solved. 1t is quite clear that tn
second ward is the most congested il
the matter of schools, and the leas
Il
| has already bought and paid for seve
lots in the second ward, upon which i
was thought school house might be
build some day. This was done shor
time ago, but the board then had q
very definite idea as to the building t.
be erected on the lots.
The Mex can school, which is doins
: excellent work under its present man
agement, notwith standing overcrOwd
ing and discomfort, will absolutel
need greatly increased accommodation
for the next school year. 1t is doubt
full whether the greater good would b
gained by building an annex to tn
present building or establishing a sc
parate school. The Mesa school, nO'
four room building, and withou
room for another pupil, was construct
ed with q view to having an additiO
: | some day. 1t now has four rooms.
would be completed by four room ad
dition, or fewer rooms could be added
Perhaps at the high school the liz
/, crease in the number of pupils ha
been most marked in the last year
l More this year than ever before ar
e taking the high school course, and til
, increase is particularly nOticeabl
p among the boys. A special effort ha
been and is being male to induce a
| many pupils ss possible to remain i
! the school and graduate. This is bt
. lieved to work positively for good i
r the community. But the effort is Sci
, iously handicapped by the lack OF ROOF
8 for carrying on adequate high schot
J | work.
: The propositions that are made tthes
| are given as the extreme requests {
1 the friends of the schools. not as
, feasible scheme of present improve
meutl are as follows:
e Build q good high school building
e suitable for the probable needs of K
q Paso for the next fifteen or twent
Years; the new high school building, i
some central location, would accOmm'
date for the present all grades abOv
and including the sixth. Th
8 Central school building woul
t he used for the kindergarten