Evening star., 1899-01-03
Thev Are Unknown in the Island of
Cuba.
A CHAPTER ON EDUCATION
Municipal Schools in Havana and
Their Work.
WHAT IS NEEDED THERE
Copyright, 1s9e by Charles NJ. Pepper)
From a Staff Correspondent

| From Staff Correspondent
| HAVANA December 80. 1898.
Somebody n Kansas wants to know if
| there is a chance for the schoolInaster in
| Cuba Somebody in Washington asks the
| same question. They also want to know
| about the school system and what will be
done during the American military control
| chapter on educa ton in Cuba is neces-
| sarily short one. for it is a blank. In the
| country three institutions that are part
| of American life are altogether lacking.
| These are the country parson, the country
| doctor and the country schoolmaster. The
| villages have the ''cura," or priest and the
physician, but they do not fill the same
place in rural life that is filed by the min
| listers and doctors IN the United States. AS
| for the schoolmaster he does not exist.
| There is not lite red school house in all
| Cuba. In travelling over the island outside
the towns | have seen the ruins of the
| pacificos huts. OF the fondas, or inns, and
| of the "corridas de gaiios,' or cockpits;
| but never of school house. There was
! none to destroy. Once among the hills in
| Santa Clara province my insurgent guide
| proudly showed me a stretch of woods in
| which he said the Cubans had a school
| house We We're going that way, but
| Spanish column came along between us
| and the woods and we changed our course.
Public school system.
In the towns and cities under the Spanish
rule there was supposed to be a system of
municipal or public schools On paper the
! system was an excellent one. 1t provided,
| among other things, for compulsory educa
| ton. 1 am not sure but that the school
| laws read fully well those of the
| United States. Spain had many good laws.
| The trouble was that she enforced the bad
| ones and neglected the good ones. She
I divided the revenues from the government
| lottery with the church, but never with the
| school. That is one of the things which are
gone forever. 1t does not call for moral
| iZIng now. What is of consequence is to
| know how much of an educa tional system
| is left on which to buid. In the towns
| there is the framework of municipal
schools: in the country there is nothing.
| Naturally then, the beginning will be made
| in the towns and cities.
| During the insurrect'on it was sometimes
| possible to meet The man who had been
| schoolmastar-not who was then filing that
| function, because at that period there was
| no function of teaching to fulfill. He was
| invariably a~Soaniard. This not be-
| cause the Cubans We're excluded from the
| profession Of teaching, but because the Gu
| ban school teacher had usually gone into
| the field with the insurgents. The Span
iards had the preference Of positions yet
| they dld not have the monopoly of teach
| ing. The Cubars complained of the Span
| iards, often. l think, unjustly. The school
| master of Castiiian birth might not be
| Win the revolution. There
was no reason why he should be one. Sc
cretiy his hope seemed to be that in some
| way a change would come which would i'm
prove his own condition. Teaching under
Spanish domain was not q profitable call
! ing. In peace times the schoolmaster in
Cuba was what he is in Spain-threadbare
| lean and hungry, with his salary months
! behind. In war times his pay got years be-
| hlnd, and the school room was closed. 1t
could not be called a school house for
| usually il had only one room. The teacher
would accompany me to show ii. Generally
| it had a small blackboard a globe and a
| map. The appliances would be of the most
primitive kind. Almost always there would
be broken rod or two. Sometimes a
| 1erale. The rod was part of the educational
system, and probably useful part.
Schools in Havana.
In Havana municipal schools are located
! in the different "barrios" or wards A few
| of them made a pretense of keeping open
| during the period of insurrecton Most of
| the teachers We're Spaniards Their places
| We're given them through political favorit-
| ism. The positions We're not much sought
| after because the rewards were so Door in
comparison with other government posi-
| tons. Nomnally the schools were free 10
cnlldren or both sexes, white or black As
the compulsory law was not enforced the
| schooi rooms Were never overcrowded The
| pupils as a class We're not of the kind to
encourage people to send their children TO
these municipal schools Under a proper
| system these evils could have been correct
eu' Out they were not remedied and those
VINO wanted schooling for their children
! were forced to send them to private schools
or have them left to grow up in Ignorance
| Ihe teachers in the municipal schools
Were allowed to take private pupils for
pay mere The municipal school was of a
character to invite this kind of schooling
the result was that the scholars for whose
| instruction the municipality was supposed
| to be paying We're neglected The teachers
looked after those for whom they could
collect, and collection of salary from the
| government was always in doubt The
| cnlei deIect IN the system was that each
Schoolmaster ruled an Independent king
oom NO superiors worried him. Proba bly
| the law provided for some system of in
| specuon and Of responsibility. In practice
! cial whose duties We're those of a school
superintendent, though undoubtedly some
one OF the numerous functionaries of the
| government was drawing pay for some kind
| of an office.
Some Fair Private Schools,
Havana has some fair private schools.
| One day 1 wandered into one on Habana
street The pupils were boys whose ages
| ranged from ten to fifteen years Their
| studies seemed to be of a grade similar to
| lads of the same age in the United States
| They We're all children of welI-to-do par
| ents. They impressed me as quick witted
| and studious My visit was chance one
| and there was no opportunity for parade
| or show. The kindergarten as it is known
here is a very rudimentary system. The
| private schools for girls or young ladies
| number perhaps dozen. They are known
| as "colegioS," but this does not mean that
| they are colleges in any sense of the word
| The instruction is usually limited to a few
| branches, though French and English are
! taught. 1t would be ungallant to say that
| the teachers are not young and pretty.
| But in Cuba they do not have high schools
| or normal schools from WHICH the pupils
| graduate into teachers. The schoolma' a m
| is hardly known on the island, because in
| the municipal schools the instruction is
| monopoized by the men. The only opening
| for the unquiet sex-who are not unqulet
in Cuba-is in the private schools for girls
do not know how it happens that the
| teachers are all middle-aged ladies' with
| glasses and with a severe mien. One day
| friend and were seeking the way to the
| roof of a house on Reilly street to see one
! of the warships enter the harbor We
| found ourselves unexpectedly in a "colegio
| de senoritas."
| The lady who was presiding at the desk
| wore glasses. She looked at US once. We