The evening times., 1899-01-16
INCREASING OUR
SCHOOL FACILITIES
Establishment of a Manual
Training School Here.
S atus of the Bill Now Pending
i'm Congress.
The New Institution Designed for
Education i'm Mechanical Arts
Location Decided Upon.


for the past five years has enjoyed the rep
utation Of being the best in the country.
This is saying a great deal for the pub
lie schools of America are admitted by all
who are conversant with the educational
systems of the different countries of the
world to be the finest anywhere. But not
withstanding this high standard OF excel
lence, the school authorities Of the Dis
trict hope in q short time to be in posi-
tion TO increase the efficiency of the IA
cilities for training the boys and girls Of
Washington.
For the past ten years Superintendent
Powell has been advocating the establish
lnent of manual training or polytechnic
high school In this desire TO increase
the free school system Of Washington he
has been backed by the Board of Trade
and the Board of School Trustees, and at
last, after years of persistent effort, Con-
gress is about 10 pass an appropriation for
the building of the school. At the last
session of Congress an appropriation OF
$50 600 was MADE for the purchase of land
on which 10 erect the school. The site
has already been selected, and is located
at the southeast corner of Seventh Street
and Rhode Island Avenue northwest. The
ground was formerly lumber yard. 1t is
go feet long and Jos feet wide and cost
s4S 600. The location is an excellent one,
being centrally situated. The House ap-
propriated recently S75,Ge0 for the cree
ton and equipment of the building. The
Senate raised the amount 10 100000.
Conferees from House and Senate have
been appointed II is expected that the
appropriation will go through some time
this week and should this be the case the
school authorities promise 10 have the
building ready for occupancy in year.
The structure, il is expected, Will be three
stories high and viii cover the entire lot.
The curriculum to be adopted in the new
school will be so arranged as to be a con-
tinuation of the studies in manual train
ing which has been in vogue in the public
schools for number of years.
Pupils who, after graduating from the
lower grades wish TO acquire an education
so the mechanical arts, will enter this new
school instead of going to the academic or
business high schools. The course OF study
will embrace a thorough training in pat
tern making brass and iron molding, ar
chifecture bridge building. the testing Of
the strength OF different building mater
falls, and the study OF their values. These
subjects are intended more especially for
the boys, but any girl may take up the
study OF any Of these courses. A course
which is intended more especially for the
girls and from which the boys are not
debarred has been arranged. These stud
ies consist Of drawing, such as making IL
Illustrations for magazines and newspapers.
designs for wallpaper, carpets and OIL
cloth, tatooing, wood carving, sculpture,
millinery. dressmaking and the higher do
mestic arts. The object Of these courses
of study is to prepare any boy or girl for
engaging in the pursuits Of life which re-
QuiTe a thorough knowledge of any OF the
mechanical arts. The school will teach the
same things that are taught in the vari-
Gus polytechnic institutions of the United
States and Europe, and will rank with any
Of them. The polytechnic schools in vari-
Gus cities Of the United States, notably the
Armour Institute of Chicago, the Pratt In
stitute OF Brooklyn, the DreXel Institute
OF Philadelphia, and schools of the same
character al Indianapolis Worcester Mass
and al Providence, r. J., are among the
leading ones Of the country. These schools
are not connected with the public school
systems of the cities in which they are
located, but are pay schools under the di-
rection Of various religious denominations.
They are all excellent institutions and are
noted throughout the United States.
1t is expected that the school which is
10 be established here will be fully as eff
Cient from the start as the schools men
toned, and viii be even better after haV-
ing been in operation a year or two. This
Is but a beginning and il is the eXpecta-
tion Of Superintendent Powell that GfteI
the value Of the school has been fully dem
Onstrated there viii be so many OF the
public school children vino Will desire to
lit themselves for some Of the more Brac-
ticsl pursuits that the need of educational
facilities of this character will become SO
apparent that there will be no opposition
10 enlarging the system. Washington
when this school is completed. viii be the
first city in the country TO adopt free edu-
cation in the mechanical arts.
hash arn all in ba ,1r
$50 boys and girls who viii enter the
school upon its completion The way fol
this proposed school has been carefully
prepared, and the school authorities fol
TIE past fifteen years have had this hrancf
of education in view. The preparatior
shows itself in the courses prescribed il
The lower grades. From the time child
enters the first grade he or she is taught
mechanics in 4 small way. lhe children in
the first grade are taught 10 make various
fmall articles from paper, which will lay
the foundation Tor acquiring knoWledg &c q
designing. Clay working, sewing end
drawing are taught in the intermediate
grades OF the grammar schools. and IN the
seventh and eighth grades some of the
fundamental principles of cooking are
caught TO the girls. and the use OF carpen.
ter tools 10 the boys. In the high school:
the manual training departments hav,
been established to teach The boys some
drawing. wood turning blacksmithing
and some of the essential principles OF th.
mechanics and electricians trades. Thi!
department is not supposed to al boy il
all the details of a trade, but is designed
20 give him knowledge which will enable
him to easily acquire a trade after b,
feayes school
That the purposes for which the de-
partment was founded have been carried
out is shown by the fact that each yeal
many boys from the manual tranin.
schools enter some one of the trades ant
after three months apprenticeship max,
as good mechanics as the men and boy
who have worked in carpenter or machin
shops for three years, the usual time ,e
ouired.
Last spring eight boys from the ma
chine shops of the various high schools
found employment at the navy yart
when il became necessary TO employ al
extra force of men on account OF the rusl
orders from the Navy Department Incl
dent TO the war. These boys received fu.
pay from the start.
For the past ten or fifteen years la, &
schools for teaching the negroes of tn
South the various trades have been in ex
istence In these schools an attempt ha
been made TO commence at the top in tn
course OF instruction-that is, the attemp
has been made to teach the highe
branches of the mechanical arts withou
giving instruction in the preliminar,
steps The result has not been so sue
cessful as IL would have been had the ne
groes been instructed in the preliminar
branches, such as are found in the manua