Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1899-11-09
KANSAS CITY.
BITS OF THE CITY'S PROG
RESS.
Her Postoffice, Parks And The
Central High School
Building.


We saw the stamping machine in oper-
alton both in Denver and in Kansas City
and the result was wonderful. This Office
also operates the Barry Postal Supply
Company's stamping machine, manufac-
tured in Owego. N. Y. but this does not
work as smoothly as the Barr-Fyke. and
will not stamp postal cards. The ma
chimes are worked by an electric motor.
The Barr-Fyke machine has needles and
the Berry machine is worked by belt
arrangement.
The Kansas City postoffice is COM
plete in Its management. There are "a
carriers. IL substitutes and 30 clerks
Each carrier works hours per day. and
is supposed to walk IS TO 40 miles daily
There is no body of men who do their
work at the Office with more dispatch,
and without orders. than these carriers.
Each man knows his work and does it in
the best possible manner in the least pos
sible time. The carriers mark the time
of their arrival and departure from the
Office by means OF key, corresponding
with their number. that registers auto
matically on an electric clock.
In Kansas City, as in Denver, the car
rier delivering the mail will also collect
it from the residents when desired, a
great accommodation for those not wish
ing to 60 to the nearest box. sometimes
two or three blocks away. The carriers
in the West herald their approach by a
whistle. like that OF the watchman's in
the East. There are only 275 letter boxes
in Kansas City. small number for a
city OF 77s 900 inhabitants. The heaviest
mail is that for the Bank of Commerce
and Armour Company. The former at
one delivery frequently receives a mail
pouch full OF letters, and the mail for the
Armour Company is SO heavy they send
to the Office for it.
In a previous letter we have spoken Of
one OF the Ward schools OF Kansas City,
the preparatory schools to the high
schools. Two years ago there were three
high schools here. two large and one
small, beside colored high school. The
three high schools are now consolidated
and the Central High School, an elegant
and commodious building, corner of nth
and Locust streets, is the one high school
OF the city. with its adjunct, the Manual
School has seating capacity of 1913
pupils. and an average attendance OF
1900 pupils. There are 50 teachers in
the building, about equally divided in
number between males and females. OF
the IS 900 pupils in enrolment in the
Kansas City public schools. 5000 ofthese
are in the high and manual training
schools.
Two lady clerks are employed in the
office of the High School. one. a gradu-
ate OF Ann Arbor, acts in the capocity Of
substitute in case OF sickness or absence
among the regular corps of teachers. In
the Office are large blackboards showing
the hours OF recitation in the various de-
partments of school work, and one may
glance at the board and know just what
study is being taught in each room, and
by what teacher. Another good feature
is that the attendance is registered on this
board, and at q glance the visitor may
see just how many pupils are in school
that day, how many absent and how
many tardy. This does away with the
annoyance OF looking into the roll book
70 satisfy the Board of Trustees on this
point. One Of the lady clerks attends to
this work, beside receiving excuses for
absence and tardiness, thus relieving the
principal Of this duty.
The principal of the High School is
Prof. E. c. White, with Prof. I. l. Cam
mack as assistant principal. The school
| is graded very much like college, the
classes being Freshman, Sophomore,
| Junior and Senior. The average age at
graduation is between ~ and iS years.
although one bright boy in the present
senior class is but IS years OF age. The
Kansas City High School cost $35 900.
The people are proud Of their high school
and Justly so. They think nothing too
good Tor the schools in the West. and the
sooner this feeling Is cultivated in Annap-
oils the better for her home school. Last
years graduating class numbered 243.
the year previous z53. and this year $
class numbers 900 graduates. All the
schools in the West are co-educational.
but the girls are in the majority. being 2
to I. High schools here call at $3.50 a.
| m. and close at p. m. There are six
recitation periods during the day OF As
minutes each.
| At the close of the period electric bells
ring in all rooms in the building and the
change is made in various departments
| Of study. Pupils who do not recite 60 to
the study hall. A number Of studies are
elective. and open to individual students
as their powers qualify. To those not
taking all branches. the intermediate
period is employed in the study hall un-
| der the supervision OF teacher. The
seating capacity OF this room is 400. OF
the six recitation periods. there are four
| in which every student IS compelled TO
recite, the other two are optional. The
| principal is a Western man and gradu-
ate OF the Missouri University. the assist
ant principal. beside being an A. B. Of a
| Western University. has taken a post
| graduate course at Johns Hopkins. Balti-
more. Among the interesting depart
ments visited was the chemical labora-
tory, where Prof. Peters was experiment.
/ ing with hydrogen gas before well pre-
pared class OF bright students. The class
| in Mathematical Astronomy, and that In
| literature, where the teacher was giving
lecture on Chaucer. were also very in
teEesting.
Continued.
OA9TozxA.