The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-02-05
Tho New School House In the Lowell
District.

| DI9trtCt.
To the Editor Of the Journal and Courier:
regret very much that I, as tax
payer, must protest, and do not think
1t wise and beneficial to build an eight
room schoolhouse in the Lowell dis
trict, as recommended by the Board Of
Finance. From personal investigation
and observation, by visiting most all
schools in the Lowell district, believe
1t not for the interest Of the taxpayers.
for one would by all means favor and
recommend twelve room school house,
so that 1t would accommodate at least
500 children. An eight room house Is
not sufficiently large enough to meet
the demand, and 1t would most likely
in year or two from now cost another
eight or ten thousand dollars to raise
the roof and add four rooms to the
same.
Why could not before this project
goes any further, a twelve room house
be built and leave the upper floor unfin-
ished? When occasion demands 1t this
upper floor could be lathed and plaster
ed, and got into shape in very short
time, and for very little money. The
heating apparatus, also all plumbing,
would then be figured for twelve
room building, and 1t would not have
to be torn all to pieces In order to give
somebody job, and by doing as above
stated it would be a great saving to the
taxpayers. The Taxpayers including
myself, in that section of the city hope
that the board of education will take
this matter into consideration, and look
at 1t in the same light. +, myself, be-
lieve in doing it right in the first place
or not at all.
The schools In the Lowell, also in the
adjoining Strong district. are over
crowded and during my visits I found
some rooms which had fifty-seven
scholars in them, and the teachers told
me frankly that 1t was utterly impos-
sible to do justice to this large number
of scholars. Forty scholars is about
the proper number that a teacher
should handle and do good work Then
again the principal of the Lowell dis
trict has forty-five distinct rooms to
look after, and that makes it impos-
sible for him to be in touch with all !
the teachers and the two thousand |
scholars whom he is supposed to SUI |
pervise and look after. I also would |
say that since last spring, to the best |
of my information, some ninety fami-
lies have made the Lowell district their |
home, nearly all with children. There
fore say that the Board of Finance
made a great and costly mistake in not
allowing a twelve room schoolhouse for
the Lowell district
The State requires us to give all chill
dren, to the age Of fourteen years,
a public school education, but you
cannot comply with the law I'M
less you furnish them suitable
places where they can receive the
same. During my visits / came across
a class room Of some thirty scholars in
the basement, or cellar, as some call
It, of one of our schools. 1t is located
below the sidewalk and you have 70
go down five stone steps to get there,
and the room has six windows with
four panes Of glass each, to admit light,
and at the time 1 was there the sun
shone in, and 1 am frank to say it was
still dark at the further end of the
ROOM Now all such rooms should have
proper ventilation, which is impossi-
BILE to do in this case, without injury
to the scholars, as the windows could
not very we'll be opened on account of
being on a line with the sidewalk and
he only ventilation that could be had
was through the door that you entered
INTO this ROOM / will say that if I
lad children l never should allow, and
10 power IN this state could compel
ne, to send them to a place as 1 have ]
described. 1t seems strange that the
aldermen and counclmen in the Sew
,nth ward should allow or tolerate any, ,
hing of this kind to go unobserved in {
heir ward. ,
| also believe that forty-five thousand
dollars for an eight room schoolhouse
the land being clear is rather a high
igure, and firmly believe that it could
md ought to be done for a good deal
ess money, for I do not believe in
building monuments, as was. done with . :,
he Strong school, with the taxpayers
money The claim that forty-five thou
and Is not sufficient to build a twelve t
DOM house may be true, but the Board t
# Education has at its disposal some c