The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1900-11-14

This year re shall maintain at least SOC
schools. an increase of 80 per cent This
will provide for almost 6. zoe additional pG-
pills That is something. The accompany
ing schedule Will show now these schools
are distributed.
Services of the Supervisors
The services Of the English supervisors
are described as follows:
There are By Law sixteen English su-
peryisors. graduates OF colleges or normal
schools. and their compensation is fixed
at S75 per month throughout the year
These supervisors were al first by order
of General Eaton. the first director of ed
ucation Under military control teachers Of
English in the schools. They were, says
Dr. Croft 'ex-soldiers, ex-teamsteTs. ex-
packers, ana oJher such men very largely
They now do no teaching Their entire
time IS devoted &c supervision Last year
two OF these supervisors were also princi-
pals OF schools at San Juan and at Ponce.
was soon convinced that the work OF
supervisor is sufficient 70 employ his en-
tire time. No supervisor viii hereafter be
assigned any other service. These officers
visit each school in their district once q
month They report directly to the Com
miSSioIer Of Education or them DR.. Croft
says: The law fixes the number at sixteen.
l would have, if I remained il Office, re-
duced the number to ten the present year.
After that We might reduce the number to
five OF seven I cannot agree tO this re-
dUction. There is absolute need for closer
supervision than is now given The schools
There Is a weakness il the present sys-
TEN. These supervisors seldom meet the
commissioner. They may be efficient
they may not. It is believed that a field
deputy should be sent over the island to
take Up problems of moment with the su-
perVisor, meet the local boards, address
the citizens and in general convey the
will and purpose OF the department to The
people and officials. Such an official must
OF course know and speak the two Ian
guages flsntIy- He must be trained
school man He must have had vide ex-
per3ence. He must be man of good
character Such an officer It is difficult
To fnd. nave at last located one in Ven
! ezaela, and nope soon tc nave him take
no this work.
OF the American teacher. Mr. Brum-
baugh says:
BY military iaF ore teacher of Eng
; Iish, whose native toz.ST:e is English, must
be employed in each city or town having
4 graded school. There We're sixty-seven
such positions last year How
many were filed under this law
an unable 10 state: but
I 4GEiUS TIE current SCHOOL year,
I October J, 1899, more graded systems are
; in operation. ana N each case ct least one
American teacher is employed, and in
] same cases bright young American teach
/ ers have so mastered the Spanish as to Sc
! cure positions in the higher grades and
principalships of the schools. The totaI
number OF American teachers now en-
gagged in the schools is above 100, and ths
| demand is for more. provided they know
| enough Spanish to instruct the children
! IN their native tongue.
These american teachers at the outsei
] were mostly young men who came to Por-
/ TO Rico with the american army. None o.
! them knew Spanish. and some of them
! knew little English. Gradually the quail.
/ II Kas improved By the addition Of group:
J OF teachers, mostly women, from the
United States. These the military govern
Inent carried free 20 ard from San JuaI
! and New York The same assistance hai
| been generously continued by the Hon
Elihu Root, Secretary OF War. These
teachers were selected solely upon appli
( cation snd testimonial and were rot al
ways desirable persons for the work moi
/; typieai representatives of the vast army
!: of American teachers, but some of then
merit the warElcst commentator and tbs
greatest respect. Under circumstance