The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-09-16
MORE TIME
FOR MEALS
Protests Against a
Shortening Of
Recess.
SAYS DIGESTIONS
MAY BE RUINED
Luncheon Hours Misadventures
Arouses indignation of a Pa
!ron Of Schools.

! Ed;tor Advertiser: The first week of
school has CONF. to an end, and the re-
suits to the parents are such that I for
one think that protest should be made
to the governing body. There may be
excuse for the books to be purchased
for the fads of nature study and grace
culture, and modelling and drawing but
when 1t comes to the plain matters of
| the hours of study and recitation, as one
who has not forgotten his own school
days, I must say word in protest
| First: The children of the High School
are in attendance in the MOI ming at 9
O'Clock, sit with fifteen-minutes recess
until noon, and then have half hour
for luncheon, and go on from 1890 clock
| until to complete their days work
When a protest was made upon the an
nouncement of these hours, that there
was not time enough for home coming
for luncheon, the scholar was told that
the best plan would be to carry cold
luncheon to school, so that 1t might be
eaten during the recess. Just stop to
contemplate such a monstrous PROPOSE
ton! Children under fifteen years of age
who must not be given time TO go to
their homes for the luncheon hour. but
must for the nine months of the school
year, eat at the middle of the day a cold
bite, snatched so as TO get few minutes
of play and some air, and all for what |
that the alleged teachers, who have been
hired by the school board to earn a sti- |
pend, may have long afternoon for
their swimming and flirting at the beach. |
l spent several years teaching school |
a quarter century ago, and found at that !
time the same tendency to shorten the |
We might have the longer hours away |
from labor for ourselves, but 1 remen- !
Der that we had one of the old school |
men at our head. 1 would give a weeks |
salary If I could see him now in charge |
of school, when a faddist came in to |
urge taking up school hours with fool
ishness. He never forgot that he had |
under our care the lives as well as the
minds OF the scholars. He used to say
that a good digestion was priceless, In |
value far above all that could be learned |
from books. And we acted as he direct |
ed. There were reeesses at which we |
had to attend and see that there was a |
ronp or run or walk by the children. No |
such thing as cooping themselves up and |
not taking advantage of the fresh air, |
for which they were turned out of their |
rooms, those same rooms in the mean |
time being aired for their reception II |
the noon recess was not enough to per- |
nit any pupil to get home to warm
lunch, there was of course permission |
to have the meal cold In the rest room,
not in the school room, but all applica-
lions had to be investigated.
Compare this system, which was far
from perfect, for / speak of time a
quarter of a century ago, with that
which Is in vogue here, where the rule
seems TO be not the future happiness of
the child, but the convenience OF the
teacher. No matter If the strict observ-
ance of the letter of the rule makes It
necessary for the digestion of the boys
and girls of tender age to be ruined by
the continued eating of cold lunches,
which are gulped down without any re-
straining injunction from a teacher, so
that there may be some time for play.
no matter then what the result to the
nerves of the child, who needs the brief
respite of the noon hour more than does
the clerk or workman, if only there be
given the full afternoon to Miss So-and-
So, that she may attend the tea of Mrs.
Sugarbags, or go surf-riding with Capt.
Transport.
If you can see your way clear to call
this to the attention of the Board of
Commissioners, you VIII do several of us
a favor. We don't want to send our boys
to Punahou yet, the public school Is the
better training for the present, and you
know we can have the boys forget the
fads, but it will be impossible to get
them new digesdons and nerves, IL the
abominable hours are kept up. It's hard
that our American plans, with the stamp
of the approval of years. are not good
enough for the people here,
And what do you think Of teachers who
let children, after examining down their
sandwiches and cake. go out into the
sun and jump rope in competition? Jump
ing rope is exercise used by men in
training for prize fights, but never until
doctor tells them their condition is ,
such as to make the experiment safe.
With many thanks in advance
Very truly and respectfully,
Ii. c. E.