BoletiÌn mercantil de Puerto Rico. (San Juan, P.R.) 18??-1918, 1902-05-24

ton Which may be OF interest to your
readers, and will be glad to have you
make such Of .them in yonr CO.
lumns as you may deem proper.
Yours very truly,
SAMUEL MCCUNE LINDSAY.
Commissioner.
Dedication of the Insular Normal
School, Rio Piedras.
Plans have Just been completed by
the Department of Education for the
dedication OF the Insular Normal
School on Friday Afternoon, May goth.
Special cards of inv; ;ation will be issued,
by the Department to the teachers in
and near San Juan, to the Members OF
the House of Delegates and the Execu-
tive Council, and to the Officials of the
Insu1ar Government and to special
list of persons interested in education.
A special train will be run by the
French Railroad Company to take pa t.
OF the guests, and extra Accommodations
have been provided by the San Ian
Electric Railway to take the remainder
of the guests by trolley in time for the
exercises and to bring them home COM
fortab1y.
A special car will be run on the cleo
trio road to take a chorus of children
from the San Juan schools. The Pro-
gram will consist of addresses by the
Governor, the Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court, the Commissioner Of
Education, and by Mr. Guzman Benz
tez a member of the Executive Co1ncil
and also few words of welcome by
the Alcalde of Rio~Piedras and some
remarks by a representative of the
Normal School Faculty.
The following special committee has
been appointed by the Commissio1er OF
Education as a Commission on local
arrangements
The Alca1de of Rio Piedras, Mr.. En-
rique Acosta Chain man
Mr. Luis P. Orcasi as, Mr.. Felipe
Taner, Mr.. A. M. Lyons, Mr.. E. c. Her
nandez, Mr. A S. Northrup, Mr. H. P.
Mccormick, Mr.. c. Sturgis.
This Committee will arrange for the
reception Of the guests at Rio P1edras
and will see that the building is suitab-
ly decorated for the occasion. The
Insular Police Band i'll furnish music
on this occasion, and special chorus
of p voices selected from the Normal
School, the Rio Piedras schools and the
San Juan schools will lead the singing.
The Rio Piedras schools will also turn
out a procession in costume, and every
thing bids fair to give the guests at the
Dedication Exercises a pleasant time
and a memorable celebration.
The following Editorial paragraph
from one Of the New York papers COM
menting upon the Commissioner of
Education's letter a2ropos of offering
prizes for the best attainment in the
examination in English on June 9TH,
will interest those who are looking.
forward to these examinations, as well
as the-larger public which is always
anxious to know how the people of the
United States feel and think on the
subjects with which We in Porto Rico
are primarily cone 9rned
"Noboly could have read the letter
from the Commissioner of Education in
Por.o Rico without getting the inlpres
sion that he is doing extremely impor-
tant work there in exactly the right
way and with most enco raging results
Not only does Mr.. Lindsay appreciate
that knowledge of the English Ian
guage is for the present by far the
most valuable acquisition the school
children of the Island can make, but he
reported that this is thoro' ghly Under
Stood by the native .eachers upon
whose exertions the success of large
majority of the schools depend, and
that the are all doing their best by
learning English. to fit Themselves for
teaching it to the many pupils eager
for that form of instruction. Beyond
and question, the sooner the language
of Porlo Rico becomes that of the
country of which it is a possession, the
sooner will il chanhe from possession
to a part of that codntfy-to the large
ard lasting advantages of all concern
ed. We do not want any language
problems added to our present sufhcien-
cy of race problems, or, with our eyes
open, 10 repeat the dangerous and de-
plorable error of our unwisely kind
Canadian neighbors.
Immediate at,ention-official or I'M
official; it matters little which, but pre-
fsrab1y1hs forlner-odght therefore, to
be given to the Commissioner appeal
for a small fund out of which to offer
money prizes to snch Porto Rican tea
chers as display the most industry and
ability in learning and impartiAg to-
their charges The language which along
VII prepare them for utilizing their
new op ortunities and performing their
nssv opportunities and performing their
nev daties
M Lindsay says that the prizen
gsu 4 be material hetp in eking out