Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-06-05
Gen. Otis Account.

The story of the establishment of these
schools is briefly told in the following letter
from Gen Otis: The primary schools es-
tablished In the Philippines while the army
exercised supervision of the affairs of the
islands had their start in Manila shortly
after the commencement of our occupation
of the city. The natives expressed a de-
sire to have schools for their children, and
L directed a provost marshal, Gen. Hughes,
to consider the subject. and to report what,
in his opinion. might be accomplished with
facilities on hand and attainable AS re-
suit of his investigation and our subsequent
conference, we detailed soldier, Mr.. G.. Z.
Anderson. who had experience in the COM
mon schools in the United States, to take
immediate charge of the elementary educa-
ton in Manila. We reopened all the old
school buildings and some others We EN-
ployed teachers those formerly holding
such positions, of whom the greater num-
Der were females, also Americans and
others supposed to be competent to teach,
and detailed soldiers when available to as
s:st them.
I'VE exhausted all text books In Manila
received from the Spanish government and
purchased many others. The schools were
very successful. Subsequently similar
schools were organized in cities and towns
very soon after Aguinaldo's soldiers had
been driven out. The work was carried
out through correspondence and report. and
not through any prescribed general regula-
quarters were merely those detailing a su-
perintendent, directing the detailing of SOL
diers as teachers, or for the purchase of
books"
The official records of these schools are
very incomplete. so that the number of
soldiers serving as teachers is not known,
but the number of schools organized and
the attendance was large, as already indi-
Gated. The military governor states that
s1O4.251 was expended from the public
civil funds for the purchase of school books
and supplies, and that greater part of
these. together with those received from
throughout the island Although some Of
these supplies were inferior in quality,
they were much better than those formerly
in use under Spanish rule. and were of val
liable assistance in securing later, under
civil rule, more efficiently organized work
Schools in Luzon.
In northern Luzon there were 479 schools,
in southern Luzon 50 schools in Panay 10
schools. and in Negroes 80, Cebu % and
Mindanao As schools. DIR. Atkinson in mis-
last report as general superintendent of
public instruction to the commissioner of
education of the United States, comments
the success of the schools of northern i.u-
zon. of Cebu and of Mindanao. Mai. J. A..
Watrous, a paymaster of southern Luzon,
Panay and other Visayan Islands, states
the archipelago were numerous well at
tended and important. In the section OF
central LuzOn. including the old fighting
provinces of Pampanga. Bulacan and Ba-
tam. of which the writer personally had
charge. these schools had long been In
operation. and were very important in
securing the good will of the people and IN
forming a basis for the present system of
instruction. In Pampanga Gen. Grant re-
ported fourteen schools but did not in
clude all the schools. nor those of Bulaean
and Bataan, which were also under his
charge.
In Bataan there were schools in every i'm
portant town. and the work in charge OF
Lieut.. Love was very effective. The at.
tendance was larger than at the present
time. although 1t was not compulsory. This
was true of many schools in other prov
inces. These schools were very poorly sup
piled. and the work done in them was not
often OF excellent quality Yet, however
poorly equipped and taught. the establish
ment or these one thousand schools, with
an attendance of about one hundred thou
SAND children for year or more before
the present department of public instrac-
ton was established. must have been OF
very great assistance in SECURING the pres
ent very successful status of this depart
ment. with its ISIS schools and 200. 90
children. --,tl