Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-06-15
FLAG DAY OBSERVED
Exercises in Jefferson School
Building,
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
LARGE CROWD ENJOYS MUSIC
AND CREATIONS.
Observances General in the Various
Public Schools-Little Ones
in High Glee.
VARIOOSPROG ANS

Typical of the observance of Flag day in
the various schools yesterday was the man.
ner Of the celebration at the Jefferson
School building. corner of 9th and d streets
southwest. The jefferson is one of the older
of the District school buildings and is prob
ably better equipped for ensemble exercises
by the various graded schools which find
shelter beneath it's roof than any other
building in the city. On the top floor of
the jefferson there is an immense assembly
hall, capable of seating comfortably all of
the eight hundred children attending its
classes, and of furnishing comfortable seats
for two or three hundred others. A wide
stage or platform at one end of the room
furnishes rostrum. on which a chorus of
a hundred or more find plenty of room to
exercise their lungs to their fullest capacity.
The hall furnishes accommodations for
about LOO, it is said, ard yesterday it's ca
pacity as tested to the limit
Prof. c. N. Thompson, principal of the
school, With the assistance of his teachers,
arranged an excellent Program for the day.
The facilities afforded by the large hall.
several pianos and such large number OF
children to select from gave the promoters
CT the celebration an advantage over the
smaller schools that have no assembly halls,
and while the program contained many
things in the main which found place IN
the order of exercises 1T other schools the
manner of their presentation was probably
more finished than anywhere else. AS guests
for the occasion Prof. Thompson had DR..
Kingsman and Mr.. E. Southland Parker OF
the board of education, Mr.. ]. H. Blodgett
of the G. A. R., Mr.. Isaac Fairbrother, su-
pervisng principal of the fourth division,
and a representative of The Evening Star.
These gentlemen were seated on the plat
form during the first part of the exercises,
but later, when the staging was needed LOT
the ensemble numbers on the program the
guests were given chairs in the main aisle,
where they could see and hear without In
terruDting the performance.
The children of all the grades marched
into the hall at about o'clock to the music
of the piano, played by Mrs. Cummings, the
pupils from each room under the leadership
of their teachers Those who were to take
part in the program were given seats in the
front of the hall and came in after the
other pupils had been seated. The chill
dren had been remarkably we'll trained and
there was absolutely no confusion in the
seating. 1t required only very few min
utes for the entire school of more 500 chill
dren to march into the room and take the
seats. At a signal they were all seated.
The Opening Chorus.
Prof. Thompson then announced the open
ing number on the program, the singing OF
America" by the assembled schools. At
the proper signal the children rose in their
places and sang the three verses Of the
song and were seated again. The platform
was then cleared and James Evans, a
fourth-grade pupil, made the opening adj
dress. This youthful orator told the chill
dren why they were together on this par
tcular occasion and said that efforts would
be made to show how the flag had been de-
Tended. and why 1t was held in such es-
TEEN. Barbara Wiegand then recited Our
Flag" and was followed by Jacob Flax.
Edward Thomas and Benjamin Robinson.
each of whom recited a little verse about
All of these numbers were short and were
heartily applauded. Three little girls
then gave dialogue, THE American Flag
with great effect and were the recipients of
much applause. William o. Dwyer then
made a short address. After the singing
of Columbia" by the assembled schools,
the principal number of the children's pro-
gram was presented, a flag drill by twenty
four girls selected from the fourth, fifth,
sixth, seventh and eighth grades. The young
misses were all dressed in white and wore
sashes of red white and blue, being SO
divided that there were eight girls with a
sash of each color. They carried small
flags and went through a number of evolu-
tons on the platform, forming figures,
marching and countermarching In such a
manner as to provoke round after round of
applause. These girls were drilled by Miss
] D. Mason, and from the showing made
yesterday her work was well done. There
was no break in the line at any time and
some of the most intricate figures were
twenty minutes, and was followed by the
singing of Columbia, the Gem of the
Ocean," by the assembled schools
Medley of Patriotic Airs.
A medley of patriotic airs, arranged for
the violin, was then played by Willie
Leishear eighth-grade pupil, who is a
violinist of some little ability. He played
his first number so well that an encore was
demanded and given. The pupils of the
eighth grade were then marched to the
platform and sang "Tenting Tonight on the
Old Camp Ground" with excellent effect.
REGULATIONS by Florence Barker and How
ard Carson followed after which Harry
Berman told the pupils the history of the
flag and how Francis Scott Key was
prompted to write THE Star Spangled Ban
ner." At the proper signal, at the conclu-
sion of this recitation, the children all rose
and sang the national anthem. Mr.. Fair
brother made short speech, introducing
Mr.. Blodgett, the orator Of the day. Mr.
Blodgett spoke briefly of the value of edu-
cation to the country and how patriotism
was fostered by exercises similar to those
he had just listened to with great atten-
ton He congratulated the children or
their excellent behavior and their ability tC
give a program of such length and seem to
understand it all. The exercises were then
brought to close and the children were
marched to their respective rooms and
dismissed.
The exercises at all of the schools were
of similar strain. AT some of them the
programs were shorter and at some they
were longer. depending on the facilities at
hand. AT all of them a veteran of the civil
war made an address, and at most of them
the orator acted as the presiding officer.
Some of the schools produced more than
one speaker for the occasion. At the
Thomas p. Morgan School, after the ad-
dress of DIR. Franklin T. Howe, Representa-
tive Burkett of Nebraska, whose children
attend the school, made a short speech, con-