The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-09-11
OVER FOUR MILLIONS
BEEN EXPENDED
More Than Three Hundred Thou.
sand Scholars Have Been En-
rolled-Value Of Property
Two Hundred Times AS
Great AS il History 3;
Of Public Schools.

PUBIC EscnoOl or Richmond ut q III total s5
expense Of something over s4.1sss4O.62. \
since It's foundation in 1sso-7o, brief-I
" tells the story Of what has been done
for public education is this city, while
a comparison Of the early years Of its d
existence with tho session that has Just 4
passed, must convince the, most pessl-
smistic and unbelleving that wonderful \
progress has been made In this impor-N
tant department Of civic life.
% Beginning a year In advance Of tho
State in the maintenance OF public \
schools, Richmond has ever Increased its
efforts to furnish the best obtainable
education to the children of the commun-
ity and this broad minded policy has in- !
cluded the negro, as we'll as the white. s#a
1T 5is OF especial interest In this con-
Snection to note that OF the 81. $40 50 that \
has been expended for public school edu.s
cation IN the city Thin the last 56 years,
not less than s2oO0,ooo has been spent y
upon negro children; and that while Last /,
year the total tax paid into the city sX
treasury by negro citdzens am ountedS dSS
only to $17,s7o, the school board expended Y 4
s6S, 67O. II for the NAL alntenance Of negroSS
public schools, or nearly four times hess
total : amount q, the 4 negro u * paid TO d 4
the city. f Fl AZ, s5 55sS " ss3
For North 70 Think About. Il .
a5 Those 81 the North and West, who cry
/ out protesting against the South, on ac-.S4
count Of the Il negro squestt ion.
might well first co slider the work that
Is being done In Richmond for 7 he E.tl ad- /
!. SO successful has been the work In 8
this, direction that to-day eve cry one 81
the ss1 teachers 5in the negro public !
schools are honor gra duates OF the negro
High School. u . !, (, /. a IS III, WI
IN 1863 the value Of pub school prop
3erty III The city amour ted toS but 5co,
while to-day the buildings and sfurnituro
Of the public schools amo ount 0 .to .Soe''VeoV.
exclusive OF 100000 which will be spent
Tor the erection Of the new high sct!uo. -.
building. and which Will II increase the lleI
Sval,Ie to $4,000 or 200 times the value
that obtained In 1869. III sE3s * ".
In 1869 there were enrolled sl,Vsos Whlto tNNs
and i 749 negro scholars at tot 81 9 q ~ \,
In nil the schools, while last session the
enrolment was s7.675 white and j. ,5lo 3ne--s n-s
gro scholars, O. total Of 12lSo or an IL IL
crease Of 500 per centuil1'.
There was n sta II OF 80 teachers WI
ttaugh In small, rented rooms In \ ~, wnMS ny
in n the last year Of grace, the the /. cor 20!
amounted to 29s teachers, CONF ortalouey '.luy
housed In 10 excellent school buildings,
containing 12.753 desk seats ana rurn1sneo
with every modern convenience. ,,fs
Attending these schools are - 100 1oo c1lli-
dren out of n total school population OF
%, o0s, or moro than 60 per centum ot AZ
4tenda nee, taking no account OF the many
soto,ars attending private schools. VI
taince the foundation Of the publ4A
schools the enrolment OF each scholar
has cost the city 1920. or 0ttal OF
a 1se e4o52 There have been 2.lSs grad
gnntes and 5S post-grad uates from me
White high school and 74s graduate ana
a5 most graduates from the Z negro hlsn \
schnol. making a total OF 3,640 high school
graduates. 4s&s l5.is NJ " q 3ffl
An Interesting History.
rha history OF the public. schools Of
Richmond is an interesting one, ana
while tho records show that the lily lily
Council caused their foundation III lSes. 4
Ii is a fnct that as early as 2Fenruarys - 4
1876 there existed ~ quasi PUBIC scfoot es d
III the city, &. J. ~. 81
richmond Lancasterian School, Wnlch8
lwns supported by voluntary subscr lions IL
from public spirited citizens and was gov
erned by n board Of trustees, lot INC oen-
lent OF tho poor children or the cltI;8E
Those VINO COulu titOIN ~ P''.1 -
tuition, but no fees were compulsory, Ana ,!
tbe cost OF school books was almost nllsb
Tho Inpcas terian School was IN the mas s
t,re of a ''mutual'' or monitor educa-4f
tional society, the older scholars instruct-s 3
Ing the younger, and they III turr teacn-
Ing those who We're younger stlll N lhls
way a number OF children were educated 4,
at the smallest possible expense but with
great exactness.
The system" obtained Its name from
Joseph Lancaster, an Englishman. born ~
In Southwark In l77S. the son Of a poor s
Chelsea pensioner. Lancaster had re-
celyed no education In his youth, but de- *
term,ncd to acquire knowledge al any
sacrifice. and so became self-tauGht, At
tho age OF twenty he opened small
school in his fathers cottage AMI Taught Il
the children ofthe netghborhood for q 4
tuition fee OF Sl.25 each a year. SO sues
cessful were the original methods he ems
ployed that In q few years he had 100
children under his care, and having no
schoolhouse. was compelled TO use the
% was to teach tho ,5ler scholars and have *
them In turn teach the younger Not e
having paper or pencils, the scholars
smootned out the dust or sprnkled sand
upon a board. and wrote their copies with {
their fingers In the dirt. q resident OF
learned TO write by means OF this method,
So great became Lancaster's fame that
George III. Nranted him an audience and I
him to found the Royal iF
Lanca ST erIan Society, fos the advance-
ment OF education, and especially for in-
strlction In the bible.
The movement met with but partial
success, and Lancaster, greatly dlscour-
aged, lefr England for America N lsX
Two years before his arrival In New
York. a school named fog and operated 81
under his method, had been successfully
established In Richmond and remained In
operation up to the civil war.
Lancaster at first met with success In