The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-07-20
EDUCATION IN.
THE. { ! i! j ]
VA Great Lack 81 Al Preparatory
Classic School 5ii1 that
Section.
=MILEs's DEATH A5 HEAVY LOSS
Some Talk Of Rc-cstablishing.
the School at St.
Adams.

(
8 (snccinl from n Stan. rorrespondcn!.)
BRADFORD, MONTE OMEEYFCo UNITY,
VA, July The educational facilities.
or rather The lack or them. Il, Tic south
west are be sor1ing n subject &C serious
thought among The pnnI,l. OF this Sec
ton.. There are public schools IN number
and standard about the ainas Of those
OF other sectiYns Of Virginia..
There s not a classical prephr.i Try
school for boys with boarding depart
y ment In all the country between Roa-
Il nokc md the Tennessee line. distance
OF nearly 10 miles. Nor Is there an IN
stitutIon OF this character in the country
lying between Roanoke and tile West
Virginia line Mt ;lafield. over n hundred
9 miles. as .
These facts were brought out In the
course OF a convcrsa ton with gentle
man OF Radford to-day. They were sts 4
gestcd BY mention OF ST. Adams school
Just across the river from Rndford The
red brick and white cn;utnnsand poEchts
OF the school building. which sits on q
grassy plateau overlooking the New
River. present an imposing appearance,
viewed from the Radford side. The
school was closed last fall and there -
II no prospect OF It's being reopcncd z
A Heavy Loss.
The fact that efforts To- start he
school on anew career o nonor ana
usefulness have failed. has aroused the
neonle OF this and contiguous sections to
a realization that Southwest Virginia
suffered a. tremendous loss when Col.
George w, Miles died. and the school.
which he had made to take almost tne.
very first place among the preparatory
institutions of the country. ended ~
career, also.
II TO be accurate. ST. Adams was closed
at the beginning Of the last school year,
while the founder died in the following
i February, Col, Miles had leased the
school TO an educator who conducted J I
ono session Flo was a man OF culture
and fine teacher. but he did not sue
coed In Keeping It at the high marx OF
prosperity reached by his predecessor.
when the time arrived for the opening
or the school last year such small
number Of students presented themselves
tho principal decided to close the institn-
lion md surrender his lease. And ST.
Adams, q school which In q. conparatlve
53lr few Years had attained a reputa tion
hardly second to any. passed into his his
tory. gsss
St. Adams.
Whether the school will be reopened
Is n question That the people Of the
southwest are being aroused TO IN" need
gof n preparatory institution for their noys
Ia n good Sign. Efforts have already been
made, which had they been successful
would have resnltcdIn st. Adams nsali
becoming one OF the country s 1000 P. p =
IA ratory schools. 8.
An cffort to Induce a large university
20 purchase the buildings and grounds,
embracing G5 acres Of beautiful rolling
bue grass land, has notEyet eventuateo.
the proposition lis being investigated,
with chance that It will be adopted
Another proposition has been made from
4 certain quarter to loan to the right
man sufficient money to purchase NY
nroperty. upon his agreeing To- eopen the
school This has not yet been accepted.
va A plan 8 TO organize Joint stock com
many, which shall purchase the property,
and put the school In charge of3a COM
pctent teacher. Is also being considered.
s Out Of these various plans. one should
prove successful. St.+AlbansI was FOUND
ed by the late Col. Miles about ten years
neo. He made the standard high, and
hc gave his pupils the best possible train
Ing, The school was success from the
first. The usual number Of pupils was
about ca, and the matricnlates repre-
sented all or nearly all the Southern
Stntes.3s Boys from the west and the
north were beginning to come TO ST..
Adams when Col, Miles retired from the
position of head-nlaster- Students VINO
finished the ST Adams course. invariably
took an advanced stand In the colleges
and universities mt which they matricu-
lated II was not alone In the field OF
Scholarships that st. Adams excelled.
There was scarcely n school OF pre-
parntory character in the country which
put better teams on the football and
baseball fields,
Larger Fields.
But Col. Miles became interested in
various large enterprises. The sue cess
full conduct of these required the greater
portion Of his time and he had to give
,lp the school he had built so we'll. Its
closing was a severe blow to preparatory
education In Virginia and the South
But upon Southwest Virginia the blow
4 fell with especial severity The lack Of
school Of this character Is being most
severely felt incidentally, the closing
OF st. Adams was a blow to tho city
OF Radford.
A gentleman who has large Interests
In the southwest expresses the opinion
a that II the matter Is presented properly
to the mon OF wealth who live and have
their capital invested IN the great coal
n fields OF this cotton OF Virginia. they Will
s hasten to come to the relief OF ST, Al
hans. A worthy sentimental Interest
attaches to the subject, Of reopenlng the
school, but deeper still must he the de-
sire 10 see In Southwest Virginia one In
stitution who're the boys may be pre-
pared to enter colleges. A certain gentle,
men OF this section told me he had
within his jglft scholarships IN unlyer,
sty and two colleges,in Virginia. lie had
not bestowed any OF them. for no 5000
Z and sufficient reason that ne mao hot
found n young man who Was l,tteo %
nntar college. In that fact Is found q
conclusive reason for the reestabllshment
4 of ST. Albnns -. #