The Hawaiian gazette., 1907-06-11
GERMAN SCHOOL
At L|HUE, KAUAI
CONTINUED from Page one,.

( this would be contrary TO the promis
we have given to our German peopl'
: aud contrary as well to one OF tn
most important and fundamental max
inns of pedagogical science, viz, e
begin with the known and proceed I,
the unknown, begin with the near anc
proceed to the far-a principle which
one can not set aside without consider.
, able detriment to good results OF Q
school We would deprive our schoo
of the great advantage of having the
children understand their teacher. We
would create the same difficulties that
our public schools have to contend with
and we would have to spend the first
years of instruction only in teaching
the children a few hundred English
words and the opening of their minds,
the development of their intellect
| would be retarded: and l know this,
| too, from experience, most of them
would be spoiled for learning German
afterwards entirely. l have had ample
opportunity here during twenty years
to compare the two systems, and / am
| fully persuaded that our method is by
| far the easiest and simplest to reach
| good results in the German and Eng
! lish languages. as well as in general
knowledge and in the forming of char
acter. our little children being taught
first in their own language will learn
to read and to write in a short time
and to speak properly. ETC., and when
the proper foundations have been laid
1t is remarkable how quickly they take
hold of the English language so SINH
lar to our own, and how they like to
learn 1t, and having to compare the
two languages, translating from one to
the other, they get good insight into
the structure of both languages. 1t is
fact, acknowledged by the American
residents of this district as well as of
Honolulu, that the boys and girls
taught in our school have done remark
ably well in English, speaking at first
not SO iuently, but very correctly. The
majority of our young men have been
appreciated in this district and all over
the islands; they have grown into de-
sirable American citizens. They are
intelligent voters and Jurors and a
great many Of them have done very
well in their professions. The govern
ment of this Territory has laid great
stress on securing more of a white pop
ulation-Anglo-Saxo settlers. Lihue
plantation Co. has attempted more in
this line than any other plantation, be-
ginning twenty-five years ago, in 1882,
to bring hundreds of Germans here, and
we have partly succeeded in keeping
good-sized population of white cit-'
liens here, which, socially, politically
and in regard 10 business interests has
been very beneficial. The greatest help,
the strongest tie. has been the Ger
man English school To interfere with
this school would mean one induce
ment more for our people to leave for
the mainland, the land of the free,
where thousands of such German-Eng-
lish schools are sustained, with several
hundred thousand pupils, without in
reference from the government. 1
just happened TO receive a report of
the various German Lutheran Synods
and beg leave to draw the attention OF
your honorable board to the fact that
a large number of these synods are
still entirely German, viz, the Wis
consin, Minnesota, Michigan Synod, the
Wartburg, the Texas Synod, the Ger
man Synod in Iowa, and all these are
their private schools just like we do,
first in German and then in English.
and it is acknowledged that these peo-
pie belong to the best of our citizens.
Our American policy has been to be
strict in or- public schools in regard
to the English language and not to pay
cent towards the support of private
schools, but to be liberal and tolerant
in regard to every private school con-
Quoted by competent teachers. l hope
the government of this Territory will
do the same and grant us in our homes
and in our private school, which we
have kept up at great cost for twenty
four years for the best purpose, the
same amount of liberty and freedom
that our people on the mainland are
enjoying. Very respectfully yours,
HANS ISENBERG
Superintendent Rabbit stated that
before the beginning of the next school
year the Board would have to consider
the question of permitting teachers to
engage in gainful occupations outside
of their school employment The mat
ter had not been considered during the
past year because salaries were on so
low basis that 1t was not thought ex-
pedient But with the restoration of
salaries and their increase in some
cases. the question would be forced on
the Board whether or not they ought
In justice to the schools and the school
system to insist that teachers give
their whole time and effort to the work
of the schools.
superintendent Rabbit gave an oral
report OF his recent tour OF inspections
OF schools on Hawaii and Maui. He
spoke of almost every school and teach
er In detail. lie said he was very
much impressed with the excellence OF
the school system. Some OF the ma
terIal or instruction was OF an indif-
ferent quality but that could be Inn
. proved, and as Il was improved the
results would show
In the konas the Roard would be
called on 90 proYlae very largely in
creased kphooi facilities That raglan