The Brattleboro reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1907-1912, 1907-03-01
Temperature in Brattleboro Academy

Editor of The Reformer:
I'm his annual report the superintendent
of the town schools does the pupils oil
West Brattleboro academy an injustice
In his report he states that the building
has been one OF warmest places IN the
village. What are the facts borne out by
the pupils of the school! There has not
been one cold morning this winter when
all of the rooms have been comfortable
and many times some of the rooms have
been decidedly uncomfortable. The SUI
perintendent is fully cognlzant OF the
fact that on several mornings pupils have
been obliged to sit in OvereOats and gloves
until noon in order to keep warm and
that at least on one occasion part OF the
pupils left the school to 60 home and
get warm Strange that they should do
so when the academy was one OF the
warmest places III the village. Now these
were not pupils who were looking Tor
chance to play truant, as they were
among those who received marks OF over
90 in some of their examinations even
if the knowledge was frozen into them.
The superintendent reports that he
has received three reports OF cold. The
first he traced to a closed register. II
the superintendent will examine closly
he will find that the register in one OF
the coolest rooms cannot be closed. The
second complaint he traced to a closed
damper. On this we are all at sea, as 1t
would seem as If some OF the hampers
had been closed all winter. The third
complaint has not been traced out by
him evidently, so let us do so. We lind
that when the furnaces were set up IN
the basement they were improperly piped;
that the question of ventilation was neg
lected. We believe that the superntend-
ent had pet theory that he was and Is
bound to have right, but which is decid-
eddy wrong and he ought TO admit 1t rath-
err than make the erroneous report that
the academy building was one of the
warnest places in the village when the
pupils say it is one of the coolest places
indoors. We have heard just such talk
as we find in the report all winter and
have simply groaned and let it pass, but
when it comes out in the town report to
be circulated all over town as well as
outside it raises our ire and why should
it not? On the very day that we re-
ceived the town reports pupils came
home with the complaint that their feet
had been cold all the forenoon at school.
How is that for the warmest place in
the village?
| suppose that now you would like to
know what the people of West Brattle-
boro want and | understand it is this:
We want men in charge of our schools
who will try to make them comfortable
for the pupils, employ good teachers, con
venience the people and not try to work
out pet theories and hobbies that will
endanger the health of our children, as
has certainly been the case in the man
agement of the West Brattleboro academy
during the past winter. Could anything
be more reasonable, could any parent be
blamed, any taxpayer be censured for
asking as much? We are anxious to have
everyone interested interview. the pupils,
especially in the higher grades and sat
sfy themselves that we are right. If
they find that we are wrong, we will sim
ply offer our children as sacrifice to
lack of proper heat and ventilation.
There is one thing more that we would
like to have granted. In the measurable
success that the directors have met with
in keeping the schoolhouse warm and
clean, just give us a chance to peep into
the measure and see how much it lacks
of being full. A Parent.
West Brattleboro, Feb. 81.