New-York tribune., 1907-09-27
CHILD AND THE ROD.
QUESTION RIFE -1G1IN.
School Men Differ as to 1dUisa0tfify
of Bodily Punishment.

To fog or not 10 fog. that is the question tha'
1lst new is agitarine the public schooi system"
of this city The discussion aroused pH Noii
missioner Jonas's motion at the last mee'iiis Va
The Board of Education 10 obtain Opinions "''N
,bo teaching force has brought out many vary
3ng opinions from both teachers and principals
snd the heads of the school system at 9Sth street
and Park avenue.
Mono of the s,lperintendents. however would
discuss the subject yesterday for publication
IJnofficiaIly. however it was said 10y mehoeiS Vi
the board of superintendents that they thousi'
the discussion would end about as II ala 'hree
wears ago when the Board of Education Voted
that the abolition of corporal punishment hau
been Of benefit to the schools
The discussion yesterday developed WideN dll-
ferent views from two principals. each an au-
4horitv on his own particular side of the ques-
lion The pacific. anti-rod stand was taken by
L H. Boyer of Public School 81, West ''th
street and Amsterdam avenue. while Lyman A
Best principal Of Public School los. Llnwood
street and Arlington avenue. Brooklyn. president
of the Brooklyn Teachers Association advocat-
ed ludicious flogging-
Mr. Bower took a view that was to most
of the advocates of the rod in the public
schools He said that wealth and influence
would save many a child from the body warm
ing it deserved. while the poor child of uninfiu-
ential parents would catch it
None but the weak and miserable and de-
fenseless boys are ever whipped in public and
no boy strong enough to resent it would ever
get a hogging from any principal said MT
BOYER. Whipping the sens OF politicians WOULD
endanger the teachers job. The teacher would
face persecution and notoriety if he dared WHIP
any child of rich parents If this be justice let
Ms have corporal punishment In our schools at
once"
Sc all Tiqhr
.F3ut there ere some boys who cannot be gov
erned in anv other way than by the strap Not
.hat I recommend the placing of unlimited power
5n the principals hands He should nave now
eyer the right to whip boy with the parent
consent C,Ir Best was once accused of whip
ming one with something harder thail MS
,,arent's consent) Il have had parents come TO
me with the request 10 fog their boys good ana
hard They had failed absolutely to govern
,ben,. had lost all control over them. Now, if
! had done as they wished me to would nave
been brought up on charges
Cases where boys need ffosging are rare out
,bev do exist, and where they do they are urgent
Only this wear with the term only few weeks
old teachers have sent four old offenders 10 me.
i recognized them the minute they came in the
office had already used all the different KINDS
of moral suasion Of which l am master and
what could do2 Those boys knew could 90
rRTfFnE. i
ards device. for It simply means shifting OF
the difficulty TO another principal. as they would
sir7pl1, he transferred TO another school
when / came in this system twenty years
ago corporal punishment was the rule OF the olo
I2rooflvn school board. 1 did not believe in it,
believed in moral suasion. Then the teachers
complained to the board that was not support
ing them, and 1 was told officially to hog a
given number OF boys every Week 1hdt "aS Gil
abuse of the rod.
..R,,t if anything like that happened, should
,ba boar,a see fit to grant limited power to use
corporal punishment. it could simply bring the
principal up en- charges There are men in
the school system who would abuse the privi-
lege. but where is the justice of tying down and
injuring the whole system in order to take care
Of three or four who should be well out
OF il?
Il will say this however that under the old
system weak teachers put nearly every case of
discipline up the principal whether it was of
a serious nature not. Now the teacher shou-
ders the responsibility
Probably one of the best known schoolmasters
sn the city is William McAndrew. principal of
Washington Irving High School for Girls, in
East 18th street He said last night that he
did not believe in physical chastisement for
girls at all. but he did not see how school
with boys in il could be run properly without
the rod
only a weakiing principal would ever let
prefermeut influence Of any kind interfere with
his discipline" said he in discussing the objec-
tions of Mr.. Boyer This phase of the question
is not worth considering for minute If cor
poraI punishment should be renstated in the
schools-and i believe the sentiment in its favor
ss growing among the working force every day
81 should be restricted But if you give a prfn-
clpal the use of his discretion in other matters
why not let him decide when il is proper to use
corporal punishment?
1t IS seldom needed where the parents have
not lost control. 1t is not the well brought I'D
children that need the rod. and they would
never get it,
Mr.. Boyer and Mr.. Best have schools in COM
Side came two opinions In favor of the restrict
ed OF the rod. Miss Ruina A. Carls prin-
cipal of School AZ, Hester and Orchard streets
said: IF there were more punishment of chill
dren IN the homes there would be none necessary
sn the schools
But all the responsibility of the chiId's
department is shifted upon the teacher" she
said.
Principal Frederick A. Berghane Of Public
in his experience nine-tenths of the boys got
along well without whipping.
Il do nof believe in the rod as q general
thing" he said. 1T is only the exceptional boy
that needs a whipping IL the right use the
rod be restored. it should be done with discrim-
ination and it should be limited"