The Washington herald., 1907-09-12
bath POOL IN SCHOOL
Henry B. Davis Would Teach
Young How to Swim.
MIGHT AVERT DISASTERS
Pools Could Also Serve as Public
Baths When Not in Service for the
WashIngton-MOre Public Com
venience stations Are Needed.

Swimming as a part Of the curriculum
Of the public schools is recommended by
Henry 3. Davis. inspector Of plumbing of
the District, in his annual report Mr..
Davis suggests the providing Of pool
baths in the public schools, which might
serve as free lighthouses when not in use
by the public authorities.
IF swimming had been made compul-
sorry in our schools some years ago. says
the report. "the community would prob
ably have been spared the series of dis
tressing fatal accidents in the river dur
ing the past few years.
Mr.. Davis urges the establishment in
Washington of public baths to be open
the entire year These, he says. are a
civic necessity" as is show. by the fact
that practically every large city in Ger
many, England, Switzerland, and Austria
has one or more baths. some sufficiently
large to accommodate ], 200 persons at one
time.
Cities to Have Public Baths.
In the United States the Bulletin of
Commerce and Labor issued In 1904 list
Of twenty-four cities as having municipal
shower baths, or pocl baths. open all the
year. The cities supporting public bath
houses at the time the report was printed
were Buffalo. Chicago, Cleveland, Albany,
Baltimore, Boston, Brookline. Brooklyn.
Detroit. Holyoke. Kansas City (Mo).
Louisville. Milwaukee, Newark, New
York, Philadelphia. Portland, Provi-
dence. Rochester, st. Louis, Syracuse.
Troy. Utica, and Yonkers. There were
also in the aforementioned cities ten
semi-public baths (owned by charitable
societies) and in the United States up
ward Of 200 bath establishments and nata-
toriums, ranging in cost from 5000 for
the Salina bath at Syracuse to over $500,
900 for the famous SutrO baths Of San
Francisco.
1T will be noted says the report. that
Washington is not represented in the
above list of cities, although in point of
population 1t is much above the average
and in point of Importance it should be
well toward the top.
Three More Public stations Urged.
Mr.. Davis states that there is urgent
need for three more public convenience
stations. one near the Peace Monument,
which. he says, could be better left to the
CAPITOL authorities; one at the junction
of Ninth and F streets northwest and
at Fifteenth street and New York avenue
northwest
The cost Of operating the present sta
tions at Seventh street and Pennsyl-
vanfa aveniie and Thirteenth street and
Pennsylvania avenue, is, it is stated.
about 20 of a cent per patron, and this
will undoubtedly decrease. The average
attendance at each of these stations is
about 1000 per day
The inspector of plumbing recommends
the salaries Of the inspectors be in
creased fIom S1,O00 to s1,2o0.
Recommends Increase of Salaries.
The total OF estimates for the Office of
the fnsI setor of plumbing for the fiscal
year en1'ng June 30, 1909, is sI63,954. OF
this sum $4,000 is requested for repairs
to plumbing in existing school buildings.
$4,000 for three additional public oonven-
.ience stations. and $4,000 for the construc-
ton of a bath house.
An increase in the salaries of the fol.
lowing is recommended: Henry b. Davis.
inspector of plumbing. from 5000 to
s. 400; Richard A O'Brien, principal as
sistant, 81 200 to s.. 400: NJ J. FenneH. W.
NJ. Marsh, NJ. J. CaIlaghan, and c. A.
Crawford, assistant inspectors, $1,0O0 to
81, 200; r. A. McDougal, craftsman. S. 200
10 $500 The appointment OF an index
clerk az $40 is also recommended.