Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-04-22
JANITORS RESENT CHAReES
WATER WASTE DUE TO BAD Re-
PAIR WORK.
Investigation Made by Direction OF
Board of Education-Fire
Protection.

We are glad that the District authori-
ties are doing something for the schools.
even if it is only to find leaking spigots."
declared Capt James F. Oyster. president
Of the board of education, this morning.
when his attention was called to the
charges involving janitors made yester-
day from the District Commissioners Of
nee.
After reading the charges. Capt. Oyster
determined upon a thorough investigation
OF them and this morning he held con-
sultation with several of the employees
involved in the report from the Commits
sioners' office.
The statements made by the janitors
to the president were to the effect that.
first. poor repair work is being done in
school buildings, and. secondly. many or
the charges are not true The mel VINO
met the captain this morning were H.
F. McQueeney. superintendent OF 5ani-
tors Of the public schools: L. p. Locke.
janitor Of the Locke School; J. N.
Rogers; Twining School , 9; L. white White
w. N. Duvall. Hyde School.
The first charges considered this morn
ing were in regard to the instruction OF
janitors in running gas engines IN their
care. L. p. Locke of the Morse building
said he had been appointed in the schools
by the Commissioners. and had been
running a gas engine for several years,
that he had received instructions from Mr..
McQueeney as to how to run the en-
CINE. and that he felt he knew how to
run it. He declared further that the In
spector. upon whose statements the
charges are made, informed him that he
had one of the best kept engines In the
schools and told him he seemed to know
what he was doing.
j. N. Rogers, janitor at the Twining
School said he had been instructed by the
Superintendent of janitors as to how to
tHA md
heard any complaint about his work. o.
L. White of the Cook School said he be-
gan to run q gas engine Tor the nrst
time last fall. and that he was being In
structed by the superintendent of tani-
tors. and was now having little trouble In
running 1t. E. Kerper of the Hilton
School said that he had had little instruc-
ton about how to run gas engine. but
that he had worked around machinery for
many years, and very quickly learned how
to run the engine, and has been doing 50
for five years past without complaint.
Fails to Make Repairs.
In regard to the statement that the en-
CINE at the Morgan School had been dam
aged, Supt McQueeney stated that the re-
pair shop had failed to make proper re-
pairs on the engine and that caused the
trouble
rs it the practice of the repair shop to
do inefficient work." Capt. Oyster asked
him.
1T seems to be- he declared.
w~W. M. Duvall, janitor at the Hyde
Sch1ol. was called upon to answer the
charge made by Building Inspector Ash
fordi that he did not provide himself
with "a key for turning of the drinking
fountains and left them running constants
~ day and night for several months" He
explained that the fountains were the
kind that turn of automatically. as soon
Is a person is through using them.
He said they did not leak. and there
fore that the water did not run except
when In actual use. He said that for
with which to turn on the water in the
fountains, although he had repeatedly
asked the repair shop for keys.
In q letter to the president of the board
this morning q denial is made of q state
ment of the inspector Of plumbing that
the janitor of the Logan school building
said he had never had any instructions in
regard to the care of the plumbing. The
janitor, the letter states. says that he has
received instructions several times about
the plumbing.
Protection Against Fire.
Plans to protect the school children that
use the seven buildings recently con-
demned by Fire Chief Belt as dangerous
in the event Of fire were discussed yester-
day at a meeting Of the committee on
buildings Of the board of education. and
q definite program for each school Il ex-
pected to be reported to the board meet
ing this afternoon.
In the seven buildings in questionable
Threlkeld. Burrville, Cook, Mott, Garfield
Birney annex and Hillsdale buildings-it
was decided the fires will be let out. When
the weather IL too cold 70 rschool without
heat the pupils will be given holidays.
This plan is expected to reduce the IRE
risk greatly. Further. wherever it is
possible, classes will be put on halliday
sessions and the use of second floors will
be abandoned as far as practicable. In
addition. the committee decided to ask the
Commissioners of the District to make re-
pairs suggested by Fire Chief Belt as
necessary to make the condemned build