Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-07-11
Ruling as to Boys More Than
Thirteen Years Old.
PLANNED BY MRS. MUSSEY
Capt. Oyster Gives His Views on the
Subject.
ARRANGEMENTS MUST BE MADE
President Of Board of Education in
Sympathy With the Lads.
Curtis Explains.

Bows more than thirteen years of age
will be given an opportunity to use the
public school Fairgrounds. it is announced
today. Thus is answered the complaint
of several older boys, filed with the board
of education last Wednesday. that they
had contributed money for school play
grounds and are now barred from the
same.
Mrs Ellen Spencer Mussey. chairman of
the board of educations committee on
Fairgrounds and a member of the board
Of directors of the Washington Play
ground Association. said today that ar
rangements have been made to allow boys
more than thirteen years of age TO play
on six of the large school Fairgrounds.
and that plans are being made to set
aside certain hours or days when the
older boys can use many of the others.
Capt. Oyster Emphatic.
.If Mr. Curtis. the supervisor of play
grounds. cannot arrange some times when
the older boys can use the school play
grounds for which they have contributed
l will use my influence to get some one
here who can so arrange matters" Capt.
James T.. oyster, president of the board
of education. said when his attention was
called To Il statement InGue Dy SuDefElSGf
Curtis to the effect that it is impractl-
cable TO allow boys on the school play
grounds.
These older school boys have raised
about $4,000 for the Fairgrounds this year
5000 by their work Tag day and 81 0DO
by contributions in the schools Had IL
not been for them the local Fairgrounds
would have had to be closed And | be-
lieve they should be- given an opportunity
to play on the school Fairgrounds
Curtis Replies to Complaint.
To the complaint of boys more than
thirteen years of age. filed with the board
of education last Wednesday and later
referred to the Washington Playground
Association the boys complaining that
they We're asked to contribute money for
the maintenance of school Fairgrounds.
and later, after they had given money
were told that they cannot use the school
playgrounds-He S. Curtis. supervisor
of Fairgrounds. has framed a reply:
1T did not seem wise" he says. Ito al
low the use of playground only forty by
sixty feet in size to boys of this age, i'll
asmuch as there is municipal play
ground within less than half mile of this
one, at which there are all facilities for
games for the older boys. The question
of setting aside separate hours for the
older boys was also considered. but 1t did
not seem practlcaDle unuer tne clfCum-
stances. But the board expressed the
hope that in the near future we might
have our municipal Fairgrounds so located
so that all such boys would be amply pro-
vided for.
..In the Fairgrounds of New York and
Chicago boys over ten years are not al
lowed in the Fairgrounds with the girls.
There is either a separate playground for
boys over ten and playground for boys
under ten and the girls together.
Mention Of Rule.
For the last three years the rule here
has been that the school Fairgrounds
should be fer the girls and boys under
thirteen, and that boys over thirteen
should use the municipal Fairgrounds in
stead.
This rule was not promulgated on ac-
count OF lack of sympathy with the older
1 ,,oyS but because /, was impossible to
! furnish these boys with the apparatus