The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1909-12-10


that place, of much INTEREST,"
December 8, 1909.
Mrs. Sophie Overend, Waipahu School,
aWipahu, Oahu.
Dear Madame:-In your special
monthly report for the month of No
vember, l note that in Miss FRAMES
room there are 81 children enrolled;
in Miss Oflague's, 81; and in Mrs.
Makaena's, 40. 1t seems to me ex-
ceedingly unsatisfactory and that
these rooms should be reduced in at
tendance to more nearly a normal
number and l would recommend that
this be done at once.
l note your needs of new rooms,
shop and domestic science depart
ment and am today writing a letter
to the County Board OIL Supervisors
calling their attention to these needs.
Respectfully yours,
w. H. BABBITT,
| Superintendent of Public Instruction
Waipahu, Oahu, Dec 8, 1909
My dear Mr.. Rabbit:
Your letter has been received and
contents noted. The crowded condi-
ton of the lower rooms is indeed un-
satisfactory. l have been refusing
children for the last month The
school is more crowded than it was
before we had the two new rooms
| built. Where would we have been if
you had tut on only one?
Now the question is, what will be-
come of the children if l turn them
out? Many of them come from place
on the government road which has
been condemned by the Board Of
Health. There have been great
many cases of typhoid fever there.
Among them Mrs. Travis, who has
| just returned from the hospital. She
office, which Is in that block. Several
of the children who play around
there have had typhoid. If send the
children away it will mae it hard for
the truant officer as he will not know
who has been excused and who hasn't.
Would it be worth while to sacri-
flee the health of these thirty or for
ty children so that the rest may have
better instruction? 1t might mean
| the ruination of some of them. Their
own homes are none too sanitary
and when not in school the younger
ones hang around the Chinese or Jap
+, anese stores and billiard rooms hear
ing the bad language of the Hawaii
ans and Japanese.
1t isn't as if the children were hud-
died in poorly ventilated room.
The windows and doors of every room
are wide open with the breeze blow
ing right through the room. Huddled
they are, but they have plenty OF
fresh air.
Much of the work done in the low
er rooms is in concert, such as read
ing fro mthe board, reciting nursery
rhymes, etc. When they 40 written
work those who haven't desks go to
the blackboards.
Now if l turn these children out it
may be a long time before they will
be able to return. In the meantime
they will forget everything they know
and lose the inclination for coming
at all. Everything is sanitary here
at the school. Dr. McGettigan came
for the Board of Health and made a
thorough examination of everything.
He found nothing to condemn except
a cross piece in the closet that has
| just been moved.
The children are sure to have their
eyes treated if they come to school
as lam always here; whereas, if they
90 to the DR.. sometimes they find him
and sometimes they don't, as he is
often called away or is too busy and
then they get to playing and forget
to go again. He mas given me the
droLs and | put it in their eyes.
Again, how shall we discriminate !
Which ten children shall We send
out of Miss FRAMES room and which
ten out of Miss Aflagnes room? II
is easy enough to send twenty out
of Mrs. Makaena's room as those
children have just started I'll have
a lot of wild-eyed irate women over
here to know What for?"
I'll do whatever you think best
about this. I'll take them off the roll
but let them come up here to stay
and play; anything to keep them
away from the village of Waipahu as
it is a low place.
shall come in and talk it over
with you on Saturday.
Respectfully yours,
SOPHIE OVEREND.