Lower coast gazette., 1909-12-25
SATURDAY, DECEMBER Is. 1909
Trlumphant School Discipline.

DURING last week there occulleu ""
Orleans at McDonough School No. Is one OF the
most brilliant and thrilling exhibitions OF schooI
discipline that it has ever been our lot to near
Of. The building was g frame one and some
smoke in the attic was observed from the out
side, A passerby quietly notified one OF the
teachers of this fact; the teacher then qu'euy
notified the principal and the principal then
gave the fire drill alarm with which the children
were all somewhat familiar from their previous
}nstruction. The newspaper reports are TO the
effect that this building, containing some TOUR
hundred girls, was emptied of its human con-
cents within sixteen seconds. the girls March
ing out in good order, without breaking ranks
excepting in one or two instances where girls
ran TO adjacent rooms to call their sisters.
When VIC think about the horrible results of the
BAZAAR fire in Paris, where people climbed over
each other in attempting to gain exit and killing
hundreds; when we think of the great theatre
fire in Chicago where a like disaster occurred
and hundreds of lives were lost, we can better
appreciate what a triumph of discipline it was
for these quite women teachers to march four
hundred girls out of burning building without
the SLIGHTEST disorder and yet do it in an incred-
ihly short space of time. We think the
reports Of sixteen seconds must be wrong and
that the exit probably required nearer sixty
seconds, which the reportorial types may have
changed to sixteen.
A few years ago, when the Louisiana State
Press Association met in Monroe, the meetings
were held in the auditorium OF the beautiful
high school building that that enterprising city
erected some years ago. Approaching the pre-
gressiveness of Monroe and discussing it with
the principal of the high school, we made some
remarks as to the danger of fire and the princi'
pal stated that they had a carefully arranged
fire drill and believed that under no ordinary
J, circumstances could. any trouble occur with
them We suggested that if it could be done
without undue harm and if it seemed polite K
him as principal Of the school, that the frt
alarm should be given without any notice what
ever to the pupils or teachers other than him
self and that the editors there present in larg'
! numbers from all parts of the state should b.
notified, so that they could be on the alert AM
when the fire alarm was sounded, they coul
observe the effects of the drill. In due cours
the alarm was given and instantly the entr
school was on its feet and the teachers marche
from their rooms, bringing the pupils dowr
stairs, but not in single file as is reported of tn
McDonough School, but in phalanxes of six {
eight abreast. Among these one girl fell dow
On the stairs and the others walked over he
as was necessary under the circumstances. II
teacher seized this pupil quickly and she WI
carried into an adjacent room and the enti1
school was got out of the building in less ths
two minutes by the watch, with no mishs
whatever excepting the one pupil falling, VIII
happily, was not injured.
Fortunately, McDonough No. IL had but
very small fire, quickly %extinguished and t
school resumed it's ordinary course. At Monr
It was a test alarm and the children were quic
" reinstated at their various positions and t
editorial fraternity of the state there prese
were much struck with the advantage Of su
discipline as there exhibited and as has NJ
again been exhibited in New Orleans in
quick discharge from these buildings OF tn
hundreds Of pupils.