Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1912-07-12
AFFAIRS OF SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 2
Loan Of $2 900 to Pay Canal Street School BondsSaaes
Grades Considered Insufficient Tax Recommended

Reports of the prudential committee,
treasurer, principal and supervisors of
school district No. have been printed
this week. The committee reports that
the past year was successful, the at
tendance gratifying and the number of
truancy cases less than usual. A list of
the changes in the teaching force for
the coming year is given, which has been
published in The Phoenix, and the com
mittee states that the appointment of
two men teachers marks an important
advance in the policy of the school and
we hope will be the means of broadening
its activities and strengthening its dis
cipline." Favorable action on the article
relating to pensions, in the warrant for
the annual school meeting, is recon-
mended.
The furniture and repair account was
especially large because of the new heat
ing and ventilating system in the Canal
street building which cost $1,000, but
the results obtained warranted the out
lay. Looking forward to the new year"
the report says there will not be so
many demands of this kind in the case
of the older buildings, so that we can
confine ourselves in large measure to
the equipment of the Oak Grove school
and to what grading and other work
may be needed to make the ample play
ground about it available for use"
Referring to finances, the committee
says. his year we WtIc uildbic " o'N
anything to the sinking fund to be APP
piled to the payment of the Canal street
street school bonds at maturity. The
special reason for this was the TACT
that the sum received from the state
was nearly a thousand dollars less than
is usually the case, while, on the other
hand, owing to our being obliged to
employ an additional teacher and provide
an extra schoolroom, an unexpected eX-
pense ensued However, 1t may be well
to bear in mind in this connection that
during the past three years we have
placed $4,000 to the credit of this fund, so
that on the maturity of the Canal street
bonds July ! it was necessary to raise
OF N $4,000 of the entire $4,000 due on
mt date. An article in the school war
rant relates to the issuing of bonds to
the amount of $4,000 for the repayment
of this loan. If this is done the bonded
debt of the district will amount alto
gether to SOS 000-this comprising $4,000
in Canal street school bonds and $4,000
in Oak Grove school bonds, which were
authorized at a special meeting of the
district in April and will soon be avail
able. The Canal street school bonds Will
be repaid at the rate of $4,000 each year,
beginning in 1913, and the Oak Grove
school bonds will be repaid at the rate
Of $4,000 each year, beginning in 1919.
In order therefore, that the district
may provide for expenses of every kind
during the coming school year. including
the payment of interest on bonds and
$1,000 of the principal of the extended
Canal street school bonds, and the main
tenance of the Oak Grove school, we
recommend that tax of 81 cents be
laid on the grand list. All of which is
respectfully submitted
In his seventh annual report Principal
f. 3. Smith says the enrolment in the
high school the past year was the largest
To-, t1,a lie hfStn hn
ment for the fall term was go, for the
winter term 21S and for the spring term
207. The high school had so tuition stu
dents for one or more terms, distributed
as follows: Brattleboro town district, 80;
other towns in Vermont, 30; towns out
side of Vermont, II.
Mr. Smith says that fully one-third
of the boys in the high school have reg
ular employment afternoons, and that it
would be very much wiser if more boys
worked afternoons. He says one of the
- most serious obstacles to good work in the
high school is the pool room evil, al
though not criticizing the game He
quotes the law, mo minor can frequent
pool or billiard rooms nor play games
there without his parents consent
and says: THE surest way to correct
the evils of oafing around pool rooms
is to have the village authorities license
the pool rooms and then if the proprie-
to withdraw the license and close up the
places"
An influence that has been helpful and
in some measure has counteracted the
pool room evil, is the work in GYM
nastics and athletics under competent
instructors The lack of quarters in town
for gymnasium work is mentioned, and
the report says: 1T would be a happy
solution of the difficulty if the new
gymnasium at the Brattleboro Retreat
could be used for part time by school
district No. .. The need of one centrally
located field for a playground and ath-
letic work is noted, also the lack of
suitable swimming places by reason of
sewage. The principal says Brattleboro
could control Milestone brook, but until
the board of health or some other au-
thority takes some action in keeping
sewage out of Milestone brook at West
Brattleboro it is not safe or decent for
our boys and girls to make use of any
of the various swimming holes along its
course"
The crowded condition of the high
school is mentioned it being such that
the senior class has not had seats in
the main room the past year, and the
only solution is a new building for the
lower grades now in the high school
building. This would give opportunity
for broadening the course of study of
the high school, to include domestic
science, technical courses and agricul-
ture. Announcement is made that there
will be no more Washington trips unless
financed by individuals because the
school interests like the Dial and ath-
letc association need what money can