Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-10-08
WIRE TCHEO CONDITIONS
IN CITY SCHOOLS PERIL
HEAL I'll Of THOUSANDS

With opposing remedies being Of
Tered in official circles Tuesday, the
health of thousands of Atlanta school
children is being undermined every
dav in the public schools; they are
-5rced to do their work-some sort of
work; good work either by the chill
dren or the teachers. is out of the
orsstion-by conditions so disgrace
mi as to be almost unbelievable, in
he opinion of all the school authori-
les.
Every school in the city is so
nscked with humanity that there is
scarcely breathing room. Forced to
sir so and 90 in room that should
NOT. bv all the laws of ventilation and
-rvieDe. accommodate more than 40
mr. ~ at the most, they breathe over
and over again foul air laden with
goisonous human products; they sit
uddled up on benches and cigar
boxes and soap boxes, without desks.
heir little backs literally breaking
under the strain; they are packed
like gardines into Easements of
schools next door to the toilets, in a
manner that would shame the con-
,as+ed East Side district of New
York. they are dumped wholesale in
rented cottages, in dark, low-ceil-
.pged rooms that are improperly ar
ranged and ventilated, and were
never intended for school purposes.
According to DR.. W. B. Daley, pres
dent Of the Board of Education. it is
All because the City Council, at its
last January meeting when the schoo!
budget was made uD. failed to antici-
nate and provide for the natural
growth Of the city and its attendant
grow IN in school attendance. Before
las. Years term of school ended il
vas apparent that the present build
.ngs were going to be inadequate to
accommodate next years attendance;
rhe need of new buildings and addi-
#onal facilities was pressing and no.
..cablc. But nothing was done.
Pave way TOR OeIeCtlNeS'
Those who are to blame for the
H,ne ur accommodations for the chill
.rpn ray themselves open to the ter
rb'r charge of contributing to 1.-THE
delinquency of 10000 little boys and
rr1s in that they have paved the
rav FOR 10000 mental detectives and
10000 siclly. stunted little bodies and
10000 discouraged little souls.
children above all things require
Epsh air and proper surroundings to
ro their best work, or any kind OF
work. at all; take that away from
Hom and they wither like . flower
.aat is denied water.
II is hard to believe that 80 little
uuman beings could be shut up in
room 50 feet by 10 feet-but ii is the
ruth. II is hard to believe that %
little boys and girls are forced to sit
for hours at time on hard, straight
sacked benches. with their hats and
lunches crowded in beside them, with
no place to write. and dumped in a
corner OF an assembly hall and hid
den behind a sCreen-but it Is the
ruth
The effect of this sort of thing is
noticeable at glance to anyone who
viii take the trouble to look. The
pinched, unhapnv faces of the chill
iran point like an accusing finger;
they are restless. they can not con
.entrate their attention on anything
for more. than a few moments at a
time, andNthey groan with the strain
of sitting for hours stiff as a ramrod,
with nothing on which to. rest their
arms
Books, lunches and hats they must
1old in their hands or lay them on
heir seats beside them, and they are
packed in so closely that they must