Norwich bulletin. [volume] (Norwich, Conn.) 1895-2011, 1916-12-13
NORWICH TOWN
Prof. r. s. Hitchcock Gives Interest
ing Address Before Mems Club
Surprise for Mrs. Robert 6eethan1
on Wedding Anniversary-Girls'
Club Members Visit.

The December meeting of the Nor
witch Town Mems league brought out
q good audience Monday evening in
the First Congregational chapel. Pres
ident H. L. Yerrington called the meet
ing to order. The report of the Nov
ember meeting was given by the sec
rotary, l.. Stanley Gay. The member
ship Of the league is now 20.
Prof. F. S. Hitchcock of the New
London Vocational School was then
introduced who gave a summary of
the history Of Vocational Training. The
first vocational school was founded in
1869, he said, in worcester, Mass, and
was made possible by endowments
from two wealthy men. Pupils over
16 years of age Were admitted. At the
was an exhibition of work from Mos
COW, including new methods in iron
work which aroused fresh interest and
were adopted in trades schools in this
country. Then schools began to be
established in the larger cities of the
United States.
Manual Skill for Mind.
BY doing things with the hands the
mind is awakened. Manual skill comes
from the mind. During the last 20
years the vocational high school has
arisen. Why are academic studies
taught in vocational school? One
Illustration was that poor preparation
in geometry makes failure in mechani-
cal drawing. We never get all our
work done in a four years course. The
present day schools are moving away
from model work. In our school in
New London we make repairs on
woodwork, plumbing, electric lighting;
articles for school use are made by
the students; a fve-horse electric mo-
tor, milling machine, counter shafting,
sanding wheel and driving shaft, were
made last year.
Advantages of Training.
These young men and young women
ought not to be obliged to earn their
way while being educated as both
hand and mind are being trained, and
since by and by. they are to do the
boy gets higher wages than the AGA
demic graduate in Massachusetts. Not
all who study mechanics become ma
chinists, we aim at all events to ac-
complish efficiency in whatever line of
business he shall pursue. Teachers in
domestic science, the girls who can
teach sewing and cooking as we'll as
the ordinary branches, are alwaps in
demand In our girls department last
year were made up $4,000 worth Of
clothing, 1880 pieces.
Practical Results.
The results of training ara, First, it
tends to keep the boys and girls III
school longer; they learn to know iron,
steel, tempering. Second. it gives d
better choice of occupation; to be en-
thusiastic is an awakening for many.
Third, Manufacturers and other in
dustries are helped. The vocational
high appeals to that class which does
things better than it can talk about
them. 1t requires brains to be a good
machinist as much as. in the profess
sions. tHH
In closing he said. The workman
should be thinking some of the time
and the intellectual man should be
some of the time, and both
should be gentlemen.
A vote of thanks was given for the
instructive address. At the close live
questions were asked and answered.
Thoughts brought out were: There
should be vocational school in every
city Of 10000. We import too much
help, we should keep our best mater
ial at home. The mechanical man or
woman is not lacking in mental activ-
ity, in order to be developed pupils
need mathematics, history, language
| want to do the thing that will make
the best citizens of my boys and girls.
There were 81 pupils II years ago, now
76i are enrolled. The whole school
is working to make the school go.
Pictures were shown illustra ting ar
ticles made in the boys and girls de-
partmentS.