New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-07-10
Bad.
Prall Adn1its:
Shifts Blame
Praises Hylan Program as
Greatest Ever known,
While His Own SURVEY
Confirms Most Charges
Cites Big Building Plans
Declares 27 New Structures
win Be Ready by Fall,
With y More ON Way

Aiming S. Prall, president of the
Board of Education, issued a detailed
reply yesterday to the report on the
| sanitary conditions of the public
schools of the city recently made bv
committee representing number of
women's clubs interested in civic mat
ters. The reply is made to Mrs. Rogers
; II. Bacon, chairman of the plan and
program committee Of the associated
! clubs. who made a complete survey of
forty schools in the city.
In his answer the president of the
Board of Education includes reports
made on the forty schools by C. B. j.
Snyder, superintendent of school build
ings, to DR.. William L. Ettinger, Su-
perintendent of Schools. In the ma
jority of cases these reports differ but
little from those made by the women's
committee, although in q few there is
fiat contradiction. In cases where
the women alleged poor lighting facili-
ties, the report passes the buck to the
Department of Water Supply, Gas and
Electricity, and in cases where it was
reported there were insufficient rest
facilities for teachers, it is stated that
the trouble can only be remedied by
taking away much needed classrooms.
After presenting the detailed report
Mr. Prall takes advantage Of the op-
portunity to reply to those who have
been annoying the Hylan administra-
tion bS insistent demands for improved
school conditions.
Cites Repair Appropriations
He dismisses with gesture the
statements made by the Public Educa-
ton Association, and adds that the
Hylan administration has spent more
than twice as much for repairs to
schools than did the Mitchell admins
tration.
In order to prove this he cites ap-
propriations made for that purpose
which include s4,S65,9 ,931.9o for this year,
one-half Of which was appropriated
only after the publication of the
women's report. In his reply he says:
81 beg to call your attention to the
fact that it is quite impossible to make
major repairs to school buildings dur
ing that part of the school year that
classes are in session.
at is obvious that we couio iloc s.u'
off the water from school building
in order to make repairs to plumbing
heating or toilet fixtures during the
period that the buildings are occupied
by the children. ~
eve could not paint classrooms while
classes are in session.
eve could not remove old roots and ,d
install new ones, nor could we lnstali
or repair cornices; therefore, it be-
comes necessary to make these major
repairs in the brief vacation perlod1
when the children are not in the school
buildings or whose lives are in danger
the time these repairs are made.
"Appreciating the economy IN main
tanning public school building in
which great sums have been invested
by the City of New York, this board
found when entering upon its duties
in the the early part of 1918 that it would
mate ne eeeaasa sum Of ss,ooo,ooo for repairs due
to the neglect of former adminlstra-
lions to keep the buildings in proper
condition, and in proof of this | offer
vom the following statement taken from
ihe records of this department show.
mo the year 1914 and the nature OF
the @ appropriations during that year for