The Washington times., 1922-12-24

tive normal INJURY ana NOT merely
q lessened benefit.
So far. We have spoken only
of the elementary schools, be.
cause We believe that they como
fret. But popular education In
America means more than the
three RI. Tho high school II an
essential part Of the system. And
the conditions In the high schools
are even worse than those In the
elementary schools.
The Mckinley Manual Training
High School has = present enroll.
ment OF 1,4S<. Its normal seat.
ing capacity Uhat 10 a seat and
dssk) 10 sSs--65i moro pupils than
seats.
Business High School has q
present enrolment Of 1895. Its
normal seating capacity u 962;
3s6 more pupils than seats.
Central High School has . pres
ent enrolment Of 3.16s. Its nor
NAL seating capacity 10 1850;
1.l9s more puplls than seats.
Eastern High School has a
present enrolment of 1859. Its
normal seating capacity 10 SIC;
47s more pupils than seats.
Western High School has
present enrolment OF 1.017. Its
normal seating capacity 10 724;
293 more pupils than seats.
Dunbar High School has pres
ent enrolment Of 1885. Its nor.
NAL seating capacity 10 1902; 283
more pupils than seats.
Armstrong High School has a
present enrolment OF 1895. Its
normal seating capacity is $685..
$40 more pupils than seats.
In short. taking the senior
high schools alone, there is an
actual existing shortage Of S,667.
NEW BUILDING NEEDED.
Setting off against this present
shortage the partial relief which
the New Eastern High School
win afford on February 1. 1875
namely: l.600--there will still re-
main a shortage OF 2,161. To
supply decent housing for this
brigade Of pupils would require
another school building as large
as the Central High School itself.
What does this mean? 1t means
part time" 1t means Q double
shift. 1t means that pupils shall
begin their school day at noon or
later, and that in winter the SOS
sions must be dragged out tin
twilight. Here again, we have
the same unwarranted and highly
injurious drain upon the vitality
OF the children that we found In
the case of the elementary
schools. 1t II possible that the
pupils. being older. run less risk
II permanent injury. But the
condition 10 . positive evil. No
one who sincerely believes In
public education or cares any
thing about the next generation
Of Americans. will permit 1t to
continue, IL any conceivable sac
rifice can eradicate 1t.
Such are the conditions. What
will the proposed appropriations
do toward curing them? The an
swer ID short. They will do moth
ing whatever. They do no more
than absorb the normal annual
increase. Anything less than the
budget estimates would mean only
q new accumulation Of shortage.
At their best, the budget estimates
mean standing still. helpless In
the face of these tragic condi-
tions.
To this inevitable? We cannot
believe II. The public treasury 10
not yet reduced to such dire ex'
tremities.
Broadly speaking. the Board of
Education building program en-.
deavofed to meet the situation In
three ways:
First, by providing Junior high
schools which would relieve at
once the pressure In the seventh
and eighth grades Of the elemen-
tary schools and the first year Of
the high schools. But the budget
has struck out the item for the
construction Of such a school on
the site requested between Twen-
tieth street and Rock creek and
X and o streets. This item Of
100000 should be, restored. And
its restoration will not involve
national bankruptcy.
The second project Of the School
Board was the purchase Of six
new sites for early use at q total
authorized cost Of $4,000. These
were struck out. Two OF these
are for new junior high schools-
one In the southwest, one in the
northeast section. The rest are
for elementary schools. These
items. we submit. should be re-
stored. They would have an I'm
mediate effect On the shortage. II