Evening star., 1922-01-15
THOMAS JEFFERSON WAS FIRST PRESIDENT
OF WASHINGTON'S BOARD OF EDUCATION

I the yearly sum Of 81, 500 from the pro-
ceeds Of taxes laid on Slaves, dogs,
licenses from carriages and hacks.
for ordinaries and taverns. for re-
failing wines and spirituous liquors
for billiard tables, for theatrical and
| other amusements. and for hawkers
and peddlers." This amount was not
materially increased for more than
q quarter of century.
| **x x*
A N interesting fact and one which
is not generally known accord
| ing to Mr.. Stuart. is that between
1912 and 1888 fourteen, joint resolu-
lutions authorizing lotteries for the
benefit of the public schools were
passed by Congress. Some Of these
revenues were invested in stocks
| and designated as school funds, the
interest on which was applied to the
support of the schools until Congress in
1878 began to make appropriations for
the schools without reference to the
school fund.
J When Congress, in 1881. was ap-
pealed to to appropriate money for
the first high school building. the
suggestion was made that the objec-
tions which existed in the minds OF
some of our legislators to expending
| public money for high school edu-
| ton might be overcome by author
izing the use of this accumulated
fund. then amounting to $4,000 for
| the erection of the desired building.
Thus, it happend that after lapse
| Of more than fifty years a fund de-
rived, in the light of the ethics of to-
day.. from questionable sources, hav-
| ing served it's purpose in the support
| of the early pauper schools. became
the nucleus for the endowment Of the
| system of secondary education.
| A far more serious obstacle to the
| growth of the common school during
the earlier years lay in the general
acceptance of the false and utterly
vicious idea, which later boards found
it hard to uproot, that a public
school is of necessity pauper school.
| Color was given to this notion by
a provision of the organic act to the
| effect that poor children should be
taught reading, writing and gram
mar" the pay scholars being favored
| with additional instruction in geog-
raphy and Latin.
! A rule made in 1881 affords an ex-
| cellent illustration of the tendency
to exclude from the Dement'S OF the
public school of that day children
whose parents were supposed to be
able to pay for their education. 1t
! contained the provision that no
scholar should be continued In the
school the income of whose parents
exceeded the sum of $50 day, ex-
cepting where there was more than
four children in the family.
The school least of the Capitol was
what was afterward known as the
Eastern Free School, which for nearly
a half century was the only public
| school on Capitol Hill. In this school
roor children were to be taught
reading. writing. grammar. arithme-
tic "and such branches of mathemat-
les as may qualify them for the pro-
| fession they are qualified to follow"
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besides. in geography and Latin, the
| charges being s. a quarter. The
children in that day went to school
on Saturdays as well as on other
week days and the school hours were
longer than at present being eight
hours in the summer and six in the
| winter.
to apply to the President of the
| United States for leave to occupy
vacant ground for the erection of
| schoolhouse. not to exceed fifty feet
| in length and twenty feet in width.
| Two schoolhouses were built the next
year. one of which was for the oc-
cupancy of the Eastern School.
In 1909 there were twenty-seven
pupils enrolled From that time to
| 1916 the Eastern School seemed to
I experience struggle for existence.
In an appeal for funds made by the
| board in 1915 it is stated that Mr..
Wallis, who succeeded Mr.. Elliott as
| teacher. had taught one year with
only one quarters salary.
| In 1916 the city council established
two boards, one of which was to
have exclusive charge Of the Eastern
School. The minutes of this board are
recorded without a break from 1916
to 1874. and contain much that is Of
value to those interested in the de-
velopment of the schools of Capitol
Hill.
| An old register containing the acts
of the board of trustees of the East
ern Free School from 1S16-1S44" il re-
plete with much interesting reading.
| On April 5. 1924, it stated that the
board solemnly resolved that every
scholar before he enters school each
morning shall have his head combed
and his face washed. and that it
shall be the duty Of the teacher to
cause the said rule to be regularly
enforced"
/ Having thus disposed of the ques-
ton of cleanliness. the twin virture
to godliness was next aimed at by
an order of July 16 of the same year
which resolved: That the president
of the board be requested to attend
the school every Sabbath morning
and lecture the pupils of said school
on their moral and religious duties,
and that 1t be the duty Of the teacher
to cause the children to assemble
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