Evening star., 1927-12-08

| IL their refusal was regarded as con,
| demnation of the causes represented
| by the speakers.
! eve concede the finenass of this
| lecture Mr.. Carusi told the commit
tee. but we have here compulsory
! education law which demands thdl
Catholics, Jews. Protestants, Mohan'
medans, everybody send their chlidreh
| to school or face fine on imprlsor,
ment, and we have the children OIL an
| .hese in our schools. Therefore we leeI
it our duty to provide pubic lnstruc'
ton in our public schools, ana thal
| is why we refuse to permit subjects or
viewpoints to be eXpounded that are
| controversial, SeCtarian or pollticaI. 30
without reference TO, the merits oil
these things we refuse them. our ad'
verse action in this case would not
| indicate that we favor cigarette smok-
| ing for children"
Before a vote could be taken on Mr
| Gilligan's motion, however, Mr.. Ma
| hony rose and addressed the board
| He declared he could not see where
theirs was not a logical request, CON
tending there is nothing controyerslai
scctarian or political in the cigarette
lecture. He told the board that the
committee of which he was a member,
taxpayers in Washington, could pack
his room with parents who would beg
YOU with tears in their eyes to allow
Dr. Kress to address their children on
the evils OF cigarette smoking"
At the conclusion of Mr.. Mahony's
impassioned plea for the authorization
of the lecture, Mr.. Giligan declared
that he had been impressed with the
speakers sincerity, but that he re-
nained convinced that as a matter of
policy the permission should be re-
fused. He told Mr.. Mahony that he
himself was q 'teetotaler" both with
respect to tobacco and alcoholic drinks
and he reminded him that the board
had voted adversely on a continuance
Of the Women's Christian Temperance
Union lectures, which had been de-
livered in the schools for years. The
vote which followed was unanimously
opposed to the Anti-Cigarette Leagues
application.
Started Over w. c. t. L.
The board at its last two meetings
was confronted with objections filed
by the Association Against the Pro
hibition Amendment to the w. G. r. L.
lectures. At it's last meeting it decided
that hereafter all requests for permis-
sion to address pupils must be author
lied by the board itself rather than,
as heretofore. by the administrating
officials of the school system. At the
same time it was indicated that the
w. G.. r. L. speakers would be pro-
hlbited from addressing the pupils on
the effects of alcohol in the future.
In adopting DR.. Ballou's recommen-
dation to suspend Mr.. Henderson the
board members passed no comment
upon the physical training directors
case, but relieved him of his position in
the school system, without pay, pend
ing the outcome of his trial. No men
ton was made of the diploma mill',
investigation or what might be the
teachers part in connection with the
suspected SCHOOL" but the simple fact
that he had been indicted for an at
tempt to use the mails to defraud was
the stated grounds for his suspension.
Henderson, at present, is free on 81 600
bond pending trial on the charges with
Gilbert z. Brown. president of the
School" and Ethel Wood, who it is
charged was secretary of the school.
In deciding to request the District
auditor to re-include an item for i'm
proved school facilities for Southwest
Washington, the board acted on the
appeal of J. NJ. Schaffer. chairman of
the South Washington Citizens Asso-
citation, who appeared before it to seek
its aid. Mr. Schaffer declared that at
present the pupils of the Jefferson
Junior High School are in effect part
time" pupils because of the fact that
the classes in that building are inter.
ruped throughout the day by operating
trains on adjacent railroad tracks.
which he said. are within IS feet of
some of the schools classrooms. Coal
gas from the locomotives are an an
noyance to both pupils and teachers,
he told the board. He asked that when
the budget for school building is pre-
pared the jefferson Junior High School