Evening star., 1929-01-03
BOARD DECLINES
|. TO HALT LECTURE
School Body Asked to Stop
Norman Angel From TtaIk-
ing in Central High.

An attempt to prevent Norman Angel
from speaking at the Community Cen
ter Institute tonight in Central High
School on the ground that Angell's
widely known pacltlst and SoclaliStc
tendencies render him "a menace TO
good government" was launched at the
meeting of the Board of Education yes
terday afternoon by H. Ralph Burton,
local attorney, who said he represented
several patriotic organizations" when
he asked the board to prohibit Angel
from delivering lecture that has been
advertised at intervals since last July,
Mr.. Burton cited a number of organt-
cations. leagues" and movements"
which he described as paCitical and So
cialistic with which, he said, Angel Is
''openly and publicly" associated in di-
Tectorship of. or. at least, in member
ship He contended that paciiism ana
socialism "tie in closely with commu-
nism" and that a person who processes
to believe these doctrines lis n menace"
whose utteranccs should not have the
sanction and approval OF the Board
OF Education.
The board however. took no formal
action on Mr.. Burton's petition. An
swering the attorneys suggestion that
BY allowing Angel to speak in public
school. the board was in effect author
iz.ng the speakers address, DR.. Charles
F. Carusi president, and Henry L. Gill;
gan, member. reminded Mr.. Burton that
the Community Institute lectures are
In no sense school lectures, but are pre-
sented for adults who pay admission
to hear them.
People Pay TO Hear Him.
1--WE can halt the impression" DIR,
Carusi said III answer TO MIR. Burtons
charge of authorization, "by denying
responsibility right now for his beliefs
and that. of course, is what we do. II
people want to hear the sort of things
you have indicated Mr.. Angel is going
to talk about and they want to pay to
hear it, that's all right so far as this
board is concerned. The fact that
the man is going to speak in brick
and mortar structure that is used for
school purposes at another time of the
day is not material"
DR.. Carusi added that he believes
the Board of Education should be
slow to attempt a censorship over the
use of school buildings"
Mr.. Gilligan asked Mr.. Burton If he
thought Angel should not be allowed
to speak, and the attorney replied that
while he was aware of the rights ac- |
corded by the Constitution, he believed |
that when doctrines are preached that !
are dangerous to the welfare of the |
Government that the Constitution Gre
ated the speaking becomes license and
not liberty"
Isaac Cans asked when Angell's ap-
pearance on the Community Institute |
program was announced first. When it |
was explained that the seasons scfed- |
ule was made public last July and that |
the list of lectures and artists sched- |
uled for appearance had been adver- |
tised at frequent intervals in the news |
papers and by printed circulars since |
that date, Mr. Cans said he didn't see |
why a protest was delayed until the day |
before the meeting Mr.. Burton said |
he hadn't had the matter called to his |
attention until yesterday. Other board |
members also shared the belief that the |
protest was overdelayed.
Names Two Bodies.
Mr.. Burton did not name in open |
board meeting the several patriotic or
ganiZations" on whose behalf he said he |
was opposing Mr.. Angel. Outside the |
boardroom, however, he named the |
National Patriotic League and the Wom- |
an Patriot as the only organizations |
by whose direct authority he addressed |
the board. The Woman Patriot is |
publication. Mr.. Burton said he also !
OF the American Revolution but, that |
that organization had taken no action |
opposing the scheduled Angel speech. |
He told reporters also that he repre- |
scented the American Legion lin spirit"
but admitted he had not been author |
lied to speak for it as an organization.
Charges that SO per cent of the chill
0ren whose eyesight is declared defec- |
tive by school examiners are incorrectly
SSnex n ~ hyT AHrc f1tf fiNNt
Sidney Smith, board member, yester-
day when the possibility of installing
illuminated eye test charts in centrally
located buildings in lieu of each build
ing in the system was requested of DR..
Frank w. Ballcu, superintendent. While
she declared she was not criticiZing the
ability of the examining doctors, who,
under the present system, are obliged TO
work in haste and with inadequate ia
cilities, Mrs. Smith declared she be-
1ieved the board should act to reduce
the percentage of errors.
She explained that child will take
a card home to his parent bearing no
tice that his eyes need the attention
Of an oculist.> In so per cent of the
case where parents take their children
to eye specialists in accordance with the
school examiners instructions, Mrs.
Smith contended, the money paid the
specialists is wasted because the faulty
condition which the school examiner
claims to have found does not exist.
Hold Cost Prohibitive
The illuminated eye test charts and
an accurately measured space indicated
on the floor near the chart might aid
the school systems eye examiners in
striking a better average in diagnosing
pupils sight conditions, Mrs. Smith
said. DR.. Ballou viii study a plan Of
locating the illuminated charts in cer-
tain buildings in view of the boards
buildings, grounds and equipment COM
mittee's recommendation that the in
stallation in every building would pre-
sent prohibitive cost.
DR.. Ballou was ordered also to make
report on the cost of installing electric
vacuum cleaners in new high school
buildings. A complaint was received by
the board during the Fall against the
ordinary sweeping method of cleaning
school buildings. At the request of the
board DR.. Ballou reported today that
only Eastern High School and the new
Mckinley High School are equipped
with cleaning devices. DR.. Carusl ex-
pressed live interest in the installation
of vacuum cleaning devices, contending
that "all broom does is drag the dirt
from one place to another"
The board unanimously decided to re-
quest the Commissioners to approve and
forward to the Bureau of the Budget
an item of 100000 for the erection of
an addition to the Park View School.
The Bureau of the Budget already
had stricken from the 1880 budget
similar item for the same addition when
the Commissioners indicated they would
not order the closing of Otis street,
which would have been required had
the proposed structure been erected ac-
coTding to the original plans of the
municipal architect. Subsequently. DIR.
Ballou requested A. l.. Harris, the archi-
tect, to prepare new plans fer build