| OCR Text |
Show REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF. INDIAN AFFABS. 39 is oftentimes very low and trying, and where, consequeiltly, it is neces-sary that the buildings should be well built in order to insure ordinary comfort for the employes and pupil& But the great desideratumis snfl&ent room. Where 100pupils with the required employ6 force are gathered togetller in one building, it is absolutely esse~itia~nlo, t simply on the ground of comfort but of bealtl~ and of life, that there should be sufficient sleeping space, in order that , the pupils may not be so crowded into sleeping roomsas to endanger their health and their lives. There ought b be, in connection with every large school, a well ar-ranged hospital where the sick can be properly cared for, and where those affected with contagious disease can be isolated from the others so as to prevent the spread of the same disease. When these absolute requirements are taken into consideration it will be evident to any person acquainted with the facts that the limit fixed heretofore by the Government for the cost of boarding school buildings is an unreasonable one. I t has been suggested to me that our fathers attended school in a log schoolhouse, and that this is good enough for an Indian. This sug-gestion, however, is based upon an entire misapprehension of the situ-ation. Our fathers had decent homes and attended the "log school-housen during a few hours of the day. The question here under dis-cussion is not the erection of a day school in the midst of a well settled, intelligent, religions co~nmunityb, ut, it is the question o the erection of a boarding school, with all the necessary buildinga, on an.-Indian reservation with no civilization. APPROPRIATIONS POR SCHOOLS. The Indian bill which became a law July 13,1892, carries the gross sum of $2,312,385 for Indian education for the year ending June 30, 1893. The amount appropriated for the same purpose by the last Con-gress was $2,291,650. The amount asked for by the Commissioner for this year was $2,917,060, or $603,535 more than the sum appropriated. Thislarge cut in the estimates submitted by the Indian Officeis a very severe blow to the cause of Indian education. In the first place, it renders it impossible to complete the full establishment of the several training schools according to the plans of the Indian Office. It was intended to complete, substantially, these large nonreservation schools, so that they might enter at once upon the largest and most efficient service which they are capable of rendering. The Indian bill not only failed to make snitable provision for their completion, but it carries re-strictions of such a nature as mill, in some cases, Tery seriously hinder the usefulness of these scl~ools. In the next place, the Indian Office asked for $200,000 for the erec-tion, enlargement, and repair of school buildings on Indian reserva- |
