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Show fore, there must be provided quarters and cookinganddining facilities for their use. Hence it will be observed that for a large school quite a considerable number of buildings is necessary. In planning an Indian school plant, effort is made to adapt all the buildings to the purposes intended. Ventilation and hygienic devices are necessary that the health of the pupils may be properly conserved. The latest results of school architectural science are brought to bear whenever funds are available, even at the sacrifice of capacity. Light-ing of schoolrooms and shops are of paramount consideration on account of the tendency of Indian children to diseases of the eye. Baths, lavatories, heat, light, and sewerage requirements are carefully planned for every plant. Modern systems are not provided as luxu-ries, but as essential to the health of the pupils. Imagine the con-dition of an Indian school of 200 pupils without an adequate system of sewage disposal. A sewer can not be successfully operated without an adequate water system, upon which depends a steam heating system, doing away with multitudes of separate fires, each a zone of danger. The water supply furnishes adequate.bathing facilities. Electricity or gas supplies light and does away with dangerous coal-oil lamps. Therefore, taking all. these factors into account, the long distance usually from railroads, high prices of labor and material, it follows necessarily that Indian school plants are expensive. But they are not more expensive than buildings of the same character for white cbil-dren. It must not be overlooked that the only similar institutions for whitesare theindustrial and reform scbools. The investigations of this Office disclose the fact that Indian school plants are constructed at less expense than these. While school buildings for the lndians are substantially constructed and are not displeasing architecturally, yet little money is spent on outside adornment. A fair comparison is invited with similar plants for white schools a11 over the country. The appropriation for scbool buildings, sites, and sewers, and water, heating, etc., facilities for the fiscal year 1903 was $250,000, of which amount nearly half was used in what may be termed repair work. Out of the remainder several new plants were erected. This amount is not sufficient to keep the present Indian schools in repair, build hospitals, install lighting plank, improve water and sewerage systems, and erect several entirely new school plants where they are sadly needed. CLASSEB OF INDIAN 8CA001g. Indian schools are divided into (1) nonreserration boarding schools, located as a rule near the centers of civilization and away from the reservations; (2) reservation boarding schools, located within the borders Of the Indian reservations; (3) day schools, situated near the camps and homes of the Indian parents. |
