SCHOOL CHILDREN'S HEALTH.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 260, 27 October 1908, Page 4

SCHOOL CHILDREN'S HEALTH.

To the liditor.

Sir,—A deal of iiiterosL has been shown recently in the very iiiipurLaut question: "Tlio health of our school children," \vhich subject must include tlie consideration of wanning uml ventilating tin' school buildings. So fur as the Taranaki Education Board's district is concerned, tlie only method for wanning tin; schools uL present provided is llui open fireplace plan. That this is not successful goes without contradiction. The children near the lire, if it is big enough lo lie of any use, get tin I much heat, while those away from it are colder even than they would iir were no lire lighted, owing to the in creased draught towards tile lirephuc The open lire needs frequent atlentiji: or it ceases to exist; the most of tin heat .produced goes directly up tie chimney without benefiting anyone bill the iniuahs who perch on the chininci top aud enjoy the ascending heat. Tin lire also consumes a very large quunuii of iuel—fuel that must be provided In * the too often helplessly inipecnniou: I school committee, with very little, i any, benefit to the pupils unless it hi used Wr drying wet garments or toast ing their dinner bread. There is not, feel sure, a teacher in Taranaki wii will not uphold the statement that tli • O.F. plan is a failure. Hut the JSoar expects a good deal from its teacher., each year in the steady advance of the . pupils under Ihem, and to give those teachers a "Miancc to get good results it should try to iind some better way ol regulating the temperature of rooms where the work lias to be carried on At the last yearly meeting of hour-ehold-ers at Norfolk road, Mr Harold Trimble, who .presided, and who is the newest | resident member of the Taranaki Kiln-

cation Board, was asked to try to get the Board to make thorough enquiries as to the possibility of getting a better plan for wanning the schools. (Jn Thursday last. 22nd instant, when 1 asked him, Mr. Trimble told me he had spoken to the chairman of the Hoard and found that the question was not given much attention to, which he thought was probably because persons living near Xew Plymouth do not realise how very much 1 colder it is in inland Taranaki than ne.uI the coast. At least no steps have ysi been taken , Now, .sir, summer is just coming on, and there should be time t" make ample enquiries and experiments before the next cold season. There are schools where at present the fireplaces are admittedly no good at all. At NorI folk Road, Mr. Trimble tells me, the fires cannot be used when most needed I because then the -wind is in a quarter that makes the- chimneys smoke so vigorously into the school that it is impossible to carry on the work. At Cardiff .school the "cost of trying to make the chimney do its expected work has been very considerable, and the problem is not yet solved. There, then, are two schools at least where experiments could be carried on without any. danger of making matters worse, at any rate, than they are now, anil a possibility of much good being done.. Trusting that you will find space for this.—l am. etc.. ROBERT STEVEN'S. Inglewood, 24th Oetolier, 1008.