A HISTORY OF THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 1852-1902 A HISTORY OF THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL OF BOSTON 1852-1902 BY LUCY R. WOODS CLASS OF 1865 f)rfntefl at tljc IltbcrctUc flrcB0 1904 THIS brief history of the Girls' High School, prepared at the request of the Samuel Eliot Memorial Association, and published under its auspices, is also a part of the recognition of the semi-centennial of the school. In gratefully acknowledging all as- sistance that has been rendered, Miss Woods desires especially to mention the aid given by Miss Caryl and Miss Knapp. 2072804 WHILE the book is in press comes the tidings of the death of the author. It seems fitting, therefore, that to the word of introduction written by her should be added a word of apprecia- tion in the name of her readers, who will inscribe on its pages a grateful " In Memoriam." A HISTORY OF THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 1852-1902 IN 1825, when the good city of Bos- ton allowed its girls to attend the public schools but six months in the year, from April to October, the Rev. John Pierpont proposed the establish- ment of a "public school for the instruction of girls in the higher de- partments of science and literature." The committee reported favorably, setting forth, not only the general expediency of giving to women an education which should fit them to exert a salutary influence on their fam- ilies and society, but also the special 2 A HISTORY OF advantages of establishing a school which should stimulate the brightest pupils in the grammar schools, furnish teachers for the primary schools, and perhaps try the monitorial system, which might later be introduced into the lower schools. The city appropriated two thousand dollars, and in January, 1826, the school was established. But at once came the problem. Instead of ninety candidates, the largest number that had ever presented themselves for ad- mission to the Boys' High School, nearly three hundred girls appeared at the appointed place, on Washing- ton's birthday, 1826, because "they wanted to know, you know." One hundred and thirty were admitted, and on February twenty-seventh the school THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 3 opened, under the wise and vigorous administration of Mr. Ebenezer Bailey. This experiment was short-lived. In vain the committee raised the stand- ard of requirements for admission, and both raised and limited the age of admission. The numbers increased. Mayor Quincy was alarmed. " No city could stand the expense," he declared. He also objected to the school because it was for the few rather than for the many, and was therefore benefiting the more privileged classes of the commu- nity. In 1828, after an existence of two years, it was discontinued. Girls were, however, to be allowed to attend the grammar schools the entire year. To many friends of education, this was a great blow. Mr. Bailey, who by this time had set up a successful pri- 4 A HISTORY OF vate school, came to the defense of the democratic principles of higher educa- tion. In a vigorous review he pointed out that the school had been an ex- periment, the first of its kind ; it had aroused deep interest in our own coun- try, in England, and even on the Con- tinent; it had been visited almost daily, reported, and approved by earnest stu- dents of education. If it had failed, the failure had been of support, not of principle, and it should be so stated. The citizens of Boston were proud of their schools and grudged no expense ; the schools were not charitable institu- tions for the poor alone, they were for the community. As for the school be- ing select, not democratic, scholarship should be the only test, and that was a necessary test for any higher institu- THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 5 tion, and gave equal opportunities to all. The mayor had hindered, annoyed, and neglected the school in petty and undignified fashion. " The only com- munication from the board with which I was favored for more than a year," says Mr. Bailey, "was a letter from the mayor, reprimanding me in good set terms because the young ladies, of their own free will and notion, had agreed among themselves to wear black silk aprons to exhibition." So great was the influence of Bos- ton in educational matters, that the discontinuance of this school no doubt retarded the whole movement in the country for the higher education of girls at municipal expense. Nearly a quarter of a century passed. In 1852 Boston had been a city for 6 A HISTORY OF thirty years : its population numbered one hundred and thirty thousand, and Mr. Nathan Bishop, first superintend- ent of schools, made known the need of a place where young women might be trained as teachers for the primary and grammar schools. This utilitarian view disarmed opposition, and in Sep- tember, 1852, our school began its honorable career as the Normal School, opening its doors to the one hundred young women who formed its first class. It was a notable moment in the educational history of Boston. Charles- town, four years before, and Dorches- ter the same year, had established high schools for both boys and girls, but this was the first permanent effort on the part of the city of Boston to give to its girls an education higher than that THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 7 of the grammar schools ; and among all the later high schools established in the districts of greater Boston, the Girls' High School is unique in that it escapes both the advantages and disadvantages of coeducation. The average age of the first class admitted was somewhat greater than that of any later class. Mr. Loring Lothrop, who had been master of a grammar school, was put in charge of this experiment, for an experiment it was felt to be. He seems to have been well fitted, in many respects, for his task. His method was to impress upon his pupils a sense of their own responsibility; to them belonged the future success or failure of the school. We have heard in late years of stu- dents who prefer " to remain in their 8 A HISTORY OF rooms and have their studies sent up," who lounge passively before an in- structor as who should say, " If you in- terest me, it may be worth my while to listen." But on no such flowery beds of ease were these first Normal School girls carried to their goal. Mr. Lothrop could hardly be called a stren- uous teacher; he presided over the classes rather than taught them. If text-books were not clear or satisfac- tory, the teacher did not explain ; it was the pupils who must seek till they found the clear exposition, the solution of the difficulty. In literature they must analyze in detail and grasp with some power the works studied. " Could any method have been wiser for girls fitting for teachers *? " asks one of Mr. Lothrop 's pupils, who also THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 9 bears witness to the high ideals of duty which he presented. After two years' successful work, the course was ex- tended to three years, more studies were added, and in 1854 the school became the Girls' High and Normal School. In 1856 Mr. Lothrop resigned to open a private school, and Mr. Wil- liam Henry Seavey became principal. In stature kingly, a Saxon giant, he was secretly and familiarly known to the girls as Absalom, or Jupiter Am- mon. Recently one of his oM pupils has been known to mistake the colos- sal cast of Sophocles in the school corridor for his statue, and there is a resemblance. Impressive in person- ality, with power for what we should now call mind reading, his influence io A HISTORY OF over both teachers and pupils was al- most magnetic, fortunately for good. No other head master has known so many pupils personally. In every de- tail of the school his influence made itself felt. Before the days of depart- mental methods, teachers were sup- posed to teach every subject, and Mr. Seavey, well furnished intellectually, gathered his assistants in little groups and planned and directed each course of study, stirring them to dissatisfac- tion with their own attainments, and urging the habit of systematic study as the great means of growth. The natural sciences, mathematics, and phi- losophy were his special interests ; in all branches, his mind tended to anal- ysis and classification. A keen sense of humor lightened toil. Exacting in THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL n his demands for thoroughness, he was also generous and sympathetic, a true moral force. In the early days of the school, its character as a training school for teach- ers was maintained by the existence of primary and grammar school classes under the same roo a " Model School," where the pupils of the " Nor- mal " might observe and practice their art. But in a year or two these classes were removed, and in Mr. Seavey's time, other methods were used. Teach- ing exercises, as they were called, re- quired the pupils to recite or expound as if they were instructing those igno- rant of the subject, and the members of the class were to indicate the weak points of the exposition by well-di- rected questions. If a teacher were 12 A HISTORY OF delayed in going to a lesson, certain members were to take charge and the work went on. When the quicker minds had mastered a subject, prob- lems far in advance of the class were given to them; meantime the class was divided into groups, to be coached by the brighter girls till the class as a whole could advance. Often the abler girls helped to correct papers and ab- stracts. This was a great privilege. When a teacher was absent, girls of the higher classes substituted, some- times for a week or two ; for short pe- riods, they were even sent out as sub- stitutes to the primary and grammar schools, catching up with their classes when they returned because they were able girls and required less drill work. Yet there was always enough for every THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 13 one to do, as outside reading was sug- gested in most subjects. Even with all these methods, there is no doubt that acquisition, scholar- ship, became the main interest of the school; and in 1864, to emphasize and cultivate the Normal Department, what was known as the Training School was set up on Somerset Street, under the charge of Miss J. H. Stick- ney, a young and enthusiastic grad- uate of Oswego. To this training school the girls might go after three, or even two years of study in the main school. Here they were to learn meth- ods, to practice in a model school, to gain inspiration and power for their great vocation. Mr. Seavey encour- aged or discouraged those who wished to take this course, and his word was i 4 A HISTORY OF usually accepted as final, for bold was the maiden who could withstand his influence. Till 1858 the course had been three years in length, but then began the labor of love known as the Advanced Class. Girls who wished to pursue more advanced studies might remain a fourth year. A room adjoining Mr. Seavey's was allotted to them. No teacher was in charge. Mr. Seavey and other teachers gave freely their time and interest to this small group, which numbered at first not more than ten or twelve. To that select few (regarded with awe and admiration by the younger classes), in close personal touch with the teachers, with leisure for genuine, steady work, yet enjoy- ing their freedom and their fun, the THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 15 advanced year seemed perhaps the choicest of all. It was during this pe- riod that the great Civil War shook the country to its foundations. The school felt its influence, and took its little part in the great tragedy. Those who remember the war must always feel sorry for those who can never see this great nation rise and stir herself as when she struggled for self-preser- vation and freedom. Upon the school fell the great shadow, and day by day, as the news came of crushing defeat, of heroic daring, or of victories gained with awful loss, depression and exal- tation, a sense of what our country stood for in the history of the world, a glimpse of her, purified so as by fire, and a vision of the beauty of sacrifice even unto death smote the minds and 1 6 A HISTORY OF hearts of the girls and changed all his- tory and literature and life for them. Hot arguments, too, there were, polit- ical discussions that sometimes threat- ened to break the peace. But Mr. Sea- vey held the reins firmly and wisely; and while he recognized that the deep problems must work their different effect on different minds, calm and ju- dicial, yet with a fire beneath that every one felt, he inculcated that " mal- ice towards none, charity towards all " which was the highest note struck by the great war. The enthusiasm of the school could not be satisfied with wearing badges, or rejoicing in the holiday that some- times marked the announcement of a victory, or tramping to Faneuil Hall to a great mass meeting. Early in the THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 17 war, the girls gave the work and the Latin School boys the material for the outfit of Company D of the Twelfth Massachusetts Regiment, called unof- ficially the Latin School Regiment, Colonel Fletcher Webster, Captain Shurtleff, and many others having been Latin School boys. Up from the Bed- ford Street school marched the boys bearing the bales of flannel, and in the dark old hall of the Mason Street build- ing gathered the teachers and girls of our school to cut and make the gar- ments which the men wore to the war. Mr. Francis Gardner, Master of the Latin School, often strolled in to ad- vise, and indeed advice was sometimes necessary, as when it was discovered that the soldier boys could not possi- bly sit down in some of the garments 1 8 A HISTORY OF as they were cut. "But," answered Miss Knapp, with ready wit, "they are for the standing army." When the news of Lee's surrender came, the old hall shone with the red, white, and blue. None of those pre- sent can ever forget the solemnity of the words in which, a few days later, Mr. Seavey spoke of the death of President Lincoln. Bereavement had touched, more or less nearly, perhaps almost every girl in the school, in the course of the war, and this death seemed to emphasize and unify all single griefs. Grateful recognition should be made of the service rendered to the school at this time by members of the school committee, when that office had no connection with parties and politics, THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 19 and the relation was a vital and per- manent one. Men of education and culture, honored in the community, some of them with ample leisure, they studied the welfare of the school, knew its teachers and many of its pu- pils personally, and were recognized by all the pupils as friends. Such men were Dr. Le Baron Russell, almost constant in his attendance ; Dr. Arthur Lyman ; Rev. S. K. Lothrop ; Dr. Thomas M. Brewer and Dr. A. A. Gould, eminent naturalists, who gave the first impulse to the study of natural history, the latter personally conduct- ing our first botanical and geological excursions; Rev. Henry Burroughs, at one time rector of Christ Church, so familiar with the workings of the school, that at the death of the master, 20 A HISTORY OF it seemed natural that he should serve till a successor was appointed. To these and many others who gave freely time, thought, and service, the school is still a debtor. In the early years of the school, many were its visitors. Some went as friends of education to observe and judge the experiment, but to it were also taken the guests of the city or of its friends, that they might see what Boston was doing for girls. When Carl Zerrahn was teacher of singing, and later, when Julius Eichberg suc- ceeded him, opportunities were given through them to hear great artists. The musical standard of the school was kept high and pure in the hands of such masters of their art. In the days of the great musical festivals, the THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 21 girls of the High and Normal School had the place of honor in the great chorus, as their teacher acted as con- ductor, and they were supposed to be more in touch with him, and to act, in a way, as leaders. These festivals, which were prepared for such guests of the city as the Prince of Wales or the Grand Duke Alexis of Russia, gave a fine opportunity to see those dazzling beings, and sometimes led to other festivities, as when the young ladies of the senior class were invited to a party on the Russian warship, and featly footed it on deck with the young Russian officers, whose magnificence temporarily obscured the charms of Boston boys. All applicants for admission to the school were required to pass an exam- 22 A HISTORY OF ination ; the older pupils were asked to help. To share the labors of these days, as well as the festive lunches with the teachers at noon, was a great honor. In the school formal examinations were few. Carefully prepared abstracts or the written solution of problems served to show pupil and teacher whether the subject had been mas- tered. There were no marks of any sort, no diploma was given, but every one knew then quite as well as now who were the able and who the de- ficient scholars, and a certificate in the form of a note from the head master was given to any one who dared ask for it, stating her standing in scholar- ship and whether she had qualities likely to insure success in teaching. During the year, the best scholars in THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 23 the senior class were appointed to prepare what were known as "spe- cial exercises." The subjects might be scientific, historical, literary, or of gen- eral interest. After thorough criticism, these papers, usually of considerable length, were presented before the whole school. At the end of the year, a public week was substituted for the customary "exhibition." During this week the regular school exercises went on before recess ; after recess, daily, the most interesting of these special exercises, somewhat shortened, were reproduced in the hall, with mu- sic to accompany and enliven. Many were the friends of the pupils and of the school who showed their interest in this simple public week. In 1868 Mr. Seavey's death brought 24 A HISTORY OF what seemed an irreparable loss to the school. He had borne great physical suffering for many years with unflinch- ing courage. For his character and influence the school may well be grateful. Mr. Ephraim Hunt succeeded Mr. Seavey. His term of office began in what old graduates call the old build- ing, on Mason Street, which had been the home of the school from the first. Mrs. Henry Wright (Miss Julia Jel- lison), a pupil and later a teacher in the school, has charmingly sketched the old neighborhood. " A beautiful residential quarter, not without old- fashioned charm and dignity, then lay in the immediate vicinity. The fine old houses of Colonnade Row were still the abodes of the Lawrences and THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 25 other merchant princes, and the front windows of the school looked into gardens beautiful in spring with peach and apple blossoms. Temple Place was a quiet nook, isolated from the business world. Summer and South, Bedford and Chauncey streets, were full of stately houses and beautifully shaded with great trees. High Street did not then belie its name, but took a picturesque course up hill as in colonial days. Between its old houses one had occasional glimpses of the sea. "Many eighteenth or early nine- teenth century houses of wood, with fine, fan-lighted front doors, still stood in their gardens of fruit trees. It used to seem a necessary part of one's edu- cation to go and gaze reverently upon the abode of our local great men, of 26 A HISTORY OF whom not a few dwelt in the near neighborhood of the school, Ed- ward Everett in his old Summer Street mansion, Wendell Phillips on Essex Street, Theodore Parker in Exeter Place, and others whom we may not take time to recall." A little later business began to creep in. Newmarch's famous " tuck-shop " on Bedford Street, said to be entirely supported by the patronage of the three neighboring schools, was sup- plemented by the grocer on the corner of West and Mason streets, whose sales of pickled limes, hard crackers, and gingersnaps were fabulous. At first the school was allowed only the upper rooms of the north end of the building on Mason Street, now occupied by the School Committee. . Mi THE MASON STREET SCHOOL THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 27 The Public Library was on the ground floor. In 1858, when it was removed to Boylston Street, what had been the delivery room became the school hall. Dark and gloomy it might seem to unaccustomed eyes, but to those who remember Miss Temple's dainty fig- ure leading the merry, graceful gym- nastics, or the music lessons with Mr. Zerrahn, or the celebrations of public week, or the general reunions, it puts on a festive brightness all its own. In 1861 the city bought the build- ing next the school, then used by the Natural History Society ; and when a little later the society moved its trea- sures to its spacious mansion on Ber- keley Street, the two buildings were connected by a one-story structure, the top of which served as an open air 28 A HISTORY OF bridge, over which teachers and pupils might flit. Who can depict the charm of the dark old schoolhouse to those who have not felt it? Who can forget Purgatory, known only to the elect, to which the virtuous retired for study in moods of stern determination; or the sky-lighted octagon room, so de- lightfully unlike a schoolroom, sur- rounded by balconies lined with glass cases, the legacy of the Natural His- tory Society? Pleasing terrors, like those excited by ghost stories, hung about certain corners and pervaded the cellars. Low ceilings, blind turn- ings, disused stairways, mysterious trap-doors, tempted the adventurous, sometimes to their own destruction or disgrace, and not always discour- THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 29 aged by young and sympathetic teach- ers, as ignorant as their flock concern- ing where kdder or trap-door might lead, till a crash, or a foot through the ceiling of a class-room, made it seri- ously clear. Old jokes and traditions were handed down from class to class, and endeared the old building to those who dwelt in it. The autumn of 1870 saw the school established in the new mansion on West Newton Street, substantial, dig- nified, and large enough, it was be- lieved, for all future needs. It was the pride of the city, the show school. The dedication of the building took place in April, 1871. On that occa- sion Dr. Samuel Eliot formally pre- sented, in the name of the Social Sci- ence Association, the casts selected by 30 A HISTORY OF Mr. C. C. Perkins, and the reproduc- tion of the frieze of the Parthenon, the gift of Mr. and Mrs. James M. Barnard. This was the beginning of the movement towards school decora- tion in Boston. Much has been done since then in our own city and else- where, but our hall is still unique in its beauty, and many of those who have passed in and out of its doors would acknowledge the inspiring and refining influence of the gracious and majestic figures that adorn it. For four years Mr. Hunt was head master of the school. " He certainly had the enthusiasm and the high ideals of youth," writes one of his pupils. " Perhaps he had also its lack of per- spective and sense of proportion." He was something of an iconoclast. In THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 31 his firm belief that a girl's mind was equal to the work of a college course, he was in the front rank of educational reform. (At that time the only col- leges open to women in the United States were Oberlin and Vassar.) " He had his hobbies, and was easily moved to ride them. He loathed the great mogul, Per Cent, to which the public schools bowed down. ' What do you expect to learn in this school?' he used to ask us. We were well drilled in the answer, ' To care for our health, to love the truth, and to know how to study.' " The valedictorian of one class enumerated the three prominent ideas that had been set before Mr. Hunt's pupils : sincerity, the nobility of work, the idea and practice of treat- ing girls with candor and honesty. 32 A HISTORY OF " We have never been soothed with false praise, nor cajoled into good humor; we have been taught to look facts in the face." A man of this sort might lack tact, he surely had strong prejudices, but he left his mark on the school and on his pupils. He was in advance of the ordinary practice in his zeal for the thorough teaching of the sciences. Even in the dark laboratory of the Mason Street school, the teach- ing of text-books had been supple- mented by experiments performed by the teacher or by Professor Marshall of Tuft's College, but in the new school the physical sciences began to be taught by specialists with well- equipped laboratories. Mr. Hunt's influence and that of Miss Lucretia Crocker enlisted the interest of Dr. THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 33 Asa Gray and Professor Louis Agassiz, who made valuable contributions to the departments of botany and zoology. Meantime, once more, the Normal element seemed to be taking a subor- dinate place. Under the strong lead- ership of Miss Stickney, many eager young teachers had been trained and sent forth; in 1872 it was decided that the Normal School should be made separate and independent. Dr. Larkin Dunton was made its princi- pal, and the Girls' High and Normal School, with all its traditions, became the Girls' High School, whose func- tion, in relation to the Normal School, was to give training and scholarship which should make possible and pro- fitable the special study of methods in the Normal School. 34 A HISTORY OF In 1872 Dr. Samuel Eliot accepted what he often called the happiest work of his life, the charge of the Girls' High School. He brought to its ser- vice all that a life peculiarly rich in opportunities had wrought in a nature singularly lofty and fine. Born of a stock whose privileges of birth and for- tune had been constantly used for the public good, he too had served the cause of education, his city, and her charities in many public and private ways. Years of study and travel had brought him rare scholarship and culti- vation. To all these gifts of mind and character he added that power to work on minds and hearts which makes a great teacher. History and literature were most attractive to him. He him- self was known as the author of sev- THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 35 eral historical works, and as he gath- ered the classes for familiar lectures and, with the slightest outline in dates and topics, unrolled before them the great panorama of the world's life, characterizing each period in a few perfect words, giving color and life by masterly touches of illustration, sending the girls away to study with enthusiasm in their class-rooms the great period to which he had intro- duced them, he made the dry bones of history to live. It was as if a fresh, invigorating breeze had swept all dim- ness and dulness away. Dr. Eliot's pupils well remember his lessons in English literature and mental philoso- phy. Impressive as they were, there was no deliberate formality or solem- nity. The work went on most natu- 36 A HISTORY OF rally and simply. " As we look back at them," says one of his pupils, *' we are reminded of the pleasant course of a little brook slipping through the woods, now sparkling into ripples of fun and amusement, sometimes hushed and deepened under the shade of a tragic subject like Macbeth, but al- ways alive and full with the life and fulness of our teacher's great and gen- tle spirit. Reverence seems the fitting word in describing the final effect of his teaching. Reverence for the au- thor's spirit; reverence for the mys- terious movements of the world's life ; reverence for the divine power that shaped and guided the thought of the poet and the statecraft of the nations ;" and reverence too, we may add, for the minds he was training. Patient THE GIRL'S HIGH SCHOOL 37 and sympathetic with the dullest, with a recognition of limitations as well as of ability, he ministered without haste and without rest to all. Without haste, we repeat. It is difficult to explain the change that later years have brought to the school. The curriculum had been extended, laboratory work was required, the standard of scholarship was high, the diploma of graduation was a fixed fact, preceded by the or- deal, since abolished, of supervisors' written examinations ; yet there was a certain atmosphere of "peace and quiet " favorable to thought and study. " Those were the days," writes one of Mr. Hunt's pupils, and it had been true from the beginning, " when we had leisure and inclination to read out of school for our pleasure 38 A HISTORY OF many books which, in these days, alas, are sometimes urged upon young peo- ple for their profit." Leisure there was also to see or hear distinguished men or women whenever they might visit the school, and give it of themselves. Mr. Eichberg brought Madame Ru- dersdorff, Antoinette Sterling, and Ad- elaide Phillips. Charlotte Cushman thrilled her young audience with the great trial scene from " Henry VIII." At a moment's notice classes were summoned. "All go to the hall. Monsieur de Lesseps, or Dom Pedro, Emperor of Brazil, is to say a few words to the girls." And these plea- sures seemed to stimulate rather than to retard school work. In 1874 the fourth year class was accepted by the city as an integral THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 39 part of the school. When but four colleges were open to girls, Dr. Eliot offered collegiate work under his own supervision to those who desired it. He believed that in the Girls' High School advanced work might go on indefinitely, and that these maturer pupils might be a sort of Sixth Form, setting high standards for all lower classes. He was touched when he heard that they called him their Dr. Arnold, for he had taught them to honor that great teacher, and, indeed, his girls were right. He seemed like the father of a great family as he held the morning exercises for the whole school in the hall. It was a worship- ping congregation. When he spoke to the school, whether of the beauty and simplicity of the great art of 40 A HISTORY OF Greece, whose masterpieces adorned the hall, or of some current event, or of a point in school life, or of the break which death had made in the ranks, one spirit breathed through all : the humility of true wisdom, the joy of fellowship in work, a faith in the school and its principles, a simple de- pendence on God. When failing health compelled Dr. Eliot in 1876 to lay down the work so dear to him, keen, indeed, was the sense of loss, yet for twenty-two years he kept close and unbroken his rela- tion to the school. At its anniversaries and its festival days, he was always present, and his clear, resonant voice stirred the eager listeners as of old. He always welcomed an invitation to talk informally to any class on a his- THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 41 torical or literary subject. He went year after year to the class reunions of his old pupils. His words were the "heart of the reunion," and always there, as at the larger meetings of the Girls' High School Association, he taught loyalty to the school. Dr. Eliot's successor, Colonel Ho- mer B. Sprague, came from Brook- lyn, where he had been in charge of the Adelphi Academy. Both pupils and teachers of that period remember Colonel Sprague's unfailing courtesy and genuine kindness. He sympa- thized with the spirit and aims of the school, and made few radical changes. Many measures were adopted to pro- mote health, comfort, and safety : the provision for nutritious lunches, im- provements in ventilation, the rear- 42 A HISTORY OF rangement of seats to secure proper relation to light, the fire drill, all show the head master's care for good phy- sical conditions. His interest in the study of English literature secured improved text-books and the freer use of the Public Library. The system of instruction was made more strictly de- partmental, securing division of labor and concentration of force. Colonel Sprague was a strong advocate for the supply of free text-books to all public school children, a measure which passed the legislature at this time, a measure concerning which there were and still are varying opin- ions. The annexation of Roxbury, Dor- chester, Charlestown, Brighton, and West Roxbury to the city of Boston THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 43 since 1858 had added five high schools to the city. Pupils from the suburbs were allowed to attend the central high school, and many availed them- selves of the privilege, especially when a four years' course of study in a high school was required of all those who entered the Normal School, as the suburban schools provided only a three years' course. This, with other causes, very much increased the number of pupils in the Girls' High School. To counteract the tendency to cen- tralization, it was deemed necessary to secure uniformity in the high schools by placing all upon the same course of study. This course, arranged by the supervisors, was to serve for all pupils not fitting for college. All boys desiring such preparation were to go 44 A HISTORY OF to the Boys' Latin School, but this ar- rangement made no provision for girls; and setting aside a proposition to or- ganize a college preparatory depart- ment in the Girls' High School, the committee established, in 1878, the Girls' Latin School. This occupied rooms in the Newton Street building, the Normal School having by this time removed to Dartmouth Street. Mr. John Tetlow became master of the new Latin School; and when, in 1885, Colonel Sprague accepted a position in the far West, Mr. Tetlow added the care of the High School to that of the Latin School. The eighteen years that have elapsed show many changes. Boston counts nine high schools, many of them housed in new and beautiful build- THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 45 ings ; yet with all this multiplication of suburban schools, the central school still suffers from overcrowding. A schoolhouse built for about nine hun- dred pupils has been made to hold over twelve hundred. This means the seat- ing of over one hundred and thirty- two girls in rooms intended for one hundred, giving up recitation-rooms for crowded permanent class-rooms, and sometimes using corridors for re- citation-rooms. A slight relief came when the upper classes of the Latin School were moved to Copley Square, but the growth of the Latin School has again necessitated the use of more rooms by that school, and both schools suffer. When the church next the school was sold, many friends hoped that the 46 A HISTORY OF city would buy the land, and erect a low building that should provide gymnasium, laboratories, and class- rooms, yet deprive the main building of no light or air, while the space gained would enlarge the yard, and make possible for the girls a recess in the open air. The Newton Street half of the lot, however, is occupied by a new church and parsonage, but the lot on Pembroke Street has been secured by the city, and there is reason to be- lieve that at no distant day it will be used to give the much needed relief. The old schoolhouse has great possi- bilities. If it could be renovated and supplemented by an annex, no more need be asked. The need for more room is partly due to the varied and expanded THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 47 courses of study. As far back as 1860 a choice in foreign languages was offered to entering pupils, but the popular elective system is now in op- eration in all the high schools. In our own school, there is now the commer- cial course, introduced in 1898, the college course, begun as a recognized department in 1899, anc ^ tne g enera l course, broader than either, and offer- ing more opportunities for electives than the other two. The system is an experiment, and no doubt the expe- rience which, we are told, worketh hope, will work wisdom also in its administration. With the develop- ment of educational theory and prac- tice, not only courses of study but methods of teaching have changed, and it is doubtless true that the school 48 A HISTORY OF offers better opportunities to those fitted to profit by them than ever before. We have spoken of the crowded condition of the school. We ought to note that the increase of members is largely in the junior class. More than half the class that entered in Septem- ber, 1892, had dropped out by Sep- tember 1893. An enterm g class of 540 made a middle class of but 270. We cannot discuss in detail the causes of this falling off. There is no enter- ing examination to sift the graduates of the grammar schools ; the children are younger and often unfit to cope with high school studies ; many come from homes where, under similar con- ditions, the parents, fifteen years ago, would never have thought of sending THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 49 their children to a high school; in many cases they mean to give them but one year more of schooling; and indeed one cannot regret, for their own sake, the departure of those who will be more stimulated by steady, useful work than by studies for which they are not prepared, in a school where their abiding presence must lower the intellectual standard, girls who, later, when the real desire for self-improvement awakes, may find their right place in the evening schools, or in some of the many classes offered to young people by clubs or settlements or "educational centres." From all that has been said, it is evi- dent that the mission of our school enlarges as conditions change, varie- ties of nationality increase, and new 50 A HISTORY OF problems of social, intellectual, and moral standards confront it. Amidst all these changes the school is most fortunate in its head master. Mr. Tet- low's just, firm, and kind administra- tion, his genuine, chivalrous respect for what is best in the girls, make themselves felt. He recognizes the problems of the present and future, but hopefully points to three power- ful aids towards their solution, a strong corps of teachers who recog- nize their duty and their responsibil- ity, a large body of alumnse in cordial touch with the school, noble tradi- tions. Of the teachers it is impossible to speak in detail, yet any sketch of the school would be all imperfect that failed to name some who in the past THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 51 have been builded like living stones into the very structure of its life. Of those who began work with Mr. Lo- throp two are living, Miss Johnson and Miss Eastman, full of years and honor. Soon after the first class was grad- uated in 1855, three of its mem- bers became teachers in their own school ; Miss Caryl at once, the other two a little later. Miss Bacon's gen- tle, reserved dignity of manner and almost shy speech hardly suggested the intellectual force that lay behind. Stricken with mortal illness in the midst of service in 1870, she never lived to see the expansion of the school, though she was a fruitful in- fluence in its early life. Miss Badger, " superb in her youthful beauty," ma- 52 A HISTORY OF jestic in the gracious dignity of her later years, who can forget the power of her teaching and her personality ? Broad-minded, clear-sighted, scholarly, how her reserve fascinated while it awed the girlhood which it touched. " She made me ashamed of my little- ness," says one of her pupils. Pro- gressive in spirit, determined to have and to give the very best, she truly and literally laid down her life for the school. At the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary, Miss Caryl was naturally the central figure. To honor her was to honor the school of which she is so true a part that she can never really leave it. Her pupils remember her teaching, clear, persistent, thorough, patient, but when all lessons are for- THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 53 gotten they will remember her; the dullest could recognize the honesty, clear as the day, the simplicity and humility of mind, the utter devotion to duty, and the unfailing kindness that, like the sunshine of the Lord, falls on the evil and the good, on the just and on the unjust. After this notable trio of the class of '55 came Miss Helen Avery, '* with mind of rare distinction;" Miss Emma Temple, tingling with life in delicate body, keen mind, and sensi- tive spirit, positive, eager, stimulat- ing. Then followed Miss Scates and Miss Knapp, the latter such a con- stant friend and helper, so full of cheerful, sympathetic interest in the school, that the teachers still count her one of their number, though she 54 A HISTORY OF felt compelled, ten years ago, to drop the daily routine. Miss Sylvester, ap- pointed in 1860, is the only one of the older group now in active service. When she withdraws her kindly pre- sence, an element will depart that can never be replaced. As we speak of Mrs. Wright (Miss Jellison), who from her English home still testifies her faith in the old school, sending charm- ing memories and earnest messages to class reunions as well as to great celebrations, we must pause, though many other names come to our mem- ory, fresh, full of inspiration. These are the forces of the past. We must believe that those who live and work for the school in the present and the future will be no less wise and strong. From 1855 to 1860 the teachers THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 55 appointed were all graduates of the school. Since then, and wisely, many trained elsewhere have taken their places in the ranks. Where two as- sistants once sufficed, the corps now numbers thirty-three. Besides the head master, there are now two masters, Mr. Knight, in charge of the commercial department, and Mr. Samuel Thurber, whose written and spoken words on the teaching of English have made his class-room not only a place where many a bright girl has been stirred and guided to sound and scholarly taste in literature, but also a Mecca for pilgrims who long to learn his ways. Of the " large body of alum- nae " upon whom Mr. Tetlow depends, we mention first the Girls' High School Association, which aims to unite all 56 A HISTORY OF past members of the school for fellow- ship and service. This association ar- ranged and carried out the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary held in Jan- uary, 1903. No one present on that occasion could doubt the influence of such a loyal body of graduates. Under its auspices the Seavey Fund does its quiet, gracious work. During Mr. Seavey's life he often aided with his private means girls who could not otherwise have completed the course of the school. Once at a " general re- union " the caterer failed to send the feast in due time, and the association decided to use the hundred dollars so saved for the benefit of girls who might need it. Mr. Seavey's death occurred soon after, and his old pupils deter- mined to perpetuate his name and THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 57 memory by raising a sum of money to be known as the " Seavey Fund." The income of this fund, with other sums that might be added, was to be used for loans " without interest, to be paid at the convenience of the borrower." Trustees were appointed, and a committee of the association was to regulate the disposition of the income, Miss Badger acting as trea- surer. Every year the graduating class is told the story of this fund, and asked to appoint a class collector to receive the annual subscriptions of her class- mates. If this collection were made in every class, even by gifts of very small sums, the committee could en- large the work in ways now open- ing. As it is, if the givers could know in detail how lives have been changed 58 A HISTORY OF by opportunities given at the critical moment, if they could read the let- ters and see the faces of those who testify what the fund has done for them, as they come to return the loans from time to time, or to tell why they must yet delay, gifts would be bestowed more joyfully, if not more abundantly. The work is neces- sarily quiet. Aid is given only to girls of some ability, and usually to those only who have proved themselves able by a year's work in the school. The invested fund is about four thou- sand dollars. The income of this, sup- plemented by the annual gifts of the alumnae and by money returned, has enabled the treasurer to pay in loans, since the establishment of the fund in 1868, over sixteen thousand dollars. THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 59 A smaller body of the alumnse forms the Samuel Eliot Memorial As- sociation. Its purpose is " to hold Dr. Eliot's life and work in grateful memory, to cherish his ideals of the Girls' High School, and to work for their fulfilment." Beginning in 1899 with a few of Dr. Eliot's old pupils and associates, it has added to its numbers others who desire to work for its purposes. At present it gives to the school four times a year an hour to be remembered and enjoyed, a Christmas concert, a talk on birds or pictures, or stories of the past such as Dr. Hale or Mrs. Livermore can tell. In June it invites the mem- bers of the graduating classes to a re- ception. Under the care of an editor appointed by the association, two 60 A HISTORY OF pages of the " Distaff," the school paper, are filled each month by the alumnse; and here let us say for the "Distaff" that it is not only a well- conducted school paper, but has often been so financially successful that its editors have presented, from its profits, gifts of casts or pictures to the school. The smallest associations of alum- nse are those formed by each class on its graduation, and their annual class meetings do much to foster that loy- alty which often results in tangible service to the school. In speaking of gifts, those of the graduating classes should not be for- gotten. Even in the lower classes such offerings are not uncommon. Other gifts have come from the class associations, as memorials of some THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 61 classmate whose name they thus linked to the school she loved. The Emma A. Temple Memorial Library of choice literature ; the Margaret A. Badger memorial fund, part of which has been used in Miss Badger's own physical laboratory, part of which still awaits final disposition; the portraits of the head masters; Miss Caryl's portrait recently painted by Miss Grace Geer and given by her, through the Samuel Eliot Memorial Associa- tion, all these testify the gratitude and loyalty of the alumnae to their alma mater and to those who repre- sent her. Of the third source of strength, noble traditions, perhaps no more need be said. They form the history of the school as it has been so imper- 62 A HISTORY OF fectly sketched. As we dwell upon its past, it rises up before us as a beau- tiful and gracious person. But what can give personality to this school or to any institution ? Is it not the vital force that has been put into it ? Only as life goes in can life come forth. Men of unusual force and individu- ality, masters of the school, have left their impress upon it ; many culti- vated and noble women have had their share in its life as teachers ; thou- sands of eager young spirits have passed in and out of its doors, giv- ing and receiving inspiration. The personality of the great school is the life of all its members, past or pre- sent, whose trained minds and enlight- ened spirit are reproducing its ideals in anything they are called upon THE GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL 63 to do. These ideals of intellectual thoroughness, simplicity, self-control, honor, and reverence are our heritage. Happy the school with such traditions. May those who celebrate its centennial find them undimmed. THE DEDICATION OF THE WEST NEWTON STREET SCHOOL THE dedication of the new building of the Girls' High and Normal School took place on April 19, 1871. Rev. W. H. Cud- worth of East Boston offered prayer. The keys of the building were delivered by Alderman Jenkins, representing the city government, to Mayor Gaston, who, ac- cepting them in the name of the School Committee, presented them to the Rev. Henry Burroughs, chairman of the Normal School Committee; by him they were given to Dr. Ephraim Hunt, master of the school. Dr. Samuel Eliot presented the casts and the frieze, which adorn the hall, in the name of the Social Science Associa- DEDICATION 65 tion. These casts, and the reason for the choice, were explained by Mr. C. C. Per- kins. A note of regret from the Hon. Charles Sumner was read. Addresses were made by Ex-Governor Washburn, Super- intendent John D. Philbrick, Mr. Charles W. Slack, and Mr. Loring Lothrop. The music, in charge of Mr. Julius Eichberg, consisted of, "MARCH OF THE PRIESTS," ATHALIE Mendelssohn ODE. Written for the occasion by Miss Mary G. Morrison Music by Mr. Eichberg THE 430 PSALM Schubert