Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

# A SPLENDID TRAINING SCHOOL. % ❖ AH INSTITUTION FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF DEAF CHILDREN AT COSY CAVE SPRING. The location of the State School for the (leaf at Cave Spring was one of the wisest movements ever made by the law-makers of Georgia. It originated in 1846 when Mr. O. I’. Fannin, associate principal of the Hearn school, began teaching a few deaf mute pupils as a department of that great ed ucational institution. The accompanying engraving gives an idea of the old log house where the first graduates from this favored institution received the rudiments of learning at the hands of their devoted preceptor. A glance at the accompanying picture, which gives a faint idea of the present group of stately buildings, illustrates the spirit of tireless devotion which has in spired the principal and teachers of the great school from that time to the present. This brings us to speak of one of the most remarkable men in public life in Georgia, Professor Wesley <>. Connor, Superintendent of the State School for the deaf. Born in South Carolina and bred in North Georgia he evinced, at an early age, that fondness for study and re- ' *■ . ■ ■ . ■ Txc" . '< .A ■ MW ’ wBP’ ” oa £ -aBK ; nKI ww< ; w I I B IK 1— /*■ PROF. W. 0. CONNOR. search which has characterized his ■whole career. When a youth of between fifteen and sixteen, in 1857 he became connected ■with the then Institute for the Deaf and Dumb, now the Sclvool for the Deaf. This grand and noble charity was then in its incipieney and young Connor quickly became interested in the work of teaching the deaf and dumb inmates and develojnng their faculties so that they might beeoiwe self supporting members of society. Mr. Fannin was in charge of the insti tution then and the methods of teaching were somewhat crude, the arts taught being only the commonest employments. Nevertheless the institution was pro ductive of good results. Such proficiency did young Connor display and such peculiar adaptability to the work which requires so much pa tient work and line discernment, that in 1860 he was offered the position of prin cipal, but he declined the honor and re sponsibility on account of his youth. It was not long before the bugle call fired his enthusiastic nature, and in 1861 he resigned his position of head teacher and went to the war as a member of the famous old Cherokee Artillery. A month or so thereafter, the Board of Trustees met and sent a special com- KM I ■ ‘ SSLr J-'- ■ fea;-M w .' jHH • ■ MbW Iff z• -gw 4 VSi fll - ffiD ’ 1 F ■- 11 ® [1 ■ vv ‘•‘-IUMMwF- ■ - LOG CABIN SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF, 1846. mittee of one—Mr. W. R. Webster, to Governor Brown, asking him to inter cede to have Mr. Connor released in order that he might return to his work at the Institution, which he consented to do, provided Mr. Connor would agree to return, but when Mr. Webster visited him in camp and begged him to return, practically offering him the principal ship the second time, which would have been to him a bomb-proof place under the state government for the war. His reply was: “I have cast my fortunes with the Confederate army, and I shall abide the result.” If men were to receive rewards of merit for gallantry and fidelity in this age, Mr. Connor would be richly en titled to wear the Cross of the Legion of Honor, for his war record was one of the most brilliant'iamong the thousands ; ctf men whose chivalrous deeds stupified the world with their number. All through these hard fought cam paigns he was ever at his post, and it is said of him that he never missed a roll call and was never absent when his com mand was engaged. He was one of the sixteen men who walked out of the regular prison at Camp Chase, refusing to take the oath . of allegiance, when an ignorable death at the hands of his captors seemed to stare him in the face. But his life was not to be then sacri-; ficed, but was preserved for more useful and noble achievements. During the war the village of Cave Spring was on the debatable ground al ternately occupied by Confederate and Federal soldiers, and the institution was dismantled. At the first meeting of the legislature in 1866 action was taken for ■ its reinstatement, and Mr. Connor, fresh from the federal prison at Camp Chase, Ohio, was put in charge. Since that : time he has held the position of prin- ' cipal to the honor and credit of himself, , to the satisfaction of the state and the ( pupils at large and to the greatest bene- ~ fit of those who have received inst ruction < there. He has devoted his whole life to the amelioration of the condition of those ! unfortunates bereft of their happiest faculties, hearing and speech. He has ; studied the subject in all its bearings , and he has left nothing untried that might add to the efficiency of the insti tution given under his supervision. 1 : During the recent exposition in At- THE HOME THIkUNE, T» kSDAY, MAY 26, 1896. lanta, there was a class of deaf children on exhibition from one of the oral schools of the north and somehow nearly every visitor came away under the impression that the teaching of speech to the deaf was something new and original. Mr. Connor has been 1 asked many times if he had witnessed ! the “new way” of teaching the deaf, I and some kind hearted and enthusiastic I ladies even went so far as to ask the governor to intercede to have him come to Atlanta to see this •‘wonderful new method.” Heinecke, in the latter part of the eighteenth century, began teach ing by this method in Germany, while the abbe de I'Epree began with the sign or manual system in France, each work ing indefatigably and knowing nothing of the efforts of each other, and each method has been used ever sinee. In the department of teaching speech he has been unusually successful and by I long and patient efforts he succeeded in bringing out the latent powers and in stincts, existing in many pupils devoid of hearing, so that they can make them selves understood. In this line Prof. Connor says that he has had ho cause to change his views-since he wept on record twenty-seven years ago as favoring the giving of every deaf child an opportunity of learning speech or lip reading, in which a large proportion of all who enter the school are more or less benefitted. Ever since he has been connected with the school, more or less oral teaching has been done, and it has turned out several lip readers who will compare favorably with those of any other school in the country. This was not done by specialists but by teachers in their ordi nary work, until about five years ago. He combines the systems of oral and written instruction as he has been doing for more than twenty-five years, and every year goes to prove still more con clusively the benefits of this system of ■ teaching. In other words, as in nearly , every other American school, the Com-I bined or Electic System is used, and j this simply means that any method or i anything that will help on the work of I giving the deaf a knowledge of the En- I glish language is siezed upon and used. 1 The school is tied down to no absolute I method. Prof. Connor is a man of diversified talents and untiring industry, a fine con- [ versationalist and a man of extensive reading and well informed on a most di versity of subjects. Prof. Connor has been the recipient of high honors paid him by his fellow edu cators. and was last summer made | President of the American Association of Teachers of Deaf Mutes. He is the right man in the right place, and has wrought wonders in this school, to which he has devoted the best energies of his life. The attendance for the pas< year num- ; bered 109 white and 38 colored. K total of 147, and the present year the attend ance has been largely increased. The school is not an elemosynary institution as is frequently mistakenly supposed to be, but is one of the best regulated in dustrial schools in the state or in the south. In fact, it is claimed t> be the , pioneer of industrial education and ; training in the state, having begun on that line in 1848. The faculty consists of Wesley 0. Con nor, principal; C. W. Wright, Samuel M. Freeman, Mrs. E. F. Connor, Miss S. J. Posey, Miss Katherine King, Miss M. Bayard Morgan, teacher of art and physi cal culture, Henry R. Watts, supervisor of boys; Miss Della Harris, supervisor of I girls; Mrs. M. L. Bond, matron; Miss R. E. Summers, assistant matron; J. C. Watts, physician; Henry S. Morris, master of shoe shop. In the colored de -1 partment there are F. M. Gordon, W. A. I Caldwell Mrs. F. M. Gordon, matron. A little more than a year ago a depart ment of art and wood carving was added to the school under the supervision of Miss M. Bayard Morgan, a young lady of splendid qualifications and untiring energy, under whose careful instruction the pupils have made wonderful advance ment during the year. Many of them show a special aptitude for this kind of j work and soon become exceedingly pro i ficient in the handling of tools. In ad ! dition to this, Miss Morgan has had ! charge of the department of physical culture which has proven one of the i most attractive and beneficial depart ments of this great institution. In the line of instruction in sewing Misses Della Harris and Lizzie Foley, in addition to their other duties have had charge of large classes, and the girls of the institution now do a variety of work , in addition to making their own clot hing 1 and the uniforms for themselves and the boys. The legislature has not been as liberal in their appropriation to this school as it has in the equipment of other state institutions. Our lawmakers do not seem to comprehend the immense scope of the work nor of the incalculable benefits and advantages that it gives to those unfortunates bereft of the power of speech and hearing. The buildings are now inadequate to the wants of the largely increased attendance. The dining room is filled to overflowing, and it is almost impossible to accommodate the pupils properly under the present arrangements. The kitchen, besides being inadequate for the work that must 1 necessarily be done in it is fco improperly ■ constructed that it is impossible to keep it in a presentable condition, and is a sad draw back to this great institution | and should be remedied at once. The institution needs a few thousand ' dollars for the shop equipment, for a ; bathing pool and closet for boys, for i painting, steam heating and for gas and j electricity for lighting purposes, and also for the girls’ industrial department. These things are crying necessities.- and as the school is an institution of the I state and one of which any state would have the right to be proud, those in I power should see to it that every defi ; ciency is supplied without delay, i Given the proper apparatus to work i with and sufficient money to defray ex- ■ penses, the pupils of this school will be [ taught many useful things, and the vast l majority of them will be equipped when , they leave the institution for making i their own living and consequently not i becoming a burden on the community or l upon their relatives who are frequently i unable to bear the increased demands of | such a charge. The terms of admission to the school ; are that all deaf persons of the state i between the ages of eight and twenty seven years who are mentally and physi | cally in a condition to receive instruc ; tion properly, and free from any immoral conduct or contagious disease, are enti tled to all the benefits of the school free of charge, no fees of any kind being charged for a term of seven years. The scholastic year begins the second Wednesday in September and continues until the second Wednesday in June, when there is a public examination of the pupils conducted by the principal. These are always occasions of rare inter est to the public and the pupils enter them with great zest and enthusiasm. With the means at hand no school in the country has been better conducted than this by Prof. Connor and his able corps of devoted assistants. The pupils are given every attention as to their health and comfort, and they soon learn to regard this as a real home and w ith ready hands and loving hearts to keep watch and,ward over them and to sup ply all their wants physical as well as intellectual. In the matter of health the location of the school is superb. Cave Spring is located in a cool and secluded valley, surrounded by swelling hills, and the! crystal waters of Cedar Creek flow' through the town and not only adorn and beautify the prospect, but furnish perfect | natural drainage. In addition to this a big w ater wheel I placed in the current, some distance I below the institution, raises the water of I a perennial spring to a capacious reser voir, whence they are distributed throughout the buildings for drinking lavatory purposes. There is nothing more conducive to the health and comfort of such an insti tution as plenty of pure water, and this is furnished in the greatest abundance. Coupled with the care and close sur veillance and attention of the faculty these auxiliaries have resulted in a remarkable health record for the State School for the Deaf. There is seldom any sickness of a seri ous nature among the hundreds of pupils in attendance, and boys and girls who are sent there pale and sickly soon develop into the most robust physical vigor which is so conducive to mental activity and receptiveness. The admirable manner in which the school is conducted is a credit to the state and redounds to the honor of the officers, trustees, superintendent and faculty, all of whom watch with jealous care over the interests of this noble insti tution and the well being of the inmates. There are now 106 whites and 36 colored pupils and all of them are ad vancing rapidly in the attainments of such useful knowledge as renders a graduate of the School for the Deaf a useful citizen, capable of entering into a useful and enjoyable life among his more fortunate fellows. But there are many things to be done to fully equip the school in accordance «• ’ V''- ■ ■’ • •t am 2 ,7 ■** • 7- 77 ‘ ■ '■ 7xa'.’ : to2 577 7 A •*■ 4*7kX I \ iz ■ - 'iKjfcrnre A X.*<x ■ ■-d Mi-j -U '■ FaZS7'‘-'7 • s / 7;-...t,, > '.© , 1911!^®^!®#®^ •■ •■'•’•■ '•>■« •■ - A ‘- ■ BUILDINGS OF SCHOOLS FOR THE DEAF, 1895, with the advanced idea of Superinten dent Connor, who has devoted such a large share of his life to the teaching of that unfortunate class of people. As above stated Miss Morgan has very successfully introduced calisthenic exer cise among the girls, but the furnishing of a thoroughly equipped gymnasium would add largely to the efficiency of the school for the physical training and development of the pupils. True, the boys have the advantage of ample exercise in ball play and other games on the campus, but these only bring out the development of certain portions oi the body, whereas the gym nastic exercisesjM’ing into.full play every muscle of the body. In addition to this, for the manual instriction and training of the boys, Prof. Connor is very desirous of enlarg ing these departments which now con sist of shoe making and carpentry, so as to include black smithing, wagon making printing, painting, broom making and chalk plate engraving. In the last named art the pupils show especial apti tude and as this class of work is much in demand and very profitable, it furnishes another profession peculiarly adapted to these pupils. Among the girls he wishes to introduce scientific dress making, type writing, *^^□=31. HON. FELIX CORPUT.J- cooking and perhaps weaving so as to fit the girls for useful and remunerative employments. All these will require money, but Prof. Connor is convinced, after long experi ence and thoughtful consideration of the capacity and adaptability of the pupils, that it would be money well spent. It would enable the graduates to take their places among the wage-earning classes of people, render themselves helpful and independent, despite the bereavement that they have suffered in the absence of two of the most essential faculties for human happiness and well being. All these things should betaken under advisement by the Georgia legislature and the deficiencies of the institution supplied so as to make happy and hope ful men and women out of a class of boys and girls that have been the vic tims of such deplorable misfortunes. A REMARKABLE SUCCESS WHICH THE LIFE OF HON. FELIX CORPUT ILLUSTRATES. No man in Georgia has achieved success in more different directions than has Hon. Felix Corput. Born in Belgium and receiving bis early education in Brussels he came to Floyd county when yet a boy, and became not only Americanized but thoroughly Southernized. The youngest of four brave broth] ers who donned the gallant grey, he joined the Cherokee artillery and saw service on many a hard fought field during the war between the states. After the war he set out to earn a livelihood and right well did he suc ceed. In Macon he achieved such prominence politically and socially that he was elected aiderman and mayor protein then honored with the mayoralty for four consecutive years, a position which he filled with honor and distinction. Returning to Floyd county he established himself at Cave Spring and soon became prominently identi fied with state politics, and as one of the ablest alliance leaders he was urged by Grady and other prominent political leaders to offer for the gov ernorship of Georgia, but declined He was elected to the state senate from this district and served his con constituency with honor and dis tinction. He was appointed one of the board of directors of the Georgia Experi ment station, and one of the boa>-d of trustees of the State school for the deaf, and is now president of the last named board. Genial, hospitable, courtly and magnanimous, he is one of the strong- est figures in publie life in the state. His integrity is unquestioned and his reputation for ability and probity thoroughly established He is now a candidate for legislative honors. Mr. Corput is a thoroughly representative man, broad minded, of sound business ideas, matured judge ment, and untiring energy, if elected he will make one of the ablest and most reliable members of that body of law makers. THE BIG GINNERY’ Os A. Redmond & Bro. Being Prepared For the Cotton Season. Messrs, A. P. Redmond & Bro., are getting ready for the fall season with their cotton gin machinery and long before the first bale of cotton comes in their mammoth ginnery’ just across the bridge in the Fourth ward will be remodelled throughout and fitted I with the latest improved machinery I in every’ respect. It will be one of the i largest and best fitted up ginneries in North Georgia, and they will be able to turn out more bales of cotton per day than any ginnery in the county. The new machinery was received last week and it consists of the most modern and improved machines for use in every’ branch of the business. Mr. Redmond is now busy putting the machinery in place, and as soon as this part of the work is finished he will make other improvements in the building. With the new machinery he will have a capacity of fifty bales. Mr. Redmond has had considerable experience in this line and the work he turns out has always been of the best kind. This season he will be bet ter prepared than ever and it is need less to say that those who want the very best work in this line will call on him TO NASHVILLE ANO I ETI'KN. The Western and ttlantic Railroad Offers Very Low Kaus For the inaugural c remonies of the Tennessee Centennial ami Interna tional Exposition, Nashville, Tenn., the Western and Atlantic railroad will sell round trip tickets at one fare. Only’ $6.25 from Rome to Nashville and return. Tickets on sale May 31 and June 1, good to return until June 5. Direct connection made at Kings ton with solid trains for Nashvil e. Call on C. K. Ayer, Ticket Agent.