1888 Carlisle Indian School Newspaper PDF

Reading 3: Two Articles from March 9, 1888 edition of The Indian Helper newspaper The Carlisle school newspaper, The Indian Helper, published this letter on March 9, 1888. “LETTER HOME” Dear Mother-Shah-Ru-Rah-Wah-Kee: Today is home letter again I want to tell you something about o...

Reading 3: Two Articles from March 9, 1888 edition of The Indian Helper newspaper The Carlisle school newspaper, The Indian Helper, published this letter on March 9, 1888. “LETTER HOME” Dear Mother-Shah-Ru-Rah-Wah-Kee: Today is home letter again I want to tell you something about our school. I think our school house will be torn down in this spring and rebuilt because Congress has promised to have new school house this coming spring, and I hope may be as large as our Quarters. It seems too that the Carlisle is going on and on, as you know that I left you in 1883. And I came at this school, and saw the old dining room was too narrow and there was but one story high. The tables were standing close together, and the boys’ Quarters were only two stories high one great big doors on big hinges too, like horse stable. The boys were sleeping in the same room sometime sixteen or eighteen boys each room. They made great noise and could hardly think something to study because too much noise. I don’t like it at all and so I did not stay a great while I went out on the country, and there I spent one year and a half. I returned in 1885 and I got back and I saw a great big dining room which had been built up since I was away. Again I went out and stayed only six months and came back again. That was in 1886 Capt. Pratt and us boys began to think about it that our boys spent so much money foolishly and so Capt. Pratt’s disciplinarian called attention and all the boys were present, all the boys put some money in that collection. Again I went into the country. I was very much surprised that I came back and saw a great big building extending toward west to east three stories high. Hallo! New Quarters I said, and I saw Little Boys’ Quarters, they just starting to build and was finished both Little Boys’ Quarters and a new Gymnasium last Nov. 1887. Now we are comfortable everything is going on all right. Big new gymnasium I think all the boys and girls like it because we are going to have a sociable once a month. -- LUTHER KUHNS The front page of the newspaper included a note: “THE INDIAN HELPER is PRINTED by Indian boys, but EDITED by The-Man-on-the-band-stand, who is NOT an Indian.” One of our subscribers asks this question: Will you please explain why you are called "The Man-on-the-band-stand?" If the questioner were at Carlisle, he would know why. The Band-stand commands the whole situation. From it he can see all the quarters, the printing office, the chapel, the grounds, everything and everybody, all the girls and the boys on the walks, at the windows, everywhere. Nothing escapes the Man-on-the-bandstand.