Seattle's schoolhouses couldn't keep up with the boom

The school census very plainly shows the need of the third big school house. The house already finished will accommodate 800 pupils, and the one the building of which is about to begin will accommodate 700 more. This is 1,500 for the two school houses. Now, what about the pupils to fill these schools? The lately taken census says there are 2,009 children in the district of school age, besides 667 below the age, or 2,676 of both classes of children. The increase of all children in the district was in six years 1,604, in the last two years 1,006, and in the past year alone 798. The two buildings, therefore, will be unequal to the present requirements (supposing them fully occupied and all the children of school age applying for admission) by 500 children, who of necessity will be compelled to remain out. In addition to all this, though, we may say that one of these two buildings will probably not be available for school purposes during the present year, while the children are rapidly increasing in number. Suppose we only gain the average of the past six years, there will a year hence be children sufficient in number to fill to overflowing three such immense buildings. If, however, the expectations of our citizens are realized, and the growth of the next year exceeds only slightly that of the past, there will be at the taking of the next census, in July, 1884, 3,500 children in all, of whom 2,700 will be of school age. Judging by the experience of 1882 and 1883, the second building will then be available, and the third will be about starting, when it should really be completing. Our people may as well make up their minds to the erection of at least one immense public school house each year for probably five years to come, and after that for two. The starting up of the third of these buildings should not be unnecessarily delayed, and it will be wise to complete all the work preliminary to its construction as early as the first of next February.