Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1860-08-10

this institution nave Tor Nenai OHehSeS DeSH
doomed to spend weeks and months, released
for brief intermission of less than halt an
hour, twice day, kept more or less of the
time on bread and water and obliged to lie on
the floor with hands manacled sometimes be
hind them. Nourse, who appeared like an
honest, blunt, though stubborn boy was Kept
on bread and water through most OF his three
months Imprisonment; during three weeks
his hands were manacled, as he says, behind
him, for an alleged attempt TO escape from the
cells, and for all but three days of his term he
was handcutfed and for being engaged IN
similar attempt at escape. Breason was IKE
wise manacled during the greater part OF his
| three months term. Yet these were not rep
resented by the superintendent, who ordered
these barbarous punishments, as among the
very bad boys in the institution; OF Nourse,
| he said, "He has done nothing very bad be-
| fore his confinement" and the conduct OF
| Breason he pronounced casually good. Inc
| superintendent said he had employed boy as
a spy on these offenders, both before and after
their confinement and it was quite clear to
the committee that this spy, to lngratlate NM
self or for other reasons, suggested ana partlc-
| ipated in and stimulated the prisoners to the
| commission of some of the very offences for
which they were afterward, on his disclosure,
thus severely punished by the superintendent
For instance-he procured, or aided in procur-
ing, the matches afterward found on Roach,
and gave them to him, and instructed HIM
where namely, in his cap) to secrete them,
and to carry out the scheme, kept part him
self in his own cap, and then informed the SUI
perintendent that Roach was i'll possession of
matches to fire the building, and where they
could be found. Roach is searched, the evil
dence of his guilt is discovered, and he is sent
to the dark and noisome cells. Roach AYERS
that tbis fret tod IN him the
of burning the building, and the other prison
ers likewise attribute to this spy the original
ing of the attempt to escape from the cells, for
which they were manacled The superintend
ent repeatedly apologized to the committee for
the active and prominent part taken by his
emissary in the alleged offenses, admitting he
had exceeded his authority. When it became
known in the institution that the spy had act
ed as snch, it was found necessary to rustlcate
him, and he is accordingly on probation in an
other town.
1t seems that the superintendent, without the
interference or control of the trustees, infcts
these severe punshments; he alone, so far as
the trustees are concerned, determines the
cause and measure of punishment; he confines
refractory boy Tor one whom he deems such)
when he pleases, for what he peases, and as
long as he pleases. 1t is an arbitrary and de-
spotic power over the health and happiness of
some 400 boys, not safe to be entrusted in the
hands of any man, liable to abuse, and requir-
ing vlgilant oversight on the part of the trus
tees and of this department OF the govern
ment. The committee deem the course of the
superintendent censurable in his omission to
hold out inducements and offer persuasions to
his prisoners to repent, and thus obtain their
release; 1t was his duty TO have kept the door
OF mercy always open, to visit the cells fire.
quently to hear the petitions of inmates, and
by all moral means strive to terminate the
captivity Of those unfortunate boys. But it
appeared clearly that he offered no such in.
ducements or persuasions, that on certain
proper conditions they might be released he
did not intercede, expostulate or encourage
them to hope by reformation and resolutions
OF Improvement that their prospect of release
would be improved He left them in their
dismal abode, till he, in his wisdom and arbi-
trary use of power, saw fit to discharge them.
1t Is believed that if he had not thus stood
aoot and lett a barrier between his prisoners
and himself their term OF Imprisonment would
generally have been shorter.
No record whatever is kept, according to the
statement of the superintendent, showing the
character and conduct of the boys after their
admission, or the causes or extent of punish
ment in the institution The committee deem
this serious emission, and recommend that
keep full and exact record of the causes and
nature and duration of all punishments infiict.
ed in the Reform School. The committee also
doubt the propriety of the superintendent del
egating 10 his sub officers his authority to i'm
prison the inmates in his absence, as it ap.
peared that some of the boys had been i'm
prisoned in these cells by the assistants in the
absence of the superintendent
The superintendent states that he kept the
n1NnxF cd hn.trg Al.
to prevent their communicating other inmates
of the institution, than for their offences but
it is believed they might have been kept sepa
rate without the necessity of this unusual spe-
ces of confinement, and still more without the
additional punishment of diet of bread and
water.
The superintendent admitted that other pu-
pills of the school, numbering about twenty,
had been in like manner punished by contine-
ment in the cells, for periods from month
downward. 1t is, therefore, to be regarded as
part of the system of discipline heretofore
adopted and practised in the institution, and
not as exceptional in its character. The coun.
ell will Judge whether the number of such
cases were correctly stated--whether or not
much larger number, if the facts could be as
certaned have been thus incarcerated The
superintendent was particularly interrogated
as to the length of time these boys had been
confined in the cells He assured the commit
tee in the most positive manner that the maxi
mum of Imprisonment in any one case was
t,co months. But on inquiry, it was ascertained
that there were three pupils then in the insti-
tuition, namely Michael Whalley, Thomas g.
Hill, and one King, Who it was stated had
been confined sixteen weeks each in the cells
They were Immediately summoned before the
committee, and with the exception of one
whose term of Imprisonment lacked four days
OF the period of sixteen weeks, they fully con-
tirmed the above statements made by their fell
low sufferers. Two of them were confined
for an assault on an officer of the institution,
and the third for larceny Of sum of money
amounting to twenty dollars belonging to
the superintendent For these offences, they
were incarcerated as above related One of
them stated that he was shut up the night after
Thanksgiving, and released on the 18th of
March following. They were kept during the
first week, on one cracker and water each
meal, and during the ensuing ten or eleven
weeks on bread and water only were allow
ed to leave their cells only once a day for fif
teen or twenty minutes, more or less, as their
watchmen happened to have time to devote to
them. They stated that the light became
painful to their eyes when out of the cells and
the atmosphere was equally offensive to the
sense Of smell on returning to their confine-
ment. These instances of cruelty, exceeding
in severity those already disclosed to the com.
mittee remind us Of the dark and semi.barbar.
GUS ages of religious intolerance and persecu.
ton detailed in the pages of Prescott and Mot
ley, and of the Spanish Inquisiton; they do
not belong to the sentiments and civilization or
the Christian culture Of the nineteenth century
and the liberal and humane policy of Massa-
chusetts toward the vicious and unfortunate
This discrepancy between the periods of i'm
prisohment in the cells-a difference between
two months and double that length Of time
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