Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1861-01-02

TO be hoped that in their future reports the
Directors viii not permit a lOOseness Of style
to suggest suspicion of loOseness Of prac-
tice in their institution.
In an institution for moral reform, and as
all morality is founded on religion, II would
seem that the moral progress would be the
most essential feature, and that the moral
instructor could give the most intelligent
account Of its moral and religious results.
But though there is an allowance of $3.50 for
Chaplain, he has furnished no report of the
result of his operations. Perhaps the salary
is too small to allow such an expectation, for
the relation of preach to price was discovered
at an early period in this country.
The Ply ysican shows that he has done his
duty to the bodies of the subjects. He re-
ports that ''the health of the institution is
comparatively good but ''there has been
greatly-increased amount of sickness over
that of any previous year." .
This is q professional idea of a compara-
lively healthy condition.
There seems to be a fatality in the style of
the officers of this institution. The Physi-
clan, in his report contriyes to kill off the
Superintendent by congestive fever in the
cold stage; but he afterward revives him,
and gives him great credit for care and at
tention. He reports four deaths, exclusive
of the Superintendent
There have been in the Refuge during the
year 1872 boys and GO girls. At the begin
ming of the year the number was 256 at the
close, 2l1. During the year, 126 were ad-
mitted. OF these 107 came from the Police
Court, from the Court of Common Pleas,
II from parents or guardians, 2 from magis-
trates, apprentices returned for fault, and
l escaped, returned.
OF these, 35 were sent for vagrancy, II for
truancy, for home, for disobedience, 8
for disorderly conduct, Z for incorrigibility,
for protection, and for street begging,
making IA for charges which are quite vague,
and which parental discipline, even though
poor, can best deal with. We might include,
also, in this category % sent for petit lar
ceny. In our Police Court the charge of
vagrancy Is utterly indefinite. Does any
sane man suppose that dor any of these
charges children should be taken from their
parents and confined in an institution which
affixes stigma aud suspicion to them for
life, and which is but the halfway house to
the penitentiary?
We have alluded before to the trivial and
vague charges on which children are COM
mitted to this place by our Police Court. In
these statistics there is a picture of parents
robbed of their children, the robbery aggra-
waited by differences in religious creed, which
many Of them believe will eonsign their
children to perdition, and, of children for
childish faults condemned to be the objects
of suspicion and reproach for life, that
changes this House of Refuge, with its mag
nifcent pretensions and expenses, to great
wrong.
OF the remainder, five were committed for
grand larceny, and twenty-seyen to await
trial. OF those discharged during the year,
thirty-six were indentured-of whom ten
were indentmed to parents or friends-sixty-
three discharged to the care of friends; thirty
one for trial or as witnesses, three for legal
age, twenty one to take care of themselves,
thirteen to City Infrmary, and three de-
ceased. One escaped. In all twenty-six
were indentured to specific employments.
The expenditures for the year are $780,
96l II. There was received for work and
refuse material sold $9.469 81, which leaves
balance of expenditures of $24, 49l 20. The
average number of inmates for the year
being pa, this shows the cost of each to be
about STA a year. As the refugees do
nearly all the manual labor, this expendi-
ture is chiefly for, provisions, $s,559 cloth
ing materials, $4,654; fuel, $3,Os6; repairs
and improvements, $500, and salaries,
s., l4O.
Our attention is called to this report by
the importance of the subject, and particu-
larly by some instances that have come to
our knowledge of children being sent there
against the remonstrances of their parents,
without any adequate cause. We have little
doubt that the list of commitments for va
grancy should be wiped out. So we might
say of some of the other charges.
| To take a child from the coutrol of pa
rent, is an act which no vague charge will
| justify. There are, it seems, parents and
guardians who send childref there. There
perhaps are cases which require it but gen.
orally it is probable that the parent needs a
penal discipline most.
This institution is not very costly, tor a
Government undertaking. 1t is one Of our
noble benevolent operations. But, perhaps,
if those who are improperly sent there were
not sent, il would have very small proper
tion of its subjects to operate on; so small
that the institution would not be regarded
as either necessary or benevolent.
1t would be gratifying to know that it
really reformed its subjects, and returned
them to the world more fit to battle with
life, and the additional burden of the name
of being a subject from the House of Refuge;
but of this the report is singularly reticent.
1t is full in the numerical and pecuniary re-
suits, but omits almost entirely the great
object Of the institution-the moral results
A Model Cabinet Ohicer.
Gacrafarv Eloyd raS;nr,, ad hacauaa 4ha pra