The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1868-01-03
HOUSE of REFUGE.
A Proclamation.
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT,
INDIANAP0LIS, January /, 1858. ]

proved March 8, 1867, entitled An
Act to establish a House of Refuge
for the correction and reformation OF
juvenile offenders" I, Conrad Baker,
Lieutenant Governor Of the State OF
Indiana, acting as Governor thereof,
do hereby announce and proclaim that
the Institution contemplated by said
act having been heretofore located
near Plainfield in Hendricks County,
is now so nearly completed as to prop
erly admit of the reception of youths
who may be committed to it's guard
ianship under the provisions of said
act.
According to the PLAZA adopted by
the Board of Commissioners, to whose
management the Institution is en-
trusted, it will much more largely
partake of the nature of an Industrial
Reform School than of a Juvenile
prison, and this being the case, the
success Of the enterprise will depend
greatly upon its starting under favor
able auspices aud conditions.
After the Institution is fairly in
operation, and families of infants are
formed under good discipline, it will
be much easier to work in boys of an
older and worse class, than it would
be to form and reduce to proper dis
cipline families aud classes composed
entirely. or principally of such mate
rial Ia the outset. re.,-
The experience of similar institu-
tons in other States has proved that
boys over the age of sixteen years can
n Ut be received with profit to them
selves or the Institution. Yet the
act under which our House of. Refuge
is organized prescribes eighteen years
as the maximum age at which infants
may be received. .r=9..s s.qr
& The evil to be feared from the send
ing of boys of such advanced age wiH
proba bly, be aggravated by the tact
that the friends Of those accused of
crime will be tempted to represent
the accused as being younger than
they really are, to save them from the
county Jail or penitentiary, by having
them sent to this Institution.
s 1t is hoped that all good citizens
who desire to see this institution sue
cessfully perform its mission. will use
all proper means to discourage and
prevent the committal of boys of an
improper age to its guardians hip: and
to this end the cooperation of those
entrusted with the administration Of
the law is especially solicited.
1t will be observed that by the 11;h
section of the act, infants under the
age OF eighteen years may be sentnced,
upon regular trial to the House of
Refuge, instead of being sentenced to
the penltentiary or county Jail. 1t Is
hoped thar no infant will be sentenced
to the House Of Refuge under this
section for the.followlng reasons, viz. :
l. 1t will leave a record of cOnvic-
ton of crime to confront him in after
years, and to discourage him In his
efforts to deserve and obtain the con
fdence of his fellow men; and there
is certainly no necessity for such q
CONVICTION as he may be as effectual-fi
ly committed to the guardianship Of
the institution, under the provisions
OF the 10th, 18th, 18th and 14th sec
tons OF the act without any such rec
ord being made against him
z. BY the provisions OF the 10th
section OF the act, no infant can be
to the institution until it be
ascertaned from the Superintendent,
whether he can be received or not:
and If he cannot be received into the
institution. the case OF such infant is
to be disposed Of as if the act had
never been passed, and 5 if no pro-
ceedings had been taken under it.
Now if an infant should be regular
ly tried andssentenced to the House
OF Refuge, and it should be after
wards ascertained that he could not
be received in the institution, he
could not be tried again for the same
ofense, and his discharge would be
necessity.
Under the provisions of the TWEEN
tieth section of the act the expense of
keeping and taking care of each in
FAINT, (including subsistence and cloth
lng,) has been estimated at one hun
dred and thirty dollars per annum.
The act provides that e-half of
the expense of keeping each infant
shall be paid by the State, and the
other half by the county from which
he IS sent; except where the infant is
sent at the instance of his parent or |
guardian, IN which case the parent Of
the infant. if able, must pay the ex-
penses, and la the last named case the |
charge viii be one hundred and fifty |
dollars.
Where the infant is sent at the pub
lie: expense, the Charge to the county !
from which he may come cannot ex- |
coed half the amount of the afore |
said estimate, or sixty FIVE dollars per
lnnum.
The necessary forms to be observed /
n making applications for admission /
INTO this Institution will be sent with !
)ut delay to the Auditor of each |
, unity ia the State.
In witness whereof, / have hereunto