Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1874-06-03
For the Freeman
How About the Reform School?

If i+contained these words:
ut may not be generally understood. but much inn
9ppr0priations OF the legislature to enable the
bHs 1 no fi ts is done almost ali the boys must 20 out
tenyone without 5nK 5Tade eePe Pg k 5he
tiu-work Any girl OF twelve can beat man knitting
thair- bottoms"
But what harm in calling the attention
Of the people to fact so important as this?
/ If Of no consequence that you take a
how from his home and keep him until
manhood then to be sent adrift without any
means Of gaining a livelihood? Because /
no man would think of knitting rattan for
a living. Filling chair bottoms at eight
cents apiece, five or six in day, would
only give him forty to forty-eight cents
Not enough to pay his board. So here Is
the whole matter in a nutshell. The
state keeps boy until he is twenty-one
wears of age, then sends him out, atterty
b41Dlcss. He does not know how to drive
a team of oxen or horses, he cannot hoe or
dig ditch. If he could saw or chop wood
he could at least have an equal chance with
a Canadian Frenchman But he will not
have the least experience in any OF these
things. so he will be utterly helpless so tar
as getting his living is concerned. what
then. will those boys who graduate ut the
Reform School do? Obviously, they must
BEG. starTe or--d0 some other acay. As a
peopIe we have not vet attained such
state of perfection but that the most of Us
would steal before we would starve. If
the state wanted little army of criml-
mails they could not find a much surer way
10 produce them than to shut up one hun
dred bows and keep them until they were
crown up men without learning any occu-
patton by which they could get an honest
living. But they are taught how to break
the law. These boys are not so dull but
that they know as well as anybody that
there was a law passed that was to give
them trade And they remember every
dav rs they string the rattan, that this law
that was passed two years ago has been
broken. evaded, disregarded. No one
ought to expect that this circumstance
would tend To increase their respect for
laws but on the contrary learn to esteem
them lightly 1t is in vain for lis to lee
ture the boys about being good citizens and
have respect for the laws, when right be-
fore their ewes we break a plain and posi-
tive enactment.
Let it be distinctly understood that the
BOYS are we'll cared for in every other re-
spect; we'll fed well clothed, having the
hest Of care in sickness and in health. The
Superintendent and his wife spare no pains
10 give them every benefit in their power
to rive. And they would be glad to see
them learning some useful trade, that
would enable them to earn their liy-
iug when they 90 away. And more than
that. the suDcrintendent has with his own
money provided a mill that gives chance
for It few of the boys to learn trade
Eight or ten boys only work in this mill
about six boys at time.
About as many more boys work on tho
Ian d. Besides there are some in the house
sweeping, dusting, baking and sewing
But all told, it leaves more than 100 boys
that have no other 1c0rk except knitting
rattan into chair bottoms Think of it
One hundred bows shut up during the
spring time of life and learning no useful
occupalion Did say one hundred boys,
One hundred boys? Why, n large proper
ton of them are men. They can do
NUNS trork when they have chance The.
are condemned to stay until they are twen
tv-one years of age, the last five years 0
which they can earn as much as an aver
are man ut many kinds of work. But tn
state can afford to support these boys,
might be urged, earning only a few cents
dav. And there might be some force t
this suggestion if the boys could have thi
for their home for life, and enjoy the goo
teaching of the superintendent and th
motherlv kindness and care of his wife
the matron. No bow need ask a bette
home. But by-and-by they must 60 AVA
and rough il in the world, and get thei
living rs best they can. 1t is said that til
oca-calf, when forced away from his natf
island to live upon his own resources, doe
not grow much, if any, during the first tw
years, because he has not yet learned
catch fish. And he nearly starves TO deaf
In
ease will these young men be, turned OIL
without knowledge or skill in any kind {
useful work, to live. or, perchance, to die
morally.
Now, let it be distinctly understood tn;
am not censwing any person in this ma
ter. 1t may have all come about withO,
any one being in fault. As an Englishma
said. il may all have resulted from -
flrtuitous combination of unpropitio1
events" But | simply wish to call Il
attention the people to the fact that th'
have shut ND more than one hundred boy
condemned to remain until they are twent
one. and that they are giving them ,
nitauS Of edruinq an honest Hring whe
they 90 away. And | suppose the gener
decision will be like the verdict of the &C
oner, after Il railroad accident namel
there's nobody to blame" 1he leglsl
lure will excuse themselves by saying tn
they passed a law that gave the boys ;
opportunity to learn a trade, positl
law. in the acts of 1872, Nos. SO and s
But there was no penalty attached, nor III
rcformatOrv institution provided for tho
who should break these laws. So the LAY
have been broken Now there may be
lack of excuses for evading and disregar
nr these laws. Perhaps there arc opinlo
If the minority of the management agair
the viii Of the majority; many things
hc >aid out loud p and some things to
spoken only in committee rooms beh1
the door. ! know nothing about the woi
mo of political machinery. L suppc
there are "wheels within Wheels" cons
eratiOns here and considerations there
log to roll here and log to roll thel
Tol help me grind my TX and | will he
grind Yours. Such always has been
Way of running government affairs. a
such always must be the way while m
are human. But in the mean time, VIII
men may coolly handle the governmt
tape and think by arithmetic, the da
months ~ years of the spring time
more than one hundred boys are passi
away and they learning no trade or use
occupation. There they are, No amol
OF explanation or excuses can alter Il
fat- There thev'are, and not learning a
trade
DOES 1T PAY?
II the state could save money, perh;
some might think that they would be ju
ned in crushing out the best part of
lives of cne hundred bright boys.
Lere. The six boys working in the L
provided by the superintendent earn to
state one sixth rs as much as the one h
dred boys in the knitting shop. The
boys in the mill earn as much as si1t
boys that braid rattan into chair botto
One boy in the mill where he learn