Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1874-01-16

| .ne must triuing corporal punishment, until
he has first stated the case to the Superin.
tendent, and this regulation is fully under
stood by all the boys. They have been fre-
quently invited by members of the Board
Of Trustees, and by Superintendent Fair.
bank himself. to freely make known any
grievance, real or fancied, which they NAV
have. They avail themselves of this priyi-
lege. and it is impossible that any cruelty
could be practiscd upon them without its
coming TO his knowledge; and as he is held
directly responsible for the conduct of al
his subordinates, his position and reputa-
tion are dependent upon his diligence in
seeing that they properly perform the duties
assigned them.
We to-day questioned the whole school
in regard to the treatment they received
inviting them TO make known any injustice
done them, any act Of cruelty practised
upon them. or any neglect on the
part of any officer tOwari them,
without receiving IN response a.single COM
plant Mr.. Slade then selected from among
the boys thirteen of their number, all Of
whom were personally unknown to him,
and taking them to the Office. away from
the presence and influence of any officer,
questioned them closely as to the internal
workings of the institution, assuring them
they need have no fear, as they would not
be held responsible TO any officer for any
charge they might make against them.
Every one testified TO the uniform kindness
of Mr.. and Mrs. Fairbank, that their
clothes were good and warm. their food
sufficient in quantity and quality, and
their beds in every way comfortable that
they had no lice, and there was no excuse
for having them or for being filthy, with
the facilities they have for keeping clean;
that they We're regularly washed as before
described and had clean shirts and stockings
every Saturday night. No one Of them com
planned of any unjust punishment. Some
OF them mentioned having been punished,
but told the circumstances OF the case and
made no claim but what it was well dcscrv-
ed, or that il had been unree sonablc or
severe
The boy, Warren johnson, had epileptic
fits quite often when he first came to the
institution They seized him when in bed,
in school, in the shop and in the yard, and
from the testimony of the boys, as well as
the oihcerS, Il appears that he was on every
occasion, treated with great care and
kindness, and taken TO the hospital "a soon
as possible. lie was placed under medical
treatment with such success that after July
18th. he had no return Of them while lac re-
mained. During these ht- he almost in
yariably fouled his pants.
That there was ever any pretencc On the
part OF the officers that he was - making
them" or that he was on any occasion
or in any way punished for having them,
they absolutely deny. and after thorough
examination, We are satisfied that the boys
statement on this point is an outrageous
falseh0o1.
During johnson : stay here, he was in
the second class of the third (lowest)
school, which Is taught by Miss Howe,
most estimable lady. lie was never in tho
first school taught by Mr. IIealy. and con-
sequently could no, have been punished by
him ior - whispering, A. stated in his tes-
timony. Moreover. the officers deny the
truth Of his statement and we are unabIe to
find any boyS who viii oorro5ordfe ~.
lie was thoroughly washed the Saturday
evening before he went away, and at that
time had clean shirt and pair Of stockings
given him. On the morning of his DEPART
ure re was taken TO the sewing room and
there provided with pair of pants. both
clean and whole, ard his spencer was also
in good condition. There was no attempt
made 70 d" dress him up" but his suit wa
clean and whole. and such a. Is worn BY all
the boys a. an every day suit. That he was
mol in '' dirty condition al that time,
tIT ne proven " -lF-. FAl-f2DE. Mrs.
Goodcnough. Mr.. iiealy and Mr. Buss. all
of whom saw him. lie had been twice
taken to the depot by an oihcer that morn
ing, but As the train was late had gone
back TO the Institution. While there, the
train passed, and rs the officers were all
busy he was sent the third time under a
- trust boys charge.
lie was one ofs small number in the In
stitu;ion who are wet beds'-his being
one Of the worst cases Every night of his
stay he was reused by 4 night watchman at
stated periods. and taken to the water closet
opening out Of the bunk room. and in this
way his person and bed were kept clean.
lie was - destitute of ambition that he
would not wash his hands or comb his head
unless he ws- compelled 10 do %. and in the
shop would do a little work a ne possibly
could, and that little % poorly that another
boy was appointed to look it over and make
repairs where needed. His hair was cut
and his head twice cleansed By Mr. Healy
in person, and Mr.. BuSs reStIfeS that he
twice sent him to the hair cutter, and re-
peatedly gave directions to have his hair
carefully cOmbed. These occasions were
outside OF the school room, where "a before
stated, this class Of boys are obliged to comb
each others hair as often a twice each week.
A large proportion Of the boys are 50 par
tieular in the care of their persons that any
one harboring lice must do it with great
caution or he will be reported But it
seems that johnson succeeded in dccciyng
his teacher ausi evading close scrutiny, and
did carry Ice with him when he went to
Woodstock. From the testimony ofcertain
boys with whom he converSed before going
away 1t appears there was Il purpose in
making himself dirty and ragged before go
ing into court, and harboring with 50 much
care these head lice. lie boasted to the
boys that he should ''mGie II hot for The In
StifufiOn ,rhen he got their, get pGr60nsd him
self, and get the rest ofthem pdrdoned also. =
The school was irksome TO him, as il Is to
every boy who is indolent and slothful, and
who has no desire 10 improve, and the bows
OF this class use marvellous ingenuity in
avoiding the operation of its rules.
Before being examined by the witnesses
who were used before Judge Barrett he hal
spent two or three nights in Jail with no
watchman TO get him up and take him 70
the closet. lie had also suffered from one
of those fits-psrh0ps with the usual result
His head had been combed BY another
prisoner when he first got there, and in
that process very likely the lice were trans
ierred to his shrt-whether by accident
or design. We are unable to Judge. except
as we remember what his expressed purposes
were when he left the Institution
A. he made grave charges against Mr..
Healy, We deem it but fair to quote from
the testimony given By Mr.. iieaiy, to-day.
and which testimony i fully c0rrOborated
by that of several boys Of the Institution
Mr. Fairhank never permits u 20 administer any
pun ishmsnt 10 the boys, except perhaps trAns
one, without first stating the case 10 him and ,Iknz
his advice; and he encourages the boys to appeal To-
han hay hat
dealt with. johnson was boy not na ,uras!y very
bright. was nearly sixteen years Of age and was in
the second class OF the third school, lie heg--
having fits about the middle Of May; was treated
medic lnally for them and had the last one on the
ath day of July. Al these times he would fall foam
At the mouth and he insensiblc. / was frequently
called to take him to the hospital. II was with
diiheuity we could prevent him injuTng himself.
never pun shed him AZ these times. did deprive
him Of vinegar for three months because the boys
told me he was drink in- i in large quantities to
bring IN these t;. he said he had heard we would
not Keep boy who had them. When Mr. Buss took
his vacation had charge OF the shop. johnson
with some others refused TO do his work. Once
gave him few blows on the hand and one few
on he sea', with thin ruler. never whPped him
IN any other way or at any other time.
The records OF the school show tha, it has
been in oreration nearly eight years, daring
which time it has cared for three hundred
and ninety-iour {39i) boys. Dat Of this
number only three have died from disease;
two from fever. and one from canker rash.
We think these figures cOnclusiyely show
that cleanliness has been well attended to.
In this statement we have embodied the
substance of the testimony taken before Us,
and have no fear that the most searching
investigation will disprOve any of the facts
herein set forth
We most cordially invite the general
public. and especially those individuals
who think they have reason to believe
the school is not well managed, or
that its inmates are in any way i'll used,
TO visit the Institution and investigate ior
themselves. Its doors are always open for
visitors. and all who may call will be
warmly welcomed. and have every facility
granted them TO examine in detail the daily
life and habits of both officers and boys.
We press this invitation as an act of Justice
to those officers who have been % bitterly
assailed, feeling confident that when its
m N n pprueDt fnOra fully ap1