The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-04-01
Investigation at the Deaf and Dumb
InSfis uffOu.

The Journal and News, in espousing the
cause of the management of the Institution
for the Deaf and Dumb in relation to the in
vestigation Of the charges made against the
superintendent of that institution before
the last legislature, have INDUCED in very
severe attacks upon that body. Other pa
pers of the state, belonging to the same
political party, have joined in the attack,
seeking to make political question OF the
conviction or vindication of the man
agement. 1t is due to the legislature
to publish a plain statement of the
whole transaction, and leave the public to
decide whether the legislature acted in good
faith in asking the governor to have the
matter investigated. The original cause of
the present investigation was an anony-
nous letter making the gravest charges
against the superintendent of the Deaf and
Dumb Asylum. That letter was given to
Judge Turpie, speaker of the House, who
notified the House that he had il, saying
that if there were no objections, he would
refer it to the committee on benevolent and
scientific institutions. No objection
was made, and the letter was
so referred. Mr.. Marvin, of
Boone county, very judicious and consci-
entious gentleman, was chairman of the
committee. The letter was then referred to
a special committee, the members of which
reported that it was near the close of the ses-
sion, and that they would not have time 10
investigate the matter fully aud report in
time for the action of the House, they,
therefore, recommended that it be referred toll
a committee of FIVE, consisting OF the three
trustees of the institute and two gentlemen,
to be appointed by the governor, the COM
mittee so formed to investigate and report
the result to the governor. The anonymous
letter charged the Encouragement of the
institution, in that the superin-
tendeRt had misused its funds,
and that he was unduly familiar with the
girls, mentioning five cases of seduction,
giving circumstances, names and localities.
The present committee has refused TO per-
NIT the letter to be copied, and kept il from
the public The Sentinel is informed
that the superintendent and the COM
mittee have reason to believe that one
French, a former employee of the institution,
wrote the letter over the name of "W. |
Brown" and yet thay advertised for the
writer of the communication, and |
have not, up to this time, en-
quired into the cases named in the letter. |
The superintendent, Mr.. McIntire, is either |
in the hands of bad advisers, or
if acting upon his own judg- |
ment, pursuing a very suicidal course. |
This matter has gone so far that the popular |
mind will not be satisfied until there has |
been a thorough public investigation of the |
hole affair, and those who are acting upon |
any different theory will soon discover their
mistake. The original charges OF "W.
Brown" may not have furnished sufficient |
ground for undert taking this investigation,
but is hard to understand how, in the light |
Of recent developments, the friends of the
Institution can maintain the pretense that it
IS above suspicion. Such an attitude would |
have passed for viltuous indignation week
ago. Now it looks more like game of
bluff.