Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1888-09-14

cording to tho last annual report. The
home comprises some forty buildings of va
rious descriptions, among thcm a church,
memorial hall and n library, the latter con-
tanning over 1900 volumes. Owing to tho
generosity of tho founder of tho library, Mrs.
Putnam, tho latest works are added from
time to time. There Is Il farm connected
with the homo, and several mechanical trades
are carried on in shops devoted to the pur-
pose, the worlimen being paid for their labor.
Since 1880 the central branch has been in
charge of Gen. NJ. r. Patrick, recently do
ceased who served with distinction in two
wars. Gen. Patrick was New Yorker and
made that state his home when not in service.
He was graduate of West Point and left
the army at the close of the civil war.
Some of the statistics of this home at Day
ton will be interesting in view of the assertion
often made that the least deserving men
crowd these homes to the exclusion of their
betters. According to the return for 1887 the
records of disabilities show the following:
Loss of both legs, 4; of one arm and one leg,
3; of one arm, 81; of one leg, 1874; other
wounds, 1,4G0; blindness, al; insanity, SO.
That is almost 2, 900 injuries traceable to army
service. OF other diseases there are named
4,241, making a total of 6022 disabled men,
inmates at Dayton are 2,019; foreign born,
4,OO3. OF the foreign born 9, All are Germans,
1,0l7 Irish. The men over so years of age
are 4,2S0; over 20, G27. The veterans of 1919
number 12; of the Mexican war, 1914
The trades and occupations reported by
the inmates prove them to have belonged to
tho industrial classes, and some of them wera
well up the scale. OF farmers there are
1,l52; of laborers, 1900, and of skilled work.
men and men of professions, over 1000
Of mechanics, 277 were carpenters G6 were
machnists and "a engineers. Other calings
are: Printers 46; tailors, 100; physicians, 10;
teachers, 10; lawyers, 5; ministers, l. OF
the number 1854 are men of families, and
1914 can read and write. The number of
books read during 1887 was 81, S04. The bill
of fare at the home for each Wednesday Of
the second quarter, 1887, was: Breakfast
Beef stew, potatoes, bread, butter, coffee.
Dinner-Roast beef, potatoes stewed beans
or turnips or onions, spinach Gn june, bread,
butter, coffee. Supper-Corned beef or pigs
tongues or picked tripe, tomato catsup,
picked beets or onions, bread, butter, tea.
The bill is varied each quarter.
The other national homes are located at
Milwaukee, FOCUS, Me-, Hampton, Va. and
Leavenworth, Kan. The Pacific branch has
no permanent home, but one will be estab-
lished on sites recently acquired at Los An
geles, Cal. The national homes are under the
management of a board Of ten military men.
with the president, chief justice and secretary
of war ex-ofiicio. Gen William b. Franklin,
of Connecticut, is president of the board and
Gen. Martin T. McMahon secretary Other
members are Gems. j. A. Martin, Kansas j.
S. Negley, Pittsbu-g; j. c. Black, Hi
nois; 7. w. Hyde, Maine; w. J. Sewell,
New Jersey; Col. l. A. Harris, Ohio, and
Capts. John L. Mitchell, of Wisconsin, and
William Blanding, of California. Among