The weekly tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1891-1894, 1892-12-23
GREAT FALLS
BABY FARM.
Truths trsngWTha Fiction
A Mean White Man Deserts His Wife
and Children
And Makes His Home with a Har-
lot and Dresses in Swell At
tire, a la Dude.

'upy iuihllhS 10 Hot SuDDOStu " Dt
one of the branches of agriculture es-
p~ecially fitted to the far west.
If anybody should say that such an
institution could flourish in a town like
Great Falls his assertion would be
doubted, bnt the inquiries of a TRIBUNE
reporter show that there is already in
existence such "a farm near the river
bank. and not a great distance from the
center of the city and he is able to throw
some light on this interesting industry.
There is an old saw which says that
it takes al! kinds of people to make up a
world; good men, and bad men, and in
different men, and also all the variations
of woman kind, from the sacred dignity
OF the perfect matron to the degraded
bag of the streets. and the Unfortunate
creature who has been driven by power.
ty. vice and drink, into the very cess
pools Of society. Great Falls being de
cidedly metropolitan and cosmopolitan
la all respects, naturally has its share of
all these elements. Being an attractive
place. it attracts all kinds of beings to
wards its light and when they come
here they all find their natural level
Among the population was 4 man who
had "a good wife and several small chill
dren. but he was "A renegade in shirt
and "a vagabond in life. lie neglected
and wrOngcd the woman whom he had
c,trAr. 70 lA,.n ,,I ,..ya.t 49, -. -
attention and substance to a harlOt. In
the course Of time the wife. deserted.
broken, hearted and with health COM
pletely ruined, sank into an untimely
grave, and the little children were left
not only mOtherless, but also fatherless,
because the father spent his time with
the vicious siren who had ruined him,
instead of with the innocent little chill.
dren who might have even yet saved
him from utter ruin.
Leaving the children to their fate he
hired a woman to occupy the rooms in
which they were and to care for them as
she might. This woman he failed to
pay; she knew that he had some means
and that he was squandering all that he
got IN the vicious quarter of the town,
and so to protect herself she seized what
little furniture and effects remained to
satisfy her debt. and then the children
were thrown into the street and left to
the mercy Of whomsoever might show
them mercy.
This brings the story to the baby farm.
What kind of a place is it? a small
wooden shack covered with tarred build
ing paper standing near the bank of the
river. an isolated place, and with all the
surroundings, both inside and out, indie
alive of squalor and abject poverty.
Through din of gathering tiOat- wood
and scraps Of lumber from the surround |
ing lots, the hOvel is kept comfortably
warm. and its present inmates are a lit
tie white baby, q months old, that sleeps |
IN "A baby carriage, n a little negro
baby , years old that sleeps on a cot.
In the same narrow hOvcl is the bed Oc.
cupied by the man and woman who own
the place.
IL is only fair to say that these people
seem to bc kind to the babies left in their
care. They were kind to The TRIErNEI
reporter who called, and without know
ing his mission informed him that if at
any time he had business in their line
they would be pleased to serve him.
This little white baby belongs to the
gentleman referred to in the beginning
of this story. and it's expenses at the
farm remain unpaid, though he dresses
in swell attire and always looks like a
dandy. The little white baby was en- |
joying it's morning meal, the other one. a !
ii 'lusty yeller,' doubly speaking, was in !
vestigating the architecture OF a rag doll. ;
This little mite declared to the pro. !
prietory who was present, that 'hcr !
daddy was "A white nan but her nanny |
was black" For a child two years old
she is quite "a marvel, being able to say
her "a. b. c's" quite accurately. At
various times the farm has had "A larger
number of occupants than at resent,
but death has crept into the little circle
and now and then the unknown waits
have been carried out to unknown |
graves. 1t would seem that the baby |
farm was necessary, but still it is unfor-
ttnate that the industry should be sup
ported through men who pose as decent
before the community, and will not make
an effort to support their own children.
Montana Weather.
WAsHINGTON, Dec. IT, Montana -