The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1892-01-18
COUNTY A"LMSH0USES.
Which Has the Worst, Essex or
Monmouth
special TO the jersey City Neos.

Special 10 me jersey CatU NeDS'
TRENTON, Jan. is, 1S93-One of the
most scathing criticisms on the county
almshouses in New Jersey, mas been sub
mitted to Governor Albeit by Mrs.
Emily E. Williamson, the Secretary OF
the States Charities Aid Society. After
a careful study of these Institutions, she
makes the sweeping statement that they
should all be abandoned or managed by
legislation. She is in doubt whether the
worst Almshouse in the State is at Belle
vile. Essex county, or the County Aims
house in Monmouth county.
She expresses much Indignation about
the mixing of sexes in all the houses. anu
characterizes the Almshouse as the feeder
of prisons aud jails. Nearly all being
under the control of the County Board OF
F~reeholders, they are managed either as
n political machine or in a manner tnat
shows that these men do not comprehend
the responsibility that they nav Ihese
houses are, rs a rule, dirty aud without
any sanitary regulation whatever. AT
the present time there are torty-one
Almshouses in the State; twelve are sup
ported by county tax and twenty-n1ne by
the townships, and a few OF them are prl-
vate. Out of this number four were found
to be in q first-class condition, and they
are lOCdbCu az .
land and Hudson counties. h next In
order is the Trenton City Almshouse.
MERELY SCHOOLS FOR PAuPERs.
The most alarming statement made by
Mrs. Williamson is tina the AlmShouses.
rs conducted now, are schools for the
education of first-class paupers. The
really dependent do not get in them. and
many that are there are not entitled to
public bounty. 1t is her opinion that
Almshouses should be simply for the Old
and infirEn, or those i'll from chronic COM
plants. Great care should be exercised
to prevent the son or daughter. niece or
nephew, from turning out the father or
mother, aunt or uncle, to be supported
by the taxpayers. In one Almshouse
alone it was found that more than
one-half of the old people had relatives
able to care for them. In one of the In
situations there was discovered a nne
looking old man who was ut one time
very rich, supported by, the oWnsnlp.
His two sons were well of, one with a
large newspaper enterprise. Both OF
these sons refused to care Tor their father.
although he, in their youth, gave them
much. SIN France" says Mrs. William
son. 'there are no Almshouses; the ola
and inirm are we'll taken care of by
those whose duty it clearly Is ana are
son does not hesitate to say that she
thinks it would be we'll to abolish Aims
houses and she thinks that it must come
sooner or later.
Mrs. Williamson's work extends to the
children, and she gives an interesting &C.
count of the efforts of the association on
behalf OF panper children. She states
that orphans asylums and children's
homes do net reach the question, as
children with worthless parents are not
admitted. Many of these children are
taken to almshouses, where they are
brought up without proper education.
She gives it as her Judgment that our
their supply OF criminals through The in
direct Influence of indiscriminate outdoor
relief. 1t leads to idleness and the grog
shop. and women and children go to the
%aImshouses where the latter receive an
education from associations which Ats
them only for lives of idleness, and from
that to wickedness and vice, which is an
easy and short step, and in this way the
a~lmshouses are increasing the criminal
population and feeding the aimshouses.