Daily Kennebec journal., 1894-12-06
1aiIa Bsanehtt gourual,
CURRENT EVENTS CLUB.
p,oer On Mares Industrial School
by Mrs. S. G, Sargent.
.;,. Mabel Palmer. Once Child, There Tells
Her Story.

Dornaon with Mrs. T.. c. Dudley. The
inlsing paper was by Mrs. ;. 6, Sargent,
.hc Maine Industrial School and its
,,.,r, for girls. We print it in fall as
follows
mo Maine Industrial school for girls
as nnencd January lst, and formally
S'dicatad WI January 20th, 1875. 4 large
',,,har u.ar ri distinguished 9antlemen con-
tod with the executive and Legislative
,.ua,tpellt,; of the sta te were present. as
u.p .lno also many ladies and gentlemen of
mallowell Augusta and Gardiner Ex-
-, perham delivered an historical ad-
9.oss relating TO the institution which
n,,e fnIl of encouragement and Of the
Saarost interest Coy. Perham was chosen
.oIidont at the first and has held that
rrosition since that time. This institution
,ros ..descned as refuge for girls be-
,,reen the ages CT seven and fifteen, who
h~ force OF circumstances, are in manifest
Janoer of becoming outcasts Of society"
aut many little children have been re
a,ired there for no other reason than that
death has claimed one Or both parents,
With no other friends who could care for
,hp,u and no means Ol support
All such have invariably found home
,stb loving care and kind discipline, and
bove received such intellectual, industrial
and moral training rs will ensure success
and future prosperity and happiness.
Nost of the girls become strongly attached
+o the school and the officers, and after
tbev have left, many to homes of their
avn anticipate visit there with the
same interest that our children come to
the old home, and are as cordially vel
coined Advice is often asked and qiven
With thc same confidence that oar children
come to us.
When the first building was erected
with capacity for providing for 30 chill
dreu. many thought it WIS a Visionary
scheme. and could never be needed. but
pn ,nanyl ears elapsed before the building
was crow ded with 30 children, and appli-
cations still coming. About this time u
friend of mine gave me $1,000 for the
school, to be used in any way | thought
would b, for the best coed of the school.
decided at once it should be nucleus
fora rev building so much n @ led in
order to extend the benefit of the school
TO these in different localities Of our state,
who were waiting admission, and who
needed tie discipline and instruction fur
nished by this most beneficoDt institu-
ton. Having this sum c Dmc to nc SO an
expecteliy gave ne courage to solicit
more. and | soon received a check from
young lady, Of 500, and not long after
tie first named lady added still another
$1,000 which was put at interest, until
other phianthropists, dixie our late. Gov.
Bodwell, who gave $1,000 came to the
rescue, and we were enabled to erect the
second building, which was opened Jan
rary, 1885.
At the present time each school is
crowded to its utmost capacity, and we
hope, as we now have sufficient means
for it, to erect another building, perhaps
in the early spring, a smaller building to
accommodate not more than 10 or 20 at
most, thereby giving us a better Oppor-
tunlty for classifying the school, which
would be OF great advantage. There is
constant demand for girls t. WORK IL
families, and whenever there are these
qualified and trustworthy they are placed
in homes whore they may earn q respect
able support and lay up something Tor
future use At the same time, these girls
are under the constant supervision ol the
officers Of the school Many Of thcll have
Creditable savings bank account, which
they receive when of age, or if they marry
before that time, and recently several
We're materially aided by this wise tinan-
cial policy
In late report OF our superintendent,
he says, 1T should not be regard d as a
mark of disgrace, to become an inmate Oh
such home as is afforded here; neither
should it be deemed impractiblc to raise
to positions OF useful and rcspecta bic
womanhood those whose carly surround
Z ings were sadly unpromising. Hercdlty
and envirOnment-in. many cases the
latter more responsblS-aret the prevailing
ealses for sending girls to us for training,
While the girls themselves are ordinarily
The victims of circumstances, rather than
guilty of wrong doing We can confidently
refer to the records of those who have
gone out from our school and are filing
Positions of rCsponsibility in their various
walks of life as II guarantee Of future sue
cess, Mora than 100 of our girls nave
married. and in most eases are as respect
ably and comfortably situated rs Other
married girls in the common walks OF ire
Asa matter of course, there are some
failures, but not more perhaps than wouio
ordinarily occur N communities gener.
ally outside the Maine Industrial School
for Girls
Quitea goodly number of our girls mani
nst desire for a more liberal education
'nan Is given at the school. All such are en-
outraged and aided by friends OF Tx
school We have at the present time, one
VINO was brought up in this school, th'
,,each'r in school No. /, "a graduate o
hents Hin Seminary, a lovely girl, ant
S one remarked of er," Il born teacher.
~ her discipline, mild, but firm, great!
o'ed by the girls and respected by us All
'ne Is abundantly qualified to teach IL
hig e grade Of school, as was proVeo
y her success as n teacher in a seminar!
harmoDton. n. j., aud where she was
Engaged for an; ther year but her love Tor,
''a interest in this school decided her 70
ssWpt our offer here, greatly TO oar salts
aetion We have another who will gradu
ae ifom Kent's Hill in June. and r
'neihbef others who have had full, OF
Partial course at the same seminary
~, We have one now at Oak Grove. VINO
@h' graduate n '93, paying her way from
monty She has earned. We also have one
:, ~ female ST hool at Tiiton, X. H., eng
q aon hebron Academy, one at Monmouth