Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1895-02-07
MISSOURI INSTITUTIONS.
The Committee Appointed to
Investigate Them Reports.
With the Exception of the School of Mines
at Rolls Their Management Gem
orally Commended-School
for the Blind.

AT ASoiiS 1ne1r management Gen.
orally Commended-School
for the Blind.
The legislative committee appointed
oy the governor to examine the vari-
Gus state institutions, as REQUIRED by
law, have made their report. The COM
mittee consists of Senator Charles E.
Peers and Representative j. f. David
Son tdems. }. and Maj. John L. Bittin-
ger trep.). 1t organized November q,
1884. by electing Senator Peers chair
man and Robert NJ Yost, of st. Louis,
secretary, and at once proceeded with
the investigation The report deals
exhaustively with each institution ex-
amlned and contains about &C, 900
words.
Your crsnzafcoee Is grasifed," says the re-
port, to BE able to state that the pak,lic in
situations of Missouri are well managed,
economically conducted. and that their books
ana accounts are in a satisfactory condition.
from our investigations We find no species OF
tecklessness, no very important inaIsention to
DUTY and no Acknowledgement anywhere
The report says in part:
The destruction by fire of the chxpe1 OF the
state reform school for BOYS at Boonyille and
the burning Of the Southern Illinois insane
asylum at Anna. emphasizes the necessity for
some adequate protection from FIRE in all the
state institutions in Missouri In the case of
the reform school, your commistee had tested
the hFe apparatus IL use. and found 1t to be alb
soluSeiy insufficient for protection, and the
eoard on managers was requested to strength
en- H. and we think that 1t made arrangements
70 do So but in the meantime the assembly and
Cln1pg room were burned
Atall the state institutions visited Dy Your
committee special examinations were made
antethe security.Or suficiency of the fire xp-
paratus and nearly all of them were found to
be insufficient
Public attention is called to this matter in
Ihis way in order that the boards having oon-
trll of the Institutions may at once remedy the
EN- All OF our institutions carry amelnt
OF insurance, hEt not one-half of them are in
sured for one-hah their artual value and in
more instances for not evenone-fourth. Boards
complain that the insurance rates are now so
0lgn that II rec ulreS effort to insure for any
reasonable amount, and are discussing to what
extent they may go in the matter. This lIes-
ton is an open one but in the meantime. ade-
Guate protection from frt would be the best
substitute for insurance
ST. LOUIS INSANE ASYLUM.
For many years the insane of the cityts. St.
Louis have been cared for entirely by the CITY,
and for that purpose it maintains a spi< ndid
asylum, thoroughly equipped and well-nan-
aged, which together with the poorhouse now
contain about LOO unforsunates. In .fs77 an
their representatives in the general assembly
for an appropriation by the state to assist in
the maintenance OF state PATIENTS the cisS
asylum An appropriation was made and the
sum OF Ss0,GA was vetoed by Gov. Phelps
upon the eHound that the city asylum
was not state Institution. and that
under the provisions of the constitution
no appropriation could be made. The ap-
peal was renewed after four years, and al. ap-
preparation again made and the asylum has
since been none or less regularly in receiptSf
state aid. The Legislature of two years:ago
voted $4,000. bait the question Of applying the
sum to city institution again arose. and the
matter went from the auditors ONCE ts the
supreme court, which court decided that ..he
appropriation should be paid, inasmuch as
the distinct declaration appeared in the p-
propriaton bill that the amount was for the
maintenance of STATE patients in said insti2u-
ton.
The state Of Missouri has no proprietary i1-
terest whatever in the city insane asylum, bait
the fact of it's receiving state aid warranted
your committee in accepting a very cor
dial invitation resolved from Dr. George
Haman, health commissioner of St. Louis.
to visit and Investigate the asylum in
the same manner as it had visited
and investigated the other state institutions
The committee was received by DE- Muller. the
superintendent conducted throughthe building,
and given access to ell the books and papers.
Your committee well pleased with the
management, and believe that the money of
the state has been economically expended.
The chief inquiry to which directed at
tention was the ascertainment of the number
of state patients, residence unknown, Cow con-
fined in the city insane asylum
Together with DIR. Muller we examined the
books covering the period of admission of the
last 225 patients. and OF tnaa number ~ were
found to have been non-resldeDts Of the city;
and the homes Of 10 Of these are known to the
city authorities
Adjoining the asylum is the city poorhouse,
in which from GOO to 700 insane patients areeon-
fined. In company with the superintendent
your committee investigated the history Of 3s9
of the patients last received. from June %,
1891, to December 20, 1894, and find that : of
them were non-residents, and that the homes
OF of these are known.
Your committee does not deem it within its
province to do more than report the facts to
the legislature, leaving the matter entirely
with this body for consideration.
SCHOOL FOB THE BLIND.
Your committee are convinced that the Mis-
souri, school for the blind should dispose of its
present property and remove to a more eligible
location. During the forty years of its exist
ence at Nineteenth and Morgan streets the city
has grown around and beyond it so rapidly that
it is now in the midst Of trade and traffic. of
noise, and hustle and confusion, and is sur
rounded on three sides by lines of electric
railroads while the fourth side street SuStainS
the heavy traffic driven from the other streets
by the electric roads. Moreover. the neigh
borhood is undesirable. ineligible and alto
gether unsuited to the purpose OF a public in
stitution OF this character. Two efforts have
been previously made by trustees to procure
authority from the general assembly for
change Of location, but for some unaccountable
reason they failed. The present effort should
not be permitted to fail-at least from lack of
a;tention-because the necessity is somewhat
urgent ard it is good business policy on the
cart Of the state to look after its property with
the same assiduity that private citizen does.
The board OF trustees are of the opinion that
in the present depressed condition of the real
estate market the property would bring about
$4,000, but the prospects are that with the
opening of spring there will come an activity
and demand which will develops sale at proba-
bly $4,000. In the meantime an option should
be secured upon some eligible site in the sub
urls where values are rapidly advancing and
will continue to advance for some years ID
come in order that the state may not eveIt,.-
ally be compelled to pay an extravagant price
for real estate, which can now be bought a.
reasonable figure It is the opinion Of the
board of trustees that An eligible site of about
four acres can be had and suitable building
erected thereon for $4,000. which would be
covered by the sum expected to be obtained by
the sale of the present holdings.
For these reasons and for these facts. your
committee recommend the passage Of an act