The San Francisco call., 1897-10-30
Governor Budd Asked to
Investigate Whittier
School.
Secretary Brown Called Upon
to Prove His Recent
Charges.
CauS ic Criticisms of the Action of
DR. Wendte and Colonel
Irish.
Special Dispatch to THE CALL

LOS ANGELES, Oct. %. - Mrs.
MitchelPs pride and honor have been
sturg by the attack made on the Whittier
School. She evidently lays the trouble at
the door of Secretary of State Brown. who
admits having supplied Rev. Mr.. Wendte
and Colonel Irish with the data on which
these gentlemen based their remarks in
their addresses before the Starr King
Fraternity of Oakland. She has addressed
an interesting communication 10 Secre-
tary Brown, and does not mince language
or facts. incidentally she has demanded
an immediate investigation Of the
Governor. In her letter 10 Secretary
Brown she writes:
Il resent your attack on the present
conditions there and pronounce it entirely
unwarranted and your statement as abso-
lutely and uneQu!vocally false
She then hurlS this challenge at him:
al shall ask the Governor for an imme-
diate investigation and trust he will order
it, and at that time you will have an
opportunity TO verify your charges and
give The sources OF your information and
present the specific facts that make you
declare The siris' department al Whittier
Il
In her letter TO The Secretary of State
Mrs. Mitchell says, after reviewing the
past conditions at Whittier and the re-
forms brought abou. through her eff rts ::
Now. sir. these statements of the past and
present conditions have been made by me
fhcislly and are subject to investigation and
confirmation by the proper State officials.
Again you say, "Atter girl is let out on
parole the school never hears OF her again
unless by accident. This IS not true, and as G
fgnZ Of1ia 4 n. IN all mat
ters, you should know better. monthly re-
port is required from every boy and girl
paro.ed, and this data. with dated reports
from officers OF pupils in the school, is col
lected aud tabulated by the atisticiau, Clark
Hethrington, who spent five years Of specia
study upon sociology and biology at anford
University 20 Fl I h IN Tor such a position as be
holds at the school, and there is a thorousH
system maintained and from which a full re-
port of every boy and girl in the school and
on parole can be had a. Anv time.
As 10 the career of the boys and girls before
they come 20 Whittier it ought 10 have been
bad, as theJ should nos be sent to reform
school for being good, but in many cases l am
sorry 10 say innocent boys n nd girls are sent to
the school by parents who want TO escape the
respons billy OF rearing and maintaining
them. When they bec1me of age. the girls q.
Is and the boys al 81 years, and are dis
missed, they are under the law turned out In to
the world and are as free to do good or evil
you are. and the management can have no su-
pervis!ou or control over them. This may be
unfortunate, but it is the law.
As To tie condition of the school generally.
claim It ts better than it has ever been be-
fire in any period Of its history, and investi-
CATION viii prove this Notwithstanding what
may be said by you or any one else.
Now, Mr.. Brown. have me: you frequently
ana had come TO believe you a just and sincere
man and without partissnsnlp, and one who
would cooperate in bringing this school up 10
the level of modern institutions of ike CHAR
acier. But 1t seems to me, for some purpose.
which p ssibly comprehend, you are trying
10 assist r Nv. Mr. Wendte, Colonel Irish anu
such ike cratic and hysterieal men TO saddle
the mismanagemeut and abuses of the pssl
upon the shoulders OF the present admirisIra-
tion.
You know you have only visited this school
once for about three hours during the new ad-
minis tTaiion. and then il had only been in
control a little over month (and would re-
mind you 1t has now only been in power six
mouths in ALL Only scapt hall hour OF the
time was spent by YOU at the girls depart
ment when 10 me you highly commended the
condition of affairs there. Therefore you GER
tainly cannot know from your own observe
tiou and must have taken your information
second hand.
Ard pardon me for adding that these girls
do listen to me, ana, while you may rot credit
it, they are learning rapidly to carry out the
pTecepls We are setting them. Butrememter,
Mr. Brown, although Whittier girl>, they are
still human, and like yourself prone 10 err.
But am lad 10 say we have already, at least,
taught them repos and they could not be
moved 10 become hysterical, erratic, sensa-
tional and vindictive as Rev. Dr.. Wendte,
Colonel Iris h and other cosrse-Ored and ignor-
ant men. who have not the slightest conceT
ton oil the peculisr delicacy OF this branch of
reform work. aud who expect 10 acquire from
8 little hearsay evidence and few hours study
the special knowledge that oniy comes with
years of la Dor and research.
Mrs. Mitchell, after having written TO
Secretary Brown, addressed Governor
Budd a letter asking for an immed late
and thorough investigation.