The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-12-09
SHE WANTED TO BURN 1T
REFORMATORY OFFICIALS NIP A
PLOT TO FIRE THE BUILDING.
Note Found in the Room OF a Youthful
IncOrriEibIe from Craw-
fOrdsvilIe.

An alarming story was circulated yester-
day to the effect that the officials of the
State Reformatory for Girls had frustrated
a plot to burn the building. Although the
officials are inclined to make light of the
matter, they admit that note of rather a
startling character was found Tuesday
morning in the room of one of the inmates.
Since the fire at the institution in 1892 ex-
traordinary precautions have been taken
against permitting the inmates to handle
matches. The girls in the reformatory de-
partment are never allowed matches in
their rooms The attendants light the gas
themselves, and the matches used all over
the institution are of the safety quality
matches that can only be ignited by draw
ing the head against the side of the box
in which they are kept.
The note referred to, and which caused con-
siderable CONSERVATION among the officials
of the institution, was found in the room of
a sixteen-year-old girl in the reformatory
department. 1t was addressed to two girls
occupying an adjoining room. The girl had
written the note during the night, but in
putting on her clothes in the morning had
dropped it on the floor. 1t was evident she
intended passing the note into her friends
later in the day. The epistle was brief,
but it had but one Interpretation. The
writer asserted that if the girls would pro-
cure matches for her she knew how to use
them. When the note was found 1t was
carried to Miss Kelley, superintendent of
the institution, who Immediately summoned
the young culprit. The girl admitted having
written the note but had no explanation
to offer. Miss Kelley talked to her about
the gravity of the offense, but the girl APP
peared absolutely indifferent.
The girls to whom the note was addressed
were also called in, and protested that they
knew nothing of plot to destroy the build
ing They admitted, however that the
girl who wrote the note had, in a recent
conversation with them, asked them to pro-
cure matches for her. The autnorltles OF
the institution refuse to divulge the names
of the girls implicated. The superlntend-
ent is Just recovering from serious Iii
ness, and could not be seen last night. MISS
lightly Of the matter. She declared II would
be impossible for the inmates to do any
damage to the institution under the pres
ent stringent rules regarding the use OF
BESIDES" she declared, 1.-The girls we
have in this institution are not as vicious as
the outside world imagines. Here is an IL
lustration: A few nights ago an attendant
went into one of the rooms to light the
gas, and in doing SO dropped two or three
matches on the floor. She left the room
without discovering the loss, and the
matches were found by one of the girls oc-
cupying the room. The next morning the
matches were returned by the girl who
found them. She might have kept those
matches and we should have been none the
wiser. OF course, they could not have been
used without the box, but the girl could
have secreted them in the hope of finding
some way to ignite them. 1t would do no
good to give the names of these girls to the
public, and it might do the girls a great
deal Of harm. The girl who wrote this
note has not friend on earth except those
who know her in this institution. do
not feel that it would be right to use her
name" -
The girl formerly lived at Crawfordsville,
where she was deserted in infancy by botn
the indianapolis Orphan Asylum. The 9TH
er two girls implicated are what are known
at the institution as dormitory girls
They make up the beds and clean the rooms
of the other inmates. The ''dormitory girls"
are usually looked upon as TRUSTEES"