The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1898-10-28
THE HOME
For Hapless
Poor.
COUNCILMEN VISIT
The Home Farm and APP
plaud Good Management.

Not as many members of the city
council as usual participated in the
annual inspection of the Home farm
yesterday, but nevertheless the affair
was as delightful and as satisfactory
as ever.
Every member of the city government
who took part in the outing came back
to the city confident that the heart of
the commonwealth has place for it's
needy paupers that no municipality in
New England can equal, and that the
management of the institution, both
through the directors and the superin-
tendent. is the best to be found.
Everything about the place spoke of
thrift, industry and business. There
was an air of comfort, home-lil1e COM
fort. apparent throughout the building,
which almost made one forget that it
was a public institution, and that the
inmates were dependent on the city for
their support.
The party left the city hall just before
| 10 o'clock in a large barge, and under
! the guidance of Clerk Brown of the
board, drove to the farm Chairman
E. P. Curtis, Overseer f. A. Atherton
and Superintendent Graves welcomed
the party as it alighted, and for time
there We're social greetings in the cozy
| little office, which was warm and invit-
ing after the ride out in the chilly
air.
| An inspection of the buildings follow
| ed, and the members roamed at will
| through every department from base
ment to garnet. Everything was scru-
pulously neat, well managed and in a
condition that spoke well for all con-
nected with the institution from the
superintendent and his estimable wife
! down to the lowest assistants.
| The first room visited was the insane
ward for men, where all sorts of pitt
| full cases were seen, and though some
/ of the patients furnished amusement,
the remark, There are lots of places
worse than the grave" from one of the
/ council as the party left the room, was
| re-echoed in sentiment in the hearts of
all. The neat sleeping rooms were
! glanced into as the party moved
through the halls. The nursery, with
three little children playing on the
floor, came next and after that the
room for the elderly ladies, who seemed
very contented as they sat about quiet
! ly, some reading, others sewing and
some doing nothing. After passing
through cozy dining room, the insane
l
sad sights seen.
| The store room filled with all sorts
Of good things and the supply room
! with an abundance of working clothes,
were next in order, After visiting the
large and splendid new dormitory in
the new building, which has some 60
| beds, the party proceeded to the cell
lar, fragrant with the odor from hun
dreds of barrels of apples, which stood
/ q IN ON. Lost ina EF11
| ing what We're good to eat, and as the
line moved out, all We're munching
away eontentedly. The hospital wards
! for male and female inmates, located
| In the old wing, We're next visited. after
which the apartments of the family
were passed on the way to the Office.
| Coats were then put on, and all pro-
ceeded to the stable, where a team was
| taken and a ride to the piggeFy, near
the house, followed. There were pigs
of all sorts, from tiny ones, up to lusty
shoats and great, fat, lazy hogs. There
We're Indifferent mothers with squealing
families and a big pen full of hogs
that will soon be turned into pork. The
party then drove to the Haywood farm,
where some thousand or more of the
hogs are pastured but only a short
stop was made. This property covers
1873 acres, and is half mile from any
highway or house. 1t is so situated
that the prevailing winds do not carry
the odor in a direction that makes il
| Objectionable. The warmth of the lit
tie office was very welcome when the
party returned.
After removing coats and hats, ad
journment was made to the parlors and
short time after dinner was served
Those who have not enjoyed Supt
Graves dinners, don't know what they
have missed. 1t is enough to say that
it was a spread to be remembered with
the pleasantest associations. There
were oysters on the half shell and
roast turkey with plenty of ''fiXin's'' +,
| not to mention. escalloped oysters,
chicken pie, and delicacies galore, and
to add to their interest, they We're
served by a bevy of pretty, young
women.
When President Curtis of the board
called the gathering to order there
were present: Mayor Dodge, Aldermen
| Potter president, Russell, Hildreth,
Huot, Thompson and Brannon; Coun-
| cilmen Hall, president, George c..
Hunt James Hunt, S. c. Kendall, l..
j. Kendall Merritt Williamson, Back,
Wall Rivard, johnson, O'Connell,
White and Connelley; City Clerk e. II.
Towne, Assistant City Clerk Towne,
| City Messenger Marvin, Chief of Po-
| lice brennan, Overseers Curtis, chair
man, Atherton and Ellsworth, Chap
lain E. w. Hoyt, Supt. Graves and rep
resentatives of the daily papers.
Chairman Curtis extended g. warm
welcome to the members of the ceunA
ell. You appropriate the money, he
said, expended by this institution and
should know how it is spent. We have
endeaVored to show you about for we
want you to see all there is. There is
nothing here but what will stand the
inspection of broad daylight. We are
proud of the institution, bnt do not
claim that it has reached the perfec>
ton we are striving for In closing
he introduced Mayor Dodge as toast
maste.
II am glad. said the msSor, ITO
meet you here on this occasion, and
extremely glad to be able to see our
venerable city messenger with us once
more (Applause). | hope he may have
a speedy return of the vigor with
which he has been endowed all his
life, and may meet with us many times
more in the days to come. HIS faii/-
fulness for a long term of years has
been remarkable, and | am sure that
all who have been connected with the
council have the kindest remembrance
of him.
(Applause.)
/ suppose | am asked to preside be-
cause this is the only opportunity of
fered for the mayor to preside over the
city council. l think, Mr. Curtis, the
chairman of the board, should have pre-
sided A large part of the success of
this institution has been due to his de-
votion He has given his business
Judgment to conduct the business af-
fairs, with the results seen. There is
no part of municipal, expenditure that
the members of the Ncity government
feel better satisfied with, or which has
been better or more wisely expended
than that expended for this institution