Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1898-12-15
EASTHAvEN
BY THE LEGIS-
LATIVE rrEE.

IN > II EC 1E<D d II q AG0AS.
LATIVE COMMITTEE.
Comprehensive Information Given
By Mr.. Roots. the Chairman OF
the Committee-The Application
of the New Law With Regard to
Inspection of State Penal. Edu-
cato 1nl and Benevolent 1nstitu-
tions-A Welcome Change From
Every Standpoi t-E ssthaven' 8
Conditi The Needs OF thu
State.
Yesterday the new committee of the
state legislature, appointed TO visit the
penal. benevolent aud edac ,tioual in
stitutions of the state, inspected the
Eastern Indiana hospital for the IN
sane, at Easthave1, near this city.
The committee consisted of Joint
Representative Franz I. Roots, Of
Connersville, chairman; Senator Fre-
mont Hoodwine, of franklin; aud
Srrether Herod, of WilIiamsport,
Warren county. The board is nom
parts an, and the last named gentle
m an is ths Democ ratio member. Ii is
the duty of this committt Q to visit ev-
cry institution in the state that is kept
mp entirely or in part by appropria-
tions of state funds. and to
report to the legisls tuve that convene .
next month the condition of the vari-
Gus institutions, including colleges,
penitentiaries, asylums, etc, together
with recommendations from the CON-
mittee with regard TO the needs of the
same. These recommendations will
have the force only of recommends
tions. Last evening the committt Q,
after its hard days work, came over
to the city and stopped at The West
colt. There they, together with DR..
Smith, superintendent of Easthaven,
and E. G.. Hill. of the board of trus-
tse.. were seen by the reporters. and
an interview was obtained, Ole from
Chairman Roots on the subject of the
work of the committee and how it came
to be established, and one from DIR.
Smith on the work of yesterdays in
vestigation.
THE CHANGED LAW.
1t was with little effort that the re-
porters contrasted the two methods of
inspection, the old and the new.
Formerly after the legislature had been
in session for some time there would
come a hurried telephone call from
Easthaven. and reporter would hasten
to the asylum, getting his overcoat on
about the time he reached the Rich
crossing on a dead run. At the asy-
luu1 he would meet gang of men
with broad smiles and also accompanied
by their relatives and private secre-
taries. The grounds would be we'll
filed with inspecting visitors out
for a good time. They would walk
through all the wards and cottages in
an hour, look wildly at the patients
some things worse than being in the
asylum. and then go and eat off of DR..
Smith. They would then go back to
the Legislature without a symptom of
| an idea of what was nee dsd in the way
of an appropriation at the hospital,
speak kindly but not intelligently of
the management, and wait until the
| trustees or superintendent arrived to
lobby and trade through the appro-
priation that should have been put
through the Legislature without
any such work, and which should
hsve been looked after intelli9ently
| by men who were posted with regard
to the condition and needs of every in
stitution kept up either altogether or
| partly by state appropriations. In
short, the old time investigations did
not investigate. The last one of the
old sort of Investigating tours arrived
here at about O'Clock one Sunday
morning when the thermometer was
clear below Thistlethwaite's pond. and
staid for breakfast. Then they went
on their way rejoicing, knowing nc
more about the condition of Easthaven
than they did of the mines of Siberia
This condition of affairs caused .he
change in the way of investigating
The legislature was disgusted unani-
mously with the old scheme. all realiz.
ing the fallacy of the belief that there
was any investigating in such a run
ming ianket. The Law was unanimous
ly repealed at the last legislative as
sembly by the passage of another law
much better. This new law is a
product of the governors own brain
and is a good one. 1t provides that
forty-6ve days before the assembling
of the state legislature, the Cover mol
shall appoint three members elect oi
the new legislature, the committee tt
oe non-partisan. and to be composed
of one senator and two representatives
elect. This committees wcIk is lef
somewhat vague in the law, as Il
method. but the plan adopted by tn,
present ore is certainly q good one. a,
will be explained later on in Mr. Roots
interview.
NIB. ROOTS STATEMENT.
Assembled in the carpeted co,rido
of The Westeott last evening the re
rorters li-tened to Mr.. Roots state
. ment OF the work of the committee 90
ing about over the state at the wor
assigned them by the governor q
said: