Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1898-06-15

merly OF the reaching STAFF 81 Law.
renee university. He is q cultured
Christian gentleman, with a strong
leaven of good sense ana not readily
imposed upon. The boys spend four
hours q day In the school house. where
seven grades are at work. the most
advanced students doing work equal TO
that of the eighth grade public schools.
AT the head of the school Is J. II. Nc
Gregor. formerly of the Eau Claire
schools and a brother of the PiatteyilIe
normal president
They Make Stockings by Machines.
We visited tho shops, in each o. which
we found a group of boys at work un-
der superintendent skilled In his line
-one shoe shop, others knitting
stockings. carpentry, tailoring, etc. The
finished articles are used by the 800
boys. the exception being stockings, of
which many thousand pairs are sold
Q very good stocking. by the way, at
30 cents a dozen.
There are extensive barns to house
the forty mead of cattle. thirteen horses.
pigs. etc. The fire of March 20 made
way for three fine new buildings, to cost
$4,000. The school needs a library.
There are plans for manual training
which would seem especially imperative
for such boys. Some have gone from
this school to achieve real success. One
or them has $500 salary In Chicago:
another Ia a partner in considerable
firm of that city. The former recently
told the story Of his life to the 500 boys
OF the Michigan institution.
The Whip and Solitary Confinement.
There Is no gymnasium, though hori-
zontal bars are noticeable about the
grounds These. by the way, are not
skirted by a high. impossible fence.
That was the old idea of reformatory.
Some of the boys would undoubtedly
run away If they had a chance. Others
most of the boys-are working hard
for parole. and to run away involves
serious punishment. I saw picltets
stationed-a few trusty pupilsr-whese
business 1t was to detect any fugit.ves.
But the discipline is not as engrossing
task as one might think. In school
for trifiing offenses boys are made to
stand up against the blackboard and
deprived o. their recess. But OCCASION
all there Is a serious infraction of the
rules. The man at the head Of cot
tage may punish a boy: II must. how
ever, always be reported to the super
intendent. There was a Iusty looking
whip. sort of multiplied razor strops,
lying in one OF the school rooms. And
there are some cells for solitary con-
finement with bread and water. 1.-THE
boarding house." the boys told me. this
is called. At the time of the fire six
Of the boys ran away. four were re-
captured. And the whereabouts of a
fifth is known.
Band Music Checks Iniquity.
Before train time the school band was
convened on the play ground, and I'M
der the skilled leadership of one of the
officials (who was himself as boy an
inmate of the SCHOOL,, the dozen boys
played repeatedly with much skill and
exp ession. They had furnished the
music for Memorial day exercises in
Waukesha, and the greater number OF
the 300 boys had marched in the pro-
cession.
1t was q beautiful afternoon as we
listened to the music of these boys.
They played some marches and quick
steps and then repeated the dlrge they
had given In the cemetery, and played
simple hymn, a delicate, passionate
thread Of expressive harmonies. AS
the soft, pleading strains stole over the
big farm school, the alto horns caress-
ingly following the gentle comets mel
ody and the tenor's enri"hing harmonies,
one could see knots of the boys paus-
ing in their work to listen Forms
| leaned out of windows, the workmen on
the new buildings ceased their labors,
and out on the prairie the bad boys
| of Waukesha' strained their ears to
catch the music. 1t was an liant
when the divine spark was glowing.
There were no bad boys for that in
stant-no teachers, no visitors The
| skilfuli manipulation of some brass de-
vices, some wooden reeds. a drum
head or two. had made chicken hearts
| OF us all. For an instant there was no
| boy capable of theft, no sullenness. no
sorry destinies We were all celestials,
| pure Of heart and SO pledged to "see
| God" In silence we were seeing WIS.,
| ions.
And nothing but little wind blown
| through some metal tubes and the
| clashing of other substances had trans
lated that company of the refuse OF
| Wisconsin's boyhood SO that they saw
| the distant gates Of Eden CLEAN
So near to grandeur is our dust
ORLANDO BURNETT.