Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1899-02-16
The Poor Farm Hearing.

The Court Room was crowded Tuesda
morning when Court was called to or
der to hear the objections of Commission
er Harper Sutton to the purchase of tn
Doerr farm by Commissioners Seatol
and Mitchell for the establishment o
county poor farm. Mr.. Sutton recon
mends the purchase of the Younkin
and R. Stevenson farms in Sunni
twp. and prays the Court not to ratify
the purchase of the Doerr farm. At
torneys Ralston and Robinson appeared
for the County, and Goucher. William:
& Mitchell, and Lowry for Mr.. Sutton
The burden of proof to show that the
purchase should NOT be approved was
on the objectors, hence Mr.. Sutton was
the first witness called. His objections
! were that the Doerr farm is too near
town, but a few hundred feet away
from the southern limits of Butler boro-
ugh; inmates would slip away and go
down town, and town boys and men
would go up and greatly annoy the
steward and inmates. The farm is on
! a hill between 200 and 800 feet higher
| than the creek and at its highest point
% feet higher than the Butler reservoir.
| 1t is mile away from the railroad, with
| a steep wagon road leading mp to it, and
ten percent would be added to the cost
| of any buildings erected because of hav-
ing to haul materials up this hill.
There is one run and several springs on
the farIh, but 200 barrels of water per
day would be necessary for the poor
farm, which is more than the supply
The Springdale Water Co, had four
water wells drilled on adjacent land.
none OF them large and from 200 to $50
feet 1t would cost $500 TO sewer
through the borough sewers and $500
to sewer into the Mile Run which
rises on the farm. The Doerr farm viii
cost to much money for the amount of
land acquired. The Stevenson and
Younkins farms, more than 300 acres
could be bought at an average cost of
$57 an acre. They are touched by the
2. & w and B. R. and p. railroads. are
on Bonnybrook and can be reached by
the Kittanning and Millerstown roads.
Webb Murray, Commissioner of Al
legheny Co. and formerly superintend
ent of the county Poor Farm, had been
taken out to see the Doerr farm and did
not think it desirable for the purpose.
Frank Torrens of Allegheny member
of the State Board of Charities. had
been taken out to see both farms in
He said that under the Care Act the
State allows $50 per week for the
maintenance of each insane inmate.
Water is the vital question in selecting
a poor farm. then sewerage. fuel, quail
ity of land and location in order.
Should be at least one acre for each i'm
mate Under new act electric light and
fire proof is required in insane depart
ment. The cottage system of buildings
is preferable but not 50 cheap as one
large building, An administration
connected with smaller ones by covered
passage ways is best. Should be on a |
railroad and have siding to bring in !
building materials, but if contractor |
would agree to build as cheaply on the |
Doerr farm as any, that eliminates the |
siding question There should be 500 |
barrel daily water supply; sewerage
should be used to fertiliZe land, farm |
should not be near town. The Beaver |
county poor farm is three miles away |
from the Court House, in Venango |
county it Is four miles away i'm Alleghe-
nv fifteen, in Mercer four, in Dauphin |
four. in Huntington two, in Washing
ton two and Westmoreland two.
Barton Grubbs, Director of the de- |
partment of charities of Allegheny city, |
said the city farm is at Montrose station |
on the West Penn, beside the county |
workhouse, only SO acres in it and $50
inmates Have two double and one |
single team, and thirty cows. General
groceries cost about 50, 500, besides this |
2200 bushels of potatoes are used yearly |
and 35 barrels monthly. The lumber |
of attendants is one to every sixteen i'm
mates. Isolation is best for poor farm
to keep the inmates away from outsid-
ers.
A. G. Loveland, commissioner of
Mercer county, said they had 115 in |
mates on about 200 acres, few miles |
away from town.
George Schenk, contractor, thought !
it would cost ten percent additional to |
build up on the hill.
George Pillow, civil engineer, said |
Doerr farm line is 26S feet from bor
ough line and $50 higher than the creek. |
Squire Fleming helped to test wat
er well nearby for the Springdale Wat |
er Co, which he thought was failure. !
Joseph Clinton, formerly Commission |
er of Warren county and had charge of |
hospital as such, said it was not desira- |
BILE to have charitable institution near |
town. Warren hospital is seven miles |
from the Court honse and on a railroad.
This about completed the objecting |
testimony, and for the Commissioners, |
James Smith, Superintendent of the
Springdale Water Co. testified that so
barrels produced from the three wells |
near the Doerr farm supplied 115 fami-
lies daily The well which Esq Flem-
ing thought failure had been re-test-
ed and would produce about 800 barrels
of water daily.
Henry Doerr said there were six new
er-failing springs and run on the farm
and the land was very fertile and pro
ductiye.
Hindman McQuistion testified to the
same effect
Fin Mc9uistion, G. E., testified that |
it would cost $18, 900 to sewer from the !
Younkins and Stephenson farms down |
past Butler borough, as would be neces- |
sary, whereas the Doerr farm sewerage |
would not cost more than So, 600.
l.. G. Wick and Geo. Stamm said To-
cal contractors would make no drayage
charges for delivering material to the
Doerr farm.
Wednesday morning the counsel made
their arguments and the fate OF the
Doerr farm now rests in the hands of the
Court