Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1899-07-09
WHERE BAD BOYS GO.
SOMETHING ABOUT THE LIFE AT
THE LAUREL REFoRMATORY.
SOME VERY WICKED LADS.
The Way They Are Disciplined and
Hcclnimcd-Thc Work Is Most
the Course of II day.

thc course OF Il day
Bad boys are the tc.. boys in the
world-that is to say, ihoy ale the most
natural aoG i-:eresting boys. Early piety
In urch.:s Is :-1ormal and reminds one
OF the crENs tat grows under a plank,
but inhei?cs 'SGssedness" is vigorous and
wholesome and suggestive Of strength
and health My observations are based
upon the information l cleaned last Sun
day when 1 went to place which every
one hates to visit and loves to leave
In other words, l went up to the Laurel
Reformatory, where one hundred, or
more, Of Nirginia's worst boys are held
in bondage. or, rather. in a state Of mild
subsection. Perhaps, in a whisper / might
tell you that some of these lads are
criminals, aye, thieves and murderers.
but why need we remember this fact
when we realize their youth and their
woiul lack of early training. The very
name Of the institution itself suggests its
purpose and shows that nineteenth CEN
tury civilization and sympathy is trying
to make good men OF these youngsters
trying to offer amnesty for the awful
offences Of their thoughtless childhood.
And then, too, every youngster at the
reformatory is not a criminal. Many of
them are simply bad boys perhaps not
worse than some Of your sOns), who re-
luse TO obey their parents, become in
cOrrigible, and force their elders to sub
ject them to the most rigid discipline.
1t would, perhaps, be tedious to give
the legislation which has led TO the es-
adjustment Of the reformatory or to
tell OF the brave struggles which it's
founders had. Suffice it 10 say the in
sutution was established with the idea
Of separating youthful offenders from the
hardened criminals 10 be found in our
jails and penitentiaries. The statute pro-
yides that no person over II shall be re-
ceiyed into this quasi prison, nor snail
any inmate be kept there after attaining
the age of p. And So as a consequence
of this far-seeing legislation, the reform
ato,y officials take charge Of the boys
at a time when the little chaps can read
lily receive impressions and be easily
moulded by the careful treatment 10
which they are subjected.
TOO MANY STEP-PARENTS.
There is a great deal in the way a boy
of ali others who can do the most with
him is his mother. But if n lad hash
got a mother there are many excuses FOR
his going 10 the bad, while the little fell
low with a negligent mother Is almost
equally unfortunate. And herein lies the
secret OF many a boy in the Laurel Re
formatory. Talk with them about their
Wlckedness and nearly every one viii tell
you the cause OF his troubles was lack
of parental attention or the cruelty of Il
stepfather or mother Even allowing a
liberal discount 10 the truth of these
statements. there must be a great deal
of significance IN them. In fact, many
boys when first received at the institu-
ton are 50 bunted by cruelty and neg
lect that it takes weeks to make them
susceptible to the regime OF the reform
atOry. Their ignorance is unspeakaDle,
their sense of morality at its lowest ebb,
and their cOmbatiyeness at its highest
point. In such cases the work Of re-
formation goes on but slowly, but by and
by the training tells, and If, after the
lad has served his term, he still con-
tinues bad, the probabilities are that he
is inherently wicked.
II you have a bad boy you will per-
haps ask how in the world one hundred
IT
supposed to be the worst I'm Virginia, are
managed. At the first blush it does ltok
Ike a difficult task, but Mr.. John w.
Cringan. the superintendent OF the re-
formatory, appears to nave mastered IT,.
First of all. there must be individual
work-that is each boy must be stu1led
separately-and after that there must be
system and firmness tempered by kind
ness. Next, the two great forccs-cduca-
ton and reigiOn-Come in, and after mat
YOU have to trust to the natural qualities
of the boy himself.
THREE INTERESTING FAMILIES
The reformatory inmates are divided
into three classes, or families accord
ing to their ages These families are
little republics i'm themselves, ana very
much ike the divisions at military
school. The lads Of the respective class
IS eat together sleep together, march To-
gether. and are.in every way so dssoci-
ated that they feel a personal pride IN
their organizations. Each division has It's
own playground; its own baseball team
and it's own partisan spirit.
To study the various puerile types at
the reformatory IS an interesting pastlme'
AS have said, bad boys are
always fascinating and these boys, being
presumably cXCepuOndlly Ddu, are uouDi+
fascinating. They range in ages from .
UPWARDS to 10 or 20. Imagine a younsster
of away from parents and friends and
Won can form very pathetic picture IN
your mind. Indeed, the more you think
about il the sadder the picture becomes
for there are some little Lord Fauntie-
rows who scarcely dare 10 leave their
mothers apron strings at such period
in life. And yet, it struck me that the
Youngest boys at the institution were the
manifest and the sturdiest looking. a
DESCRIPTION Of these incorrigible young
sters? Wen. the same old description
that applies 10 most healthy. sturdy
brats-freckles by the thousand sun
burned faces. hands not overly clean
and bare feet with plenty of good dry
dirt between the little toes. In the mat
ter Of clothing. a reformatory boy Is not
a dude but rather a Tom Sawyer type.
Good clothes cost money and bad boys
are terrible on pants and white shirts
waists and polka-dot cravats. the
families" for reasons OF economy which
are most pressing. all dress alike. Their
costume is a big straw hat, cotton shirt,
ana gray homespun coat and vest. All
rcformatory urchins wear long pants