Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1900-01-05
IOWA NEWS FOR IOWA READERS

the time and during Mr.. Kinnes brief
stop at the Institution his investiga-
ton was made under the guidance of
Ed Lowenberg, who has charge of
the mems ward. Mr.. Lowenberg says
ne told Mr. Kline. when answering
many OF his questions that he was not
certain that the information was corr
rect, Notwithstanding which Mr.. Kline
reported the condition of affairs as
/ though they had been given by Mr.
\ Wilson
| The Courier desires 1t to be under
/ stood that the paper Is not fighting
the board of control. but believes that
! a true statement of affairs should be
made, in justice to both Mr.. Wilson
land the taxpayers of Wapello county.
| Mr.. Wilson states, and ii is selfevi-
dent fact to those who saw the in
mates of the institution at the time
they were removed from Mt Pleasant
To the asylum of this county, that
their physical condition has been irn-
| proved. This. Mr. Wilson says, is due
| to the fact that in their present quar-
| tiers, they Were ena bIed 10 take more
outdoor exercise. which, in itself alone,
| is beneficial to this class of patients.
The couriers representative arrived
at the farm at the noon hour. The in
mates were at dinner and when Mr.
| Wilson had been informed of the mis-
! sion of the visitors, he first took them
TO the dining halls of both the men
and women. The rooms We're perfectly
clean. we'll lighted and ventilated. The
inmates We're seated at long tables, the
tops of which We're polished, and, as
| stated in MIR. kinne's report, did not
Icentain table cloths except in the
Womens dining room, where covers of
red damask are provided The Couf-'
Ter representatives We're invlted to
dine at the family table of Mr. Wilson
| and the menu thus provided was Very
similar 10 that set before the inmates.
There could not possibly be any obiec
I3tion to the amount of variety provid-
/ ed nor the manner in which the meal
| was prepared.
| After dinner Mr.. Wilson conducted
his visitors through the entire insttu-
ton. The Courier reporters found the
place to be in better condition than
Kline represented it.
The Courier states, however, that
"'rhe one exception to the cleanliness
of the rooms in these wards is in the
| basement and is. perhaps. the sole
| foundation for Mr.. kinne's report as
To the filthy condition of the rooms.
| The room above referred to was found
to he in a Very satisfactory condition
| when the character of the patients who
occupy the room is taken into consul
Grafton, a fact which Mr. Kline omit
! ted. Two women are kept in this room
lat night. They are the most uncleanly
! persons that the human mind can con-
| ceive and are a class of patients which
| in many institutions Of this kind would
/ be cared for in quarters apart from the
main institution. The fact that their
| room is in a filthy condition every
! morning does not imply that it Is MAIN
istained in this condition. II is thorough-
| ly cleaned and renovated every day
1 and the patients who occupy it are
! under the care OF a female attendant
/ during the day and are kept in another
part of the building. MIR. Wilson stat
| ed that these two women frequently
destroyed the bedding in their room
/ and litter their apartment up in an I'M
describable manner. This room is the
only one in the entire institution that
in any Way approaches an unsanitary
conditon and it Is in one of the most
| remote parts Of the building.
Twelve patients have been dis
| charged from the place in the last five
| years, some of whom are working in
| this city. Can a single discharge of a
| Wapello patient be chronicled from Mt.
| Pleasant Is it operating in this man
liner under the control of the board? In
| view of the fact that the patients are
| cared for as We'll if not better under
1.-THE present system than has been the
lease at Mt. Pleasant. leaving out the
Iquestion OF cost altogether, 1t would
! appear that a point has been strained
! in the recent report made by the visit
ling member of the board of control of
| state Institutions.
IF the history of state institutions
| from the standpoint of an incurable
1 insane patient could be written it
would be found that they had enough
| to eat and wear because the state pays
/ the cost. but the assertion might be
| vcnturea that the detail Of their care
! is not looked into as closely as they are
under the supervision of Superintend-
ent Wilson 1t may be that in other
1 county asylums the board is justified in
wishing To get the patients from the
control of the steward. but Wapello
| county is not in that position at the
present time and any attempt Of the
/ board of control to bring abaut a
lchange will be opposed ny the people of
/, this county.
WATERLOO.
4
| Nyeeffnn Of n Rnnkr,pi,s treditors.-