The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-09-16
GOOD SIDE OF BAD BOYS,
ODDITIES or THE YOUNGSTERS ~
TINE ROUSE or REFUGE.
Small yauitles strong Among Them-Love ot
Flowers Marked -Home'ick Even for Evil
Homes-Own-rs Of Treasured Letters VIVA
Turu out Well a Country Lads Ill-Lptk.

hFNfA 'f
Homes-Own-rs Of Treasured Letters VIVA
Turu Out Well a Country LADS Il-Lutk,
About the onl occasions when the Hou.o o.
Refuge on Randall, Island attracts pubic
motto IL when there occurs a mutiny. n FIRE, az
epiderlc, an attempted escape or a murder
among IT. inmates. None OF these events 4 s,i.
pates any Il tho prevalent idea that the soo-old
boys and the 20O-odd girls there may properly
be described ~ tough Yet there Ia another
side 90 he place. and since q, '. sage became
liz superintendent Mrs. Sage has been bu.L
finding the better part OF the children and maG-
ing tho most Of H..
One Of the first Innovations Mr.. Sage estab. |
lishcd was correspondents with all the boys aud
girls. In every State Institution any inmat ia
allo we'd IN write to the uTerintenden'. Now
all the boys and girls AZ the House Of Refuge
have the same privilege. and divide their
letters pretty evenly between Mr.. and Mrs.
Sage.
one might not expect 10 fnd vanity and
sentiment among 800 such boys; but thoss
| emotions are there along vth many a case 0.
homesickness. The vanity takes share in a great
objection TO anything m'de on the island A boy
with a pair Of shoes purchased In New YORK
speaks Of his Cities" Suspendcrs are a ncver |
ending source OF gratined vanity. The smnl
mufin who arrives with the remnant Of ht
trousers tied m with any old string would tWD
months later. no more consent to be seen vi h.
out his -uspenders than the Prince OF Vale,
would be caught In a SHIRT waist. As there
are both island-made aud city-bought suspon.
ders the greatest anxiety prevails to acquire
pair OF cities" Mrs. Sage received q requcsI |
for an interview from a small boy recently.
ME mothers comm 10 see me ter-day. " was
his story when the audience was arranged; "n
wontcher please, Mrs sage, get me a pair OF
suanpp dars9 I wouldn't have har Cafch ma
'thout 'em for nothin'."
MIR. S 'ge almost smiled in the boys face and
Yearly told him how fashionable shirt wait
bows were trying TO become over In town but.
since suspe nders were his ambition. she grave '
promised TO sea that 10 was sui ably arrayed -
far as suspenders were concerned. As she dis.
missed him he suggested with anxiety that he'd
really like cities"
All the babies" as they call the small boys
who arc kept IN the girls department. ha'b
their own individual 10 king glasses. befor,
which they may tie their red ties on week days
and their yellow ones on Sundays. But ts
bigger boys are not provided with such luHu-
ries. and the fellow who manages 10 posse
himself OF two inches of real looking Il isS may
trade the chance 10 peep into 1t for almost any
hing he wants. Likewise the boy Who get'
hold Of an oil shoe brush IL sure Of frfends ard
can make many a good trade for himself, one
Of tho improvements that TIE hryS
appreciate 10 the chance To wash their faces AMI
hal d. before meals. Formerly none but soms
Of the shop boys got more than one wa'h a
day.
When the boys line up at night to march Iut,
supper mere Is s,"A'ss .nsas 0 pm shi
dozen will be tucked a rose or q bud and N 'hs
buttonhole Of the coat OF every boy who can
by any hitch acquire II is u flower. The chance
10 work in the greenhouse Is the most coveted
Of all Job. one of the guards who has lsoot
the big boys has never failed IN the tine h" has
been there to receive a boutounlere every
n'knV NV VI '"Ov, - y II 'oVN ~
the presentation win all the ieehnFs which US
dist,ict ls,der wopld arous.
letters from hom. are treasured and ,s n.
,o Ess'e e's. ,tP bov s1 boSs an no I IocS,I. so a1p no"nsr,
to ke.p onr trss.ur.a tbes. letter, are usua D.,
70 ntep 1 ~. ~ shIr' .oS y, D,ab, -.
under the bows pillow The boys who care f'r
.her Ie'sIs Toneno" seem u" De rhe 'nes WI
turn out oestl W the emu Miss hTh"lu' prhcl-
pal Of the school. who has been o the island
LOT nss yesrs usrhlns' was .e.,ns .e ONE.
Gay o. . aue| M m'ae psS a., 10, o, e..e qpe ns
VINO was a thrifty butcher Q . fro an aunt;
as to whom the boy sid he knew she would
llhF lis ltdtlltIs III lntU- q tidtrl9 ulgulll' u
eplstle from an cd grandfather. VIII Oh At
coumunication was ia Of ri reHces 10 original
sin and admonitions TO be good.
That oy was ~attacneI 10 his letters. He
was the kind that turlS cut all right after leav-
Ing her - said Miss Arnold.
"A young man TO sac you, Miss Arnold" In
terrupIsd an at endant, And when Miss
Arnold went down 10 see her caller she found A |
vell-dre sssd young man OF good manners and
Gle reyos, the very boy OF the letters who had /
left five wears befo e.. Now he f. In hu .iness 4
for himse.f-"tea and cohee." he proudly ant (
nounrsd and doing well
You might not expect to. hnd these boys
homesick, SAID Mrs. Sage. but I've seen two
or three Of the worst cases OF nostalgia sine { L
there1" pointing 10 \ rather understood boy
v lth square shoulders and clear eyes. 'Wheu
he fret came here he was very HON sick. Tia /
used to WRIT, asking 20 see me and w1en I /
sent for him he would say Mn. Sage, ! cant
sleep nights Ihinkin' O. my father ar, mother
Then he would cry u bit and add: My father
g, so drunk and he heated my mother s%wfully;
But Wish / could 90 home What ki q ~ |
horne do you suppose he had? An awful one II |
was, and his father beat him so that he had - |
run away. That's how he came here. Yet hat
boy cried for a week to 0s home 10 his
mother"
There + one small boy about IL in IN. deten- /