Waterbury Democrat., 1902-02-21
COUNTY HOMES.
Secretary Kellogg Says Father
 Shanley Makes a Mistake.
IS NOT OPPOSED TO CATHOLICS

Says Children in the Homes Should Be
 Allowed to Worship in Their Own
 Religion--Children in the New Ha-
 ven, Hartford and Litchfeld County
 Homes. He Says, Have Such Priv
 flege-Father Shanley's Letter.
 Some pretty sharp talk is going on all over the state just now regarding the management of the county homes, and so many conflicting opinions are heard on the question from people who are in position to know the facts, folks on the outside scarcely know what to believe. Here is one view of the case from Rev w. J.Shan- ley, which appeared in yesterdays iS- sue of the Hartford Times:
 In the report of meeting of the state board of charities, published in the Times on February 6, Charles F. kel- logg, secretary of the board, i'll speak ing of the meeting, said: Arrange ments are now made for holding Roman Catholic services i'll several of the county homes" This is absolutely false. Arrangements have not been made for holding religious services In any of the county homes. No Catholic service is held in the Hartford coun- ty home, nor ever has been. The su- perintendent even refused to allow the Catholic children to attend the Catho- lie church. The priest in whose parish the home is located was obliged to ip- peal to the county commissioners For this privilege or rather right.
 When the investigation of the man. agement of the Hartford county home was being conducted, Catholics were silent, although they could have said much. There are no Catholic services 1 in the New Haven county home. Litchfield county has no county home. The children of Litchfield county, who are wards of the state, are placed in q 1 private institution, the Gilbert home, which has been notorious for it's bigotry. | There are no Catholic services in tho Gilbert home. The pastor of Winsted, in which the home is located, has asked several times to be allowed to bring the Catholic children to mass on l Sundays but has always been re- | fused" He offered to afford a convey. ance, but his proposition was rejected. The Catholic children committed to the Gilbert home are after short time hired out to Protestant farmers, and other children are placed there by their parents, who pay $1 week for each one." Two Catholic women are sent to the Gilbert home to teach cate- chism, otherwise the Catholic children ! would be marched to the Protestant church and Sunday school. Before the 1 Catholic teachers visited the Gilbert home all the Catholic children had to go to the Protestant church.
 skNo Catholic carufoac ora bo15 ;r, +t1 Fairfield county home. now, nor never have been held in that institution says a competent authority 'Ar- engagements have not been made for Roman Catholic services in the Mid dlesex county home in Haddam, nor in Preston, where the New London county home is located: nor in Vernon, in Holland county. In the Windham county home the conditions are the same. "In the county home at Put. nam no Catholic religious services are held, and the children are not allowed to hear mass in Putnam" The pastor of Putnam asked for the privilege or right of taking the Catholic children to mass, but was refused. The super. intendent of the Windham county home at Putnam stated this week that he himself was "a Baptist and that all the children must go to the Baptist church." We have evidence to prove that Catholic children in the county home in Putnam have been dealt with unjustly; that efforts have been made to 'dissuade them from remaining trua to the religion of their parents.''
 The Baptist superintendent of the Windham county home receives his salary from the state. The children in the Windham county home are. support ed by the state.
 Are the funds of the state to he used for proselyting purposes?
 Secretary Kellogg's statement that Arrangements are now made for hold- ing Roman Catholic services in several of the county homes' is false. The state board of charities. of which Mir Kellogg is the secretary, and for which he made this statement, ought to know that it is false.
 WALTER J. STANLEY
 To