The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1902-08-12
PLEA FOR THE WELFARE
OF DEPENDENT CLASSES.
supe ndent Of the Insane Asylum De-
Afi ced Charges Are of Paramount
Importance New ST. Transformation of
the Institution and Its W ards Reviewed at Length
4 Ve%<%<%$%<<<>%%% Q 80 = .
o RECOMMENDATION IN REPORT y

q RECOMMENDATIONS IN hEfOhA "
q MADE BY DOCTOR RUNGE. .
q In the efforts now being made by =
q the municipality to realize the ideal =
q of the City Beautiful it should be y
q borne in mind tikt a marble man =
q sion does not In itself constitute .
O home beautiful; 1t must be impreg- .
q mated with the spirit of ktndliness =
O and mutual love.
q No community may boast of hav- .
q ing even approached the standard Of .
q perfection unless 1t is able to show .
q an honest and unremitting endeavor .
q of aiming at the prevention of nu- =
q merical growth Of the dependent and .
q afflicted classes, including the in q
q sane. .
q The municipality may exert its in q
O fluence in several ways. chiefly to- .
q ward creating conditions favorable .
O for the healthfui development of the q
q child among the poor. First of all q
O should be mentioned the permanent q
o Fairgrounds as a highly beneficial .
agency. =
O The municipality should insist IN q
q the future on the erection of model e
q tenements with view Of bettering .
o the child's home environment =
q The House of Refuge has been q
q serving The purpose Of reformatory =
q and Industrial school, home for fee q
q ble-minded, epileptic, incorrigible and .
q simply homeless children, without q
q adequate means for their separation, o
q which Is nothing short Of social q
q crime. q
= There is insufficient means at our q
q disposal In the City Insane Asylum o
. for the prompt and successful evacu- q
q alton of the main buildings in case q
q of fire, and recommend a suitable q
= appropriation for the erection OF ade- q
q quate exposed fire escapes. q
u . %%%%< . . . . . . . 90 %2
In submitting to Health Commissioner
Starklof the thirty-third annual report of
the st. Louis Insane Asylum Doctor Ed
ward c. Runge. Superintendent Of the insti-
tuition. sets forth in strong and plain
language the necessity for the awakening of
the community to realization of its obliga-
tons toward the helpless. afflicted and de-
pendent members.
He expresses the belief that there is q
growing tendency among all classes of citi-
zens to cooperate In making st. Louis the
City Beautiful, but voices a suggestive note
"a " tbOSO "Ilo arc liuS Oll
the work. that their efforts will fall short of
realization Of the ideal If the welfare of
the dependent classes is overlooked In the
general scheme of the New st. Louis"
'Il the last year. he says in his report.
'st- Louis has been going through an at
tack Of monomaniacal frenzy. of which the
central idea may be represented by the
words New st. Louis
Let US heartily hope that we may never
recover from this rnalady but may see it
grow in intensity as time rolls on-here is
one instance in which the disease is best
not recovered from But after we have
cleansed the city and inaugurated the many
civic improvements and reforms now pro-
posed. shall we have realized the ideal of
the City Beautiful?
A marble mansion does not mean a home
beautiful because of its lofty halls. picture
covered walls and expensive furnishings; IL
must be impregnated with the spirit of
kindness and mutual love. particularly
toward the weaker members of the family
without these essential elements of true
home life all the exterior beauty will re-
solve itself into glttering sham.
Problems of Charities.
The broad problems Of charities and
corrections are to-day to be considered from
scientific as well as an ethical stand
point. both blending in a harmonious effort
in the direction OF finding proper ways and
adequate means for the care of the delin-
quent, defective. sick and INDECENT MEM
bers Of society. A community. to approach
the standard OF perfection. must show an
honest and unremitting effort to solve these
problems. and to prevent the numerical
growth OF the dependent and afflicted
classes. including the insane.
THE careful avoidance of deteriorating
factors entering into the life of the indi-
vidual can only be assured by a slow
process of education. The municipality may
exert its influence for good In several ways,
! chiefly toward creating conditions favorable
for the healthful development of the child
among the poor. First OF all should be
mentioned the permanent Fairgrounds as
highly beneficial agency, as they tend to
| develop self-respect. self-control and re-
spect for others. The municipality should
insist in the future on the erection of noth-
| ing but model tenements. with view OF
bettering the child's home environment A
good beginning could be made here by Iegis-
! lating out of existence the Ashley building.
"A further step toward prevention can be
! taken by improving methods Of municipal
care of homeless children. Aid should be
extended to home-ind.ng societies. which