The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1903-01-30

Ih0 Conner believes tne 0lris Au0us'
trial School should be an entirely
institution from the Prison,
and rhould supply the place for
girls the Plainfield School does for
boys, and that it should be located
It some Southern or Central Indi-
ana town-not . large city,-vincsn-
noe, Linton, Columbus, or Rich.
for instance. Indiana u veal.
Ihy enough, 70 take proper charge
oi ito young girls, who otherwise
might become criminals. The edi-,
tor was convinced Of the absolute
necessity for this by what he him
self took observation Of whom be vis-
tied the Prison several years ago.
Innocent girls and lewd girls were
compelled TO be in each others COM
pany, for want Of rooms TO separate
them, and the innocent ones soon
learn the downward paths. The
Board says:
"The Girls Industrial School and
Woman's prison are under the same
roof. Although the law expressly
provided they should be located 10
buildings, this was not done.
The girls school has 90 outgrown
it's original quarters that It is neces-
sary to use the third story Of the
prison as . dormitory for girls.
The quarters for girls are sadly ovei-
crowded, and there is lack Of room
for properly classifying and teach.
ing them.
Not only are the accommodations
and facilities atthis institution sadly
inadequate, but the confienment OF
woman prisoners and mere girls in
the same building is . grevious
wrong. These institutions arc gener.
ally known as Woman's prison, OF
Woman's Reformatory. In the pub
|lic mind they are associated togeth-
|er. Whoever has been confined In
either one, be she girl or woman,
must bear the stigma Of convict's
name.
The fact that homeless girls, q
we'll as offenders against the law
are sent to the Girls Industrisl Schoo
Ii, q reproach to our State. This VI
should no longer bear. True, the
law authorizes this practice, but ther'
lis no necessity for il. The depend
ent children laws are ample to mee
every need. There were, in th.
Women's Prison, Oct. 81, 1902, 81
prisoners. There were also 175 girl
|in the Girls Industrial School. O
these latter, twenty-five were SEN
TO the institution because they were
homeless, and nineteen others, sen'
for incorrigibility, were reported Z
be without proper homes. Thil
makes . total of forty one homeless
l|children in the school. "Incorrigi
|bility" is given as the cause OF com
|mitment OF 115, and "in dangerous
surroundings" OF one. Seven an
|truants. This leaves thirty who ar
sentenced for the commitment Q
|some crime. OF the 175 in th'
school, only twenty-five, We are in
} ,|formed, have both parents living to
|gether. In al other cases the fam
lily relations have been disturbed b.
s|death or separation. The report
SHOW that the forty-one homeless
lgirls above mentioned were the fol
lowing ages when committed:
Il Eight years. one; nine years, one
ten years. 4; eleven years, 8; tweIv
] years, q; thirteen years, 6; fonr
steen years, Z fifteen wears. 5. On
lof them was admitted in 1893 ant
e|consequentlv has been an inmate Q
l|the institution nine years. ~.
J ,lwsre received 10 1894. and two eac'
in 1895, 1896 and 1897.
In many ways tho institution
have done we'll, generally, perhap
] a. we'll as they could, considerin
} all the conditions under which the,
! Iha> had to work.
1t il impossible to properly con
duct a girls school in these Oh
/, buildings. Facilities are lackin
.for the proper classification OF th
. girls, for school work, for manu'
. s|trainiug, for the teaching OF domet
r|tic science for store-rooms and man
other things.
a Those buildings could be used L
g the Woman's Prison. When tn
ylRirls are removed, the long-tim
-women prisoners in our iai's %
workhouses could be sent TO then
,rIThis would do away with many
s,|the scandals connected with o.
malls BY reason Of imperfect sex sel
rsI sIarstion. Il would also provide eu
dlployment and reformatory !
st| fiuences for these women. II VII
ID action is taken, we can provide
re the same time for boththe girls q
70 women, and also take step 10 q
IN solution Of the jail problem.
Has not the time now come