The Saint Paul globe., 1904-08-03
NEWS OF THE CITY
JACOBSON CONFIRMS
O'DONNE[L'S REPORT
Chairman Declares Board of
Control Is Doing all Pos
sible for State

The report of John O'DOnnell state
labor commissioner, as to the sanitary
condition of the state institutions, with
special reference to the danger from
fire to the inmates of the Institutions
was presented to the state board of
control, in charge of the state institu-
tions, yesterday.
Members of the board were in a
measure prepared for the contents of
the report from newspaper reports, and
expressed no surprise at the severe re-
Elections contained in the report of
measures neglected for the safeguard
ing of the. health and lives of the sew
eral thousand men, women and chill
dren committed to their care in the
penal, charitable and correctional in
stitutions of the state.
Il have copy of the labor commits
sioner's report on my DESK said
Chairman J. F. Jacobson, of the state
board of control yesterday. 1T is a
straightforward report, with no at
tempt to inject sensationalism into it.
| Our members were conversant with the
main facts disclosed by Commissioner
| ODonnell months before he included
them in his report, and, as to the con-
ditions at the Hastings and Anoka hos
pitals for the insane, the board of con-
troll has already remedied them since
the labor commissioner began his in
vestigations, some three months ago.
Criticisms of several eff the other in
stitutions are for the most part well
founded, but the public must not lose
sight of the fact. in passing judgment
on the board of control and the men
who are at the head of our state in
StitutionS that several of the state in
stitutionS were erected many years ago,
and, much as We deplore it, it is i'm
possible, with the limited means at our
disposal, to change the plumbing and
fire fighting apparatus in the old parts
in one year or even half dozen years.
These costly, improvements cannot be
made in a day, but where it has been
possible we have been changing over
the institutions to conform to new ideas
and new methods.
New Buildings Up to Date
TN the buildings erected since the
establishment of the board of control
we have installed none but the best
plumbing materials and workmanship,
and I venture the assertion that in no
state in the union are there more mod.
ern or more sanitary buildings than in
Minnesota's public buildings.
'HThe criticisms of the Saltwater
prison are unquestionably we'll placed,
but nearly everybody will remember
that two years ago we failed to secure
sufficient appropriation from the leg
islature to tear out this old part and
replace it.
I'm the commissioners condemnation
of the prison our board will heartily
join.
"As to the Red Wing industrial
;o:e, oil
founded, but 1 regret to say that in
some of the newspapers the commits
sioner was misquoted to the effect that
the family managers" sleep with the
keys to the girls dormitory in their
possession in another building. They
sleep in the same building with the
girls and they run the same risks of
cremation as do their wards.
practically everything found and
reported by the labor commissioner
was known to the members of our
board, and some defects that have es-
capped his observation are included in
our official records. We know where
we are at but have not the money
available to make the corrections at
this time required in the interest of
the health and safety of the wards of
the state.
1T must be admitted, however, that
some statements made by the labor
bureau, when made alone and without
reference to other conditions in the
same institution, reflect rather severe,
ly on the management of the institu-
tions, but the report is, of course, an
ex parte statement with no chance
for the other side to be heard"
No Politics in Report
Commissioner O'Donnen said yester-
day that there is no politics in the
report. 1t was undertaken at the sug-
gestion of the governor, and after
conference with that official and the
members of the board of control a
special inquiry was made as to sani-
tary conditions and effectiveness of the
fire protection.
MY deputies made what I call
very thorough Inspection said O'Don-
nell, "and l spent six weeks in prepar-
ing the report to the governor. l have
been criticised for not making the re-
port earlier, but it is no small task to
prepare report of 100 typewriter
pages even when the data is at hand.
We have told what we found in plain
English and if it results in an inn
provement of the conditions-and be-
lieve it will-the department of labor
will be satisfied with the returns of the
vast labor involved in making the in
spection."
Dr. H. NJ Bracken, secretary of the
state board of health, said yesterday
that his information as to the labor