The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-10-10

MIR. HAMILTON WILL REPLY
Says 1T Is All a Lot Of Nom
sense'-Lctters and
Resolutions.

. lf-tz ,a i
al viii reply: You need have no
fear that viii not. It 10 all lot
Of nonsense"
That was all that Hon. Alexander liam
ilton. Of Petersburg, president OF the
Board Of Visitors Of the Virginia Mill
ary91nstitute, would say regarding the
serious charges made against the school
by DR.. Charles venablo Darlington.
When urged to mako further state
ment, MIR. Hamilton replied: Il have alb
solutely nothing more to say. 1 have
wired TO v. M. !, for certain Information.
and when am IN receipt OF the data I
require, will answer DR.. Darlington
fully. THAT Is all will say at this time"
Dr.. Carrington's Charges.
Darlington. the reply OF Mr., Hamilton
and the resolutions passed BY the Board
OF Visitors OF V. NJ. /. are fully set out
In the following communication furnished
BY DIR. Darlington:
Richmond, Va, Sept. 10, 1905.
Hon. Alexander Hamilton president
Of the Board of Visitors, Virginia
Military Institute Petersburg. Va:
Dear Slr,-During last week i spent
several days at the Virginia Military
4 Institute. and on one occasion dined
with the boys at tho statf table.
/. never had a moro wretchcdly cooked
and badly served meal In my life. AS
a patron Of the school and as a we'll
wisher Of the Virginia Military Instl-
tutc, feel it my duty to bring these
facts to your knowledge, In order that
they may be rectlhed. have had
about five years experience In feed
# Ing large numbers of men at the Vtr-
ginla penltentiary; that is. In passing
on the proper quality Of their food as
surgeon to that institution, and as
sure you that the convlcts In the penl-
tertiary have better bread and better
meats, properly cooked, than the boys
) ut the Virginia Military Institute.
My attention was first called to the
bad food at the Virginia Military In
stitute by the fact that last year FIVE
}aor six Of the Richmond boys as soon
& rs they got back to the city after the
finals, swere brought to mo by their
parents, In order that might ex-
anime them and prescribe for them.
Every one OF them, without an cx-
ception, had lost weight. and, al
though there was nothing physically
wrong OF Il serious nature, they all
looked and were about half-starved
i The average age at the Virginia Mill
tary Institute is, ] think. about seven
teen years, and this certainly, Is a
time that II a boy Is called upon for
X hard study and hard drilling he should
have the proper food.
The dinner sat down to consisted
,tr,l,l 9
grade--stringy. touch, Eristly and
served; the macaronl had been
abominaby cooked and was really
nothing but doughty, indlgestible
mass; the corn. on the cob. would
better have been saved to grind, as
1t was too hard to eat. No butter
was served with dinner, but the head
4 walter, very courteously, supplied
N me with some butterine, which. at
a best. Is dirty, greasy, unhealthy
substitute for butter, The cornbread
was fairly good and the water was
excellent The pies We're fairly good,
although the bottom OF the pie was
= soggy, damp. indlgestible mass OF
dough- The head waiter also
brought me some rolls (wlleat-
bread). and these had hard damp,
sour, indigcstlble kernel. which /
think would have tested the digestive
powers Of an ostrich.
The meat at our table was so un-
inviting that one Of the captains
went over to nelghboring table and
brought a platter with six pieces and
the head waiter brought a platter
with six other pieces. These, With
the six at our table, made eighteen
slices Of lndlgestible, touch, unpala-
table beef, certainly Of worse appear E
ance than the meat that we buy Mt
the penitentlary, and certainly mono
of the eighteen pieces fit to eat,
Now, some one might sny that some
swallow does not make n summer"
but the swallow In the oftlng means
that summer Is approaching, and this
ono meal that have taken at the
Virginia Military Institute firmly con-
* vInces me from a medical stand
point that those boys are not having
the proper nourishment
II may be pardoned for susges-
ton the bulk of the trouble really
lies In the cooking, A good bread
cook would help the cause wonders
fully, though no good cooking could
possibly have helped that beef. That
Is q matter In which the purchasing
aegrt, Ii the institution is culpable,
am not writing this letter IN any
captious frame of mind. AS ] told
you in the beginning, ! was n patron
OF the institution, and In addition to
that, L have at least half a dozen
boys there whose parents are my pa
tlents, and II it,is necessary to fol-
low this matter further to get relief,
all Of us patrons can take a hand IN
movement 10 better food condi-
lions, hut feel sure that as soon as i
these facts are brought to the
knowledge of the board that they
will promptly take steps to rectify
these conditions,
Dr. Upshur, few nights ago, went
over this whole matter carefully
with me. and ! know Is heartily III
accord with the proposition that good
bread and butter ann good meats all
properly cooked shall be served the
boys ut the Virginia Military lnsti-
tute The fact is he read me some
ringing resolutions OH the subject
that tho board had passed at their
last meeting. ] submit that now the
time for resoluting has passed and
some action, prompt and vigorous
should be taken
Yours very sincerely.
CHARLES VI CARRINGTON