River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1906-12-13


seriously overcrowd the building
Second: THAT the building seems /,
have been we'll constructed and is in m
excellent state of preservation. But tina
the arrangement of the rooms and o.
the general interior of the building es,
pecially on the second floor has proven
by experience to be very inconvenient
and unsatisfactory as there is a serious
lack of corridors and hence one cannot
pass from one part of the building to
another in many instances without going
through other bedrooms unless one
should so down stairs and up again tC
reach the place.
| This is especially unsatisfactory wher,
the female help or members of the family
are obliged to go from one part of thu
| pudding to another as they must often il
uolng so pass through rooms occupied b,
male inmates. This defect seems to haV
pdIuany arisen from the theory that t.
nuLnper Oh male and female inmat
1 Woula De about the same and hence
ohhlluths was divided into two parts
ABOUT equal capacity, but the fact
| that the number of female inmates
| generally far less than that of the ma
ana hence rooms probably originally
! tended for females must now be occi
pied by the male inmates. There is ais
| a serious lack of closets in the buildin
| so much so that one corridor has hoe
| utilized for a closet and even with IN
| there are, we think, but three closets
| the entire building. Third: The buildin
| was constructed with a view of bein
| heated entirely by stoves AS there al
| but three chimneyS this method of hea
ing necessitates running long lengths |,
| pipe through partition walls, a matter
| serious danger from fires.
| The toilet arrangements are the usua
| out of door buildings rather publicly sit
| uated and at a considerable distanc
| from the building so that those oblige,
| to visit them in winter weather are sub
| ject to a considerable degree of exposure
| While for healthy people this can no
| be regarded as a serious matter it mus
| be remembered that people of the elias
| compelled to find home in the poo
house are often in feeble health and un
able to endure much exposure.
The number of inmates at present is Is
nine males and four females am. if this
were the ultimate number little changes
| would be needed but 1t has been the case
4 in past years, that as the cold weather
| comes on, that there is a large increase
| in numbers so much so that it has been
! difficult to find places for beds for the
inmates without very serious overcrowd-
| ing.
| The total number of rooms available
| for the inmates are twelve; three OF
these are very small being but 6x1O and
| the largest are only 15x15
/ The lighting of the building Is @
| course entirely by lamps.
Your committee have also found that
the family dining room is at an incon-
| venient distance from the kitchen, the
| latter being in the extreme northeast
| corner of the building and the family
] dining room being in the south wing
! This necessitates carrying all the food
| for the family through the dining room
| used for the inmates. This can be rem
| edied by q comparatively slight change
| in the arrangement of the rooms as here
| matter mentioned.
| Your committee also found in talking
the matter over with physicians who
| have been called upon for medical at
| tendance at the poor house that there is
| an imperative need of room to be used
pl actically solely for sick room or
| hospital room. This room should be at
| a retired part of the house and under
the immediate supervision of the superin
tendents family. Such a room should
| also be convenient to a toilet room or
| have toilet appliances adjacent to it,
AS a result of this investigation, your
| committee are unanimously of the opin-
| ion that some improvements and changes
should be made in the building, the more
| important and necessary being as fol-
| lows:
First: That an addition be made to
| the present building of sufficient size to
| afford suitable and convenient accommo-
| datt5ns' for the family of the superin-
| tendent and thus allow the use of all
| the present building practically for the
| inmates.
Second: That a suitable heating plant
| should be provided of sufficient capacity
to properly warm the entire building, and
we think that this plant should be sys-
tenn of heating by hot water.
Third: That a system of sanitary APP
planes should be put in consisting of a
| bath room for the male inmates, one for
| the female inmates and for the family of
the superintendent; each bath room to be
|
| and bath tubs.
Fourth: That in order to provide suit
able drainage a drain or sewer should
| be put in, running from the northwest
corner of the building in a northerIy di-
rection to a ravine about five hundred
feat distant.
Fifth: That in order to provide a-
ample supply Of water which
an imperative necessity, if toilet re
are put in, that a windmill, tower
| tank be put in at or near one o
| wells now on the place. This shot
course be arranged so as to allow a..
oline engine to be attached at times
| the wind is light or unfavorable.
Seventh: That it would be advisai =
| when the building is torn up to mal5
the proposed changes that the building
be wired for electric lights as we be-
lieve that if this is done that an oppcr
| tunity will be afforded in the near fu-
ture for lighting the building by cleo
| tricity and thus avoid in some measure
| the danger incident to the use of so
many kerosene lamps.
| Eighth: That a few changes be mad
| in the arrangement of the interior OF tn
| building so as to provide, for a more con-
| ven1ent arrangement of the kitchen and
| dining room and also to provide corri-
doris sufficient to enable the attendants
| to reach any sleeping room either from
| a corridor or a public sitting room and
thus avoid the present necessity of pass
| ing through chambers to reach other
| parts of the house.
/ Your committee believe that some of the
| necessity, and that 1t would ne wise If
| any changes are to be made, to cover
| the whole ground at once as a matter Of
! economy as it would be cheaper to do
| the whole at one time than by piecemeal.
| BY doing all the work the same season
! less Inconvenience would be imposed up
| on the family and inmates than to do a
| part at a time.
| The estimate of the probable cost of
| the entire job carried out substantially
| as stated above is seven thousand dol
| lars ($7, 100000.
| Your Committee have prepared prelim-
| mary plans showing the proposed altera-
| tons in the present building and the adj
| dition to the same and earnestly re-
| quest that each member of the County
| Board will make a careful examination
| of the same at some convenient time
| while the present session continues.
And your Committee beg leave to
| further say, that in their opinion that
! should the proposed improvements be
| adopted by the Board, that 1t will not be
| necessary and perhaps not advisable to
make arrangements for raising the en-
| tire amount required in one year, mas
| much as even were building canr"+'Nns
| to be commenced as early as
the coming spring the work
| completed until about the fiji