The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-06-26
THOMAS nice Man,
SAY HIS WITNESSES
More Interesting Testimony Ad'
duced in Reform School
Investigation.
PAR0LED INMATES ARE
NOW BEING EXAMINED
After Storm of Thursday, Every
thing Is Moving Along
Smoothly.
.cisl 10 The Tribune.

Special 10 The Tribune.
OGDEN, June 2j.-Iu direct opPo
sition to the testimony OF witnesses
called by the citizens committee TO
show the alleged inet6ciency aud IN
fitness Of Superintendent H. IA. Thomas
of the State Industrial school, witness
after witness went on the stand today
and told the investigating COMMITTEES
that the superintendent IS a capable OIL
fetal and competent to direct The affairs
Of the institution,
While large portion OF the tesn'
mony against the superintendent ha'
been furnished by former employees
of the institution, an equally large part
Of tho Testimony thus far adduced IN
his favor bas been furnished by pres
emf employees of the institution.
! After the somewhat turbulent ses
sion Thursday the investigation pro
ceeded without a hitch today aud no
body appears TO be ANXIOUS TO stand IN
! The way of speedy conclusion Of the
work of the committee.
The first witness called at the morn
| ing session was Rufus f. hlng, VINO
was employed at the school IN charge OF
the printing office from February l.
1906, until July 25, 1908. King said
he left the employ Of the institution
because of objections from the Typo
! graphical union that the school was 10
! inc outside printing. and that the union
obtained him better Job. One or
the bows who worked under his detail
| is now working for SIS a week as
printer in San Francisco aecoralng TO
The witness The food at the school
was good while ne was there, said the
witness. Superintendent Thomas. ac'
cording 10 the witness, gave the boys
good advice. talked 10 them at chapel
! services and at Sunday school.
| The general facilities at the school
were very poor when the witness was
| first employed. he said, but the trans
| formation since Thomas has been su-
perinteudent was compared by the wit
ness as change from ''bastlle to
palace The witness said that the
position be held at the school is nov
occupied by his brother. be denied
! that he had told Il. A. Bowen, a for
mer guard at the school, that he con
sidered the punishment unreasopably
severe. He said be believes in corporal
punishment. He mad seen boys IN the
/ cell and knew that Captain Kneass had
whirued boys for insolence and for us
| ing tobacco He saw Roswell Hudson
and Fogleberg after they had been
whipped. The witness on cross-exam-
nation said he didu L remember any
article appearing IN the Industrial
| School Advance, publication issued
at the institution, IN which the system
of working BOYS out Of tho institution
on private work had been censured. At
toruey Gideon asked that copies of the
publication for September. October and
| November of 1907 be furnished the
committee aud made a part of the rec
ord. The witness also declared that he
didn't remember Thomas criticising
him for allowing the article 10 be
printed
MIS- Colvin on Stand
Mrs. Mary Colvin, who was employed
at tho school for fourteen or fifteen
months as q nurse, related the occasion
when an epidemic Of scarlet fever was
in the school and twenty inmates were
taken down with the disease. This was
in July. August and September of 1908,
Dr. E. NJ. Conroy and Dr. F.. H. Smith
were the attending physicians. BE,
sides herself the witness said, she had
a man assisting her with The nursing.
aud some Of the boys who were not so
i'll that they could not help her. The
physicians called Two or three times a
day, said the witness. and every atten
tion possible was given the sick boys
by Superinte Thomas and his as,
sistants Mrs. Colvin said she assisted
IN the boys dining room for awhile and
had au opportunity 20 observe the food.
The food was 6rst.clsss, according IN
the witness. Several Of the gentle
man cooks cmployed at the school.
declared the witness, had left because
=" Mr.. and Mrs Thomas were too partic-
ular for that crowd of hoodums. The
witness on cross.eXsmination could not
remember the names of any Of the
cooks who made this statement, but
was positive that there were several.
She said she was still employed at the
school. From eight to twelve sick BOYS
wore IN the same room with Robert
Turner, who died at the school of scar
let fever, The witness said that DR..
T. 3. Beatty. secretary of the state
board Of health. had visited the school
during the epidemic of scarlet fever
and had declared afterward that the
record made was remarkable. there be
ing but two deaths. The witness said
latter member of the citizen s com
mittee. bad called to see her last Sat
urday TO learn what she knew OF con
dihons at the school, and that she bad
ordered them from the house. Her con-
tempt for the iDvesti9atio of the con
dllons at the school was expressed
when she said people is too uosey.'
DR.. Smith Testihos.
DIR. Il. II. Smith. who has been con
uected with the school for two years
related his connection with the treat
mont Of the twenty bows who were al
tackled with scarlet fever during July
and August of 1905 Mrs. Colvin, as
the purse, and Thomas and tho other
employees gave the proper attention to
the bows, according TO the witness. The
average mortality is from 10 10 30 per
cent in scarlet fever cases. The 10 per
cent record was made during the cpl
demic at the school, only two of the
,ases resulting fatally. but the witness
explained that number of the sick
boys did not have the disease in its
most malignant form. Rosetta Coyle.
he girl who died al the hospital after
III operation by DR., Smith, had perfor-