Watertown leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1909-1911, 1911-07-07
POMERENE UNDER
HEAVY HANDICAP
Move Against Trust Magnates
Not Part of Harmon Boom.
ST. ELIZABETH'S is ATTACKED
Charge Against Management of Gov
eminent Hospital for the Insane
Representative Barnhart's Bill
to Reform Press Would At
feet Many congressman.
By WILLIS j. ABBOT,

Washington, =. Among politicians
Senator Pomerene of Ohio is accred-
tied the representative at the capitol
of Governor Harmon. Accordingly
when he announced his purpose Of ad-
dressing the senate in criticism of the
delay of the department of justice in
proceeding criminally against trust
magnates, men wagged their heads
and said, Aha! Going to put the
Harmon doctrine Guilt is personal in
to the Record. Perhaps this is the be
ginning of a long delayed Harmon
BOOM"
This is the sort of handicap under
which the unfortunate POmerene must
labor for the next year-or at least
until the Democratic national conven-
ton has met and selected the party
standard bearer. But as a matter Of
fact his utterances bore only on the
Harmon candidacy when Senator Ken
yon of Iowa dragged in that issue.
The Pomerene speech was a plain
straightforward plea that the Grim
inal law should be invoked against
trust managers. 1t had no more tC
do with Harmon than a speech on the
direct election of United States sena
tors has to do with Governor Wilson
1t is, however, satisfactory for admir-
ers of these gentlemen to note that a
speech favoring almost any progress
sive issue is instantly set down by
Republicans in the senate as an in
sidious effort to boom" some Demo
cratic candidate for the presidency.
Charges Against St. EIizabeth's.
Across the narrow and somewhat
marshy Anacostia creek which Dor
ders one side of Washington and sup
plies the capital with most of it's ma
laria and mosquitoes, is situated the
| Government Hospital for the Insane
| known generally as st. Elizabeth's, OF
more profanely among soldiers who
| stand in dread of it, as "St. Lizzies.'
| 1t is a mammoth among institutions
| Of its sort, having some 5000 inmates
and almost half as many employees
! To it are committed all persons con
victed of insanity in the District Of
|
where, all INDECENT insane persons en-
rolled in the army or navy, whether
| commissioned officers or privates. ant
all inmates of soldiers homes certified
as insane by the commanders thereof
| The criminal insane-that is to say
| persons accused of crime in fedora
! courts but acautttU1 on the ground O.
| Insanity, form a large share of its in
mates.
of the asylum have been current fo1
| years and repeated efforts to secure
a congressional investigation have
failed. The doctor in charge and the
eminently respectable board of yisi
tors chosen from the citizens of the
District Of Columbia have fought ey
cry suggestion Of an investigation as
though afraid Of what might be discoy
cred were the lid raised.
Representative Frank Clark. of Flor
ida, who made unsuccessfully the lat
est plea for an investigation, made
these among other charges:
That the asylum is extrayagantlv
run, costing at least $500 per year Del
innate, vastly higher cost than in
any other institution of the sort.
That the auditing and accounting
systems are clumsy and result in Civ,
ing absolute control of all expendi.
lures to the doctor in charge.
That five-sixths of the pension monev
of old soldier inmates is confiscated
for the general fund of the institution
in violation of law.
That the criminal insane are berd-
ed with the mildly mentally unba1-
anced, which is the case in no decent
ly regulated institution of the sort.
That the food and clothing are had
and insufficient
Old soldiers from every soldiers,
home in the country are inmates of This
institution; soldiers and sailors com
missioned officers of high-grades of
both army and navy are there. It is es-
sentially national institution. under
direct control Of the department of the
interior. But In the face of a showing
that would have compelled any legis-
lature to investigate a stats ASYLUM
congress is willing to let these charg-
es go uninvestigated, these evils un-
corrected.
Editor Barnhart in Conoress.
The first thing Representative Henry
A Barnhart knows he will be in bad
with his own profession. The per-
slstency with which Brother Barn
hart gets elected to congress on the
Democratic ticket in Republican
district might create the impression
that politics is his profession. But
not so. He is a journalist and proud
OF it. His professional activities have
climbed the ascending scale from re.
porter in Chicago to proprietor of
journal of civilization In Rochester.
Ind. Perhaps Rochester is not pre-
c1sely the spot in which one would ex-
pect the beacon light Of progress to
blaze most brightly, but Editor Barn
hart has kept its CLEAN a-shining pref
ty UNANIMOUSLY and has reaped his due
reward. First his admiring readers
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