Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1911-01-13

Mr.. Editor The inclosed article was
prepared and read by Mrs. G. H. McGreer at
the Conference of Charities and Corrections
recently held in Frederick, Md The Social
Service League is anxious to have it ap-
pear in your paper.
Yours sincerely,
A. C. KINGDOM.
Secretary.
That there is difficulty in doing good
without at the same time doing harm is
so well known fact. appealing with such
force to all practical philanthropists that
the statement hardly needs any elabora-
ton. Thus, it is undoubtedly good to gather
out of an unfriendly world into a safe
shelter the waits and strays of unkind for
tune and there feed and clothe them. They
are saved from many hardship, and the
| community is complacent over a duty well
done and even may point with pride" to
It's county home, concerning which the
| authorities report is that it is clean and
well superintendent. So far it is good The
harm, however, is not far to seek The
| objects Of the countys care, relieved from
all necessity of taking care of themselves,
become thereby peculiar class shut away
from the ordinary responsibilities of normal
life 1t is not long until they have made the
easy descent and are in fact paupers how
ever carefully shielded they may be from
the obnoxious name. If we scan the stu
alton with care, may we not find this HARM
fulness rooted chiefly in the isolation of
this household from the normal life about
it. They are let alone by those who would
be their neighbors, and, in turn, having
nothing to contribute, they let their neigh
bors alone. Let us regard this dual isola-
ton from both angles. The neighborhood
suffers through failing to carry out its re-
sponsibilities to its wards feel sure you
will agree with me when say that the
chief reason for the unsatisfactory state Of
many county institutions is because the
people do not know how they are run. lnves-
LEGATIONS of county institutions frequently
result in most disturbing revelations, dam
aging alike to the management and to the
community which has, unknowingly, allow
ed such conditions to grow up Had il not
been for the isolation of these places, these
investigations, if not superfluous, would
have had far less to reveal.
The filthiness, the indiscriminate herding
the lack of all attempt at separation of
ages or sexes or kinds. the idleness, the
inefficient farming, these, and many other
evils which have disfgured the MANAGE
ment of institutions within our recent
memories and at no great distance from
our present gathering, could these have
been possible save that the neighbors knew
nothing more than could be learned BY
driving past the poor farm" when bust
ness or pleasure called that way? In our
boasted day Of humane enlightenment that
such medieval conditions as prevail in too
many of our jails and warehouses; and
county homes are possible is only because
the people do not know. Indeed none but
officials too often have known anything of
the daily living, so that anything similar
to the friendly intercourse between MEM
bers of community has been utterly I'M
thinkable between county institutions and
county taxpayers. Therefore il is no mere
figure of speech to declare that the in
scription over the portals of Dante's Inferno
accurately belongs to those institutions of
today, which, having their origin in altru-
ism, yet have been left entirely to the
small mercies Of hirelings. Certainly, cut
off from their happier fellows, those who
enter the county homes have too often left
all hope behind In the simpler life of
long ago this separation was far less marked
Only the other day was told of devout
churchwoman, Of seventy-fve years ago,
in one county seat of Maryland, who, as
regularly as Sunday came, had her co-reli-
8lOnlSts from the poor farm dine at her
table after morning service. Could suclrI
visitors ever sink to the level of paupers
How many of the population of our county
seats today have been inside of one of these
institutions? Yet the one necessity on our
side to do Justice TO our wards. on their
side to make them remember they are
still human, is the personal. the human
touch
Then, regard the isolation from the stand
point of the inmate. Perhaps no element
in his life is more abnormal and at the
same time more detrimental than the total
absence of any power of giving. We have
learned, ITO give is to live" and he is of
like passions with us. He and his fellows
all are recipients of impersOnal charity;
there is no one for him to be grateful to
save God, and gratitude to Him, alas is q
late development much stimulated by near
ly humane examples.
To obviate these too harmful tendencies,
ask your consideration Of plan to which
my attention was directed on n recent
visit to London. About twenty-five years
ago the BrabayOn Employment Society was
started by one lady. IL now has about
three hundred branches and has most
gratifying record OF successful work, chiefly
in warehouses;, but recently extended to
other institutions. Ignoring at the first
any elaboration of details and overlooking
some points which would not appeal to us
under different conditions from those on
the other side of the Atlantic. allow me TO
call attention to the admirable underlying
principles which believe to be of the very
broadcast application. The first principle,
then. is to provide interesting occupation
for those who pass hours idly all profit
from such work to be spent for some object
other than personal to the worker BY the
working out of this idea you see that an
inmate is at once restored to the giving
class. at once is put in touch with the big |
outside world where he or she truly belongs |
The second principle second only in |
sequence, and not in importance is to |