The Penn's Grove record., 1913-07-04
GOVERNOR IN
Pine DISTRICT
Makes a Visit to the Region of
the Degenerates in Burlington
HOPE OF EARLYSTATE ACTION
Conditions Are Certainly Bad Says
Governor Fielder-Something Must
Be Done to Correct ,Them-Will
Study the Situation.

Especial Trenton Correspondence.).
Trenton.-GC ernor Fielder's trip
into the pine belt of southern New
was done in too short a time to allow
anything like an accurate study of the
degenerate conditions existing
throughout that portion of the State
in which the so-called "Pineys' make
their homes. That his trip served "a
good purpose, however, can not be
doubted. Although time permitted
only a superficial survey of the situa-
ton at first hand the Governor found
plenty to open his eyes. Anyone hav-
ing an opportunity to talk with him
since his journey will see that he was
deeply impressed with the conditions
there, and will feel sure that he will
do all in his power to start remedial
action of some sort. The Governors
trip was made in a hurry and in a
method, though the only one possible
at the time, not conductive to getting
much information. The tour Of in
spection vas made in three automo-
biles, and the "Piney'' is not a person
to approach in such a manner. The
Governor, however, took every pos
sible advantage of opportunities. The
impression it all made on him was
strong enough to expect further action
of the right sort. He was fortunate
in having the Rev. A. w. Bostwick
along to act as guide. The Rev. Mr..
Bostwick is an Episcopal clergyman
at Vincentown. He has done con-
siderable work among the "Pineys,"
and understands them thoroughly He
was able to take the Governor to
places where bad conditions exist, and
to be of much service in showing the
true state of affairs.
Conditions Are DepIorabIe.
Conditions in the pine belt" said
the Governor, "are, to say the very
least, deplorable. 1 covered, of course,
only a small part of the pine belt, and
without doubt saw only a small pro-
portion of cases where degeneracy
exists. l realize now that conditions
there can not be studied with any
satisfaction in the way that we did
to-day. We visited the homes of nine
or ten families in the district, and met
n party of girls on the road that
were of the type we went to see. We
had three automobiles on the trip. To
drive UP to a house in machines is not
a very good way to get or familiar
terms with these people. 1t is hard for
a stranger to approach them anyway,
and the simplest and q~uietest method
is the n that would result in getting
the most out of them and in under
standing them the best. Another time
l shall try to go alone and take more
time to the work also. In such a hur-
ried trip as we made today much that
is seen and heard is difficult to re-
member, and l should like to be IA
miliar with the situation in all it's de-
tails. However, the trip was by no
means a waste of time. Francis B.
Lee, who is a resident of Vincentown,
asked Mr.. Bostwick to go with US. He
knows the country and the people
thoroughly and was a great help to
US. He took us, as l said, to the homes
of nine or ten families, and I sue
ceeded in getting a good deal of in
formation from many of them. We
started from Smithville, and the first
of these people we saw were at Vim
centown. From there we went to Penn
berton and Browns Mills, and to some
houses back in the woods.
There was one thing that sur
prised me. l think the general impress
sion is that the greater number of
these people live back in the woods.
I found the greater number of them
in the towns or on the outskirts. I be-
lieve this is true throughout the pine
district. I have seen, of course, only
a small part of the whole, but if the
estimate of 1900 for the total num-
Der of the pine people is correct, !
should say that by far the greater
number are either in the towns or
close by. AS I said, l talked to a good
many of these people, both men and
1t seemed to me that the
term mentally detective does not de-
scribe most of them. Of those I saw
most were illiterate and most ignor-
ant, but I would hardly call them
mentally defective.
while l do not doubt that there are
cases where brothers and sisters have
married, l found none who admitted
such conditions. There were some that
told me stories of their marriage that
were so complicated that they were
not only hard to remember, but most
difficult to follow while they were be-
ing told. There were cases of bigamy,