The Detroit times., 1914-12-18
OLD WOMEN BUNS
ON BLACKWELL'S.
BEYOND REFORM.
Commissioner Davis Tells of
Group of Offenders Who
Think They Own il
SHE HAS GIVEN THEM A
"PARK" AND A CHAPEL
Her Next Request of City to
be for Farm Colony for
Sh0rt-Term Women

NEW YORK, Dec. 1S-In telling
the members OF the New York Proba.
ton and Protective association OF her
work as commissioner OF correction.
Miss Katharine B. Davis divulged
some data about group OF from 10
TO 100 old women in the workhouse
on Blackwelfs island who are known
as buns and who are imbued with
the idea that they own the place.
"The buns" she said, ARE old
ladies from 60 years to about 100.
There Is one who has been there ~
times. One was admitted the other
day who had been committed nine
times i'm the last four months Tor
short sentences These women labor
under the delusion that they own the
; institution. One of them came down
TO my Office the other day and COM
planned that she had been insul.cd by
matron referring TO her as the scum
OF the earth
These women will never reform
unless by a miracle. Humanity speak
ing, IL Is not possible for them to go
out and take care OF themselves. Most
OF them have lost all their family and
their friends. The only idea they have
when they get out is to beg or steal
or do anything TO get square meal,
and, most of all, 10 get a drink OF
whisky. They ought TO be sent TO
the almshouse, but they do not want
TO go there, as il would be the end of
their career--the finish They beg to
be sent TO the workhouse, and, once
there, they simply look forward to a
drink of whisky when they get out.
IL have tried TO give them an air
ing, and | snatched away from the
warden part of his garden, built a
fence around IL and the old buns sit
there. One of them said the other
day, Isn't this nice? This is park
that the police cannot drive us out
Of
You see, the buns can't do much
but sit around The others OF the 600
women in the workhouse | have put
TO knitting socks for the Red Cross,
with wool provided by outsiders, so II
any one would like TO send some socks
TO theomen in the trenches the women
will knit them.
1.-The buns had room, but we had
10 take IL from them for dope ward.
However, we have fitted up another
place, so we are able TO pick out the
old offenders from the young girls
who have not been committed to the
island before. and put them In cells
by themselves. After We took the
buns room away from them the
question arose as to what we were
going to do with them and one day
a bright idea occurred 10 me.
"We have a chapel there which is
not used through the week at all, and
It seemed to me that there was ter
rible waste of space there. So said
to the superintendent, We Will put
the buns In the chapel during the
day. II won't hurt the chapel and 1t
may be good for them. So now when
YOU go there you will see the old
women sitting in the chapel and you
will find a good many Q them in
there telling their beads and saying
their prayers. and they are perfectly
good and hav, never made any trou-
BILE.
1.-THE next large thing ! am going
to ask of the city is an appropriation
to buy a piece of land outside the city
limits on which we can locate farm
colony for shortterm women. They
can dig trenches, weed the gardens
and feed the pigs. When became
commissioner OF correction | found
there were six women in each cell in
the workhouse and the sanitary con-
ditions were very bad. | believe q
farm colony Is the only possible solu-
ton Of the question or short-term
prisoners"