Fergus County Democrat., 1915-10-07

and the boys do all of the butchering
and curing OF the meat in winter time.
However, the institution does not have
q proper retrigeratng plant to take
care OF this In the summer time. which
they have asked the legislature for,
and which they are in serious need
of. The farm is equipped with first
class farm buildings, including barns,
hog houses, chicken houses, cellars,
| sheds and dairy, all of which build
ings have been erected by the boys.
and all OF which are well constructed,
properly arranged and neatly kept, |
! found that the boys take an interest in
the management and np-keep of the
! farm buildings better than the aver
age place which is kept up bv hired
help.
When boy enters the schL presi-
dent Dorr Immediately makes 4 study
or that particular boy, learns Of his
previous character and surroundings,
studies the report made by the Of
ficer delivering the boy, and person
ally questions and advises with the
boy and shows him that he, the prrsi
|
invariably gains the confidence of
each individual boy. and places him
in the proper grade in the school, gives
him the work he thinks he is best
fitted for and in which he should have
industrial training. Each boy is sub
iect to promotion and advancement
as fast as he earns it. II ii boy is
taken into the school, whelf the par
ticular class of manual training he de-
sires is filled, after study of that
boy and the president decides that he
should he in that department. he is
given that chance, and if the boy
makes good there, he takes the place
of some boy who desires to change
his department and who has not been
successful in that particular depart
ment, and the unsuccessful boy Is
placed in the department where the
most good can be done for him; and
in the manual training departments
| the sale idea Is to interest the boy for
his own good. and to teach him "A trade
or vocation which will be beneficial to
him in his after life. The efforts of
the institution are to make each boy
self.sustaining before he is parolcd or
have more attention in the grades and
in the manual training department
that they do in the average public
school of this country. because the
classes are small and the instructors
are not over worked, as they are in
many public schools. In the manual
training department found that Prcsi-
dent Dorr has the boys SO arranged
that each boy has Interested himself
in some certain branch of work, and
that he is getting the most out Of it.
In order to entitle the student to
graduation he must make 5000 merits.
A boy is entitled to 10 merits a day,
and If he makes 300 merits a month,
he then gets an additional hundred
merits as IA premium or prize; and If
he goes three months with a perfect
report, he then gets 10 additional
merits to his previous prizes. In this
way 1t is possible for a boy to make
the 5000 merits in a year. however,
it takes the average boy about two
years, and as soon as he makes his
5000 merits, he Is allowed to go if
he so desires, provided Il suitable
place can be found for him. How
ment prevailing among the boys to
rush away as soon as they have gain
ed their merits. | saw one boy who
had already gained his merits and was
still OF his own accord siagnging in
the institution.
The punishment prescribed for the
boys appeared to be Of humane and
proper character, and is as follows:
The losing of merits and the taking
away of certain privileges such as
diminishing play hours for certain
period, and the requiring OF the boy
to do certain unpleasant things or dis
agreeable work which he does not like,
such as washing dishes or scrubbing
the kitchen. or other things unpleasant
when deemed absolutely necessary.
the smaller boys are sometimes
spanked, but in no case is any one
allowed to punish boy except the
president himself. In extreme cases,
but only with the larger boys, they
are sometimes locked in a room and
compelled to study by themselves.
In the matter of entertainment |
consider the students fortunate Every
Friday night they have some form of
entertainment in the assembly hall,
and while ! was there they were in
stalling "A moving picture machine. to
be operated by the students: and i'm
this connection, the local theaters.