French Broad hustler and Western Carolina Democrat. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1915-1916, 1916-01-27
ANOTHER PRESBYTERIAN
ORPHANAGE OPENS ITS DOORS.
AsheVille PreSbytery's Home for Chill
dren Near Maxwell Farm School.

AsheViIle PreSbytery's Home for Chill
dren Near Maxwell Farm School.
On December 80, 1915, the Maxwell
orrhanage located near the Maxwell
Farm school, Franklin, N c., opened
it's doors to small boys who have no
home and no opportunities for reeeiv-
ing an education. The orphanage is
conducted by the Presbyterian board OF
euucation of Asheville presbytery and
is designed to relieve the congestion 1T
the Balfour school, which was found
ed by the board IL years ago near
HendersonVille. Ten boys have al
ready found a home at the Maxwell
institution and others will be taken in
from time to time. The Maxwell Farm
school has been in successful opera
ticn for four or five years; the build
ings for the school and orphanage are
or concrete with metal roofs and are
admirably adapted for the purposes ir
view by the board.
1t will be remembered that 5 years
ago Thomas NJ Slagle and his wife DO
mated to the Presbyterian board $50
acres of the old Jacob Siler farm near
Franklin for the establishment Of {:
farm school for homeless boys. Or
phans are taught here to be self-reli-
ant, Industrious, and at the age OF
/ fourteen they are found to be sell
supporting in the matter of food and
| clothes. The management of the
school believes that the orphanage ana
school should be small enough 10
/ maintain home life and develop the in
dlviduality of the boys who here find
a haven from the vicissitudes OF 4
/ homeless existence.
The training at ,Balfeuf and at she
! Maxwell school includes learning the
trade of concrete block-making, the
! boys mend their own shoes, they pre-
! duce all the provisions used at the
! school. cattle are raised and carpen-
| try and painting are taught. Thrift
and the value of money are inculc1=
lated at the impressionable age, and
( it is stated that all the orphans have
i savings bank accounts. The benefac-
| tors are of the belief that farm is an
ideal place to train future citizens OF
state; that such a curriculum DIS
outlined here briefly gives a good foun-
! dation in health and morals.
Where student shows aptitude for
academic studies or taste for any OF
/ the sciences he is encouraged and 4
place is found for him in some college
or university. The girls are taught
the fundamentals in home keeping
! During the past twelve years the board
has cared for LIS orphan children.
A feature of the system at Maxwell!
orphanage is that carrying out the
home life idea. girls are associated
! with boys until the orphans are about
IL years old, so that the boys may
/ have the influence of feminine envir-
oDment Reaching that age the girls
are taken to the Morrison school Tor
girls four miles northwest of Franklin
and the larger boys are transferred t1
! the farm school near the orphanage
In this way a stream of homeless chill
dren is constantly flowing in from the
world to these three schools, receiving
instruction and equipment for life and
4 going out to take their places as use
ful members of society. Many of theFi
are today teachers, nurses, farmers
mechanics. Instead of leaving their
county where they were born they, ii
most cases remain to add their part tl
the enrichment of community life.
A small volume could be written on
1 the activities of the Presbyterian
i board in school work in the noun
tains of western North Carolina TAX
ing little part in the discussions as t.
whether the mountain children want
& an education the leaders in this move
ment have quietly gone to work to
offer homes and schools to class Of
children that, for one reason or an
other. are often overlooked by the
many agencies that are engaged in the
| field of social service. An account o;
this work when it is written in COM
pIete form would include description
of what Rev. Dr. r. P Smith has done
1 as superintendent for the board of ed
Lcation.
I! For a good part of his life Rev
DR.. Smith has Travelled the mountain
counties studying the conditions, find.
ing suitable locations for schools and
interesting people. of means in what he
has made his life work. His friends
4 say that he ought to write a book oi
TIE western Carolina mountains ane
the people, -Gazette-News,