New Britain herald., 1917-02-14
FARM FOR WOMEN
 IS ENDORSED HERE
Commonwealth Club Goes on Record as Fayoring Resolution

Professor William E. Bailey, head
 of the department of sociology in the
 School of Religion at Yale and Pres-
 ident of the Connecticut Prison as-
 sociation spoke before the members
 of the Commonwealth club last even-
 ing in the Y. M. C. A. banquet hall
 His topic was "Connecticut's Need Of Q State Reformatory for Delinuuent
 Women' and he explained the need
 of such ar institution and also the details of the reformatory bill that is
 before this session of the legislature
 Professor Bailey said that the uni- versity in New Haven recognized to certain extent the duty it has to serve the state in any way and that the only professorship of it's kind in the institution had been given to him. Part of his time is devoted to work in the university and the rest to working for the state. Of the two. he said the latter was the more pleas ant. It was about 1890, said Pro- lessor Bailey, that there was move ment started to establish a reforma- tory for women in the state but it was killed after a short struggle. The next heard of the movement was in 1910 when 1t again failed.
 Tt was four years ago(" said Pro- lessor Bailey, that former Governor s. F. Baldwin appointed a commit tee to study the situation, and after two years of work they reported in favor of the institution. The bill vas drawn up and presented to the legislature asking for $20,000 for land and buildings but the appro- priations committee secuted the idea. The Connecticut Prison association was not discouraged at this but ! de- cided to keep on lighting, so a con- mittee of fifteen women was ap-> pointed and called the committee on delinquent women. This committee made a study and prepared bill to present to the legislature in order to show the need of a reformatory. The committee did everything that was necessary and even appointed num- Der of sub-committees. each of which carried on a certain amount of the work. It was decided to call the place the Connecticut State Farm for Women" It makes no difference" said Professor Bailey, what you call the institution as the name soon falls into disrepute.'
 Professor Bailey said that the req son of favoring such an institution is the fact that there is no state in Stitution where a woman or girl oXer can be sent. with the excep- ton of the county jail or the state prison. The state prison is prepared to the jail He told of the investiga- Lion at the New Haven county jail which Is by no means a reformatory and is not even decent or sanitary, he said. An old man was sent to this jail because he was found sleeping out of doors and the judge had no other place to send him. At the time of his entrance he had an ulcer on his ankle. This kind of an in is not a proper place to send T person. said Professor Bailey, and he added that the same conditions existed in most jails.
 In regard to women arrested in houses of i'll fame, Professor Bailey stated that they sit around in the city court laughing and joking un- less called to order. When they are lined the woman in charge pays tn" amount and then they laugh and go out to work just a little bit harder to make up the amount of their fine. Tn this way there is no attempt at re- form. If they are sent to the county jail upon their release they are some times met by hacks which carry them back to the old life. Girls that have not associated with bad ones. come out of these institutions far worse off than when they went in and after they are twenty-one there is no place to send them where there is the slightest hope of reformation.
 Girls that are not real bad have no place to be sent and the only choice left is the country jail, state prison or fine. said Professor Bailey, who termed these institutions "just T training school for crime" There were any number of women sent to the jails last year. and some of them three or four, times, but after they had sobered up they were allowed to go only to be sent back again. There is no attempt at reform in these methods, he said It costs the State of Connecticut about $2o,0o0 a year for women who are sent to the county jails. The only result is to take the sense of shame away and the next time there is no fear of being sent back.
 Seeking $5O,OOO Appropriation.
 Professor Bailey said there are nine states having such institutions as
 Connecticut needs. Massachusetts has had one for the past thirty years,
 New York for the same length of
 time and now Rhode Island has
 passed a referendum to have such a . reformatory. A copy of the proposed
 law was mailed to Dr. Catherine
 Bement Davis of New York whose
 only suggestion was that the part in
 regard to escaped prisoners be
 changed She stated that 1t was the
 best law yet proposed in any state in
 the union.