The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1922-12-01
FEEBLEMINDED BOYS
:, Held AT Mine
FORCED TO WORK FOR So TO So
A WEEK, IS CHARGED BY OHIO
WELFARE DEPARTMENT.

Pittsburgh, Nov. 28.-Fourteen
young men, said to belong on the
state farm for the feeble minded at
Orient, Ohio, were removed from the
strip mine belonging to Bentz Bros,
at Turtle Creek, near here, today by
Pennsylvania state policemen and
agents of the Ohio welfare depart
ment hurried to Pittsburgh and taken
on the first train to Columbus.
This action was taken over the pro-
test of Frank j. Bentz, general mana
ger of the company and without the
knowledge of Sheriff Woodside of AL
legheny county Bentz, in a state
ment tonight, declared the "boys," as
they were termed, should be adjudged
mentally and physically competent by
physicians, and that the company had
employed counsel to fight the case in
the Ohio courts .~
Sergeant Crops, who commanded
the detail Of police sent from the
Greensburg barracks with M. M.
Hawk and J. Donovan, the Ohio
agents, said in statement to the AS
sociated Press tonight that the raid
was a consequence of official declara-
lions of the Ohio agents that the
young miners were wards of Ohio and
were working for low wages under
terrible conditions"
UNDER TERRIBLE CONDITIONS
Several days ago." said Sergeant
Crops, II went to the camp to ascer-
tain Just what the conditions were.
j. Donovan and M. M Hawk, of the
Ohio welfare department gave me full
description of the missing boys.
'sWhen arrived there, found
the IA TANNED into a small car
used as bunkhouse They were
SO dirty | couldn't identify one
from the other. | returned to the
barracks and reported.
Donovan and Hawk showed me
their warrants and we decided to raid
the camp. Travelling by automobile,
we reached the camp at 2 o'clock.
We found the IA boys, some dressed
and some undressed, lying two abreast
in double hunks. Sanitary conditions
were terrible. The Bentz brothers
came out of house nearby and vigor-
ously protested. .e
GLAD TO GET AWAY
"The boys seemed glad to get away.
Some said they were paid three dol
lars week-others declared they re-
ceived eight dollars. A few told US
that on Saturday nights they received
a dollar each and went to Turtle
Creek, the neighboring village, for a
big time
eve drove from the camp to Pitts
burgh where we put the boys on
train for Columbus"
"
TREATED LIKE WORK MULES
Columbus, O., Nov. 28.-Fourteen
inmates of Ohio's institutions for the
mentally defective, apprehended in
spectacular midnight raid by state
welfare officials on a strip mine at
Turtle Creek, Pa, and spirited across
the state line before court action could
deter them, were back in their old
quarters here at Orient tonight.
Most of the "14 boys" said by state
officials to range from Is to 40 years
in age, expressed pleasure over their
return and asked for the jobs they
held before their departure, but had
little to say. Questioned as to their
leaving the institution here and the
state farm, at Orient, several of them
told officials that they had been in
duced to go to the mine by promise
of high wages and a "good time" One
boy tod an official that he had "been
treated like work mule" at the
mine.
Director MacAyeal, of the state de-
partment of welfare, said tonight, that
there probably would be no effort
made to prosecute those charged with
harboring the boys as it probably
could not be proven that they had
been kidnapped or induced to run
away.