The Washington times., 1922-06-30
REPORT. IS
HANDED To
D. {. HEADS.
Trustees Recommend Several
Drastic Changes at
Institution.

institution.
Maintenance Of a child popula-
ton in excess Of 100 at the Wis
consin Avenue Industrial Home
School is recommended by the
school board of trustees, in a re-
port to the District Commissioners,
who considered and acknowledged
the report today. The Commits
sioners made no comment on the
recommendations.
Full Term Is Urged.
The trustees urged also that chill.
dren placed in the school should be
allowed to remain during the entire
public school term, to insure ade-
quate education: that information
desired by the Board of Children's s
Guardians, relating to the children,
be secured through the school super
intendent; that the guardians board
receive a report from the super
intendent on all children before re-
moval, and that every child be given
q physical examination before being
sent to the. school. with the alternu-
tive of establishing means for such
examinations at the school.
The report expressed the trustees
willingness to cooperate with the
board of guardians on the subject
Of the children. Copies of the re.
port were sent by the tru stees to
the Board Of Charities and the guard
ians' board.
Signed BY President.
The report was signed by F. w.
McReynolds. president Of the board
of trustees.
The attention Of welfare workers
today was directed to the case Of
Catherine Muir. seven years old,
parlytic and said to be feeble-minded.
who was pronounced ''incurable"
by Children's Hospital physicians
and other medical experts; two
years ago.
The guardians board placed
Catherine in the home Of Miss
Bessie Shekell. 1925 Thirtyfourth
street northwest. who in two years
trained the child to walk limpingly.
to move her arms and to talk. 1t
Is pointed out. however, that the
board risked the little girls life by
trusting her to the care OF n per
son not expert in the care OF alb
normal children.
Although Miss Shekell says
Catherine is feeble.minded, she al
lows the child to sleep in the same
bedroom with Helen and Harriet
Mills, eight and nine years old.
respectively, two normal child
wards Of the guardians board whom
Miss Shekell has raised from baby
hood. =.
The Shekell home is clean. we'll
aired and the children receive good
food and clothes. The Mills sisters
are given pocket money.
Ward Runs Away.
Leaving out of the question the
mental effect of the presence OF a
feeble.minded child on two healthy
children, medical opinion is united
on the fact that special nursing must
be given abnormal, crippled children,
despite the fact that Miss Shekell
has worked wonders with Catherine
Muir.
Margaret Phillips, fifteen years old,
who is considered below the stand
ard" ran away from the Shekell
home to the Wisconsin Avenue In
dustrial Home School yesterday
morning, after she and the Mills chill
dren had attended $50 o'clock mass
at the Holy Trinity Church. a daily
observance during May and June.
Margaret is pnder height and un-
der weight for a normal girl Of her
years. She recently completed
studies in the sixth grade at the
Holy Trinity parochial school in a
class Of children averaging twelve
years Of age.
1--WE been in about ten different
families and in the home school
since I went under the board eleven
years ago." Margaret said. ~ don't
know how many different schools
I've been to, because l was always
changing around. don't remem.
Der how the board came to get me.
I was too young to know then.
used to live with my mother-my
fathers dead-on ] street south.
west.
Charges Cruel Treatment.
Az some of the homes In which
she was placed by the board Mar
garet says. she was treated cruelty,
Her sister, Thelma, thirteen years
trict for several years, but recently
ran away and succeeded in being
placed with her aunt, Mrss John NJ.
Fish, at 231 r street northeast.
Mrs. Margaret Phillips, the chill
dren's mother, Is believed to be work.
ing here. Correspondence between
the two sisters, during the time that
Margaret was at the Shekell home,
showed that Thelma had discovered
her mothers whereabouts. Mar. .yaret
said she had not seen her parent
since 1917.
Margaret said she had received
generally good treatment at the
hands of Miss Shekell. but wanted to
10 TO her mother or to live with her
sister. She has been in the Shokell
home for more than five years.