Evening star., 1939-06-14
Dr.. Smith Hits
Tydings, Lee
As '|nterferers'
Protected Employees
She Tried to Gust,
Ex-Heud of School Suys

IA-T1SOO VI SSIIOOl SOyS
Senator Millard Tydings, Demo-
crat, of Maryland and Brooke Lee,
Maryland Democratic figure, were
charged today by DR.. Carrie Weaver
Smith, deposed superintendent of
the National Training School for
Girls, with having interfered with
her efforts to dismiss employees at
the school whom she considered in
efficient.
DR.. Smith injected this testimony
into her defense at a hearing before
the District Commissioners at the
District Building in response to a
question by Engineer Commissioner
David McCoach. The Commission
er had asked Dr. Smith If she ever
made any effort to get rid of un-
satisfactory employees"
II certainly did," replied DR..
Smith.
Commissioner McCoach: "Who
did you take it up with?"
DR.. Smith: THE Board of Public
Welfare. But was beset by Sem
ators and politicians from Mary
land"
She Names Lee and Tydings.
Assistant Corporation Counsel
Oliver Gasch : "Who?"
DR.. Smith: Brooke Lee. He called
me in Streets own Office former
Director of Public Welfare Elwood
Street, and raised howl because
got rid of an employe who had only
q sixth grade education.
Mr.. Gasch: Who was the Senator?
DR.. Smith: Senator Tydings. I
had to run the gamut of Senators
and politicians. If that school was
as free from political interference
as it is supposed to be, there would
not be so much trouble out there
%. In an effort to get rid of those
workers, we certainly had to run
the gamut.
Later. DR.. Smith introduced into
the testimony over protest by Mr..
Gasch the statement: Senator
Bilbo of Mississippi has placed three
workers in institutions here within
the last three months, one of them
IN the National Training School for
Girls"
What does that show?" Mr..
Gasch asked.
1T shows interference" replied
DR.. Smith.
Defends Her Policies.
After nearly an hour and a half
OF testimony, during which she read
At length from several diaries in de-
tense of her policy of 'leniency" and
"af1ection," DR.. Smith presented also
several instances she said were to
indicate that she took a personal
hand in discipline at the institution,
turning to Commissioner Hazen,
she asked him this point blank CUES
ton:
DO you think I have testified
enough on discipline?"
Commissioner Hazen nodded his
head in the affirmative.
DR.. Smith asked him this further
question:: Have I really testified
sufficiently to show that I made a
conscientious and honest effort to
enforce discipline?"
Commissioner Hazen raised his
hand, and shaking his head, said,
II swear don't know"
Summarizing her defense, DR..
Smith declared: Il have testified
that I deprived girls of recreation,
kept them from picnics. put girls in
their rooms, gave extra work and
did other things which seemed to
me as trained worker would get
results, and they did get results in
many instances"
s> Advocates Spirit of Leniency.
~ outlining what she considered
the fundamental point in admins
tfation >"such an institution" DR..
Smith de,>Ued: THE spirit of
leniency is I. - foundation of all
discipline
ITO use leniency d to use affec-
tion," she said, "shoL not be con-
sidered ludicrous as it 4. been in
this hearing" ~
DR.. Smith opened her own I'll
mony yesterday with the declarat1L~ ~
she intends to show that the grossly
exaggerated blanket charges" made
against her are not a true picture
Of her administration.
Weak Memories Criticized.
She said she was dismissed from
her post because of the prejudice"
of Frederick w. McReynolds, chair
man of the Board of Public Welfare,
and "a minority" of the board men,
bers. This ill-feeling she said was
due to an expose of conditions at the
institution shortly after her arrival.
The expose was made after visits of
several members of Congress and
Mrs. Roosevelt, she said.
The expose, which she said was
widely publicized in the press, did
not "sit we'll with the egos" of a
few members of the board who had
allowed such conditions to exist, DR..
Smith told the Commissioners. Be-
fore that she said she felt she had
the enthusiastic cooperation of the
board.
Much Of the testimony against her
she said was "unconvincing and dis
proved by bias" and she criticized
the weak memories" Of some of the
witnesses, particularly Mrs. Spen-
eer Gordon" a member of the board.
At lease some witnesses, she said,
testified at the hearings through fear
Of losing their jobs.
DR.. Smith was cautioned several
times by Assistant Corporation
Counsel Gasch, representing the
District, against going into the
history Of conditions prior to her ar
rival as superintendent. He con-