The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1942-10-16

cation, and reported his flndll
action, the State Board of E
Corkle's investigation with on
of their own and instituted a
many remedial changes as i
was possible for them to do i'm
mediately.
Rev. McCorkle's report to the gov
ernor is printed in full below, to
gether with letter written by hin
after action had been taken by the
Board of Examiners:
Conrad, Mont, Sept g. 194i
Hon Sam c. Ford, Governor
Helena, Montana.
Dear Sir:
After adjournment of our State Wei
fare Board August 9th, drove to
Warm Springs, and gave all of August
2Sth and the morning of August 29th
to careful inquiry into matters af-
fecting the welfare of the patients in
our State Hospital for the Insane.
found everyone very willing to help
me arrive at knowledge of the facts,
and particularly I appreciate the help
given me by the superintendent, DR..
B. L. Pampel, by the business man
ager, Mr. c. K. Baker, and by the
dietician, Mrs. VIM A. Wolfe.
1t is the welfare of the patients
with regard to food, that concerns me
in making this report. l have broken
my findings down into groups of facts,
as follows:
!. Disagreeable Facts, Demanding
Correction
(a) Eggs have been served to the
patients only once in the past three
months. From the eggs which are
listed in Mr.. Bakers report, those
holding the higher positions in the
asylum management make withdraw
ais by purchase; the employees dining
room is then provided for; the pa
tients come near to getting none.
OBJ Whole milk, in the amount of
seventy-three gallons per day, is al
loted. A large share of this whole
milk is consumed in the employees
dining room. Except for those pa
tents who are in the hospital proper,
and for the seventy patients housed
in Unit Four, no whole milk is served
to patients. (Unit Four houses those
patients about to be dismissed as |
cured, and also those who have means |
of their own and are able to pay a |
little, am told.)
(c) More than half the patients new
err see butter. After those in the high
er official positions have charged all i
the butter they desire to their main
tenance account, a large share of
what is left is used in the employees
lining room. The amount of butter
that goes to the patients in unbe-
ievably small. Two pounds of but
,er daily are sent to Cottage F, which
houses seventy-six women patients.
Eight pounds of butter daily are sent
% the Musickbrod Building, which
houses three hundred sixty-five men
(d) Control over the distribution of
|
he detician. Instead, all butter is
ent directly from the creamery to
he wards, where subordinates among
he management determine who will
'e fed butter and who will not be
ermitted to have any.
1t seems that usually those who do
he work are allowed to eat little $
utter. Two hundred sixty-five of the
atients in the Musickbrod Building
ct no butter One hundred get a
title, at breakfast One of the at d
andants at the Musickbrod told me
hat he tries to change workers from !
me to time, in order that not quite !
0 many will go absolutely without
utter But of course the one hun
red men confined to the violent ward
nd who are not physically or mental
, able to do work, are left at all
mes without butter. u
With more than half the patients =
.arved for foods rich in necessary .
itamins, and with the dispensing of D
lie inadequate amount that is pro- y
ded, placed not in the hands of a o.
aimed dietician, but left to the u
hims and caprices of subordinate
anagers, the patients are made vic q
ms. Subordinates who are malici- IL
Is or spiteful can inflict great suffer 9
g. At best, the food is likely to be 81
ven chiefly to favorites. III
By a man in high position l was DC
Id last week that There is terri
e amount of food that disappears"
the limited time at my disposal, 1 til
as not able to follow up this lead.
lis matter of the distribution of the M
liter is one place where this can m
happening. Last year, from a to
edible source | learned that not so ''1
ry long ago butter was being car as
I'd away by some of those working nc
the asylum, and sold off the m
ounds. The fact that the dietician
S not been allowed to distribute st
e butter, makes me seriously ques-
N whether this practice of stealing