Evening star., 1945-04-29

Sixteen girls are crowded il
closer together than the feet !
bath. There, too, was one toilet, one
basin, and one shower for the COL
ored boys, and another for the
whites.
Aside from one girl who was IRON
ing the institutional dress they all
wear, three who were helping in the
kitchen and two boys who were
picking up waste paper in the base
ment, none of the children was doing
anything. The staff is so limited
no one can be spared to take them
out for recreation, except at specified
periods.
In the basement is a bleak, bare
damp room-"the boys recreation
room" There was nothing to play
on, but sometimes mats were brought
down for tumbling, Mr.. Caffrey said.
There also was small room used
as the doctors examining room
the doctor comes for two hours a
day to examine all the children who
have come in that day, as well as
tend to the sick.
Children All Quiet.
The children all were sullen, quiet.
They ran to tell me things like
what they had for breakfast when
there was no one around.
This was the place where hun
dredS Of District children go-where
they are supposedly acclimated into
institutional life, or where they are
minlStered to before returning to
their homes. 1t is an ugly, unhappy
place. I wondered if any normal,
happy girl could remain so after
several weeks there.
Mr.. Caffrey realized the Short
comings-he pointed out to me many
OF the sore spots. With an made
quate staff and an inadequate plant,
there is not much he can do.
The next place visited was the
National Training School for Girls.
This is where an average of so COL
ored girls live-girls who have COM
mitted minor offenses, and are SEN
fenced to stay here for few months
to few years. 1t is housed in three
buildings on the same land as the
Receiving Home. Two of the build
ings are in the same general con-
dition as the Receiving Home, the
other is more modern, and cleaner.
There is great deal more space ),
however, and the staff seems to be
able to keep the girls busy.
The old buildings were dark-the
windows are so high and small it
would be necessary to turn on light
to read at any time of day. We went
in through the hall and into the
dining room-none of the homes
have adequate living rooms, al
though Mrs. Rose Smith, superin-
tendent of the National Training
School, is fixing one up there.
All the furniture was old and
broken. The kitchen was large and
roomy, and trained cook was pre-
pairing meal planned by the home
economics teacher. Some of the
girls were helping her. They smiled
and talked with us about what they
were cooking-they were practicing
what they had learned in class.
Steps Broken.
The steps to the building were old
and boards were broken in some
places. Some of the girls were drill
ing out in the yard. There were
no facilities for games in the yard
just a bare, walled-in place.
Upstairs, the halls were rows of
single and double rooms. While
they were tiny, and not pretty, the
girls had fixed them up some, put
ting up curtains, and bedspreads,
and knickknacks. There was only
one bath for each hall-with a
shower, basin and toilet.
Here there is room and staff for
recreation and vocational guidance.
The girls have classes in sewing,
cooking and other skills. One of the
teachers, with the help of some of
the girls, is planning to fix up a
library, and the home economics
teacher is repairing some of the
dirtiest chairs.
The District repair shop is work.
ing on one part of the Oldest build
ing now, putting it into livable con-
dition-but nothing is being done
about the rest.
Third-and in the worst condi-
tion-was the Industrial Home
School at 2453 Wisconsin avenue
NV. This place has been declared
eft only for demolition parts of
it have been condemned. I expected
it to be better than what I had
heard. 1t was worse.
The Oldest building there is 120
years old, the newest As. They are
all dark, dirty and infested with
rats and reaches. Although the out
side appearance looks rather peace
full, the inside is as dismal as a
dungeon.
Daniel Ahearne, the superintend-
ent, showed me through. When I
missed a rathole, broken plaster or
broken steps, he pointed them out
AS he said, it is in such bad con-
dition that even living there several
years doesn't accustom you to it.
The dining rooms in the main
building-one for the boys, one for
the Staff-were filled with old tables,
surrounded by chairs so broken and
rickety they had been thrown out
by the Home for the Aged and In
firm and salvaged by the Industrial
Home School.
I talked with four boys who were
cleaning up in the kitchen-they
are the cooks now, as there is no
professional person to fill the job.
They told me they have to spend
time every morning washing off the
tables. The reaches are SO bad they
find them dead on the tables and
floors every day. They do not use
tablecloths except on special occa-
sions.
The boys who are doing the cook |