UTAH.

BY MISS GRACE M. PADDOCK, STATE CORRESPONDING SECRETARY.

1. The Utah legislature meets once in two years. At the latest session, which took place last winter, the following bills were passed: A law making the education of the blind, deaf, and dumb compulsory.

A law for the establishment of parental schools for the education and maintenance of incorrigible children between the ages of eight and fourteen. A law was passed permitting school boards throughout the State to maintain kindergartens in connection with the public schools.

A law was passed making marriage illegal where the female is under fourteen and the male under sixteen years of age.

$5,000 was appropriated to establish a hospital at Park City, Utah, to be known as the State Miner's Hospital, free to indigent miners.

A bill was passed allowing all cities of the first and second class to maintain free public libraries.

A bill was passed providing that a prisoner, on being discharged from the State Penitentiary, should receive clothing and $10 in money.

A bill was also passed, providing that a convict should receive a certain part of his earnings. The age of protection was raised from thirteen to eighteen years.

I do not know of any new charitable organization or institution established here lately. A Municipal League has been organized in Salt Lake City for the purpose of getting better laws passed for the city and seeing that those already passed are enforced. The league has not done much as yet. An Anti-saloon League has also been organized.

Class 1.- Criminal.

Are confined in the State Prison. Those whose sentences do not exceed six months may be confined in the City and County jails.

Class 2.-The Vicious (drunkards, prostitutes, vagrants, etc.).

Are confined in the city jails. The Woman's Home Association of Salt Lake City takes charge of any fallen women or girls who are turned over to them by the courts, also of such others as may come to them for assistance. This is an undenominational institution, supported partly by the city and partly by private charity.

The Crittenden Home at Ogden, Utah, also cares for women and girls of this class. This home is unsectarian, and supported mostly by private contributions.

Class 3.- Insubordinates. Incorrigible boys and girls are confined in the State Industrial School, located at Ogden, Utah.

B. GROUP OF DESTITUTES.

Class 1.- The Poor in Poorhouses. Salt Lake County has a good County Infirmary. The inmates are mostly aged and infirm men and women. Some feeble-minded and idiotic of both sexes are confined here, some hopelessly crippled and deformed persons and a few destitute children. The sick and injured may also be sent to this place. The number of inmates there at present is 81. I do not know whether any of the other counties in Utah support poorhouses

or not.

Class 2.1

- Destitute Children. There are only two institutions in the State which I know of for the care of destitute children. The Orphan's Home, an undenominational institution, supported by private charity, and St. Anne's Orphanage, a Catholic institution. The number of inmates now at the Orphan's Home is 16. St. Anne's Orphanage has about 60 inmates at present.

Class 3- The Sick and Injured Poor. In Salt Lake County are sent to the county infirmary. Salt Lake County also gives some outdoor relief to this class. The last legislature passed a bill establishing a State Miner's Hospital at Park City, Utah, free to indigent miners. There are two hospitals in Salt Lake City, which have a few free beds, St. Mark's, Episcopalian, and St. Mary's, Catholic.

C. GROUP OF DEFECTIVES.

--

The Blind, Deaf, and Dumb. Are educated at We have a well-conducted school for the deaf,

Classes 1 and 2.State expense.

dumb, and blind at Ogden, Utah. The education of these defectives is compulsory.

Class 3.- Utah makes no provision as yet for the feeble-minded. The only place where they can be sent is the county infirmary.

Class 4.- The Insane. The State of Utah supports one insane asylum, located at Provo. Number of patients there at latest report, 269. A decided improvement in the care and management of the insane in our asylum has taken place during the past two years. The number of patients admitted have increased. The number of discharges are 5 per cent. greater than during the five years previous.

VERMONT.

BY REV. J. EDWARD WRIGHT, CORRESPONDING SECRETARY.

The legislature of Vermont meets biennially. It convenes in October, 1898. Hence I have no data for statistical reports. The following legislation was enacted in 1896:

A divorce from bed and board forever or for a limited time may, when libel is brought therefor, be decreed for any of the causes for which a divorce from the bond of matrimony may be decreed.

The law against obscene books, pictures, etc., was made more stringent in important particulars. Towns and cities were authorized to appropriate money for the support of incorporated non-sectarian hospitals. The State's attorneys were required to institute proceedings for search and seizure in cases where they had reason to believe that intoxicating liquor was kept for illegal sale instead of awaiting complaints from citizens.

By the gift of Frances Skinner Willing a fine public library has been built and furnished in Manchester, Vt. It is named the Mark Skinner Library. And by the gift of Hon. Homer W. Heaton another ward is being constructed for the Heaton Hospital in Montpelier.

VIRGINIA.

BY WILLIAM FRANCIS DREWRY, M.D., CORRESPONDING SECRETARY. The legislature was in session during the past winter. Among the most important measures attempted, but defeated, were the following:

First, revision of the laws regulating the commitment of the insane to public hospitals. At present a person suspected of insanity is examined, and committed by three justices of the peace. The bill presented, but defeated, provided that the examination and commitment of an insane person be made by a county or corporation court judge and two physicians. Second, a bill providing for the enlargement and improvement of the penitentiary. An appropriation of $100,000 was asked for these purposes. The penitentiary buildings, having been constructed years ago, are sadly in need of remodelling to meet the present more modern requirements. A bill providing that all executions take place in the penitentiary was also defeated. There is, however, being built an additional hospital building at the penitentiary, to cost about $3,000.

Appropriations to the various State hospitals for the insane, with the exception of the Central Hospital, Petersburg,, for colored insane, were reduced. Formerly the total annual appropriations for all four of the hospitals was $295,000. The legislature reduced this amount to $270,000. In consequence of this reduction and of the failure to increase the appropriation for the Central Hospital, it will be impossible to care for or to admit into the State hospitals all the insane who will apply for admission.

The State Epileptic Commission, appointed two years ago, made its report, which was favorably received by the legislature. The commission recommended that the State establish a colony on the plan of the Craig Colony of New York; that at the meeting of the legislature two years hence a detailed report of plans, estimates of costs, options on suitable property for an epileptic colony, be made by the commission.

A. GROUP OF DELINQUENTS.

Classes 1 and 2.- Criminals. There were according to report, Oct. 1, 1897, 1,682 criminals serving sentence in the State Penitentiary, distributed as follows: the penitentiary, 1,645; at the State Farm, which is under management of the penitentiary authorities, 290; working on public roads, 47; white male convicts, 318; white female convicts, 4; colored male convicts, 1,285; colored female convicts, 75. So in a white population of something over 1,000,000 there are 322 convicts, and in a colored population of about 700,000 there are about 1,260 convicts.

Besides the above, I suppose the average number in the jails would reach between 300 and 400. In many cities the chain-gang system of punishment for small offences is in vogue.

Class 3- Insubordinates. The Reformatory School for Boys, located near Richmond, contains now nearly 60 boys.

Class 1.- The Poor. In local homes supported by county or municipal authorities or by private subscription. Impossible to ascertain the number of beneficiaries.

Class 2.- Destitute Children. There is no State institution for this class. There are, however, a number of private institutions scattered throughout the State, caring for a large number of these unfortunates.

Class 3. Sick and Injured. In almost every community, certainly in every city, there are hospitals, well equipped, and conducted. on the most improved plan, where the indigent sick and injured can get the best and most scientific treatment without cost.

C. GROUP OF Defectives.

Classes 1 and 2.- - The School for the Deaf, Dumb, and Blind at Staunton, which is under State control. The total enrolment of pupils last year was 170. The Commonwealth appropriates annually to this institution $35,000.

Class 3. There is no school for feeble-minded children in Virginia that is under State control.

Class 4.- The Insane.

In State hospitals, 2,450, about 1,600 of

whom are white and 850 colored.

this State about 100 insane persons.

There are in the various jails in

This number has accumulated

since March 3, 1898. Prior to that date there were no insane outside the State hospitals.

WASHINGTON.

BY THOMAS P. WESTENDORF, CORRESPONDING SECRETARY.

By an act approved March 7, 1897, the boards of trustees, respectively, of the Washington State Reform School, the Western Wash