that were already convinced, and continued faithful, were not only blessed with plenty of the fruits of the earth, but also with the dew of Heaven standing it was thought near three thousand persons | our meetings; wherein he hath many times manifested came in the first year, we were providentially provided his great loving kindness, in reaching to, and convincfor, that we could buy a deer for about two shillings,ing many persons of the principles of truth; and those, and a large turkey for about one shilling, and Indian corn for about two shillings and six pence per bushel. "And as our worthy Proprietor treated the Indians with extraordinary humanity, they became very civil and loving to us, and brought in abundance of venison. As in other countries, the Indians were exasperated by hard treatment, which hath been the foundation of much bloodshed, so the contrary treatment here hath produced their love and affection. "About a year after our arrival, there came in about twenty families from high and low Germany, of religious, good people; who settled about six miles from Philadelphia, and called the place Germantown.-The country continually increasing, people began to spread themselves further back. "Also a place called North Wales, was settled by many of the ancient Britons, an honest inclined people, although they had not then made profession of the truth, as held by us, yet, in a little time, a large convincement was among them, and divers meeting-houses were built. "About the time, in which Germantown was laid out, I settled upon my tract of land, which I had purchased of the Proprietor in England, about a mile from thence; where I set up a house and a corn mill;--which was very useful to the country round:-But there not being plenty of horses, people generally brought their corn on their backs many miles;-I remember one man had a bull so gentle, that he used to bring the corn on him, instead of a horse. "Being now settled about six or seven miles from Philadelphia, where leaving the principal body of friends, together with the chief place of provisions, as before mentioned, flesh meat was very scarce with me, for some time, of which I found the want. I remember I was once supplied by a particular instance of Providence in the following manner:-- "I am engaged, in my spirit, to supplicate the continuance thereof, to the present rising generation; that, as God hath blessed their parents, the same blessing may remain on their offspring to the end of time; that it may be so is the hearty desire and prayer of their ancient and loving friend, RICHARD TOWNSEND." [Proud's History. On Saturday the 29th ultimo, agreeably to public notice, a large concourse of citizens attended at the House of Refuge when John Sergeant Esq. delivered the following Address, which exhibits a comprehensive view of the nature, design, and progress of this institution. We deem it unnecessary to add any thing in favour of this establishment, believing that after the perusal of the address, every one must be convinced of its importance, and be disposed to contribute to its support. We understand that the Refuge was opened on the first inst. and has already received under its care, one or more juvenile offenders. AN ADDRESS Delivered before the citizens of Philadelphia, at the Houss It is my duty, in obedience to a resolution of the Board the House will be opened on Monday the first day of of Managers of the House of Refuge, to announce that December next, for the reception of as many inmates as their means will at present enable them to provide for. "As I was in my meadow, mowing grass, a young deer came and looked on me; I continued mowing, and the deer in the same attention to me; upon which I laid down my scythe, and went towards him; upon which he ran off a small distance; I went to my work again, and the deer continued looking on me, so that several times I left my work, to go towards him; but he still kept himself at a distance; at last, as I was going to wards him, and he, looking on me, did not mind his steps, but ran forcibly against the trunk of a tree, and stunned himself so much that he fell, upon which I ran forward, and, getting upon him, held him by the legs.lightened wisdom, and provident charity, which have atAfter a great struggle, in which I had almost tired him out, and rendered him lifeless, I threw him on my shoulders, holding him fast by the legs, and, with some difficulty, from his fresh struggling, carried him home, about a quarter of a mile, to my house; where, by the assistance of a neighbour, who happened to be there, and killed him for me; he proved very serviceable to my family. I could relate several other acts of Providence of this kind, but omit them for brevity. "As people began to spread, and improve their lands, the country became more fruitful; so that those, who came after us, were plentifully supplied; and with what we abounded we began a small trade abroad. And as Philadelphia increased, vessels were built and many employed. Both country and trade have been wonderfully increasing to this day; so that, from a wilderness, the Lord, by his good hand of Providence, hath made it a fruitful field:-On which to look back, and observe all the steps, would exceed my present purpose; yet, being now in the eighty-fourth year of my age, and having been in this country near forty-six years, and my memory pretty clear, concerning the rise and progress of the province, I can do no less than return praises to the Almighty, when I look back and consider his bountiful hand, not only in temporals, but in the great increase of In arriving at this stage of their labours, which they have reached by the aid of your munificence, and the liberal patronage of the Legislature of Pennsylvania, the Managers have reason to congratulate you that your efforts have so far proved successful. A new institution of humanity has been established, and this day taken its place among the numerous monuments of entested the earnest and continued efforts of our State and her citizens, to improve the condition of society, to alfar as possible, the evils of error and crime. In this caleviate the sufferings of misfortune, and to mitigate, as reer there is no danger that we shall advance too far.The boundaries of empire have often been enlarged by unjust force, and the conquest has only administered to an ungovernable ambition, regardless of every thing but the vain trophies which displayed its indulgence.But the limits of morality, of religion, and of humanity, may be indefinitely extended, and with every extension we may be assured that we are enlarging the circle of human happiness, and contributing, under Providence, to the present and future welfare of man. The good work, which has been thus far happily advanced, is still in its infancy, and, as you will soon perceive, stands in need of further support, to give it the growth and strength which are necessary to the development of its beneficent faculties, and which ought to characterize the offspring of a powerful and liberal community like that in which it is our lot to be placed. The Managers deem it their duty to enforce this claim by exhibiting to you some account of the progress and present state of the institution, as well as of its future prospects. It will be recollected that at a large and respectable meeting of the citizens of Philadelphia, held on the 7th day of February, 1826, it was resolved, with great unanimity, to organize a society for the reformation of juvenile delinquents. The terms of association were agreed upon, and committees appointed to solicit subscriptions in aid of the undertaking. Immediately after, application was made to the legislature for the requisite powers; and, on the 23d of March, 1826, an act was passed to incorporate the subscribers, with a rapidity which evinced the entire sanction by the legislative wisdom of Pennsylvania, of the plan of benevolence which had been thus devised. On the first day of May, in the same year, officers and managers were elected by the subscribers, and charged with the execution of what had been thus resolved and sanctioned. They have since been continued, (with some few changes) by successive elections, and have earnestly endeavoured to fulfil the task assigned to them. In many of the wards, the Committees appointed by the meeting, did not perform their duty with the zeal and industry expected from them. With the aid of the committees, nevertheless, and with the voluntary exertions of individual members of the Board, who kindly gave their services, there was collected from this source, in the city and districts, the sum of $8,104,41. In the same year (1826,) application was made to the Legislature for assistance, and on the 2d of March, 1827, an act was passed, evincing the same liberal spirit which has always characterized our representatives when worthy objects have been presented for their support. By this act, there was an immediate appropriation of five thousand dollars, an appropriation of twenty-five hundred dollars additional before the 1st January, 1828, and twenty-five hundred dollars before the 1st January, 1829, making a total from the State treasury of ten thousand dollars. By the same act, ten thousand dollars were directed to be paid by the county commissioners of the county of Philadelphia, out of the county funds, in annual instalments, of not less than five thousand dollars each, "for the purpose of defraying the expense of a site, and building a House of Refuge thereon;" and after such payment, they were directed to pay "annually thereafter, for the term of five years, the sum of five thousand dollars, for keeping the said House of Refuge in good order and repair, and for defraying any incidental and unavoidable expenses which may from time to time be incurred in conducting the said Institution." While these measures were in progress, the managers were anxiously engaged in exertions to bring the institution into active existence at as early a day as possible. The want of such an establishment became more obvious as their inquiries were extended. They hoped that some building might be found already erected, and calculated to afford the required accommodation, at least for a time. But their expectations were disappointed; and they were soon brought to the conclusion, (with which they have now no reason to be dissatisfied,) that the object of their constituents and the public could only be attained by purchasing a lot, and placing upon it a structure in all respects adapted to the contemplated purpose. Accordingly, about the 7th of April, 1827, they purchased a lot of five acres and fifteen perches, at the corner of Francis's lane and the Wissahiccon road, in Penn township, in the county of Philadelphia, for the sum of five thousand five hundred dollars. Having arranged their plan, and appointed a building committee, (who have devoted themselves with unceasing attention to the work,) the corner stone was laid on the 21st of June, 1827, and the building urged to a completion with as much despatch as the nature of the case would allow.The general plan and arrangement will be understood from the following description. A plot of ground 400 feet in length from east to west, and 231 feet in breadth from north to south, bounded by streets on all sides, is enclosed by a stone wall two feet thick and twenty feet high. The main building fronts to the north, on Howard street, and is 92 feet in length by 30 in depth. This building is intended for the accommodation of the keeper's family, and contains rooms for the use of the managers, and for infirmaries for the delinquents. Wings on each side extend the whole length of the front, and contain three ranges or stories of cells, four feet by seven feet each, for separate lodging rooms. These cells, of which there are 174, are well lighted and ventilated. The main building is covered with tin, and the dormitories are slated. It is designed, (in case it should be necessary, and the means can be obtained,) to complete the plan by extending these dormitories round the wall of the yard, so as to form a hollow square. The expense will be comparatively small, as they will be within the present wall, a part of the cost of which may be considered as having been incurred with a view to such extension. There is, also, within the enclosure, a place of worship, and there are the necessary buildings for kitchens, dining rooms, and work shops. These buildings, it will be seen, embrace the requisite provision for security, employment, instruction, and separation from contaminating association. The utmost economy has been consulted throughout; and the managers, never forgetting that it was their first duty to advance the object committed to their care, have been careful at the same time neither to incur nor permit any expense which could be spared without detriment to the principal design. The buildings are substantial & plain; the furniture is simple and cheap; & the arrangements for the conduct of the House are upon a scale as reduced as was practicable. With all their efforts, however, they have been unable to provide for the expenses which were absolutely unavoidable, without incurring debt; and it is not now in their power, without further aid, to put the institution into operation upon a scale commensurate with the public wants. That this would probably be the case, they early apprehended; and they endeavoured in time to obtain the required assistance. In January last, they presented a memorial to the Legislature, setting forth at length their proceedings up to that period, and the condition and prospects of the work. In February, they called a meeting of the contributors, published an address to their fellow citizens, repeated their request for aid, and adopted measures for obtaining new subscriptions. This call produced little more than four thousand dollars, which, added to the amount before received, gives a total for individual subscriptions of $12,585.27. Their receipts from all sources have amounted to $42, 364.76: to wit: Private contributions, as before stated, County Treasury, to wit: 1828, $12,585.27 5000 2500 7,500 5000 5000 Anticipated by a note of the Committee of Finance, Loans from 13 individuals, to be returned in 1829, each $500, Loan from Pennsylvania Society for the Promotion of Public Economy, secured by a mortgage on the real estate of the House of Refuge, without the walls, Sales of materials, and interest of money loaned in 1826-7, 10,000 2,500 6,500 3,000 279.49 $42,364.76 Their expenditures have amounted to to wit: Lot of ground, 5,500 35,800 989.23 $42,289.23 Leaving a balance in the hands of the treasurer at the present time of only $75.53. Buildings and wall, as far as completed, Miscellaneous, including interest of money borrowed, insurance of buildings, &c. r 42,289.73 cy. Whatever else may be contemplated-and ce tainly extensive public advantages are to be expecte which will deserve the public consideration-is only in cidental. The Refuge is not a place of punishment; it is not a provision simply, nor eyen principally, for the security of society against offence, by the confinement of culprits, ner for inflicting the vengeance of society upon offenders as a terror to those who may be inclined to do evil. It presents no vindictive or reproachful aspect; it threatens no humiliating recollections of the past; it holds out no degrading denunciations for the future-but, in the accents of kindness and compassion, invites the children of poverty and ignorance, whose wandering and unguided steps are leading them to swift 600 destruction, to come to a home where they will be sheltered from temptation, and led into the ways of useful6,500 ness and virtue. To complete the buildings, and prepare accommoda, tions for 25 boys and 10 girls, will require at least 1,600 Salaries of officers, and maintenance of subjects for the present year, will not be less than Add the present debt of the society, to wit: Loans from Society for Promoting Public Will give for the probable amount of debt on the 1st January, 1829, That such is the object of the establishment, will be 3,000 manifest from reading the sixth section of the Act of Incorporation, which provides "That the said managers $11,700 shall at their discretion receive into the said House of If provision could be made for the payment of this Refuge, such children who shall be taken up or comdebt, the prospect might be deemed encouraging. The mitted as vagrants, or upon any criminal charge, or duCounty Commissioners are authorized to pay five thou-ly convicted of criminal offences, as may in the judg sand dollars annually out of the county funds, for five ment of the Court of Oyer and Terminer, or of the years, commencing with the year 1829. To this may Court of Quarter Sessions of the peace of the county, be added annual subscriptions, expected to amount to or of the Mayor's Court of the city of Philadelphia, or of from six to eight hundred dollars, which, together, any alderman or justice of the peace, or of the managers would be sufficient to maintain one hundred subjects. of the alms-house and house of employment, be deemThe House is calculated to accommodate 174, that is to ed proper objects; and the said managers of the House say, 87 boys and 87 girls. But the managers feel con- of Refuge shall have power to place the said children fident, that if relieved from debt, and put into operation committed to their care, during the minority of the said with the limited number mentioned, its practical ben-children, at such employments, and cause them to be inefits would in a short time secure to it the patronage structed in such branches of useful knowledge as may necessary for its extension and support. be suitable to their years and capacities; and they shall have power in their discretion to bind out the said children, with their consent, as apprentices, during their minority, to such persons, and at such places, to learn such proper trades and employments as in their judg ment will be most conducive to the reformation and amendment, and will tend to the future benefit and advantage of such children." In making this exposition of the result of their labours up to the present time, it is the purpose of the managers, while they give an account of their stewardship, to show to their fellow citizens the necessity for further aid, and to appeal to them to afford it. The work is their own. To them will belong the satisfaction to be derived from its success, and to them also will belong a considerable portion of whatever credit may be due to those The value of such a foundation is demonstrable by who have conferred its benefits upon the community.-abundant proofs. Our laws, conforming as far as prac Will they, suffer it to languish for want of the aid that is now required? ticable to the dictates of nature, regard the period of infancy as weak and prone to error, and the infant as incapable of governing himself. He may be said, in general, to be exempt from all civil responsibility. He can make but few binding contracts, except for mere necessaries. Whatever acts he is permitted to do, are guarded by peculiar cautions, all having in view to protect him from the feebleness of his own judgment, and to place him at maturity upon the stage of life, as if he were then born to society, and began first to exist for the purpose of civil obligation. Of those who have given any consideration to this subject, there are very few, perhaps there are none, who have not unhesitatingly yielded their entire approbation to the plan of a House of Refuge. The simple suggestion, indeed, seemed to carry instant conviction to every mind capable of understanding, and to every heart susceptible of feeling the nature of the duties we owe to ourselves and to each other. There was and there continues to be, an almost entire unanimity of opinion in favour of the work. But there are many who think that it Our criminal laws are upon an entirely different footought to be altogether a public charge, and on that ac-ing. Whether it be that the faculty of judging between count have declined to give it the support of their names right and wrong is more early and more distinctly deor contributions. They say, let it be supported by the veloped, than the capacity to exercise a sound judgtreasury of the State or of the County, and not be ment upon the complicated concerns of property, or thrown upon the charity of individuals. that the security of society does not allow of the same indulgence when crime is committed as in cases of contract, or whether it be from the combined operation of both these causes, the fact is certain, that there is scarcely an age so tender as to be exempt from criminal responsibility "Under seven years of age, indeed," says Blackstone, "an infant connot be guilty of felony, for then a felonious discretion is almost an impossibility in nature: but at eight years old he may be guilty of felony. Also, under fourteen, though an infant shall be prima facie adjudged to be doli incapax; yet, if it appear to the court and jury that he was doli capax, and could discern between good and evil, he may be convicted and suffer death." 4 B. Com. 22, The learned author then goes on to state the case of a girl of thir teen who had been burned for killing her mistress, and of two boys of ten, and one of eight years old, who had It cannot be denied, that he who is asked to give, is at liberty to withhold: he is the exclusive master of the judgment which, in this respect, is to determine his conduct. But it is not inconsistent with the just liberty of our fellow citizens to place before them the motives which influence us to ask, and which, properly considered, may perhaps induce them to give. It is with this view, and with the hope that our efforts may yet open new streams of bounty, as well as enlarge those which have so far supplied and nourished the establishment, that we now invite your attention to some of the considerations which seem to us to justify the appeal. We would remind you, in the first place, that the great end and aim of the House of Refuge is, in the strictest sense of the terms, a work of charity and mer suffered the punishment of death by hanging. care, and as far as I recollect, conducted himself pro That the law could in this respect be safely altered, is perly during that period. He came to London with more than I would undertake to affirm. Immunity from his father, and I am assured by a very respectable criminal accountability up to a fixed period of life, and tradesman, who knew him well, that he would not have a consequent freedom from restraint and punishment objected to take him into his service. He is now fouruntil that period arrive, would be repugnant to every teen years old, and a boy of an intelligent countenance. dictate of social prudence and justice. On the other He was apprehended in May last as a vagrant, for sellhand, to seize upon the first dawn of the faculty of dis- ing religious tracts in Bishopgate church-yard, without cerning between right and wrong, when childhood is a hawker's license, and sent to the city bridewell for a manifest in the language, the deportment, and in the month. There he passed the day with twenty men very person of the culprit, and throw the offending and four boys committed for various crimes, and he slept child into a mass of ripe and hardened offenders, subject- with a prisoner who employed him to pick pockets ed to the same punishment, and condemned to the same and steal from the other prisoners, and received, as the association, has in it something so revolting to humanity, boy says, the produce of his thefts. The man and five that the spectacle never fails to enlist the feelings against others took a fever, and the boy continued to sleep the law, and judges and juries are often tempted to with him during its progress. He caught it himself, strain their conscience in order to produce an acquittal. brought it home, and communicated it to his father, Either alternative is dangerous to the future welfare of mother, and three brothers, one of whom died. The the unfortunate accused. If by the irresistible impulse father told me, that before his apprehension, he was a of humanity, he is restored to liberty, he returns to his good and dutiful son, and that he had no fault to find former haunts and habits, emboldened by impunity, and with him. His mother said he was a quiet, demure boy, hardened, perhaps ruined, by the base association to fond of reading, and always willing to go with her to a which he has been exposed, even before his trial, by place of worship. Now, he never takes a book into his confinement with untried prisoners. If he be condemn-hands, except to purloin it; and if she mentions any reed, his fate is almost inevitably sealed. Nothing less ligious service, she is answered by execrations on her than a miracle can save him from destruction. and her advice. She placed him in a school, but he sent word to the master, with a desperate oath, that he would never go again. She cannot keep any work in the house. He has stolen and sold her bible, his father's to his brother; he is seldom at home: his father has clothes, and the clothes lent by the Raven-crow school found him at night sleeping in the baskets of Covent Garden, with a horde of girls and boys, thieves and prostitutes. I was much struck with the behaviour and feeling lamentations of his parents. They spoke to the his unkindness and depravity, as resulting from this conboy more in sorrow than in anger,' and even excused finement. replied." " On the other hand, I was as much struck "Of all the men we meet with," says Mr. Locke, "nine parts in ten are what they are, good or evil, useful or not, by their education." What must be the education of those whom we put to school in a common jail! Evidence is not wanting to establish as a melancholy fact, what we might readily infer from observation as likely to be the case. T. F. Buxton, in his "Inquiry," states the result of his personal examination in a number of prisons, from which it may not be unprofitable to make some extracts. Speaking of the Borough Compt er, he says, "The jailer told me that in an experience of nine years he had never known an instance of reforma-with the hard, careless, scornful manner in which he tion; he thought the prisoners grew worse, and he was sure, that if you took the first boy you met with in the streets, and placed him in his prison, by the end of a month he would be as bad as the rest, and up to all the roguery of London." At the jail of St. Albans, he asked of the jailer, "Have you ever known persons come here comparatively innocent, who have gone out quite depraved?" "I have not," is the answer, "known persons come here innocent, because they are sent here for some offence; but I have known several sent here for first offences, whose minds were not wicked, though they had been guilty of the one offence. I have known a great many, (I can't mention the number,) who coming in thus, have gone out quite depraved; but I have never known one, who coming in wicked, went out better." Many and very grievous," says Mr. Buxton, 66 are the instances which have come to my knowledge of persons corrupted by prisons. When I first went to Newgate, my attention was directed by my companion to a boy, whose apparent innocence and artlessness had attracted his attention. The schoolmaster said he was an example to all the rest, so quiet, so reserved, and so unwilling to have any intercourse with his dissolute companions. At his trial he was acquitted upon evidence which did not leave a shadow of suspicion upon him; but lately I recognised him again in Newgate; but with a very different character. He confessed to me that on his release he had associated with the acquaintances he had formed in prison: of his ruin I feel but little doubt; and as little of the cause of it. He came to Newgate innocent; he left it corrupted." One more instance is related by Mr. Buxton at some length. It is of a peculiarly affecting nature, and deserves to be repeated for the solemn lesson it conveys: "G. M., the son of a journeyman butcher, in reduced circumstances, was educated at the endowed grammar school at Burnet, under the Rev. Mr. Man, who writes me word, G. M. was for some time under my in a common jail; and such must always be its destruc- STATE-HOUSE FIRE BELL. Mode of ringing the Alarm Bell, so as to show the direction of FIRES from the State-house. When the fire is to the North, the bell will be rung by single strokes-for the South, by double strokes, in rapid succession-for the East, three-and for the West, four strokes. |