MASSACHUSETTS. 



461 



school-building, and a tract of seventy-two 

 acres was secured for that purpose. 



Charities. The whole number of the State 

 poor who are either fully supported or in some 

 way aided from the State treasury amounts to 

 nearly 20,000 in a year. The number of the 

 in-door poor of the cities and towns is nearly 

 12,000 in a year, of whom about 3,500 are in- 

 sane persons. The number of the out-door 

 poor of the cities and towns, as distinct from 

 those of the State, can not readily be given, 

 but is between 30,600 and 40,000 during the 

 year. The valuation of all the establishments 

 in the State for the relief of the poor is $9,000,- 

 000. The valuation of the city and town 

 almshouses, with their personal property 

 (amounting to about $550,000), and their 

 farms of a little less than 21,000 acres, is very 

 nearly $3,000,000. The valuation of tlie eleven 

 State" establishments, including the hospitals 

 and asylums for the insane, has now reached 

 about $6,000,000, of which less than $1,000,000 

 is personal property, while the number of acres 

 in the State farms but little exceeds 2,300. 



At the close of the year the following in- 

 mates of the State charitable institutions are 

 reported : Institutions for the insane : Males, 

 1,732; females, 1,963. Total. 3,695. State 

 Almshouse (excluding the asylum), State Pri- 

 mary School and State Farm (excluding the 

 asylum), 1,410; Lyman School for Boys, State 

 Industrial School and the School for the Feeble- 

 Minded, 402. Aggregate, 5,507. 



The Insane. At the Danvers Insane Hospital 

 1,209 patients were treated during the year 

 ending September 30. At the beginning of 

 this period there were 763 patients ; at its 

 close, 740. The total receipts of the year 

 were $150,874.21; payments, $148,870.09. At 

 the Northampton Hospital 639 cases were 

 treated during the year, there being 491 pa- 

 tients at the beginning and 469 at its close. 

 Total receipts, $98,994.40; payments, $93,- 

 511.38. The Taunton Hospital treated 934 

 cases, having at the beginning of the fiscal 

 year 663 ; at its close, 634. The total receipts 

 were $133,836.40 ; payments, 132,141.30. For 

 the Worcester Hospital the figures are as fol- 

 low : Total number of cases, 1,073 ; patients, 

 Sept, 30, 1886, 758; Sept. 30, 1887, 694; total 

 receipts, $187,658.33; total expenses, $162,- 

 801.15. At the Worcester Asylum for Chronic 

 Insane there were 444 cases, 398 at the begin- 

 ning of the year and 392 at its close. Total 

 receipts, $84,016.32; expenses, $72,833.51. 

 The W^estborough Insane Hospital was first 

 opened for patients in December, 1886. It 

 had received from other hospitals and from 

 original commitments up to September 30 of 

 this year 432 patients, of which 123 were dis- 

 charged, leaving 309 at the end of the year. 

 The total receipts were $70,607.14, and ex- 

 penditures $65,205.74. In addition to these 

 hospitals there is a department for the insane 

 at the Tewksbury Almshouse, where 444 pa- 

 tients were treated during the year, 349 re- 



maining at its close. The total number of 

 almshouse inmates at the beginning of the year 

 was 828 ; at its close, 877. 



Prisons. At the State Prison on December 

 1 533 prisoners were confined. The Massa- 

 chusetts Reformatory for men contained 837 

 convicts, having received during the three 

 years of its existence 2,234 persons. "The 

 work thus far accomplished by the reforma- 

 tory has been of a high order, and its results 

 are encouraging ; but the design of the insti- 

 tution has been seriously interfered with by 

 the fact that to it have been sent men who are 

 wholly unfit to be subjected to its influences." 

 The Reformatory Prison for Women, which 

 contained over 100 inmates at the end of the 

 year, is accomplishing a similar work to that 

 of the Massachusetts Reformatory. 



The law abolishing contract labor in the 

 prisons went into effect on November 1. Un- 

 der its provisions all labor in the prisons must 

 be done for the benefit of the State, and upon 

 such industries as the warden or general super- 

 intendent shall direct. Tools, implements, and 

 materials shall be purchased by the State, but 

 no new machinery other than hand or foot- 

 power shall be furnished. A general superin- 

 tendent of prisons is created, who shall estab- 

 lish and supervise the work in the State Prison, 

 reformatories, and houses of correction, in 

 connection with the superintendents of such 

 institutions. The provisions of this act have 

 proved to be ill-advised in several important 

 particulars. It divides the duty of supervision 

 between the State Superintendent and the 

 wardens or superintendents of each institution 

 without defining their respective powers. Tho 

 wisdom of State control of county prisons is 

 also doubtful. Prohibition of new machinery 

 operates unfairly against prisons that have not 

 yet used mechanical equipments. 



Railroads. During the year ending Septem- 

 ber 30 there were constructed 28 miles of main 

 track, making the total length in the State 

 2,018 miles. There are in addition 740 miles 

 of double track and 964 miles of sidings, mak- 

 ing a total of 3,722 miles. The aggregate capi- 

 tal stock of the companies doing business in 

 the State was $150,469,414, an increase of 

 $19,781,445 over 1886. Their gross income 

 was $53,650,438, an increase of $4,334,617. 

 The net income, however, shows a decrease of 

 $195,646 over last year. Dividends were de- 

 clared to the amount of $7,550,901, or $683,- 

 395 above last year. 



Returns from the street-railways in the State 

 show a total length of track, including branches, 

 sidings, and double track, of 507 miles, an in- 

 crease of nearly 67 miles in a year. The aver- 

 age cost per mile was $34,648 for construct icn 

 and equipment. The aggregate capital stock 

 was $10,096,800, an increase of $971,155; 

 gross income, $6,459,524, an increase of $580,- 

 941, with a decrease of net income amounting 

 to $107,614. There was an increase of $36,850 

 in dividends. 



