68 Sioux City Academy of Science and Letters. 
work. The meetings are held Saturday and Sunday even- 
ings of each week. Each society has the necessary offi- 
cers to carry on the organization and maintain order. 
“They are conducted without the presence of the prison 
officers. First grade men and such second grade men as 
have maintained a satisfactory conduct record may be 
admitted to membership if approved by the superintend- 
ent. Over 300 of the members assemble at each of the 
weekly meetings. Regular programs are arranged by 
the officers of the societies and printed for each meeting. 
These consist usually of declamations, musical selections, 
talks, and original papers.” They have proved of great 
benefit both to the men and to the institution. They 
have helped in the reformation of the men by awakening 
good purposes and by contributing to the good discipline 
of the institution. 
Especial emphasis is laid by Superintendent Scott 
upon moral and religious influence. He declares “that 
no matter how well prisoners may be instructed in 
trades, educated and physically trained, their reforma- 
tion is not a complete work unless there has been in- 
stilled into their hearts a strong desire for the right.” 
The religious official devoting all his time to the work. 
“There is a church service on Sundays which all officers 
and prisoners are expected to attend, and moral work is 
under the direction of the chaplain who is a paid officer. 
Sunday schools for both Catholics and Protestants, and 
meetings each evening of the week for special moral and 
religious instruction.” 
For seven successive years, the friends of the meas- 
ure to establish a reformatory prison for women 
appeared before the Massachusetts legislature with their 
petitions before it was granted. At last in 1874 the 
prison commission was given authority to select a site 
and to have erected a suitable prison accommodating 500 
prisoners. A site was selected in the town of Sherborn. 
The buildings were completed and occupied in the fall of 
1877. The prison was officered from the start entirely by 
women. This institution and the Indiana Reformatory 
Institution for Women and Girls at Indianapolis were 
the pioneers in the experiment of entrusting prison disci- 
pline to women. Before these experiments it was thought 
