and is in full view of the bay between Laconia and Lake Village. This institution consists of a main house, jail, and outbuildings. It has no insane asylum. There are, on the average, about sixty inmates; at the time of the inspection there were sixty-two, thirteen or fourteen of whom are classed as insane, and six prisoners in the jail.

The jail is located on the southeast end of the house, and connected with the same by a corridor. A portion of it can be seen in the illustration, on the left under the trees. This institution, like many others in the State, has undergone many changes and improvements during the past few years. Three years ago the old jail, which was a disgrace to the county, was demolished and a new one built. At the same time the sewerage system was considerably improved, although it is yet defective.

The main house is a two-story wooden building, with two wings on the west side, one occupied by the male, and the other by the female inmates, while the superintendent's rooms are in the central part of the main house. The buildings are at present ample in size for the needs of the county.

The superintendent and matron, Mr. and Mrs. H. C. Gale, who have recently been placed in charge, have thoroughly renovated all the rooms throughout the entire buildings by painting the walls and ceilings and varnishing or shellacing the woodwork, so that the rooms are now exceedingly neat and clean. This process completely destroys the "almshouse odor." This work was all done by Mr. Gale and his wife, and reflects great credit upon their earnest efforts to place the institution in the best possible condition. Indeed, many of our better class dwellings possess no neater or cleaner rooms than can now be found at this almshouse. Many of the floors were also painted. The bathrooms, water-closets, basement rooms, etc., were all equally clean.. A small boiler has been put in the basement, near the boiler used for steam-heating purposes, to supply steam for cooking during the warm months of the year. This is in satisfactory operation. The food was noticed to be of excellent quality and abundant.

This institution has no special ward for its insane, but they are allowed to mingle with the other inmates, with the exception of one or two cases which are kept in confinement. While this arrangement cannot be seriously objected to at the present time,

perhaps, separate apartments must eventually be provided for the insane, and the county ought at once to provide better quarters for the detention of the violent insane.

The

The jail is a brick building, 38x50 feet, with six large double windows. It contains two tiers of cells, sixteen in number, and 8x82x9 feet in size. There is a water-closet and pipe for drawing water in each cell. The cells are built of brick, with granite floors, while between the two tiers of cells are iron plates. corridor, or space around the cells, is large and airy. The prisoners have the freedom of the corridors during the day, and under the encouragement of the superintendent have taken great interest in keeping the jail clean. They have been furnished with whitewash and brush, with brooms, mop, and pail, and all articles necessary to maintain cleanliness. Cuspidores were furnished by the superintendent, and the prisoners allow no tobacco juice on the floors. So far as cleanliness is concerned, this is a model jail.

The institution has two systems of sewerage, -one which takes most of the sewage from the house, discharging in the field a sufficient distance from the house to be unobjectionable; the other discharges a short distance north of the buildings, and at times this constitutes a nuisance, owing to its close proximity to the house. It is understood that the commissioners contemplate extending this sewer so that it may discharge at a suitable distance from the buildings.

The attention of the county should be called to the fact that the institution possesses no means of extinguishing fire except that afforded by the tank in the attic which supplies water for domestic purposes. All the buildings except the jail being of wood, the danger from fire is not imaginary. The present water supply is from the lake, and is pumped by wind power into the tank in the attic. This tank has a capacity sufficient only for domestic requirements, and a second tank is contemplated by the commissioners. These tanks would be of little or no use in case of fire, and cannot be considered sufficient for that purpose. The county should provide hydrants connected with the Lake Village and Laconia water-works, which would furnish an ample supply for all needed purposes. This would necessitate quite an outlay, but the protection afforded to life and property would warrant it.

CARROLL COUNTY ALMSHOUSE.

This institution is located about one mile from the railway station at Ossipee, and is on an elevation favorable to good drainage. The location is very pleasant and beautiful. The buildings are of wood, three stories high including basement, and consist of a main building with one large wing and an adjacent L.

There were, at the time of inspection, sixty-two inmates, about twenty of whom were insane; a few of the latter class are kept in close confinement. There is no separate building for the insane, and those not in close confinement mingle freely with the other inmates of the institution. The need of a separate building or ward for this class is very great.

The entire almshouse was found to be scrupulously neat and clean throughout, and too much praise for this special feature cannot be given the matron, Mrs. Manson. The visit was made Saturday morning, and was without previous notice, and the cleanliness of the rooms, corridors, etc., in fact of every part of the building, was unusually noticeable, notwithstanding the day and hour of the inspection.

The water supply is from a spring upon a hillside nearly a mile distant, and is of most excellent quality and ample for domestic purposes.

The ventilation of the institution has been somewhat improved by the construction of ventilating flues which extend through the roof of the building, and by transoms over the doors of the rooms.

The drainage of the institution is imperfect; the sinks, laundry, etc., are connected with an Akron-pipe sewer which discharges into a field a sufficient distance from the buildings, and by changing its course frequently the sewage is utilized successfully as a fertilizer. The field into which this waste water is discharged produces a very heavy crop of grass each year. The fixtures are not trapped, and the plumbing, what there is of it, is bad.

The institution has but one bathtub, and that is a wooden box made by the superintendent, to which water is brought in a pail. By removing a plug in the bottom of this tub the water escapes into the sewer. This box is placed in one end of the small laundry room. The county should put in at least two good bathtubs, and not depend upon this extemporized affair.