Chapter 7 — Artane

Fr Henry Moore

The upshot of the December meeting was that the Secretary of the Department of Education ordered an unannounced inspection of Artane by three senior Department personnel. They were requested to focus on food, clothing and management in general: ‘they should state the facts reasonably and with discretion – good and bad to be included’. The inspection took place over two days on 20th and 21st December and each inspector furnished a report.

Mr Seamus Mac Uaid, Higher Executive Officer, wrote the principal report, which was described by the Chairman, Mr Berry, as ‘a model of its kind’. The general conclusion of the report was reassuring to the Department, but many of the detailed observations did not differ significantly from Fr Moore’s. The writer began with a summary of his findings: it is my opinion that the boys in Artane Industrial School are well fed, warmly clothed, comfortably bedded and treated with kindness by the Christian Brothers in an atmosphere conducive to their spiritual and physical development. I believe, however, that boys should not be reared away from the refining influence of women and am convinced that the introduction of female assistance at key points in the management would render more effective the work of the institution.

He described Artane as: a massive pile standing on rising ground ... erected in the 1870’s with all the solidity of the period and an extravagance of space that makes a nightmare of maintenance in modern times.

A feature of this report is the frequent reference to the desirability of involving women in the work of the Institution, and how male standards compared unfavourably with female ones in respect of care of children. Mr Mac Uaid cited the example of the kitchen, which was staffed by one Brother and five older boys and which had recently been modernised, at a cost of £25,000: The standards of cleanliness, cooking and presentation of the food were high but they were male standards and lacked the finishing touches which woman alone can provide in this particular domain.

The aprons worn by kitchen staff were dirty, the plates were slightly greasy and not dried properly, and it would be preferable if dessert were served on a delph plate rather than the enamel plates used. However: from observation and the questions asked of the boys, I am satisfied that the children are well fed and empty plates bore testimony to the quality of the food.

Whilst he was satisfied with the menu for the two days of the inspection, he did note the absence of butter from all meals.

The report described in turn: the food given to the boys and the cooking and dining facilities; the dormitories; the boys’ clothing; the laundry; the washing facilities; games and recreation; education and training; aftercare; the farm; holidays; and the general atmosphere. The overall conclusion was that: Artane emerged from the inspection with credit. Within the limitations of an inherited system which favoured big schools, all male management and a public purse that had to be prised open at times, the Superior, Br Ourson, is doing a good job in providing for the spiritual, educational and physical needs of the boys entrusted to his care.

The writer commended him on the improvements he had made to the School, in particular to the kitchen and classrooms. He recommended the following innovations, which the Manager had no objection to, provided that they were funded by the Department: 1.Introduction of a small community of nuns to provide much-needed female influence on various aspects of industrial school life. 2.Creation of two separate schools for junior and senior boys. 3.Establishment of a hostel for boys leaving Artane who had been abandoned or orphaned.

Dr McCabe reported her complete satisfaction with the medical facilities, treatment and monitoring provided in Artane. She referred to her own regular medical and general inspections and medical checks carried out every two years by the local authority. She commended the hygiene and said that the boys’ diet was very good. The dormitories were ‘large, airy spacious and very well maintained’. Dr McCabe concluded: I would also wish to state that there is a most pleasant relationship between the Brothers and their care and I have never met with any fear on the boy’s behalf of those in charge of them.

In his short covering report, the most senior inspector, Mr MacDaibhid, Assistant Principal Officer and Inspector in charge of industrial schools, endorsed the reports of his colleagues and added: To sum up I would say that the school emerged very creditably from the inspection. No serious fault could be found in Artane and the impression of the “big happy family” atmosphere which pervaded the entire institution was inescapable. Atmosphere in such a school is all-important. Minor adverse criticisms only could be levelled at the school.

In the course of his report, Mr MacDaibhid mentioned that the ‘overcoats supplied by the School are raincoats only, 412 of which were ordered in December’. Mr MacUaid disclosed in his report that the number of boys in residence was 413, which means that outer garments for all the boys were being procured. The provision of overcoats for the boys was a matter of controversy in the questioning of Fr Moore by counsel for the Christian Brothers. This report suggests that these raincoats were being ordered for the first time, and it does not disprove Fr Moore’s report.

Mr MacDaibhid concluded: Having passed strictures on Bro Ourson in the past, I must say that he emerged from this inspection with, in my opinion, much improved stature, his previous weakness being an apparently casual disregard for the authority of the Department.

The Department Inspection Reports on Artane were considered by the Inter-Departmental Committee in March and again in May 1963. The Committee ‘could not agree’ that the School had emerged commendably from the inspections, or that the praise accorded to the management was deserved. Mr MacDaibhid continued to assert that the criticisms noted in the MacUaid report were minor and were applicable to all industrial schools, although he did concede that there was a need for more money, which was true of industrial schools generally. Dr McCabe’s report on the School ‘was noted’. Ultimately, the Committee agreed to bring the criticisms noted by Mr MacUaid and recorded in the minutes of the March meeting to the attention of the Minister for Education.

The relevant part of the minutes is introduced by the statement that the MacUaid report ‘was then considered paragraph by paragraph, the Chairman indicating the many ways in which the criticisms corresponded to what Fr Moore had said’ and goes on: The Report makes these criticisms for instance:- “that boys should not be reared away from the refining influence of women; “the necessity for having female assistants at key points in the institution; “there is an extravagance of space which makes a nightmare of maintenance (of Artane) in modern times; “nowhere else was I more forcibly struck by the criticism that Artane is too big than in this vast dining hall among 400 youngsters ... The fact that the dining hall was designed to accommodate several hundred more than the number present added to the impression that the charge “institutionalised” could not be defended here; “it is essential that a woman qualified in domestic economy and with a female assistant, be placed in charge of the kitchen and dining hall; “the standards here (in the dormitories) were male standards ... the furnishing of a dormitory is a woman’s role which man cannot adequately fill; “the clothes in most cases were of the rough type tweed in the familiar poor-house colours ... automatically identifying the wearers ... The Sunday clothes were ... equally drab in colour and unimaginative in pattern ... a woman with ideas could do really good work in the school workshop ... “add to this shirts buttoned or unbuttoned at the neck and no ties and even the most presentable boys are handicapped in appearance; “on paper this (each boy’s issue of clothes) looks a generous issue but it is not supported by the appearance of the boys; “the same general criticisms are made of the laundry which is described as being old-fashioned in methods and machinery; “he (the Dean of discipline) is too young for an exacting job that requires maturity, had little experience of the city type prior to his appointment as disciplinarian; “in response to the suggestion that a course in psychology in U.C.D. would help in an office of this important kind he (the Superior) replied that the question had never been examined by the Order; “the play-yard was disappointing, its surface uneven and puddle-holed contributing in turn to dirty boots and shoes and spattered legs; “the recreation hall is a long cement-floored room, uncared for, dismal, depressing and dirty and with no redeeming feature whatsoever ... The school classroom one of the same ramshackle type ... “the Superior drew attention to the lack of a satisfactory hostel for orphans or abandoned boys leaving Artane at 16 years; “the absence of a hostel for post industrial school boys with no homes to go to is a weakness in the system of aftercare which I think the Department should try to rectify; “12 boys (out of 150 eligible) were entered for the M.T. Group Certificate ... in June, 1962 but all failed ... this Branch will pursue this unsatisfactory performance with our Technical Instruction Branch; “the Resident Manager very seldom applies for the retention of boys until the age of 17 years to continue their secondary or technical school studies and the replies given by the Bursar in defence of this policy were vague and unsatisfactory; “Cleanliness in the bakery was barely adequate and the white tunics of the apprentices could do with replacement”.

The Committee also set out and approved general recommendations for change for industrial schools, many of which were influenced by the Moore and Department of Education inspections. The recommendations included the following: (1)The term ‘industrial school’ should be abolished. (2)Larger State grants should be made to industrial schools. (3)Inspections should take place more frequently. (4)Minimum standards regarding clothing, bedding etc should be prescribed by regulations. (5)Adequate financial provision should be set aside for maintenance, repairs and appropriate recreational facilities. (6)A matron/nurse should be appointed to each school. (7)City children should not be committed for lengthy periods to country institutions. (8)Firm links between institutions and the Probation Service should be established for the benefit of those leaving institutions. (9)Visiting Committees should be set up for each industrial school and, where appropriate, Aftercare Committees.