With the exception of the months of July and August, each of the committees shall hold meetings at their respective district offices at least once a month, as the committee may decide. Three members shall constitute a quorum in the Eastern District and two in the Western District. Special meetings may be called by the chairman as often as he may deem the same necessary. The district committees may, when in their judgment the work of inspection requires it, hold joint meetings.

The committees may in their respective districts designate from time to time one of their members to supervise and direct the daily conduct of the work of the district.

The district offices shall be open for business from 9 A. M. to 5 P. M. on every week day, not a legal holiday, except on Saturdays, when they shall be open from 9 a. M. to 12 M.

In each district there shall be an office superintendent, to be appointed by the Board upon the nomination of the district committee. He shall be subject to the said committee and the district office shall be in his charge; he shall see that the details of business in the district office receive prompt and suitable attention; act as secretary of the district committee, and keep a record of its proceedings; have the custody of the district office, and be responsible for the safe preservation of all papers, books, letters and documents. In each district there shall be such number of inspectors and other employees as the Board may see proper to employ.

The inspectors may, as far as practicable, be classified as "auditing inspectors," "sanitary inspectors" and "general inspectors ". The duties of the "auditing inspectors" may be specially directed to examination of the accounts, records and other matters relative to the financial affairs of institutions. The duties of "sanitary inspectors" may be specially directed to inspection of conditions affecting the sanitary status of institutions. The duties of "general inspectors" may be considered as connected with conditions not belonging specially to the departments of auditing and sanitary inspectors. All inspectors and other employees of the districts shall perform such duties as may from time to time be designated by the district committees.

The joint committee of the Eastern and the Western Districts may temporarily transfer inspectors from the Eastern to the West

ern District and vice versa. The reasons of such transfers shall be entered in the minutes of both of the district committees.

The hours of duty of the said superintendents, inspectors and other employees shall be from 9 A. M. to 5 P. M., with an hour's intermission for lunch, every week day, not a legal holiday, except on Saturdays, when the hours will be from 9 A. M. to 12 M.

Inspectors shall make full and complete records in such form as shall be prescribed by the Board or the district committees of all visits, inspections and examinations, and shall file the same in the office of the proper inspection district.

The said district committees, at their stated meetings, shall examine and, so far as practicable, classify the reports of inspections of almshouses and other charitable institutions (other than State charitable institutions) located within their respective districts, the reports of such almshouse inspections to be presented to the committees by the Commissioners of the districts in which such almshouses are located, to whom they shall have been transmitted previously, for consideration, or by the secretaries of such committees. The reports of the inspection of institutions under private control shall be presented either by the secretaries of the committees or by the superintendent of inspection. The said committees may request the Secretary of the Board to transmit copies of such reports of inspection to the authorities of the institutions prior to action thereon by the Board, if in the opinion of such committees prompt action is necessary for the correction of

evils or abuses.

If, in the opinion of either committee, it appears that any institution is not complying with the rules adopted pursuant to Article VIII, Section 14 of the Constitution, said committee shall promptly bring the matter to the attention of the Board in order that the proper financial officer of the county, city, town or village affected thereby may be duly notified.

On or about the 20th of each month, each district committee shall send requisitions to the Secretary for such postage stamps, stationery and other supplies as may be required in the performance of their duties.

As soon after the first of each month as practicable, the said committees shall send to the Secretary of the Board a full report

of the inspection work of the district, during the month preceding, together with a separate account of the salary and disbursements. of each employee of the district, certified by the chairman of said respective committees.

Manual for the Guidance of the Inspectors of the State Board of Charities.

The Office of Inspector.

An inspector of the State Board of Charities is a State officer appointed by that Board under the State Civil Service Rules. The statute confers upon him important powers and requires of him the performance of certain duties in the visitation and inspection of institutions of a charitable, eleemosynary, reformatory or correctional character or design. These powers and duties are contained in the "State Charities Law" (chapter 57, Laws of 1909.) With a view to familiarize inspectors with their statutory obligations and the instructions of the State Board of Charities in relation thereto, the provisions of law relating to their powers and duties have been collated in this manual, and such explanations, instructions and regulations have been added as were deemed necessary for their information and guidance.

I. Provisions of Law Relating to the Powers and Duties of Inspectors.

1. Institutions subject to inspection.

Section 10. All institutions of a charitable, eleemosynary, reformatory or correctional character or design, including reformatories (except those now under the supervision and subject to the inspection of the prison commission), but including all reformatories, except those in which adult males convicted of felony, shall be confined, asylums and institutions for idiots and epileptics, almshouses, orphan asylums, and all asylums, hospitals and institutions, whether state, county, municipal, incorporated or not incorporated, private or otherwise, except institutions for the custody, care and treatment of the insane, are subject to the visitation, inspection and supervision of the State Board of Charities, its members, officers and inspectors.

The Court of Appeals has defined the meaning of the words "charitable institutions," as used in the Constitution and the State Charities Law, as follows:

"A charitable institution, within the meaning of sections 11 to 14 of article VIII of the Constitution, chapter 771 of the Laws of 1895, and chapter 57 of the Laws of 1909, giving to the State Board of Charities the right of visitation with respect to all charitable institutions, is one that in some form or to some extent receives public money for the support and maintenance of indigent persons, and by public money is meant money raised by taxation, not only in the State at large, but in any city, county or town."

The important facts which should be noticed by inspectors are as follows:

1. Certain classes of institutions are excepted from inspection by the State Board of Charities, because they are not in receipt of public money, or are under the jurisdiction of other State authorities.

2. The language of the statute makes all institutions, with the exceptions given, subject to inspection, which in character or design are charitable, eleemosynary, reformatory or correctional. Managers and officers may object to an inspection, alleging that the institution is not a charity in character or design. It is important, therefore, that inspectors should inform themselves as accurately as possible, before visiting an institution with which they are unacquainted, as to its character and the objects which it was designed to accomplish, and whether or not the institution is in receipt of public money. This information may be obtained by examining the articles of incorporation and the annual reports.

3. Objection may be made to an inspection because the institution belongs to a county or city, or because it is unincorporated or is private, but the statute is very explicit in this respect, and includes all that come under the general definition, whatever may be the nature of their origin, their location or their control.

For decisions on this subject see

Court of Appeals, April, 1897: The People ex rel. Inebriate Home vs. Comptroller, 152 N. Y. 399.

Court of Appeals, April, 1897: The People ex rel. N. Y. Institution for the Blind vs. Fitch, 154 N. Y. 14.

Court of Appeals, January, 1900: The People ex rel. State Board of Charities vs. The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, 161 N. Y. 233, and Court of Appeals, April, 1900, 162 N. Y. 429.

Court of Appeals, February, 1901: Fox vs. Mohawk and Hudson River Humane Society, 165 N. Y. 517.

2. Inspections may be made at any and all times.

Section 10, continued: Such institutions may be visited and inspected by such Board, or any member, officer or inspector duly appointed by it for that purpose, at any and all times.

No examination of an institution can be made for the purpose of obtaining all of the information which the law requires when the inspector is limited as to the time of his inspection by any rules or regulations of the managers or officials. The everyday working condition of all parts of an institution can most satisfactorily be determined only by the casual and unexpected visits of the inspector. For example, unannounced visits must be made at meal times to learn the kind, quality and quantity of foods ordinarily served, and visits to the dormitories at night is the only method of deciding as to their ventilation.

3. Powers of inspectors during an inspection.

Section 10, continued: Any member or officer of such Board, or inspector duly appointed by it, shall have full access to the grounds, buildings, books and papers relating to any such institution, and may require from the officers and persons in charge thereof, any information he may deem necessary in the discharge of his duties.

The statutory powers of inspectors during an inspection enable them to obtain full and accurate knowledge of the entire premises and of every feature of the institution and its management. They have the right to see personally every part of the buildings and premises, every inmate, all of the books, records and papers, and finally they may require any additional information deemed neces