The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1876-01-07
CORRESPONDENTS New NORTH WesT,
THE CAUSES OF. CRIME.

mony of one of the first physicians of the
city, DR.. Elisha Harris, who declared that
the increase of criminals in this city in the
past few years was greater in proportion
than the increase of population from births
and immigration together.
DR.. Willard Parker, an authority of equal
standing, said that liquor was the
chief cause of the vice, crime, idiocy and
insanity in the country. All who have
looked into the cause and cure of crime
agree that the vicious classes must be
made to work harder. 1t is a notorious
and patent fact that with all the increase
of wages and regulation of hours in the
last ten years. the condition of the lower
classes does not seem to be the better for
the change. The complaint is made by all
employers that there is very little, almost
no fair return made for the wages paid, no
matter how liberal these may he. The
average of work done in a day with all
the labor saving helps of the time is
hardly half what it used to be in the old
times. Now that there is such an outcry
for work, employers bethink themselves
whether they cannot obtain their own
right of days work for days pay. The
fact has rather been lost sight of, that em-
ployers had any right beyond that of
paying the most wages for The very least
that stupid and idle help chose to do.
| Now that the cry for bread comes so ur-
gent there is chance to find whether the
poor are willing to work for their money
rather than starve. Those of experience
among the lower classes of New York,
are not wanting who do not hesitate to say
that these had rather starve than work
hard. Ceartainly they will all beg, loaf,
or cheat in mild way, sooner than stir
! themselves to do brisk days work.
THE DISTRESS OF THE POOR.
Curious incidents come up among the
labors for the poor. One woman was
found with her five children III the sixth
story of a wretched tenement house, where
she made q miserable living by washing.
Her children were without shoes in bitter
weather. and kind merchant sent sup
ply all round. The oldest girl objected to
them because they were laced with shoe
strings, and button boots were the style.
The same family lost their father, a mis-
erabie wretch. who drank himself to death,
and were obliged to ask for charity to bury
him. The teachers of the mission school
who helped them before, agreed to bear
the expenses, whereupon the old woman
went out and ordered hearse, with
plumes, to attend the funeral of the de-
parted sot. A member of the city author
tiles told of poor fellow who had seen
better days, who came to him for help as
he was without position, or money. The
official handed him five-dollar bill, which
he could spare none too well himself, but
he was rather sorry for it, when he found
the first use the fellow made of it was to
go to the market and order a pair of ducks
for dinner, taking most of the money
which might have kept the family in food
for week
This may be considered apropos of the
study of crime, for such thriftlessness is a
crime not of the least dimensions. 1t
ought to count heavily against the laboring
men of this and other cities. that with the
high wages of the last ten years, very few
of them have saved money. The idea at
the time was to make money, not to save
it, and to make it in many ways beside
working for it.
ONE WEEK.
A murder week seems the regular
allowance, not counting homicides of less
degree. The last sad and shocking tragedy
is that of a young Hebrew girl who has not
been long in this country and who was
brutally killed by her betrayer last Sunday
night. The parties both have the reputa-
tion of being exceptionally religious, and
careful in observing all the rites of their
Church, and the girl was much beloved by
the family of the murderer While a
servant in the family she nursed him
through long illness and he seems to have
really loved her in return. But his wife
was coming over from the old country and
there was trouble ahead and no way pre-
sented itself out of the difficulty, but mur
der. So he took the girl to walk with him
in the lonely outskirts of East New York,
and stabbed her, kneeling at his feet for
mercy.
He betrayed himself by his anxiety to
show how impossible it was that he should
have killed girl to whom he was SO purely
attached.
And speaking of murders there are at
this time four men under sentence to be
hanged, and over thirty in the various pris-
ons are waiting trial for the sanae offence.
The bloody villain Dolan who killed
Noe, will probably escape the hanging he
SO richly deserves. The politicians are
moving heaven and earth to clear him,
and as they have succeeded in obtaining
two respites he viii doubtless slide out
altogether. There are in the same prison
three negroes convicted of killing Jew
peddler, on no stronger evidence than that
against Dolan, but no one thinks of moving
respite for them. And while I am on
this subject,
THE SYMPATHY
Shown for murderers is something curious.
/ was at the prison, the other day, and saw
brolled chickens, wine, rich cake and con-
fectionery, and the choicest of cigars that
had been sent in to comfort these miserable
murderers. The low-browed brtltes are
II
their lives, and they seem to expect it.
They growl and consider themselves i'll
used, if they do not get these nice things
every day. It is nice thing to be a MUIR
derer for little while.
FEMTNINE DEVOTION.
It is q Thousand pities that the heroic
devotion shownb by women in humble sta
tions of life could not find worthier OBJ