Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-12-23

| breaking the laws of God, which says
thou shalt not steal
Parents! fathers and mothers, what
are you doing? Are you raising uE
children for the jails, penitentiaries and
gallows, or are you raising them up foI
the kingdom of heaven? If you want
them to ever see the inside of that
| glorious world keep them at home, and
teach them to be honest, impress upon
their young minds that God has said thou
| shalt not steal.
| But l want to ask another question
| Why is if that the boys are allowed to
gather i'll the streets and other public
places and play marbles, and lounge
around town during the week instead of
being at school, at work or at home?
Boys should be at school, at work, or
at least at home under the supervision of
their parents unless sent Oh an errand or
on business by them.
Their place is not Longing or playing
around the streets, it makes them trifling
and worthless, and l would suggest THAI
every boy under eighteen years of age
who is found on the streets, eating house
or restaurants. day or night, without
permission of his parents or guardian, be
arrested for vagrancy.
With the help of the officers of our
town our children can be made good and
useful citizens by being made to do right
when they are out of sight of their
parents. Don t let them lounge or play
around the streets, or any other public
place. Make them go home. Arrest
them if they don It.
In many instances the poor widowed
mothers cannot control their boys, who
have grown beyond their control, and al
though that mother may have done all in
her power to teach her boy and raise him
up right, it is human nature for a boy to
to find it pleasant to loiter sometimes
along the streets and often to stop and
play awhile. And there are always bad
boys ready to persuade better boys to
join them in doing wrong, and thus it is
that boys that were once good are led on
to become real bad boys, just by being
allowed to lounge or play around the
streets.
1t is the duty of our law making citi-
Zens to pass a law that every boy who is
found playing around or lounging around
the streets, in the restaurants, eating
houses, or any place where their duty
does not call them, to be arrested and
put to work on the streets, poat5
farm or sent to the house of correction,
or some place where they will be learned
to become good and useful citizens. If
this was done we would have better boys,
better men, and better town generally
EVERYTHING in years to come depend upon
our rising generation, and if we set them
good examples, make good laws, and en-
force them, give them good books and
good associations, we are bound to have
good children.
In 4,
handled as they ought to be, and made
to pay out some of their boarded cash in
fines, or made TO lay in Jail for breaking
the laws of their country, and making
others do it, we would have fewer coal
thieves. Instead of arresting the boys,
arrest the buyers, dig. up the root, the
buyer is the greatest thief in more in
stances than one.
l met a little boy few DAYS since with
a sack of coal on his back almost as large
as himself, and 1 said to him, Buddy
don't you know it is wrong to steal
coal?'' He said eyes mann - "weu,"
said | "don' you know that the officers
are arresting all the boys who are steal
ing coal?'' He answered, eyes mann,
but l don't let them see me- Now
what is to become of our country if such
as this is to continue. The buyer of
that coal knew full well that
the police were arresting these BOYS,
and yet right in the face of it all he would
pay this little fellow-not more than
seven or eight years old-to run the risk
of being arrested to supply him with coal
for a mere nothing in return l tell YOU,
Mr.. Editor, stop the buyingeof dishonest
coal and there will be no dishonest coal
sold. Arrest the boys who are lounging
and playing around the streets and otherS