Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1891-11-10
A GROWING EVIL.

S~-0
posed to Dangers of All Kinds-A
Plan to Avert the EVIL by Issuing
a License to All over a Certain Pro.
posed Age Every Day Experiences
ON Chapel Street.
The extreme youth of many children
now engaged in selling papers and black
ing boots upon the streets of this city sug-
gest that some action should be taken at
once by the members of the city govern
ment toward regulating this work by the
PRONUNCIATION of an ordinance requiring
licenses to be issued or by devising some
other means to correct this constantly
growing evil.
"Please buy paper; is 80 tired and
wants to 60 home" These were the plain
tive words which were uttered by little
boy with a bundle of daily papers under
his arm, as he stood at the corner of
Church and Chapel-streets last night about
II o'clock. The boy was scarcely more than
six years old and could hardly speak plain
ly. He was now new member of the
great army of newsboys, but one whose
face is familiar to many who pass that
corner Through the scorching heat of
the summer and the bleak cold winds of
winter that same diminutive form may be
seen night after night endeavoring to dis
pose of his papers, and often in order to
do 80 being obliged to remain as late or
later than the night in question.
While it is necessity of life in these
days to have newsboys around the streets
great city that boys of the age of the one
cited who should be at home and in bed,
are allowed to be selling anything upon
the streets, exposed to dangers and temp
tations of all kinds at such hours of the
night and it behooves the wise law makers
of our city government to take some &C
ton upon the matter at the earliest op-
portunity. Let some good ordinance be
formulated and passed respecting the gov
eminent of newsboys and bootblacks and
then let it be put in operation and rigidly
adhered to and boys and girls of such
tender years will no longer be found upon
our streets.
This city possesses for place of it's size
more newsboys perhaps than any other
city in the country, as can be readily seen
between the hours of 4 and Z o'clock. On
the corner of Church and Chapel streets
fully fifteen boys of various ages and ma
tionalities congregate, bent upon one OBJ
ject, viz, the disposal of the various daily
papers, not only of this city, but of other
cities as we'll. On the corner of State and
Chapel streets another batch of boys,
equalling almost in numbers those upon
the upper corner, are engaged in the same
business, all vieing with each other in their
attempts to dispose of their wares. The
ages of these boys vary from six to fifteen
years, with some few possibly older.
Hardly day passes on which several of
these street merchants, if they may be sc
called, do not escape almost by a miracle,
it may be said, instant death or at least
serious injury from being run over by the
cars or wagons which between the hours
noted throng the principal streets of the
city, and to avoid contact with which often
requires the best efforts of people much
older than the little fellows who daily
dodge in and out among them. This state
ment can at any time be verified by the
police at these corners.
AS might naturally be expected the
younger the boys, the more daring they
are and it is common occurrence to SCI
boys OF six and seven years, whose placer
are certainly anywhere rather than upo1
the public thoroughfares, jumping on anc
off horse cars going at full speed, an(
many is the tumble which these venture
some little urchins receive by falling from
the cars into the street, almost in front O
the wheels of passing vehicles. Durin.
the past week COURIER reporter during
the course of his travels in search of new
has had his attention called to no less thai
| twenty such instances. Several of thes
| occurred on Chapel street, between
Orange and Church, and that they wer
| not attended with serious results is almos
miraculous.
One of the instances noted was that of
boy, whose age according to his own stor
| was only seven years, who boarded Ca
| of the Fair Haven and Westville hors
| railroad by the rear platform, while tn
| attention of the conductor was turned i
another direction, and went through tn
car endeavoring to dispose of his warel
Upon reaching the forward end of the ca
he went out through the front door an
jumped off the front platform. AS migf
naturally be expected the boy was to
young to understand the proper way
get off a car while in motion, and in COZ
his balance, falling almost under the fol
ward wheels of the car. His papers wei
scattered in every direction, but b
rare presence of mind the littl
"urchin" managed to retain h
hold upon the lower step of the platfor,
and was dragged several feet along th
street before the car could be stopped
Finally when the car was stopped the lit
fellow picked himself up, and gatherin
up his papers was soon lost in the crowt
When the boy extricated himself from h
perilous position his lower limbs were a
most under the car, hardly six inche
separating them from the iron wheel
which, had they passed over him, woul
certainly have MANNED him for life if n
more serious causality had resulted.
Another little eight -year-old boy jumpe
off another car on State street, immed
knocked down by the horse, but fort,
nately escaped other injury.
1t is possible to recite numerous il
stances Of the sort, but the two quoted al
sufficient to call the attention of everyor
to the dangers which surround the live
and health of "some mothers darlings
and to argue strongly for the establish
ment of some ordinance which would,
it's enforcement, keep these little fellow
from placing their lives in jeopardy ever
hour 1t is well known fact that som
of these very little boys are put upon til
streets and kept there selling papers b
parents who are too lazy to work then
selves, and spend every cent of the none
earned by their offspring, often at the ris
of their own lives, in purchasing rum wit
which to crafty their own Unsuitable al
petites. There are every night fathers {
some of these boys standing on the oppt
site corners watching them dispose of thei
papers, and forcing the boys to remain OF
until 10, II and IL o'clock at night to SO
their papers. This is dot fiction, but fac
and the plaintive plea of many a newsbo
to some belated traveller to ''please buy
paper; I am stuck and do not dare to g
home until have sold them alp is reall
the truth, instead of as many suppose onl
scheme to work upon the sympathy of
possible purchaser.
There seems to be one way to avert tn!
crying evil, and one which it is understood
the officials of the city government are no
thinking seriously over and which may b
put into operation very speedily. Th
plan is, briefly, to license all newsboys an
bootblacks to ply their business upon tn
public highways. The amount of the i
cense need not be large. A small sui
would be equally as eficacious as lare
one; but the main point would be that n
licenses should be issued to boys under
certain age to ply either trade, the license
to be secured from the superintendent {
police and no one to be licensed VIII
is not of sufficient age to tax
care of himself. If this plan
adopted and the standard of age place
sufficiently high, much of the danger
life will be removed, the possibility {
accidents reduced to a minimum and gres