The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-07-05

The Present French Method of Deal
ing with Child Criminals and the
Reforms That Are PrOPosed-The
system Not Good One.
In a cell OF La Petite Roquette-the
Paris prison for children. which the new
reforms are to sweep away--a boy OF
eight years was found. His quick eye
and mobile features already showed that
peculiar expression which is known to
all frequenters of thieves society. he
was a young pickpocket who had been
arrested while drunk on the street At
the police station he acknowledged that
the money found on his person was the
produce of a theft WI ich he had COM
mitted unknown to his papa" This
finally led to the arrest of the entire
family of professionals. in which the
trade was handed DOWN to the child.
The boy willingly tolt, his story.
My father has taught me how to pick
pockets, and ! help ham at work. / only
do the ladies because it is easier With
men, 1 might touch Il = Leg while putting
my hand into the pociiet End they would
turn on me: that would he no fun But
ladies' clothes are different, and they
never feel my hand ?apa and used TO
20 every day togethrr 10 the omnibus
stand at the Palai8 Royal. The stand at
the Bastile is no gooc; the Madeleine Is
the best. but Mere q. does that and she
won't let papa work there. Last week
papa told me to wait 2or him at the Pa
lais ROYAL. He didn't come. and | was
tired 50 / worked myself L got an old
Iady's pocket-bOOk- There were on
francs in it. and as Papa still ala not
come l went and drank, something Then
I was arrested
He was asked how he learned his
trade Ii was the old sorry. As soon as
he could walk and unc erstand. ne hsu
been set TO picking things out OF the
pockets OF a manikin hUaC by turning
ring from the ceiling in his home To
the arms the legs and under the clothes
of this manixin little bells were attached
-'.forty-four Of them" said the chlld.
proudly. \ pocketbook. i hanukeIchisl
or some light object was placed by the
father in one or other Of the pockets.
1t was the child's business TO find THIS
and withdraw it without ringing any OF
the bells. Ii is a training that needs
time and patience. but children are apt
pupils. BY the time the boy could go
about alone he was master of the art a
visitor asked him TO take the handker-
chief from his pocket before MS de-
parture. II was done so lightly that ne
theft. and with the handkerchief the
boy fished out a forgotten penny, TO his
own great satisfaction
The Partisan child. thus trained to
steal or otherwise to disregard the laws
of society. is very much like his father
and mother. He begins life with the
idea that those who have are 10 be re-
Heved of their belongings by those who
have not; and the police force is an awk-
ward obstacle 10 his business, but nOth-
ing more. Conscience, morality. shame,
he has never heard OF them except that
At is shameful TO be caught Even then
II is honorable TO bear the punishment
without finching and not TO cease from
future ambition
Such a criminal has, in a high degree,
all the peculiarities of the French race.
But with him nervous Impotence and
irritabf do not limit themselves to
voluble tOngue-quarrels He has knife
ready to enforce his arguments. He
grows up accustomed to kick with his
heavy shoes and TO stab few days
since boy of eleven plunged his knife
into the breast of another of the same
age, because a young girl of whom both
were precOciOuS admirers. In TINS, TOO,
they initiated their elders. who, like all
of their race. are immoder9tely given TO
women.
II is doubtful if the speculations of
physicians has been a help to dealing
with these criminals from childhood.
boy Of seventeen lately killed his mis-
tress in a fit of jealousy. under circum-
stances of unusual brutality. An emil
nenJ "criminalist" was commissioned to
examine him. His report was short:
1.-THE boy is alcoholic being the son of
victim of alcoholism; still, 1 think, he is
morally responsible"
Ii is hard TO see what practical guild
ance for the judge can come from such
theOrizing An entire education among
scenes of crime, with a bad temper left
unchecked from childhood, would seem
explanation enough. No doubt the infiu-
ence Of alcohol as a drug rather than an
inJoxicant, has much to do with the bad
temper: yet grave scientific men doubt
how far this effect of alcohol can be in
herited. Like father like son, is plain
reason why child criminals should be
found wherever there is a settled GRIM
inal class in society; and this is the case
IN all great cities. In this Paris has no
more than her ordinary lead of modern
civiliza ton.
For fifty years different philanthropy
lists nv trade OF from benevolence, have
been trying to understand the details of
such a childhood. What they have
learned gives a clearer understanding Of
the reality than all DR.. LOmbroso's
theories of the criminaloid. Tt is on the
grounds of their experience that the au-
thOrities are now basing their new and
gigantic experiments in deanng with
child criminals Crime is not to be
treated as a disease; and its reform is to
De q matter or edltcatlOn or the Will and
the emotions. And this must correspond
with the present perfection of criminal
education.
After all Paris can no longer match
IegeP, the man tiger of fifty years ago.
IE1at famous criminal murdered a young
gtri in the neighborhood of Versailles
and devOured her flesh when asked why
he drank the blood of his victim he an
swered coolly, Il was thirsty"
At that time the youngest boy who was
brought up for sentence was thrown into
the common prison along with other
criminals of every age and degree of
crime. These little creatures went by
the pet name of ''momes." When they
issued alive from the abuse of the
older prisoners they were completely
trained in every form of revolving and
bestial crime 1t was only when num-
bers Of them had fallen victims TO a
lOathsOme disease resembling leprosy
that the government under King Louis
PHILIPPE built for them the separate
prison OF La ROquette. This was in 1896;
and it still holds its population of boy
criminals from the under world of Paris.
The Grande Roquette, across the way, is
for the grOwn-up prisoners who have re-
ceived their final condemnation.
This neighborhood of the guillotine and
the whole system Of confinement in
gloomy stone walls are now recognized
TO be behind the present progress of
criminal science. These children who
are rather born to crime than willful
criminals are at last II be removed to
the open country. far from the life of the
city which pulses noisily about the walls
Ill Gle s 81.