The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1894-04-04
A GLORIOUS WOMAN.
FANNIE CLARK kAVANAGH AND HER
WORK FOR HUMANITY.

Though Not Now Famous, She Is Entitled
to Rank With the Noblest of Her Sex.
Lizzie aolmes Tells of This Woman's In
fuence In Behalf of the Friendless.
Especial Correspondence
History records the names of MANY
great women women celebrated for
their wit, talents, heroism, great deeds
or high station. They have many bi-
ographers, many we'll deserved words of
praise. But would write the story of
one whose name will probably never
shine beside those of the great ones of
earth, yet no woman's life was ever more
heroic, more devoted, more productive
of good. Her line of work is an original
one, and she pursues it nearly alone.
She is in the employ of no person or or
ganiZation; she is under no obligations
to any party, corporation or society;
she has been offered good positions, be-
sides large sums of money for refraining
from carrying out her purposes, but she
has preferred to keep herself Independent
and free to act in all cases as she thought
best.
But few realize the Importance or ex-
tent of her work, and only in the souls
of human beings saved from deeper deg
radations, in the spirit of wrongs pre-
vented, in the hearts of her personal
friends, has record of her greatness
been kept. Until now no one has writ
ten specially of the work of Fannie Clark
Kavanagh. To this name cannot add
any title or any official designation sim
ply from the fact that she would never
accept one. She was employed for
number of years by the Children's Aid
society to look up homeless children, but
only half Of each day was devoted to
their interests. She made reports to the
Womans alliance, but was not respOn-
sible to them or bound by them i'll any
way. Her peculiar mission is to visit
police courts.
Few realize what the inside Of police
court is like. 1t might be called the
basement of our societary structure,
where the dirty machinery is run which
grinds up all that might else make the
upper portions unpleasant. 1t is dark
and sickening down there. The wheels
CRATE and grind, and human misery and
degradation mix up with the CRIME and
grease. It is not an inviting place, and
cultured ladies do not usually visit there
unless forced to do so. But Mrs. Kava-
nagh found that in no spot on earth was
the presence of women more needed than
right there. 1t is entirely a man made
institution, yet women and children are
brought there daily, and no matter how
unfortunate helpless or frightened they
may be they find no one near but
strange, frowning men, to whom it is all
business cold, simple, abstract bust
ness.
Think once what difference the
presence of an intelligent, dignifed
woman, who has the power to report and
publish the proceedings to a large por-
ton of the community, must make
there! The very judges listen more at
tentively to the evidence and take more
pains to call it out; awed and abashed
women and children are encouraged to
speak out and tell their own stories;
lawyers dare not be SO bullying and vul-
gar; innocent victims are more often set
free, and the guilty, who are sometimes
more sinned against than SHINING, saved
from deeper punishments and degrade
lions.
For it often happens, when no inter
ested, intelligent spectator is present,
that the business is most abOminably
hurried and slurred over. A lot Of I'M
fortunate women have been run in. They
are not even given an examination, but
are hastily fined for revenue only"
Only the most helpless and destitute are
thus treated, because the better class buy
themselves off. Small boys are brought
in charged with petty misdemeanors or
thefts. They are frightened and over
awed and seldom given an opportunity
even to try to explain themselves. Very
young girls are arrested sometimes mere
ly for little thoughtlessness or gayety,
or they are detained as witnesses against
somebody else, which is nearly as bad
They are forced to talk, to go into dis
gushing details in the presence of crowd
Of men, with no sympathetic woman
near. A matron has been appointed in
each station for the very purpose of af-
fording this moral support and protec-
ton, but l am afraid in most cases she
is failure. She is generally appointed
not for her fitness, but because she had
"a pull" with some alderman. Her du-
ties seem to consist Of searching female
prisoners and keeping out of the way
when the officers don't want her around.
So the trials are hurried over without
her. Apolicemanisg generally the only wit
ness. The inundated prisoner does not
even know that he dare speak. Wretched
women, for whom some humane provision
should be made, are pushed farther down
the path of ruin without moments con-
sideration. New offenders, who scarcely
know they are offenders, are carelessly
fined and started on the round Of impris-
onments, arrests, crimes, which never
ends until they die. Children are given
sentences to the Bridewell who only need
little encouragement and sympathy and
an opportunity to become useful and good
men and women.
The two days which spent in the
courtrooms in company with Mrs. Kava-
nagh made me realize very forcibly the
49, n xx,o,,opso vroconoo hos %bo~o