The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-05-28
THE MARRIED VAGABONDS.
4 WORD ABOUT THE MAN OF THE
 NEGLECTED FAMILY.

He IS TOO well Protected From Scientific Scrutiny-He Needs Scrutiny Just the Same-Single Vagabonds an Improve, ment on the Nj Married Ones-What Can be Done About the Latter Class for the Bet
 terment of the Family aud Humanity. I have ventured to give this title tc
 my paper, because I am anxious tc bring the man of the neglected family out of that retirement-behind wife and ehildren-into which he has so discreet ly withdrawn, A great deal has been
 written about the single vagabond; his nomadic habits have been described by
 specialists, and some have even ven tured to turn tramp and take the road in order to secure data at first hand for their studies. No specialist, however, has been able to study the married vag- abond in the same way; he is well pro- tected from scientific scrutiny-too well protected. 1t has been my fortune to know individually a, eonsidera ble num- Der of both the single and the married fraternity, and I confess to a preference for the former. It is true that the tramp is barbarian, openly at war with so- ciety, but then he is not so prompt to claim from society the privileges and protection which she so willingly ex- tends to the head of family; in short, he Is not such a cowardly, unenterpris- ing creature.
 Granting, then, that the married vag- .@bond is bad fellow, what will you do with him? For my instruction on this question, I sent circular letters of in quiry to number of charity workers in this country concerning 1) the legal treatment of idle and incorporate heads of families, @ the charitable treatment of the same, (3) the sentiment of the community on this subject and have received "A answers from 34 different states.
 These letters show that laws to com pei man to support his wife, or chill dren or both, exist in 20 of the S4 states reporting, though the law is not en- forced or is seldom enforced in il of the 20, and in of the others the law Is only partially enforced. If may venture to make any deductions from my incom- plete returns, it would appear that there are better laws and a better enforce ment of them in the North Atlantic states. So far as I can discover no laws exist in the South Atlantic and South Central states, though, judging by my own state, this absence of rem edies does not argue an absence of the disease. The North Central states have some good enactments, and the western states show plenty of law, but Il tie or no enforcement-an illustration of the use- lessness of legislation which precedes the education of public opinion. In nearly half the states having a non support law the inability to secure juds4 ment without the wifes testimony has rendered the law of no effect.
 Perhaps the provisions of the Massa- chusetts statute will serve as a fair ex- ample of good non-support legislation. This law provides that Whoever un- neglects to provide for the support of his wife or minor child may be fined not over $20 or imprisoned not exceeding six months, and the fine may be paid in whole or in part to the town, city, corporation, society or person sup porting the wife or child at the time of the complaint. At the trial, if convict ed, the man is often placed on proba- tion, agreeing to pay certain sum each week for the support of his children" COENcAA but from the Associated Charities in one of the smaller towns of Massachu- setts comes the statement, Neither the police nor our society can secure en- forcement any further than by making the mans life burden to him as long as he stays here, if he does not obey it. Tn every case of which I have definite the man has, in the course of a few weeks, simply disappeared.
 A Rhode Island judge, writing of the imperfect operation of the law in his own state, adds Such an enforcement $, perhaps, all that can be looked for, and all that is reasonable. For law, while capable of petty strict enforce nent as a. penal instrument, is not a very efficient means of securing the dis ,harge of social duties" He might nave added that it is very inefficient | means indeed when, by it's enactments, we would relieve ourselves of all char | table responsibilities toward the man | ve seek to punish, or the family we seek 1 o protect. l think 1 am prepared to | acknowledge that a good non-support | aW is better than no law at all, but I | would only admit so much where the i itizens of a state are fully determined | 0 enforce it, and then re-enforce it by | very other possible remedy.
 One of the simplest and most effective | if these other remedies is to habitually | egard the man as the head of the fam | ly. As stated, this sounds like a tru- sm, but, as a matter of fact, charitable l ocieties, churches, benevolent individ- | als and even public officials have drift | d into the habit of receiving and fill | ng applications for relief made by the | nothers and children of needy families. Charitable people learn to know the wo- nen in mothers missions, they know he children In free Hndergartens and unday schools and clubs. The men do ot attend these things-they are rath- r shy of appearing at all, unless, in ull times, they take the trouble to pose s industrious artisans out of work he rule is certainly safe one for in- ividuals and for institutions that, yhere relief is concerned, the man of ne family, if able to walk, shall not nly do all the asking, but shall show ood cause why he should receive. This ,ould, at once, break up the pernicious ractice of sending children to charity ffces.
 So far I have taken it for granted lat there was but one type of married agabond-a very bad type indeed his hypothesis breaks down utterly in