The record-union., 1896-11-16
NEED OF A TRUANT OFFICER.
4 Citizen and Parent Says There Should
be One.
1t is a rlatter That Certainly Is En-
titled to Serious Con-
SideratiOn.

A citizen complains to the Record
Union Of the necessity OF tuant
officer for the city-some one whose
duty it shall be to see that children
who are sent to school are not allowed
to play hockey and waste their time
in mischief
1t is said that many boyS-and not
few girls-are given to practicing THIS
deception on their parents. One bad
or mischievous boy will prevail on an
other of his schoolmateS to stay away
from school, and these two will coax
Others and so on until finally a num-
ber of boys make a habit of staying
away. And as idleness is the mother
of vice, these boys are liable to go
from bad to worse until they either be-
come really vicious and criminal, or
else run away from home and become
trampS.
What is true of boys in this respect
is also applicable to girls, only that
to the latter the danger is doubly
great. 1t is said that some of the
teachers in the city could relate several
instances of Juvenile uepravity that
had their origin in the apparently
harmless act of playing truant.
and teachers many times in this way,
and fearing the result of being finally
found out, boys and girls often become
reckless and abandon both their homes
and schools. What they need is re-
straining hand in the beginning = the
knowledge that they cannot remain
away from school even one day with
out their parents being informed OF It,
The citizen referred to-and who says
he knows whereof he speaks-declares
that the practice Of playing hockey
is more prevalent than people generally
imagine, and that he knows of several
instances of the very worst results
therefrom.
Several years ago the city had a
truant officer, and he was found to be
very useful employe of the munich
pality. He visited the schools every
morning, and the teachers gave him
the names of pupils, if any, who had
not answered the roll-call. The Off
Ger then called at the homes of the ab-
sentees to ascertain if they were pur-
poSely detained from school, and II not
the truantS We're hunted up and taken
there.
When boys Cor girls) know they can
not deceive either their parents or
teachers as to their whereabouts they
will soon cease to think Of it, and grad
ually forget that they ever desired to
do SO, except in the cases Of the very
few who are naturally vicious Posi-
bly, these cannot be saved, but they
can be prevented from dragging down
others with them.
1t has been suggested that the regu-
lar police officers might act as truant
officers, and perhaps the suggestion
has some merit, but If what is said as
to the prevalence of the truant habit
be true the slight expense to the city
of a special officer to attend exclusively
to this matter Is not worth consider
ing.
Presumably the members of the
Board of Education have more or less
Information ON this subject, or it may
be that the teachers have not re-
ported all they could say in regard to
it. At all events, If the services Of a
truant officer would save even one boy
or girl a year from a life of reckless
ness or crime the amount Of his salary
would be money well expended.