The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1898-02-08
IT WOULD BE
PRETTY TOUGH
To Put Anybody in Old Fashion
ed Stocks
But Something Should Be Done
to Stop
Parents From Offering Their
Young Children
TO THE STATES CARE
When the Badness of the Child
rem is Entirely Due
To Neglect and Wickedness in
Bringing Them Up.
TO THE STATES CARE
When the Badness of the Child
rem is Entirely Due
To Neglect and Wickedness in
Bringing Them Up.

In view of the fact that the state re-
formatories are being filled up with
children whose parents, in many cases,
are too careless or worthless to care for
them, and that the practice is increas-
ing, it has been suggested that there
should be something done to check it.
Police Matron Thorpe has had several
young girls forced on her care lately
by good-for-nothing parents, and in
most cases the only thing which seemed
possible to do was to have the girls
sent to the Industrial SchOoF' tor girls
at BelOit.
The parents had never attempted to
keep the young girls at home and they
have rushed to the authorities with
alarming frequency and had their of
spring sentenced to some state reform
atory where they would receive care
and education at the public expense
In many cases the children owing to
neglect in bringing them up are willfuI
and no doubt hard to control, but where
both parents are living it seems as II
the mother at least did not possess the
proper spirit, who would give up trying
to train her daughter at the age of y
or II and urge her being sent to re-
formatOry-
In most of the cases where both par
ents are living and where they seek to
have the state bear the expense OF feed
ing, clothing and educating them, the
real candidates for punishment are the
parents.
Many young girls and young boys in
state refOrmatOries ought to be at
home. They have simply been 'farmed
OUT to the state. Their parents not
only neglect their responsibility but are
guilty of a great injustice to other PEG
pie, whom they compel to support their
offspring. How would the Old-faShiOn-
ed stocks do as means of bringing
about a realizing sense of the parents
shortcomings in particularly bad cases?
For instance how would a law like this
fit the case; it was drawn up by an
able lawyer in this city:
Be it enacted by the legislature of the
state of Kansas, that,
Section 1. Whenever any child under
the age of 16 shall be committed to the
reformatories of this state in accord
ance with the provisions of the stat
utes now in force, and its parents are
living and are of sound mind, it shall be
the duty of said parents, and they are
hereby required to pay into the state
treasury monthly the amount of money
which it shall cost the state to bear the
expenses of board, clothing and educa-
ton of said child.
Sec. 2. The amount of such expense
shall be determined monthly by the
board of trustees of each refOrmatOry
In the following manner: The total
expense of maintaining exclusive of
the cost OF construction and buildings),
all the refOrnatOrieS of the state in
Guiding the salaries of the instructors.
managers, guards, etc, shall be added
together and this amount divided by
the total number of children so CON
fined in the whole state. This amount
shall be the amount the parents of each
child shall be required to pay into the
state treasury monthly for the support
and education of each child so confined.
Sec. 8. The board of trustees of each
reformatOry shall meet on the first
Monday of each month for the purpose
of determining the expense of running
and maintaining said refOrmatOry the
preceding month, and they shall re-
port to the state auditor on or before
the first Saturday the amount thus as
certatned as the cost of maintaining
said refOrmatOry for the preceding
month. Said reports shall show the to-
tai number of children confined in each
refOrmatOuy. together with their
names, and the total monthly expense
of maintaining said reformatOry.
Sec. 4. 1t shall be the duty of the
state auditor to determine the cost of
maintaining each such child. by adding
together the total monthly cost of
maintaining each of the several re-
fOrmatOries of the state, and dividing
the grand total by the number of chill
dren so confined in the state. The
state auditor shall before the 18th day
of each month, file with the state
treasurer, statement showing the
name Of each child so confined together
with the amount which it has cost to
maintain each child the preceding
month
Sec. 3. It shall be the duty of the
state treasurer, on or before the 18th
NeAS VI GcAOAA 4AAOA1lL 10 4OI1IN the par
ents of each child so confined in a re-
formatOry of this state of the amount
it has cost to maintain such child the
preceding month.
Sec. 6. The amount so determined
shall be, by said parents. paid into the
state treasury on or before the goth day
Of each month.
Sec. = If the parents of any child so
confined shall fail or neglect to pay
such monthly instaIlments for two CON
secutive months, the father if he be liv-
ing, and if he be dead the mother, shall
be arrested on a warrant issued on
complaint which shall be sworn to by