The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1902-09-13
he WHO DESERTS
HIS WIFE
Offending Husband NAV
be Extraditad on Felony
Charge

New York, Sept i2-The man who
weds and runs away may be the sub.
ject OF debate at the next session Of
the New York Legislature. A rec
ommendation that desertion be made
felony, instead Of misdemeanor.
has been made by Frederick e.
Bauer, superintendent on the bureau
Of dependent children, and submit
ted by him to Commissioner FolNs Of
the department OF public charities
for consideration and transmission
to Mayor Low
Mr. Bauer speaks from long expert
ence-experience which is repeated
and reiterated every workaday
morning in the year in the waiting
room of the office of the bureau at
the corner of Third avenue and
Eleventh street. There is hint OF
the thing in the faces which the
superintendent sees over the top of
his big desk as applicants first step
up TO tell their stories-youne and
wan-faced mothers just out of the
hospital, buxom negresses. shifty-
eyed women on a hunt for their hus-
bands, conniving relatives, deserted
Syrians, good-souled foster parents.
interested employers and society
folk, Bowery drabs. Italians smudgy
infants and families of FIVE and six
and seven. There is no apparent OF.
der of their coming, but they are
usually there before the day is over
or a perplexing share of them. And
half of them are there, according to
Mr.. Bauer, because Of desertion.
1T is my observation, says he,
that the law as it sands is made.
iuate-that il does not fit the crime.
Fifty per cent of the applications
made here for the commitment Of
children TO the care OF institutions
are due to the fact tha. mem have
deserted their families, leaving
them to starve, or become a burden
on the community.
There are those of certain class
in this city who think no more OF
deserving their families than an or
dinary mortal does of sitting down
to his meals. It's an actual fact
They know the community win take
care of their children, If they don't,
and when they can't get their child
rem committed 10 an institution by
fair means they do II by foul n
have known of desertions where
there was a preconceived plan be
tween man and wife And ! have
known Of others where the woman
was left dying, with five children
dependent upon her
THE other day fellow went TO
Boston-deserted his wife VINO lay
sick with tuberculosis. The woman
died and the children were commit
ted A month ago he came back
You've got some children Of mine.
he said | figured up what il had cost
the city to take care of those child.
rem told him, yes. we had his
children and be could get them by
paying that amount, and if he did
moi pay that amount then and there
would see that he was sent to
Blacllwell's island for six months for
desertion. You should have seen his
jaw fall. He tried to haggle me
down but he finally raised the mon
ey. It developed that he had started
a business in Boston and remarked
there before the first wife died
Those are but Two cases out of
thou ands. The law, as / said, is in
adequate The worst that can hap
pen TO The man is 10 send him to
The worlhouso for six motnhs. with
little o DO and plenty of time TO do
i- think some "a her enjoy thalr
enforced vacation That is why /
am in favor Of making descuion a
felony punishable by one years i'm
prisonment in the penitentiary at
hard labor I am inclined TO believe
that such sentence would cure AS
il is now too much red tape stands