The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1903-11-13
MOTHERS, CHILDREN. STREETS
An Interesting Paper Concerning
Children F~requenting Streets
of a Town.

Tie following paper was read by
| Mrs. j. W. Rosenberg, Of lankton,
before a mothers club. ANA was
published in the Church Tidings. OF
! Yankton. 1t IA handed The Re-
publican by the secretary OF The local
W. G. Il. U. with a request for It's
publication. The topic is certainly a
| timely one and doubtless it will find
application here:
1t is not our purpose in this short
paper to speak at any length on any
one of these topics. but rather TO
show how they are related each TO
the other. They are closely aSsociat-
ed subjects. They each nave their
proper place and yet they can not
long be independent Of each other.
There may be right relations exist.
! ing between mothers. children, and
/ streets and when this is so the well
fare Of each is enhanced. There
inav he wrong relations existing be-
Tween these three named and when
lHi> is the case each suffer loss:
MANY a mother sits with bowed
heat and Borrowing heart today
lamcmting the fact that she did not
sooner discover the right relations
between herself, her child and the
streets. Many a Young man has the
possibility Of a high and noble lite
already blasted because when he
was a NOISY, roliicking boy his
mother wou:d rather have him on
the streets than making confusion
around the house. Most Of the
daughters who today fill the broth
els of u land started on their down
ward course through the influence Of
hours spent on the streets that
should have been spent in the home.
All of these improper relations be-
tween mothers, children and streets
have brought the very name Of street
into such disrepute that it is associ-
ated with all forms of evil and child
rem are called street-waifs. or street
gaminS. Young men are. called
street lOafers and young wume who
frequent the streets after night fall
are very soon spoken Of as street
walkers.H So that while there is
nothing wrong in the street itself
these improper relations have
brought about a condition of things
on our streets that should alarm
every mother any time Of the day
when she knows not what her child
is doing but especially so when even
ing comes and the boy or girl is still
away from home.
Carelessness in this regard on the
part of mothers has INCREASED child
crime in our land until the. entire
! world has been startled into amaze
ment at the ~wickedness Of American
i%children. @' "
The Woman's Christian Temper
ance Union has been wise enough to
see that the cause Of much OF this
part Of children was the lale hours
spent on the streets Of our cities and
towns and very wisely advocated and
have already secured the passage Of
the curfew law in a great many plac-
es. This law prohibits children IN
der Is being on the streets at all
without proper escort. after a stated
hour in the evening. In places where
it has been enforced 1T has worked
so we'll that the officers of the Law
have strongly approved OF it and a
better condition OF things is soon
noticeable. Where there is no such
law it rests with the mother first O.
all to recognize the evil iIilnences
surrounding young life upon The
street, and then considers no sacri.
flee too great on her part if she can
keep her children IN touch with The
sweet. the pure. the good durinE
the early and by far the most i'm
questionable period Of their lives
''Train up a child in the way h.
should 90, and when he is old he
will not depart from it, is Il prom
Use God has given every mother ant
the longer this world exists TIN
more surely do men and in here
find that Col does not speak idly.
Samuel's mother did not c%OnSecrat,
him to the Lord in vain. Moses
mother had heI little boy but a few
years. when he left her side to gl
up into the wicked palaces OF the
king but he nevc forgot his mother
1God. The Bible tells us nothin!
about Daniels mother, but we SCI
the mothers boy in the midst OF pc
culiar temptations StandinL Iirml
for the right and we know that n
careless mother ever sent ont int
1.-THE world such a boy as Daniel. Oh
1.-THE blessed privilege for being tn
mother OF men that will bless tn
world with noble, useful lives. hu
let us remember it Will never com
to the mother whose children ruI
the streets. .....1
Our re1oImatorieS are crowde
) these days with boys and girls AM
; with scarcely a single exception the
are boys and girls that when at HON
were permitted to run the streets
! Our penitentiaricS are TILED wit
young not old men and lis>c Inc
| were street boys.
II Let US, therefore. as mothers b
keenly alive to the dangers surrounC
ing our children's lives, and let u
also be assured that with Gods hel
if we do our best for the welfare o
. our children we will not have live
in vain.