The San Francisco call., 1903-12-14
By LAURA BRIDE POWERS.

babies and servants, gowns. jewels and
bonnets will be talked about as long
as women are women, but the sting
in the tongue is passe-in clubs.
All We women-and men, too, if there
be any-who are heavy laden with
nothing-to do. and thus keep the
doctors busy finding names for your
ailments, betake yourselves, some Fri
day afternoon, out to the City Hall,
into the elevator and up to the second
floor TO Department ?. Superior Court.
There you will find a panacea for your
pains-if your heart be big enough and
your brain clear enough to understand
for here is where the girls and boys
who offend against the majesty of the
law are brought before the bar of JUS
tice-girls and boys who. for some of
many reasons, have defied the laws
that rule within and without the home.
And here is produced, with a realism
that is real. the comedy and the trag
edy Of childhood with the tragedy
largely predominating.
This is the juvenile court of late crea-
ton, and when you pronounce its name
pray voice il with a soft i, for Webster
shrieks when it rhymes with mile-a
sin of daily preparation by its best
friends.
This segregation of the Juvenile Of
tenders land in many cases it's the
parents that are the true offenders)
from the criminal class was the monu-
mental work of the California Club.
led by DR.. Dorothea Moore, and also
of fn he rio Of chi
make a strong appeal. A pioneer in this
cause was Fairfax Wheelan, who with
others pressed hard upon the con-
sciences Of the legislators of the last
Sc ssion. and To- the court came forth.
Among the necessities of a court is
Judge. but as there was no salary at
tached to the judgeshiD the seekers
after it were not coming in punches.
In fact, none of the Superior Judges
wanted the extra work without pay
perhaps because it violated union prin-
ciples-so Judge Murasky bravely as
sumed the duties himself.
1t is one of the emoluments of office
for the members Of the California Club
to watch the career of this court, and it
is one of the congratula ations OF the club
that the duties fell to Judge Murasky,
so gently and wisely is he guiding the
unfortunate children who are brought
before him in the ways they should go.
In his work he is greatly assisted by
Miss Linda Stebbins. the probation Of
fcer, whose duties are to visit at the
homes Of all the deIinquents. get on
good terms with the little law-breakers
and learn if possible the causes of their
EaFar4srrc he lso in,
home, as they nearly always do. ar
rangements are made for a change of
domicile.
Drunkenness is the basic cause and
nagging is a close second in the warp
ing Of these young lives. And, strangest
of all, the developments in last Fridays
session. where about twenty-five little
tykes from to Is years were called to
the judicial elbow (for no ears may
hear what passes between his Honor
and his erstwhile ward), was the fact
that some of them came from good,
honest people of toll. The solution of
one case revealed TO me at least one
cause-it was the absence of love and
the glowing warmth of confidence and
caresses that children crave, even as
the flowers love the sunshine A love-
less home, where laughter is stranger
there the microbe of crime is propa-
gated. Laughter ventilates the soul and
love purifies it, and the child horn of
parents whose souls have withered and
whose natures have shut out all mon
sense" is, indeed, deprived of that
which God meant that he should have