The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1905-01-04
TRANSFORMING RAW MATERIAL
OF SLUNIS INTO GOOD CITIZENS.
100000 HOME FOR THEM.
New York Juvenile Society Which
Has Now Sent Out Into World
Thirty-Seven Thousand Good
Men and Women

One of the largest Christmas parties
in the great city of New York this
year was held in stone building on
Washington Heights, where over 1000
little folks gathered around two grea
Christmas trees laden with toys and
the good things appropriate to the
season. To many, of this regiment of
children the gathering was the frs
Christmas party in which they had
been included among the guests. They
came mostly from the east side to be
made into good Americans by the
New York Juvenile Asylum, an insti-
tuition which in the fifty years of it's
existence has sent out into the world
$4,000 boys and girls.
The party on Washington Heights
had an especial significance this year
because by the time another Christ
mas comes the work of the institution
will have been transferred to a new
home which, when completed, will rep
resent an expenditure of $4,000, 600,
capital invested in what may be de-
scribed as the business of transform
ing the raw material of the slums into
the finished product of good citizen
ship.
Little Victims of Misfortune.
The great majority of children re-
ceived into this New York asylum are
the victims of misfortune to which
they have not themselves contributed,
and they do not enter the building on
Washington Heights through the police
courts. Among them are only a few
who have been committed to the asy-
lum because of misdemeanors. They
are mostly the orphans of the tene-
ments or the children of parents who
have found the struggle of life too
bitter to enable them to keep their
families together. These children of
today constitute the raw material
from which are to be made the men
and women of tomorrow. Left to
themselves or to chance charity in the
crowded streets they would be in con-
slant danger of falling into wrong do
ing. Under the care of the asylum
they are brought under healthful and
helpful influence both in the institu-
tiOn itself and in the homes which are
found for them.
Its Beneficiaries in Every State.
In every state and territory in the
union, including far off Alaska, are
men and women now prosperous and
successful who recall similar Christ
mas parties in the asylum building on
the Heights. One of the Christmas SER
mons which was preached in New
York Christmas day was delivered by
former pupil of the asylum, for he
is now the rector of a large church in
Brooklyn. Another graduate, who
short time ago added to the Christmas
cheer of the directors by sending them
a generous check, the proceeds
to be added to the graduates
building fund, is prominent lawyer
in western city. In his case it may
be truthfully said that he got his start
in life by stealing apples from push
cart on the Bowery. He was only six
years old, street urchin growing pu
among evil influences from which he
was removed because of his theft of
the apples, fact to which he joking
ly alluded in the letter accompanying
his check. He said that while it might
be true that Ewes fall came through
eating an apple, it was certain that
his own regeneration was directly
traceable to the same cause.