The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1906-06-15
NEED OF 4 -RETORMATORY
Painfully Illustrated by n Case in the
Recorders Court OF Charlotte.
Many Similar Instancc-A shame o
the State.

the state
4 few days a little blue eyed boy.
Carl Smith, was hauled up IN the
Recorders our TO face n grave
charge. that Of larceny. For several
| days the little fellow sat lone and sor-
rowful In his prison cell. The story
OF Carts life IS a sad one, but one
which can be duplicated all over this
| country. II was several years : taat
the boys father died. Soon after his
death his mother married again. only
to forsake her second husband in a
short while &c run away with another
man and TO leave Carl in the hard
world alone. The boys step father was
driven mad and taken TO a mad house
because IF his wife's Inconsistency.
while she voluntarily entered a life ~
prostitution
What picture could be sadder in
|. every detail-a n boy. forced ii IN
early age IL begin the hard hight for
exisr enCe. a piece of driftwood on q
troubled sea, tossed by every breaker
too frail 10 steer its course? Little
wonder il is that the child was be-
guided by the temptations OF s'TeeS
existence. Little wonder II l. that he
committed crime, No n he had TO
point out his pathway. The one whom
God mad given him 10 direct his young
feet instead Of being an inspiration 10
him 40 better things, made herself
a shawod upon his life. n source OF
lifelong shame. And yea and untu-
.---9 49,. r. uaa ~ .~~al EtnHnsf
fell.
The sorry might have been far worse
wee If not for the fact that the man
from whom he had stolen certain
properly, had a heart. and had con
sheraton for a little fellow who SIM
ned. probably because he knew no bet
ter. And so the charge were Win
drawn and the boy was released.
1t is stated that an efort will no
made 10 get him into Il reformatnry
institution somewhere. And here we
are faced with the question which
should be carried home 10 every one,
where will he be taken? Shame upon
us, there is no such institution III
good old North Carolina, 50 abundaEtly
supplied with other institutions for the
comfort and well-being of those un-
! fortunate ones in trouble and distress
We care for our orphans, and We
should.
We spend gigantic sums annually
to make the life of the insane more
bearable.
We care for our poor. and there are
no institutions anywhere which we can
| look upon with more pride h upon
the county homes situated in we'll nign
every county.
We expend great sums for the educa-
ton and comfort Of the deaf, DUMP
and blind.
The aged soldiers, preachers etc,
are cared for. and justly SO.
But shame upon the state, there Is
no city of refuge" for the boy or CIR!
Of lender years who u~nwittingly, any
many times ~unthoughtedly t~ransgress-
es the laws of the state.
Carl Smith has many sisters and
brothers in sorrow and Sin. n TIC
sorrowing pity Of It is, too often they
: do not find a big-hearted man TO ster
forward and withdraw the charges,
Too often they are forced to stand
trial before an officer of the law. heart
less, c~allous, who deals out what ht
considers justice TO them with no more
r consideration than he e to the pris-
oners of & and experience
Then what must be done? Shall
we continue to e the stories OF boys
or girls being sentenced to a peniten-
tiary term-to a term which TO them,
invariably means ruin and he'll?
The character Of n child Is easily
moulded: can be distorted by associa-
ton with hardened and ~unrepentant
sinners, or shaped into a beautiful life
by the tender hand OF some gentleT
artist.
Do We entertain no hope for the
youthful transgressor? Instead 81
lifting him from the slough Of iniq'ity
must We cast him still further into in
fanny and sin?
The story OF reformatory institutions
in other states shows that in many
cases, in fact In most cases, the i
criminals have been reformed, have
been shown the error Of their way
and been started upon the right course
I They are educated and taught valuable
and profitable trades, and in most
cases they go out from these insti.
tutiOns TO make valuable citizens.
We r~eiterate the question, nus
North Carolina continue 10 tail the
list along this line?
We join the Wilmington Messenger
= in hoping that the people will be arous'
/ ed 10 a sense Of their duty in this mat
ter and that the legislature will ak;
definite step toward the establishment
of a rc.crmatOry for such youthful Of.
, Tenders as Carl Smith Charlotte
News.