New-York tribune., 1908-07-05
PUBLIC SCHOOL AND
JUVENILE CRIMES
JUDGE LINDSEY, OF DEN.
YER, DISCUSSES SUBJECT.
PoUerty the Chief Cause Home
More to Blame than the
= School.
By Judge Ben p. Lindsey. Of Denver

intendeut OF schools in New England asking the
following questions:
In your, opinion. to what extent is the public
school system responsible for Juvenile crimes?
To what extent those crimes due a lack
OF cooperation between the home and the school,
To what extent Is the increase Of Juvenile crime
due to the secuIarization OF schools?
How far does immigration contribute this
fortunate condition?
His questions and my answers may be suggestive
others.
cannot say that the public school system Is IN
any particular responsible for Juvenile crime. The
public school system represents education. and edu-
cation has done 70 reduce crime than almost
any other or course I recognize that there
shortcomings in the public school sys-
tenn. For instance. in my Judgment, II we had
OF that kind Of training which would equip
children for Industrial efficiency through the
direct teaching of trades the furnishing Of some
kind OF commercial training it would make OF
the children breadwinners and everything
that increases the opportunities to livelihood
to that extent reduces the temptations to crfne-
I am convinced that poverty IS the chief cause ot
crime IN this country-that is. the crime that IL
generally punished by The courts. for the people
who get into the courts usually poor and
ignorant. II Is only occasionally that the crimes OF
the intelligent cunning and wealthy punished
To hold the public school responsible for what ic
falls to do and might equip morally the fut-
ure citizen would shoulder upon IT the RESPONSE
biIity for any crime resulting from that failure
We can only urge upon the school the great i'm
portance OF ncglecting opportunity TO make as
perfect a citizen as IL IS possible for II make
within the reasonable scope OF its purposes and
functions.
As to the second question: I would say always
that the home is infinitely more responsible for
Juvenile crime than the school 1t must hrse
In responsibility. An ideal coalition IN my tudg-
ment would make the home almost entirely respon-
sbIa for moral character OF the child; but since
we ar. face TO face with the fact that many
children ara homeless, without parents at all. or
what Is equally as bad, without parents who UNDER
stand their responsibilities and endeavor to 1--we up
to the follows that the school must be response
BILE more less for the character OF the child
Fut vher. the parent has utterly failed 1t IS fre-
quentIy difficult for any school TO make up the as-
fciency.
think that any failure OF the home or the
parent in this respect is lack OF cooperation
with the school As to the more direct co-opeI@-
ton such as the interest OF the parent in the
school and the work OF the child while in school,
there is undoubtedly much child crime due 70 the
lack OF It, Habftual truancy is one OF the chler
causes Of crime in childhood. and this CONDITION.
is frequently due lack OF effort on the part
of the home and cooperation with the school IN
fact failure al stimulate the child IN us
school duties and In respect for the school and
the authority in the school is responsible o1tef
for children who are backward in school, and
find that most school children who drift into
crime are backward. which might Of course hays
been avoided had the home done It's part through
out the school period Of the child
I find the home always more to blame than the
school. There is disposition upon the part or
thousands of parents in every city to shirk duties
because Of the idea they seem to have that 1T
should all performed by the school Such par
ents certainly dangerous citizens
AS to the third question. IT IS not free from
difficulty I think that the education Of a child
in a school. though secularfzed must neverthe-
less involve certain amount OF moral training
for I feel certain that the great majority OF
American public school children are honest law
abiding and developing in heart well as in
head. Much of this. Of course may come from
the home the Sunday school and the Church.
IT ought to- but believe also that IL IS IN a large
measure supplemented IN the school. whether sec
u1artzed not I have never taken any sta
tfstcs on the subject. but have frequently sought
to observe with a view of forming some opinion,
and I believe Just large proportion OF boys
from parochiaI schools get into the kind OF iu-
veniIe troubles which call crime those from
the public schools
I am strongly Inclined however. to believe that
more religious training. real education OF
the human heart, IS needed in all Of our schools
have come 70 the conclusion that there is some
thing radically wrong in our application or teach
ing of ethics in the schools. parochial or public.
Answering the fourth question. 1 not OF
those who lay much stress upon immigration as
cause of crime in this country whether adult
Juvenile Ny Investigations OF police
ords (and have investigated those Of nearly all
the large ctties) have rather startled me by show
ing how few of our Juvenile criminals are OF for
efgn parentage. Perhaps more children Of ir1n1i-
grants get into court. but my Judgment is that
this is largely because Of poverty and Ignorance
am coming and more to the conclusion
that the causes Of crime must be searched for
among those evils that afiict social economic.
Industrial and political conditions. The prayer
most repeated is that containing the suppIica-
tion Lead not into temptation. but deliver US
from eviI"; but many Of the conditions IN this
civilization Of gainsay the prayer-Charities
and the Commons.