New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1908-09-06
The Child Is the State
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lands of Illinois, Judge Lindsey expressed
that day many telling facts about the child
problem He impressed himself on my mind
as the father of the fatherless; standing be
tween the ignorant. vicious or unfortunate
parents on the one side. and the cruelty of the
State on the Other.-a rebuke to cold hearted
absurd magistrates who, following the severe
letter of the law, call out, So The child stole the
shoes? - Yes. - Bring in YOUR witnesses
-" Yes. 1t Is, then. petty larceny. -
Yes. '-"The statute calls Tor sixty days IN
the worLhouse - Yes 1t is so ordered.
Take him away"
Don't YOU see, then. that Lindsey must be
wise and kind: that it is not the machinery of
his court, but the man that makes the results
Clearly, there is much to him that IS out OF the
ordinary. And it comes back to that personal
ity with its gentlenesS, its sincerity, It's shrewd
side. which can pet boy without letting the
Young rascal take advantage of well meaning
kindness. Oh the Judges problem IS difficult
Some of the rat eyed, crop haired slu1n children
drop to him like shot, try to work HIM.
but quick as scat off they go to Golden tor their
lesson. 1t takes insight to make these swift
determinations between children. Ben has no
book TO tell him what to do. Nature made
Lindsey; opportunity brought out his gilt OF
child love What a beautiful gift it Is, to be
loved by little children | recalled. that after
noon. picture | had seen when | was a
bow wears ago, of Hans Christian Andersen
telling wonderful fairy tales TO the boys and
girls.
As Lindsey told story after story of his ex-
periences with bad boys. | could see that he
was one of the most fatherly Judges in America
His WAYS no doubt shock OldtIme dyed-lr-the-
wool sticklers for legal procedure In some
quarters he is regarded as a dangerous m
novator." What try a case not by the ev1-
dence but by the boys personal history Put
the father on probation, rather than send the
bow to JAIL How absurd!
Ben Lindsey is filed with odd quipS. He
talks boy slang. like a street gamin- He told
of de gang and " de kids" and how wrong it
was to "snitch on de fellers." and how to
iigger de COP So he is boy among boys,
Just as he is a man among men.
The Famous Chicago Case
THE way he handled that Chicago case
showed his grasp of the boy problem 1t was
a busy day in the juvenile court. and Judge
Lindsey. as guest of honor. was asked to try
a case" He took the boy to the Judges
private room and began the . trial.
The complainant kept saying. Cant YOU
hurry up. Judge, I'm in hurry to get back
to business.
Oh. don't be in hurry Stay and see it
out. You say the boy stole the watchess
Yes"
What was the value:
Twenty-Five dollars, your Honor.
THAT certainly looks like grand larceny
Two of the other bows. your Honor.
who stole watches the last time hustled
ar'und, raised the dough, and settled 1t out
of court
oh, no! So they did. eha" Then the
Judge took the boy prisoner aside and. placing
his hand on the lads head gently, in fatherly
way, said:
Dick tell me all about it. Don't keep back
a thing, ! am Your friend
Dick. rat eyed ganin, began whimpering,
and finally his courage came back and his eyes
glowed with Indignation. He blurted out.
" ledge, lie ting to do would be to run dat guy
down, an not me. Yes, | pinched de watch;
but say, its marked p ]. NJ. an IS h, which
means jeweled movement, Is karat gold;
but de pawnshop man tested IT an found 1t
brass; an so dat man is sellin' brass watches
fer gold. An no wonder he was only too willin'
fer de odder folks ter come up an settle fer
gold what he knows is only br;,SS I'm besides
ledge. he collects fer gold watches in de bur
glary insurance he carries: an de whole game
is fraud -
Who was the real CRIMINAL" asked the
Judge. his eyes lighting with indignation
. Was it the traducer of child hfe or the poor
tatherleSS boy brought up in the slums who
stole because of a bad example of his gang"
The Basic Lindsey Idea
On, on, ran the train, and the light Of Gods
great skies lay broad and smiling over
the wide prairies with their rich harvest of
corn IN the ShOcl-- and sbif1rer, -, IL.