Arizona republican., 1909-02-20
OUTLINES LAW NEEDS /
 FOR GIRLS PR0TEe1I0N
BILLS APPROVED BY ILLINOIS
 LEADERS IN LEGISLATURE.
Constitution Prevents Federal Protec-
 ton of Any But Alien Girls.

Chicago, Feb. 16.-(Special Corre- spondence of The Republican, )-To cripple the white slave traffic, which was publicly deplored and denounced at rally of the Illinois Vigilance As sociation here, bills already have been framed by Assistant United States District Attorney Harry A Parkin, with encouragement from. party lead CTS in the Illinois legislature that they will be passed promptly when offered. The final details will be considered at conference to be held next week. The general outline of attack needed IS outlind by MT. Parkin in an article on Practical Means of Protecting Our Girls in the March number of the Chicago Magazine, Woman's World which has been conducting a national crusade against the evil that has reached the point where definite re- forms are advocated.
 The bills recommended. after care full investigation of the statutes, are given in full by MT. Parkin as sugges- ton for legislation in all states as well as Illinois. They are four in number to amend the present statutes. one to punish procuring. the second to make the owners of property used for dis orderly houses jointly liable with their tenants for violations of law, including procuring; the third is aimed at the present peonage system of never-end- ing debt providing that the detention of women in that way shall be a fel- ony punishable by five years in prison. The fourth, the most important, is de signed to stop the support of men from the earnings of white slaves" specifying that such an offense shall be deemed a felony punishable by a term in the penitentiary.
 The need for protection of girls in the United States is emphasized by MT. Parkin, who declares that prOtec- ton of aliens Is less needed right now than drastic laws to protect our own girls. Tn other words" he says, the federal government cannot legislate in control of this traffic between states; only the states themselves can do this each state for itself. As it is, so it must remain-the federal govern ment can protect the incoming immi- grant girl from the despoiling hands of the white-slavers and deal out crushing punishment, at the same time being powerless to lift a finger. so to speak, to give legal protection to one of the daughters of an American home who. may have fallen under the spell of a white-slaver"
 Concerning the increasing number of men who are supported by the earn ings- of white slaves" MT Parkin says:
 Not long since. l was asked how many persons I supposed Chicago con tained who would come under a sta tute of this kind and who ought to receive sentence under it. My reply was this: Probably there are ten thousand women in Chicago today fol- lowing the so-called profession of prostitution. and it would seem to me, from the testimony obtained in the course of the recent white slave prose cutions here that at least half that number, or five thousand men. are supported in whole or in part in this manner and would therefore come within the meaning of such a statute.
 While some states have statutes di rectly aimed at this system. it has been found extremely difficult to se cure convictions against these most contemptible of all white -slavers for the reason that all of the existing sta tutes. so far as I am informed, make it necessary, at least by implication, for the prosecution to establish the fact that they derive their entire sup port from white slaves under their cOntrol-in other words. it devolves upon the state to demonstrate that the man on trial has no other visible means of support As a consequence. the defense set up is almost invariably calculated to prove that the man on trial is a solicitor for a tailoring es- tablishment. a laundry or some other legitimate business enterprise.
 Some of these fellows own two or three or perhaps more white slaves. and on the income of their slavery these brutcs lives in luxury at expen- sive hotels, maintain expensive auto mobiles and lead lives of luxury, idle ness and dissipation" The bill aimed at them, as now framed for the con sideration of the conference next week, is as follows:
 Any person who shall knowingly "SSSpt ol lSCelNe' III WHole UT III pdTt, support or maintenance from the pro- ceeds or earnings of any woman en- gagged in prostitution shall be deemed guilty of a felony and on conviction thereof shall be confined in the peni- tentiary not less than one CD nor more than three (3) years and fined not exceeding one thousand (s1.OO0) dollars, or both. in the discretion. of the court"