The Washington herald., 1909-04-11
CHILD LIFE GUARDED
England Has Far-reaching
Law Now in Force.
CALLED CH1LDRENs CHARTER
One of the Principal Provisions At
fords Protection from Parents Who
Prevent Use of Tobacco by Young
sters-Some Old Statutes Repealed.

From the Chief European Correspondent Of the
LAf1an News Bureau
London, April 10.-The children act Of
1908, which has been described as the
children's charter. comes into force To-
morrow. So wide are the provision Of
this act that twenty-one others deal
ing with children are entirely repesled
by it. while seventeen are more or less
Overridden.
Among the classes OF people who viii
at once be affected BY the act are par
ents. foster parents, tobacconists. pubn-
cans. policemen. automatic machine
makers. park keepers. magistrates.
dealers in old metal, pawnbrOkers. enter
tainment managers OF every description.
barge owners. chemists. farmers, and
vagrants. There is no doubt that many
abuses Of child life which have too long
been tolerated will come 10 an end. but
not until the act has been in operation
for some time will Il be possible to know
what loopholes have been left
Already there IS an outcry that one
OF the most widely discussed and eagerly
desired provisions Of the act has been
practically made null by faulty draft
ing. This is the clause dealing with pub
IIcans In short. Il forbids the presence
of any child. boy or girl. under fourteen.
AT any time in the drinking bar OF any
licensed premises.
Drinking on Increase.
The Increase OF drinking and drunken
: .
increasing number OF women brought be-
fore London magistrates charged with
being drunk and disorderiy, have been
the subjects of frequent remark. But
this evil IS by no means confined 20 Lon
don. II is just as great from one end Of
the kingdom 20 the other.
co where you win in Great Britain
and you viii find the drinking bars OF the
ordinary public houses frequented by wo-
men. They stand at the bar drinking
beer or spirits Just as the men do In
many cases they bring their children.
boys or girls. with them. The baby IN
arms is taken perhaps more frequently
than any other child. for II cannot be left
alone in the house or at play IN the
street. The custom OF giving the child
not excepting the baby IN arms. occa-
sional sips OF whatever liquOr the parent
/ is drinking is almost universal To com
/ bat this evil the act provides that no
child under fourteen shall be allowed IN
I the bar.
The fault now found with the clause
/ Is IN the definition Il gives Of the word
/ bar. namely. "any open drinking bar or
/ any part OF the premises exclusively or
manly used for the sale and consumption
OF Intoxicating liquor" sale and con-
SUMPTION instead OF sale or consump-
I tion" obviously opens the way 20 legal
Judgment that the exclusion OF children
! does not apply 20 q place where intoxi-
eating liquor Is consumed but not sold
waiting Rooms Planned.
The pubIlcans have seized on the point
With remarkable unan!mity license hold
ers IN London and the provinces have
! been applying 20 the licensing justices
/ for permission 10 make structural altera-
tions on their premises. These altera-
tons will take the form OF waitins-roons
I for children
I As the law does not prevent child
I from passing through a bar the Licensed
/ Vistualers Central Protection Society has
! been careful to point out TO license hold
/ bic OF being used as a Waiting-rOOm for
children in charge Of persons taking re-
I freshment at the bar there can be no OBJ
| lection 10 such a room being allotted for
/ the purpose"
| The provisions dealing with the sale OF
tobacco TO children have also attracted a
perhaps disproportonate degree OF pub
( Iic attention IL viii now be the duty Of
every policeman and park keeper 10 seize
and confiscate the cigarettes. cigarette
1 papers. or tobacco OF any one apparently
/ under sixteen whom he may find IN the
act OF smoking He may search a boy
thus caught in the act, but not a girl
! Tobacconists are forbidden TO sell to-
bacco in any form 70 any person appar-
emily under the age Of sixteen, whether Il
/ be for his own use OF not The penalty
| for such a sale may be SO for the first
ofTense, IS for the second. and $50 for the
third.
Cigarettes Restricted.
Automatic machines for the sale Of
cigarettes formed an obvious difficulty.
To suppress them entirely was considered
I too harsh and arbitrary. So IL IS provid-
ed that If on complaint 10 a court OF
summary jurisdiction It is proved that
any automatic machine for the sale OF
| cigarettes" is being extensively used by
children or young persons the court may
order those responsible either to take
/ precautions 10 abate the evil or TO re-
move the machine altogether.
Other important clauses provide that
every child under seven placed ont 10
nurse for more than forty-eight hours
must be registered by the foster parent
with the local authorities. whose duty Il
viii be 10 appoint infant protection visi-
/ tors. These visitors Will supervise the
homes in which the children have been
placed and give any necessary advice or
directions as 70 nursing and maintenance
] These visitors will be armed with con-
! siderable power and may cause the chill
( dren 10 be removed to a place OF safety
! II the homes are insanitary. Overcrowded,
or dangerous, or II the foster parents are
I -