The Virginia enterprise., 1910-11-25

sentence is a powerful stimulus to
the delinquent child to behave we'll,
and thus discipline IN large meas.
ure takes care of itself. In the most
successful juvenile courts like
those of Buffalo, Denver and Chic.
ago the idea of crime is set aside,
The child is not a criminal. The
treatment is therefore EDUCATIONAL
not punitive. This is the reason
why I believe a more satisfactory
law for Range Juvenile Court
could be framed by the League of
Range School Superintendents,
than by the League of Range Mum
icipal Court Judges.
One reason why many juvenile
courts have fallen far short of what
was expected of them is because
they have not been provided with
the proper machinery and proper
officers. A juvenile court without
detention home, presided over by
a wise, motherly, sympathetic
matron, and served by several ex-
pert, efficient probation officers
who hold their positions because of
their good character and ability to
do the work rather than their polit
ical pull, is sure to come to failure.
It would be like the play of Hamlet
with Hamlet left out. The deten-
tion home and parental school is
an essential part of juvenile court
machinery which must be provid-
ed. In the Chicago detention home
the theory is carried out that the
proper place for child when not
at home is in school. This I believe
to be correct. The detention home
should be out of town and should
provide work for the children
regular school work, manual train
ing, agriculture, domestic science,
ETC., for Satan will surely find mis-
chief for idle hands in a detention
home as we'll as elsewhere.
Let us look at few special cases
where treatment in parental
school, had there been one in this
vicinity, would have done some
good and saved the child as an
ASSET to the state. Conservation of
our natural resources is wise, but
conservation of your young people
is just as important.
A second grade room teacher in a
certain Range school the other day
was shocked to have ten of her boys
come to school after the noon re.
cess, in state of intoxication, three
of them beastly drunk. They had
been given liquor at Polish wed.
ding which was being pulled off
near the school. There was no de.
tention home to which these boys
could be sent while SOLDERING up, SO
they were placed in Jail. Those
celebrating in this American
fashion, when demonstrated with
thought "there was no harm in let
ting the boys have a good time at a
Polish wedding."
Tilda Fast is quite notorious
character in one of the smaller
range towns. She is not yet twenty
three years of age, but is the mother
of four children, no two having the
same father, and herself not wife
These children all being eirls will
doubtless recruit the White Slave
Trade, in due time, unless the peo
pie awaken to the fact that every
child is an asset of the State, anC
should not be allowed to become 4
liability.
A year or so ago a young lady
> teacher in location school on the
outskirts of one of the larger range
towns, while on her way to he1
boarding place, just at dusk, was
held up at the muzzle Of revolver
by a young desperate, scarcely
) twenty years of age. He ordered
> her with indecent proposals, to &C
into clunp of brush nearby, a
the same time pushing her before
him. With uncommon presence Of
mind the girl parleyed with he1
assailant, until dinky engine with
train of dump cars which was ap
: preaching, would reach the nearest
point in the path, about twenty
rods from the scene of the hold up
At the right moment the girl broke
and ran, reaching the train crew in
safety. After much trouble on the
part of the school authorities, in
identifying this young villain and
securing his arrest. the municipal
court where his case was heard
gave him FOUR MONTHS in the
county Jail for ATTEMPTED ASSAULT
This boy had been a troublesome
character in the neighborhood 70,
five or six years. Had he been sent
to parental school early in this
career, where he would have learn.
ed some useful trade, he might
have become a useful citizen, for he
did not come from bad family
John Bruno and Con Max were
two fifth grade chums in well
regulated school of one of the small
range villages. They were bright
boys, doing well in school, until
they fell in with young "married
wOranO IF a cortain tvne ra+ha,