Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1911-07-07


government and better social and
political conditions.
There is much room for truly pro-
grassive legislation and much in So
cial conditions that can be improved
by legislation. There are many more
problems that arise out of the GUS
toms, traditions and prejudices of So
ciety and from the Weaknesses, short
comings and defects of the individual
members thereof which never can be
solved through legislation. Fore
most among these are the prevention
and suppression of crime, the treat
ment and reformation of criminals,
the care and training of detectives
and the disciplining of delinquents
and incorrigibles. In these matters
the state can act when crime has
been committed, when the criminal
has been apprehended, when parents
and guardians prove their inability
to correct the incorrigible or suffer a.
child to become delinquent, and when
society evolves the defective.
But no laws, however wisely de-
vised or however judiciously admin
istered, will go to the root of these
problems. They may greatly mini
mize the effect but they cannot elm
mate the cause. AS far as improve
ment can be attained through legis-
lation, that far should the state go.
Beyond that we must look to the in
liyidual and to society The state
cannot take the place of the parent
or the home. 1t cannot nor should
it undertake to relieve the individual
or his or her responsibility The
state cannot regulate society's atti-
tude toward the weak or the unfor-
tunate. These things are outside Of
the realm of legislation. They are
subject to change and reformation
through the efforts only of individ-
uals and groups of Individuals What
ever changes are desirable must come
from within, they cannot be wrought
from without
THE old peryerse attitude of man
kind that gave more significance to
the imputation in Gains evasive re-
ply Il know not am I my brothers
keeper" than to the assumption in
the Lords query, Where is Abel thy
brother?' has changed to an under
standing Of the Lords meaning. Act
ing upon this latter realization we
have established costly institutions.
both private and public, in which to
restrain and reform the predatory.
care for the unfortunate, train and
develop the defective and correct the
delinquent and incorrigible. Genu-
inc progress has been made in these
efforts. The philanthropy of indi-
Wduals and the beneficience of the
state have been expended in an all
but prodigal generosity to this end.
Washington has taken an advanced
position among the commonwealth
of the country in adopting progress
sive laws and methods of treating
these classes of its population.
by the adoption of the indeter-
inmate sentence law, the use of the
parole system, the establishment of
the reformatory for first offenders,
the abolition of striped clothing in
the penitentiary except for punish
ment, the erection of a special school
for defective children. the institution
Of Juvenile courts and vocational
education in the training school, this
state has accomplished much. Much
more still remains to be ACCOMPLISH
ed along these lines, in all of which
intelligent cooperation on the part
of the individual citizen can be of in
valuable assistance Beyond the
possible activities of the state the
individual and social groups have a
field in which inestimable good can
be wrought There are the children
hij't Z NilFN al e luiueu over TO the
discipline and care. of the state, the
boys and girls on probation, the pris-
oners on parole, and those who, af-
ter final discharge, are struggling to
rehabiliate themselves in the eyes
and estimation of society. These are
some of the social problems that bear
directly on our civic development
which | know you are interested in
as women, and both as women and as
citizens / am sure you can lend in
valuable aid in seeking the solution
of these problems,
The last two sessions of the Iegis-
lature passed many laws, in which
YOU and the members of your organ
ization are especially interested. The
1903 session passed a bill submitting
a constitutional amendment relative
to female suffrage, with a result that
the amendment was overwhelmingly