The Detroit times., 1911-10-27
BOYS PROGRAM IN BIG
RELIGIOUS MOVEMENT
GETS UNDER WAY TODAY


~
J. Lansing, visiting Movement
worker, and Walter Ward will SIM.
The close OF the conferences will
be marked by a special service In the
Woeaward- Baptist church, Sun.
Day afternoon at 3 o'clock. DR..
Maurice Penfeld Fixes will open with
prayer j. c. Whitmore. OF New York.
will speak on "0n how TO play the
game" and Philip II. Gray will sing.
ITO get the boys active In church
work Is our aim said Mr. Foster TO
The Times. "The Men and Religion
Forward Movement, We believe, is
going to accomplish much to-
wards bringing the boys into
the church and Sunday schools;
In training classes OF Sunday schools
as result OF the Movements work
In Detroit There is a big demand
In Sunday schools for more teachers.
and we feel sure that many places
will soon be filled by the older boys
who are interested in the present cam
paign These older boys are going TO
reach ont for the younger lads and
bring them into the Sunday schools
and churches. thus giving promise OF
n CIlNndAu VI ShilNNioh WI
ers for the future. Altogether, | be-
lieve Christianity is going TO take on
considerable momentum and show
much more yigor and health in De-
troit and elsewhere because OF the
men and Religion Forward Move
ment'
A group OF good, redblooded Chris
fian men. who were boys themselves
NJ, an and uhn talked
OF baseball. gangs" and other boy in
stitutions in most familiar way, met
In the parish house OF ST Johns
church. Montcalm-st and Woodward
ave-, Thursday afternoon, TO discuss
ways and means OF converting The
boy outside the church" into The
boy inside the church"
There were no suggestions of de-
coys. boy-traps or posses TO round up
the boys and bring them in. These
men talked, not of bringing the boy
ND TO the church, but of plans for hav-
ing the church hold out It's hand IN
good fellowship. and say Come on.
fellows; We are going TO be good
friends. More than that, We are go
ing TO be chums."
Sunday Ball Better Than No Ball.
The meeting, which was opened by
prayer by James SchermerhoTn, was
presided over by j. A. Whitmore, OF
New York city, boy expert, whose
N thorough grasp of every element in
the makeup of boydom would have
made him a companion for any
gang" in Detroit. AS an example,
he found nothing TO be shocked at II
animated. lively youngsters, who
worked In factories or shops all
week, with no Saturday afternoons on.
should play ball on Sunday; not that
he recommended Sunday ball, but he
agreed with j. A. Van Dis. state Sec
retary of the Y NJ c. A. Boys depart
ment. that boys must have some rec
reation, and Sunday ball was better
than no ball Mr.. Whitmore also not
ed that the Detroit police, as force,
are with the boys, as men should
be. and that the police help the boys
to find Fairgrounds, and do not inter.
fere with them in harmless games,
which might be construed as breach
es OF the ordinance. But Detroit po-
lice are. as a rule, good fellows 10
\ the boys, and they give the boys all
possible leeway, according 10 the re-
port OF the investigator.
AS to the work to be done for the
boys Of Detroit, Mr.. Whitmore exhibit
ed some charts. showing conditions
here. The charts showed that two
per cent OF the boys in public schools
are truants. Eight and one-half per
cent of all arrests made, were OF boys.
Girls represent only one-half per cent;
women. 10 per cent. and men, 81 per
cent
As to the boys amusements, GA per
cent find their recreation in pool
rooms % per cent in moving pic
tire shows; six per cent in theaters,
and one per cent in penny arcades.
The keynote, struck by every one
OF the speakers, was that the church
should furnish amusement for the
boys, supervised by some church
member who should specialize in his
work. and learn boys, their habits.
customes. likes and dislikes, thor
ough1y.
Mr.. Van Dis declared that there
are 1900 boys between the ages Of
IA and l6 years who are working, in
Detroit, and who are not reached by
the church as, for instance, the
school pupils are.
THE working boy is as worthy
n q
boy, but we should utilize his waste
force said the speaker. THE boy
In the church and in the public
school comes under good influences.
He Is touched by the work of the Y
y NJ c. A. in addition to other forces
for his good. Often, the working
boy has none of these good influences
Recreation is the great thing to the
working boy.
Here Is the big oportunity for the
church The church ought TO see
that working boys get a half holiday
on Saturday. Church people should
not complain aginst boys for playing
Sunday ball. when that is the only
chance they get II they were given
Saturday afternoons OF, you would
find less Sunday ball playing.
"We ought TO provide places and
times for games for the working boy,
and have good men from the church
TO mingle with the boys in their play.
not to police them, for boy hates
that, but to gently guide the play to-
ward some good for the boy. We