The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1913-03-20
There is a large and rapidly in

creasing number of people who art
Of the opinion that the investiga
ton of social evils i'll Illinois ane
the publication of the findings Ii
the investigation is doing moro
harm at this time than the low
wage scale has ever done. The
Grand Forks Herald in comment
ing on the economic feature ha:
taken a broad and sensible vie"
which is as follows:
Persons who are at all familiar
with the industrial conditions in the
sites know that in some cases the
wages paid are pitifully small, and
that in many of these cases women
have little choice between starva-
ton and the street. But it is inn
yortant to remember that the social
evil is not economic only. This
fact is emphasized in a recent adj
dress by Mrs. Carrie Chapman
Gait. This famous worker for wo-
man suffrage and for better So
cial conditions holds that low wages
are contributing cause to be care
fully taken into account, but,
while the text of her address is not
at hand, she mixes it plain that there
are other important causes which
mist not be ignored.
1t does not need the work of an
Investigating committee to demon
stratc the truth of this. Every
fairly observant person knows that
it is true. and that there is going
on a constnat recruiting into the
ranks Of the underworld through
influences on which wages and
economic conditions generally have
40 bearing.
Without entering into a discuss
ion Of the conditions in the great
cities, a good deal may be learned
Jroan a careful survey of the situa-
ton i'll the smaller cities. There
factory life, such as is found in the
great cities, does not exist. There
are no great department stores to
employ thousands of young girls.
In the western cities of the smaller
class only very small number of
girls are wage workers, Or need to
BE. And yet in these cities there
are thousands of girls who are be-
4ng educated for highly undesir-
able careers. II is not a case of
poverty. 1t is not a case of nee
cssity. 1t is not a case of innate
depravity, which leads to the de-
liberatc choice of evil rather than
good. The conditions which we
find in such cities, and which are so
dangerous and dcmoralizing are of
another character entirely.
. This sort of education is going
On in places which are perfectly le-
gal, which have legitimate function
10 perform which cannot be legis-
lated out Of cxistance and whose
abolition, if it were possible Or de-
sirablc, would accomplish nothing
toward the solution of the problem.
These are the candy stores, the
dance halls illegally and properly
conducted), the ten cent theatres,
and places in general which affords
opportunity for young people to
gather and kill time. It is not
aTlat they. are engaged in the work
Of deliberate debauchcry. Doubt
less some of them are entirely evil
and should be suppressed. But it
is fact that immense amount OF
undesirable education is going or
III them because is it in and arounC
them that young people who have
nothing else to do contract the hab
it. Of loafing.
When the situation is analysed i
will be found that in the vast ma
jority Of cases OF this particula
Kind the trouble is not with TIN
government, nor the schools, no
the factory system, nor the scal
of wages paid, not with anything o
the sort. 1t is III the lack of con
troll over children exercised by TIN
parents III the home. Given plent,
of idle time and opportunity to It's
it as she pleases, and the girl o
fifteen has the very best of oppor
,unity in the world to make a goo,
s:art and rapid progress on tn
downward path. 1t will be natura
for her to meet with other girl
situated as she is. to gather wit
ether girls situated as she is. t.
gather with them at favoritc gath
ering places-it matters little wha
or where the places are--to pic
ZIP acqualntcnces easily wit
strangers to accept attentions an
tavors from them, to acquire
permanent dislike for honest wor