New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-02-09
MRS. KELLY HAS REMEDY
FOR VICE CONDITIONS
Tells Republican Club Members
Industrial System Must
8. First Be Changed.
BAIRD PRAISES WHITMAN
Judge Foster Outlines History
of Attempts to Control Social
Evil-Curry Attacks
Segregation.

The control Of vice was the subject OF
the Saturday discussion at the Republi-
can Club yesterday afternoon. The Rev.
flames B. Curry of the st James's Roman
Catholic Church. made an impassioned
plea for the suppression of the social evil
by drastic measures
Judge Warren W. Foster, Of the Court
of General Sessions. while admitting that
every plan that had ever been adopted for
the regulation OF the social evil had been
o. failure. pointed out instances in which
regulation had operated with marked
rbeneficent effects. The worst feature OF
the social evil he said. was the corrup-
Mon of the police by graft.
The one speaker who entertained
,sIeam Of hope for the solution OF the
,problem was Mrs Florence Kelly, general
secretary OF the National Consumers
league. who has had long experience in
svelfare work in this city and Chicago.
HER plan embraced a threefold aim-to
keducate the young. to provide that those
kwho work honestly shall receive wages
shat will enable them 10 tive honestly and
20 provide custodial care and direction in
Eshe insisted the evil could not be con-
nroued in New York until there should be
n change I'm the Industrial conditions,
(which were responsible for creating COM
snercial vice by enforcing poverty on the
workers.
Baird Praises Whitman.
Edward Kellogg Baird, chairman Of the
Sfiscussion. in introducing the first speaker
said In part:
The District Attorney Of New York is
Banding this job and he Is handling II
hight. He has behind him a record OF
achievement unequalled in the history OF
New York He has not been able 10 get
kny assistance from the Mayors ONCE
Eor from the Police Department, but he
shouldn't have any interference from
Those quarters
Hll along certain city officials nave
seen 1T 10 block the work OF the CIt-
szene' Committee and the committee OF
/ with contempt and to charge that they
were acting for political purposes alone,
whereas these officials should have CO.
operated with them from the start. Even
though they were willing TO do so now
their day of grace has expired.
why should we fearato give our views
on the moral disease called the social
II
eds Of dealing with the social evil are
proposed. One is segregation. The other
is the absolute suppression Of this vice.
Can men ever wash their consciences Of
the guilt of consent to contract which
sets aside a portion of our city for
, devils playground
Father Curry declared cities that were
cursed" with segregated districts were
anxious to get rid Of them. The question
Of police graft did not enter into consd-
Grafton, he said.
AS an old man perhaps YOU will permit
me TO recall what YOU young people have
forgotten" began Judge Foster. that in
SO, right here I'm the City Of New York,
this subject was as much alive and more
scientifically considered than al the pres
ent day. 70 was then proposed 10 segre-
gate and license for the purpose OF con
trolling and minimizing the evil. From
time 10 tine ever since Il has been used
as the Ysllying cry Of the outs against the
ms
Judge Foster gave an account OF the
efforts al regulation In Washington. which
had reduced the number CT oisordeTly
houses from several hundred to seventy
Ave. and experiments that had been con
Quoted IN san Francisco with apparent
success reducing diseases entailed bv the
social evil So per cent. The sanitary
control OF disease carriers, he said, was
the watchword Of modern hygiene.
Chairman Baird introduced Mrs. Kelly
as speaker with new point Of View
rhe said in part,