The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1913-02-22
Uncle Sans War
On White SlaverS
tBY ARTHUR P. KELLOGG.)
Exclusive Service The Survey Press Bureau.}

The vice revelations in New York
like those in Chicago are OF concern
to every other American city. They
are exhibits of a common problem
which each city must attack by itself.
But organized vice, by ramify1ng
across the continent, has linked them
up into a national problem, vulner-
able under federal law. There is
pretty general agreement that the
present point of attack on CONNER
cialized vice should, SO far as the
cases permit, be brought under the
Mann, or White Slave Act. The fed
era1 attorneys and the federal courts
have piled up a record since the law
went into effect in July, 1910, OF
337 convictions with sentences total
ing 607 years and fines aggregat1ng
SIS, 605.5O. One hundred and six
cases were pending at the last report.
There have been only thirty-hve &C
quittals. A Detroit attorney has
pointed out that practically no cases
have been lost there in federal courts
(twenty nine convictfons) while prac-
tica11y none, for very similar offenses,
have been won in the state court. In
his annual report to the President, At
torney-General Wickersham asked for
an increased appropriation (from
100000 to $2OO,OO0) for the special
commissioner and local white slave
officers who have been chiefly in
entail IN winning THESE SON6EA-
ment suits. Many individuals and
local sex hygiene and similar societies
are in hearty accord with the plan,
and look upon the Mann Act as the
most effective law we have ever had
in dealing with the trafficking in vice.
Nevertheless, there has been strong
criticism of the enforcement of the
law in several jurisdictions because of
light sentences. The law was drawn
on broad lines, making it a. violation
for any person to knowingly persuade,
induce, coerce, or cause, or to aid
assist any woman or girl to go
from one state to another for pros
titution, debauchery or other inmor-
al purpose, with or without her con-
sent. The maximum penalty, if the
victim was over eighteen, was made
five years imprisonment and $4,000
fine; twice that amount if she were
under eighteen.
In the face of such a possible pen
atty, a probation officer in Pittsburg
protested vigorously when white
SLAYER, convicted in the Federal court
there, was given a sentence of one
day. In Minnesota the women's
clubs made a state issue of a case IN
which a married man, deserving his
family, took a girl from Wisconsin
to Minnesota, and was sentenced by
Judge Mcpherson to three months in
the county Jail and fine of 81, 900.
The women's clubs petitioned the
judge of the United States Court of
Appeals, who makes the assignn ents
of the district judges, to assign Judge
Mcpherson to another district, N1est
another case of white slavery be plac-
ed upon the calendar subject to Judge
McPherson's Judgment. This petit
ton was refused, on the ground that
the degree of punishment is express
ly entrusted to the trial judge. It
was stated also that the United States
district attorney who prosecuted the
case was satisfied with the sentence
The man had pleaded guilty to TAX
ing a girl under eighteen across state
borders for cohabitaion. Judge Nc
Pherson defended his sentence on the
ground that theer was evidence to
show that the girl was coerced. The
club women ,countered vigorously
with a statement to the effect that
coercion was not the point; that by
the mans own story, plus all human