The Washington times., 1913-08-15
CH|LDREN'S FRIEND
URGES NEW COURT
Miss Lathrop Says Washing
toms Juvenile Tribunal
Should Be Model for Nation.

"Every city should have a clean, well
ordered building in which to house its
juvenile court, but Washington. above
them all. should have building for
this purpose which would serve as a
model to the nation of which 1t is the
Capital
This was the premise laid down by
Miss Julia {. Lathrop. chief of the
Children's Bureau of the Department OF
Labor, in a discussion today of the
reed for a new Juvenilt Court building
is usually handled, and condemned the
methods which treat the child in the
same manner that an adult law-breaka-
is usually handled. and cUndemne the
present quarters of the court as totally
unfit for the use to which il is put
Thu president as well as many others
has said that the municipal institutions
OF Washington should serve as an eN-
ample TO other cities" Miss LathrOp
said. This seems to me an excellent
an, and ever the children. take a just
pride in the beauty of the Capital. Ger
tainly, then. so important an institution
as our Juvenile Court should not be
a reproach TO the city.
Revolution in Methods.
"Only once has my work taken nc
to the present building where the court
Is held. but I remember it as a dlngy,
unwholesome place and a poor place
indeed 10 take children"
Miss Lathrop paused and looked out
of the window of her office, over the
dingy roofs and blaCkened chimney
pots, and beyond to where the white
summer clouds drifted over the Po-
tomac and threw grateful splotches of
shade upon Mt. NernOn's slopes To
her eyes there came a look as if she
saw the tens of thousands of unfortu-
nate children upon whose frail
falls. And being the woman called
by Uncle Sam" to save the babies of
the nation from untimely deaths, the
look was very tender.
You know there has been q wonder
full change. a revolution, in the
children within the last few years."
she said. The change is not yet quite
complete, but surely Washington
should do its part in furthering the
new idea.
The most important thing is not TO
ALLEVIATE the child offender from So
ciety, but to make him a law-abiding
useful member of society. In dealing
with the adult who has broken the
law it is necessary, in most instances,
to have heavy iron bars and forbid
ding stone walls, but where children
are concerned these are the last
things in the world that should be in
evidence. We must get as far away
from the prison idea as possible, and,
as Miss Adams has said, the iron
bars across the windows of the court
here in Washington are a great mis-
take.
"A juvenile court building should be
as much like q modern school as pos
sible; 1t should be most hOmelike. 1t
should not be a place to strike terror.
even to the timid, and the relations
between the judge of the court. the
juvenile officer in charge, and the
youthful defendant should always be
OF the most personal kind.
But above all, the errinE child. es-
pecially the one in court for the first
time, should be kept as much as pos
sfble from the other wards Of the court,
whether the others are young or old in
crime This is impossible in Washing
ton at present, and such conditions can
not be too severely condemned.
France has the most model prison !
IN the world, and at the institution I
have in mind they are so careful to |
keep the prisoners apart that the wagon |
In which they are taken from the court |
tC the prison has little compartments or !
cells in II, so that even en- route TO the !
prison the men have no opportunity to |
instruct each other in crime, nor does /
the man who reforms have a horde OF j
prison acquaintance TO blackmail him !
after he is released and pursuing a .
normal course in life.
If so much care is iustifable with |
men. how much more ought II to char /
acterize the procedure where impress |
sionable children are concerned. In the |
Juvenile Court here, l understand, il is /
sometimes found necessary TO detain !
time, while they are waiting for their !
cases 10 be called. This is most de-
plorable, for associations so formed may
work untold harm"