The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1914-07-14
JUDGE LINDSEY
BRINGS MESSAGE
Over Thousand People Hear
Famous Judge In High
Point
EVER SWIPE A MELON?
'ER SWIPE A MELON?
That Was Question Judge Was
Asked BY Youthful Offender
In Court and That Taught
Famous JuriSt a Lesson On
Justice That Has Guided
Him
By THORNWELL HAYNES.)

by THORNWELL HAYNES.)
High Point, July 11.-Ye who listen
with credulity to the stories that all
boys are bad come listen to Judge Ben
Lindsey, judge of the Denver Juvenile
Court, the foe to the Beast in the
Jungle" the biggest little fighter in
America, the man whom all the kids
in Denver love because he stand for
their chance, for a new and better
order of things for them. Over a
day night in the Auditorium as he
availed himself Of the privilege to
speak for humanity and justice and
brought his message of the child in
our midst, "a problem as great as
that of the Church, the home, or the
school" Every year., says this Judge
who has an international reputation
as authority upon juvenile delin-
quency, in America over 100 900 little
children are brought before the bar
of justice, or over one million in n
generation of childhood. "All preach
ers, teachers, parents, every one,
should be concerned with this divine
little machine upon which all of us
are more or less are at some time at
least in life called to play"
EARLY in my career at the bench
/ looked around for the customary
burglar, but saw not what / thought
was a burglar. 1 saw three little boys;
in the center a t~owheaded, freckled-
face boy, out at the elbows and other
places in the rear, a boy whom we are
likely to meet anywhere, but made
out of the same clay as we, and the
boy Who is always ready with an ex-
cuSe.
sonny" said the Judge to him,
you are charged with burglary
but Judge, l amt no burglary
Little Watermelon Thief.
He was accused Of going into a
49, no- nrI tal;D~ n~patIin which
did not belong to him. There was no
lawyer there to defend him, SO he be-
gan his own defense, a defense which
was destined to become classic"
Judge, it's dis way. l bin down
by de railroad track and de people say
dey wuz watermillions in dat box-
car
mo lawyer could have started with
q better plea Or more powerful one,
and fastening the plea c~onclusively,
he turned to me suddenly in open
court n exclaimed:
Judge, did you ever when a kid
swipe a watermillion?'
Wasn't that a startling question:
l did what the lawyers always dc
when justice is not on their side.
fell back on technicalities Of the law
and said:
You little rascal, it is against tht
rules Of this court for anyone tt
crosS-examine the Judge"
Now, my friends" continued the
Judge, addressing himself to the audi
ence, Il have come to cross-examint
you in defense of the little fellow
minutes to dispose of cases such a
this boys, but l find it has taken NOR
than fifteen years to dispose Of thi;
case, and L an see that the end
yet in sight. The child is the Stat
and the State is the child. When w
no1ao kLn child x"o nnolnof n
selves. But the little arraigned cul
prit continued his defense:
Found Syrup Of Figs.
Judge, when we got into de box
car we didn't find any watermillions
well, you found something. VIVA
was it?'
DO 1 have to tell?'
well, ledge, we found a bottle
and drunk a whole bottle of Syrup G
Figs
IL waited awhile for that to sin
in mot the syrup, but his elOquence)
And Jedge, L think we've suffere
enough, amt we, key"
And key, his bedraggled compaI
ion to left of him said:
Yes, Jedge, we drunk nearly tw
bottles!'
Officer Hated Boy.
II accepted the plea Of the defens
and told them / did not think Syru
of Figs "a recommended to be take
IN bottle doses,- but the big, red-face
policeman glared angrily at the be
n the boy glared at the police
man. This guardian or the law sai
the boy vas a bad case, that he ha
stolen lumber and had beer in ia
several times. The policeman seer
ed to have a grievance against tt
boy. He not only seemed to, he di
and gave vent somewhat to his fee
ings by saying:
There's fifteen or twenty mo,
down there just like him and we car
ketch EN-
Here was where / learned my fir