New Britain herald., 1914-06-02
WHAT OTHERS SAY
Views on all sides of timely questions as discussed in ex- changes thot como to Herald office.
Chicago'S Crime Record. (Chicago Tribune.o

Chicago Tribune.)
 Now let us all enjoy nice hyster- ical time! Let us do a little high class gloating over the statistics of crime in Chicago. Let us enjoy comfortable shudder as we contem- plate the horrid figures which show how high the tidal wave of wicked ness is rising.
 In 1907 the local police arrested 5S,000 people; in 1912-a space of only five years-the number had risen to 1O6,OO0, almost doubled. Twice as much crime! Twice as many crim- inals! A frightful exhibition of how life in d big city breeds and multi plies the class of what We sociologists and criminologists always refer to as "criminous detectives
 Pooh" and also "piffle," remarks Judge Gemmill of the municipal court, using, of course, much more formal and dignited language in do- ing his poohing. .Whereupon Judge Gemmill produces some statistics of his own.
 More than half of all the people arrested in Chicago in 1912 were charged with crimes which did not exist as crimes few years ago. In other words, they were arrested for breaking laws which were not on the statute books until recently
 To be specific: of the 16,0OO peo- pie Of all ages and sexes actually tried in the municipal court of Chicago in 1912 who were charged with mis- demeanors, $500 were accused of violating laws which did not exist fif- teen years ago.
 Furthermo ore. an increasing number of arrests may be the best possible sign of improving conditions.
 Tt will be frequently found." says Judge Gemmill, that the communi- ties where law and order reign, and where justice and righteousness most prevail, will have the most criminals not because the people are more de- prayed but because they have higher ideals and insist upon higher stand ards of living"
 The passage of the pure food law made 50,000 criminals of persons who before that time had been looked upon as good citizens; the law for bidding the employment of women for more than ten hours a day instantly made criminals of thousands of em- ployers: they had not changed, but the public conscience has changed.
 During the last year tried hun dreds of cases against men and wom- en who were arrested charged with violating the laws against child labor. Most of these offenders had yielded to the urgent entreaties of mothers to employ their boys and thus give them an opportunity to earn a little with which to buy clothes and books and other things desired in needy homes. Under the law as 1t now stands these employers. were criminals. Thirty years ago they would have been hailed as benefactors. No one, however. will say that labor laws have not been distinct step In advance"
 More laws have been put on the statute books, as Judge Gemmill points out, within the last twenty-five years than during all the previous history of the republic. And there has been great change in the character of these laws. In the old days almost all the criminal laws were negative. Thou shalt not' was the way they all be- gan. They forbade a man to do cer- tain things and punished him if he did them.
 Ine new laWS are positive. lnOu shalt" Is the present command. Un- der. the law railroad companies must equip their trains with safety appli- snces: children within certain ages must be sent to school; manufacturers must provide sanitary working quar- ters for their people; they must equip their dangerous machinery with pro- tective appliances; there are scores of other laws of the same kind which simply represent the new-found sense of the responsibility which the com munity feels toward the individual. More than half of the people now arrested for lawbreaking and popu- larly classed as criminals are not criminals at all in the old sense of the word. They have simply failed to keep pace with the tremendously rapid growth of the public con- science