Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1916-02-24

the grade and high schools and had
hope OF decent life. When the acct
dent occurred they had $500 saved UP
and were about to buy home on the
installment plan. 4
The doctors and living expenses, be-
fore the workman died, took part OF
this hoard, so painfully gathered. At
ter the funeral Mrs. Brian set, out to
earn living for herself and her three
children, the oldest under five years,
and one an infant. Like thousands
of other women, she thought of keep
ing roomers, and used the last OF her
savings to pay an installment on a
furnished house in the poor district,
where she expected to shelter home
less working people at so much per
week.
The business failed, as it was des-
tined to do. A woman with three chill
dren cannot keep up rooming house
even for poorly paid working people.
One after another of the guests left,
and this bright day in June found her
in the .dingy juvenile court, where she
had been taken by agents of organic
ed charity. :
One of these agents reporteds "Your
Honor, this woman is about to be set
out on the street. She can not pay her
rent. But she is able to work and we
plan to place her children in an insti-
tuition SO she can go to work some
where"
Il don't know what to do" said the
mother to the Judge. This lady said,
when OF. asked her for help, that
would have to put my children away
and go to work / wish there was
some other way" and she held her
baby closer and tried to include the
the protecting embrace.
did you collect anything from the
steel company" asked the judge.
| mot yet; my case comes up In
about three months" she said, hopeful
ly, but the distracted face of the judge
did not reflect that hope. He knew
the courts and the steel business too
well. re-
He had been on that bench for three
years. Almost daily he held confer
ence with the worlds most famous
charity workers. All Protestant and
Catholic churches of the great city
| had paid agents there to help. Thou
sands were raised by charity, asten-
sibly to relieve just such persons as
Mrs. Brian.
J The Judge, probation officers and
charity agents held little conference
1 Where shall we send the children %
was the question.
They knew no other way. Not one
of these court officers, nor charity ex-
perts, could conceive of any other way
than to break up the family taking
| these children away from their moth
| er, the cupreme crime of civilization.
punishment worse than death for the
offense Of poverty,
For three years the judge had seen
| this thing go on. His face was bag
gard, he looked as if he was ready for
the hospital. He was too humane to
do this awful thing day after day and
not to feel it.. The charity workers
| appeared to be less affected.
To send the babies to an institution
would cost the county SO month for
each child-$30 in all. They were
ready to pay this sum to an asylum
for taking care Of these poverty-strick-
en- children, but there was no way the
money could be paid to the mother
for performing the functions for which
nature intended her, and for which
she was so well prepared.
The ak was about to fall. The wag-
on was backed up at the door. Trim
nurses entered to take the babies
from their mothers arms, in all pro-
liability forever, when something hap
pened.
During the progress of the trial
two men entered. One of them was
Henry Neil, who for year had been
watching this destruction Of families
the punishment Of women and chill
dren for poverty. and all in the name
of kindness
That very week Governor Deneen
had signed a bill that was to revolu-
tionize the, practice of the juvenile
court and to prevent the separation
of mothers and their children in the
name Of sweet charity-a habit that
had become so common that 1t was
then. vested right Of the charity
organizations.
I Neil had presented the bill to the
Legislature, and it was such a little
thing that 1t crept through almost un-
noticed, Organized charity experts
knew nothing of It. It was an amend
ment to the juvenile court act in these
words:
II the parent or parents ofsuch de-
pendent or neglected child are poor
and unable to properly care for said
child, but are otherwise proper guar
dian1. and It Is for the welfare Of
such child 10 gemni1 at home, the