Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1922-02-06
THE CHILD,

- 'A NNANS hNS dSANNl4t AL ~ Il
speaker said: Prom the ranks Of neglected children
come 80 per cent OF the nations criminals. Eight OF
every ten murders are committed by men and wo-
men who were neglected or exploited in their child
hood. -Four hundred thousand of the half million
mel', women and children who are incarcerated in
our jails and penitentiaries come from the same
class. There is your ledger account. On one side
are the riches amassed BY the exploiters Of child
life; ON. the other, 50 per cent OF all the crimes on
earth"
The speaker was engaged in promoting 4 move
'ne1t for the systematic care Of neglected children
which has been undertaken by a pkilanthropic So
clety. The selections made from his address in the
above quotations appear to have been unfortunately
chosen, as standing alone, they would lead to the
impression that the greater percentage of crime is
due to the existence of economic conditions which
result in the neglect and exploitation of children.
We assume that the speaker did not intend to con-
vey this impression. If he did, he is sadly mistaken
in his facts.
The neglect OF children which bulks much more
largely than does their Exploitation is undoubted-
ly responsible for a great deal OF our crime and for
many other evils which cannot be classed as crime,
and it is a fact that many persons undertake ito &C.
count for crime in terms of poverty, and to account
for poverty on the theory that its existence is due
to the deliberate intent Of some persons to deprive
other persons OF that which is Justly due them. =
Many children are sadly neglected, but they arc
BY no means all, or nearly ali, children OF poor par
cnts. The jails and penitentiaries arc by no means
!lndDlteQ Dy any SuCn proportion as ~ per cent OF
persons who, in their childhood, were deprived
through the unavoidable poverty of their families
OF the means for making reasonable progress and
reasonable development in citizenship. Very many
of our criminals come from what are considered
good homes. Some of them are from homes OF
wealth, and a very large number of them are from
homes where all the conditions are those Of Comfort
and even of moderate luxury. Children are neglect
ed, not alone because their parents are unable BY
reason Of poverty to take care of them, but because
parents in SO many cases lack either the will or the
skill to devote themselves properly to the training
of their children. The individual who starts early
on a career of crime does so in a very large proper
ton of the cases because he has never been trained
properly to work. He has not had the advantage OF
that schooling which to be effective must begin in
childhood, which teaches that work is the salvation
of the individual and his only safe means to develop
ment. He is permitted to avoid the things which
are difficult and distasteful to him, and he grows 50
into the habit of doing this that when thrown upon
his own responsibility, he lacks the ruggedness OF
character which can alone enable one to cope with
the problems of life. He has been permitted to de-
velop habits of ease and Incidence, to look upon
work as a disagreeable necessity, if it is undertaken
at all, and something to be avoided if avoidance is
possible. So taught in childhood, he applies his les
sons in youth and manhood, and the drift into in
efficiency and criminality is easy and in many cases
almost certain. H.
There can be no doubt of the Importance OF
making provision for those children who, by reason
of unfavofable economic conditions, are deprived
of the advantages which ali children should enjoy,
but in giving proper attention to this phase Of the
subject, it is important that we do not lose sight of
the other side Of the problem which is that Of de-
I~veloping> among our people a stronger and more
constructive attitude toward our youth, and a will
their own personal time to the development in their
children of habits Of industry, thrift, and all the
other homely, but very necessary virtues.