Putnam patriot., 1922-02-17
FURNISHING ROOMS
FOR PROBATION OFFICERS USE
MRS W. j. BARTLETT AFFIRMS THAT ROOMS TO DEAL
WITH CASES OF MAYNARD BOYS AND GIRLS
ARE NOW A NECESSITY
Children Be Housed at Officers Homes Pending
of Inquiry. and This Is Often Ineonvenient

The proposal Of Mrs. W. J. Bartlett
probation officer, that the city of Put
nam and the town of Putnam combine
in the creation and maintenance Of
rooms for use of the probation officer
Of the town and city in performing
their duties, is proving quite an in
teresting topic of discussion in som,
quarters Sharp criticism is heard oil
the whole idea. while on the other
hand il has its staunch supporters
The city council has the matter un
der Amusement, and whether or not il
is pigeon-heled" and never heard
from again. is a question that tim,
will answer.
In an interview with Patriot rep
resentative. Mrs. Bartlett said why
ask for office rooms as a place for pro-
baton officers to carry on their work
when we have never had any such
thing? The answer is a simple one,
which | trust | will be able TO make
clear at this time.
Officer Has Much to Dc
The work of the probation officer
in Putnam today is combination of
the duties that would fall TO the social
worker and the probation officer. In
our city we have no organization that
has as its chief object the protecting
of girls and boys or of doing proven
tative work, saving these young peo-
pie from the dangers that surround
them; saving them from everlasting
grief and disgrace, Because there is
no such organization and because this
kind Of work must be done, the pro-
baton officer must undertake the task,
making the job doubly hard.
The family, the basis of social ser
vice work. is one of the problems TO
contend with. From the dependent
child feeling blue, poor and neglected,
to the well-to-do and rich child in
trouble, there is ample work for the
probation officer to do. And then
there are the cases where the husband
and wife are having misunderstand-
ings. and where the trouble is. many
times, adjusted and the cordial family
life restored. simply by the intereste
and impartial labors of the probation
officer. who in this particular type of
case. serves as the social worker.
Juvenile Court Created
Then there are the cases that now
come under the direction of the ju.
venile court, which the probation Off.
Ger alone handles. Boys and girls in
trouble, are not now permitted tc
come under police regulation, because
of the passage by the state legislator,
of an act (Section 7, Chapter 307
Public Acts of 1921 creating the ju.
venile court, and which became effect.
i've on Jan. |, 1922 Cases of these
children are investigated by the pro
baton officer, who presents them ia
the juvenile court and afterward dis.
poses of the cases according to the d.
rections of the judge. Such children
are no longer allowed to be brought
into the police court. the new law in
tending to save these hayward youths
from receiving police record at SO
tender an age.
Under present conditions the ma
jority of these cases must be handled
at the home of the probation officer
Frequently il is necessary to detain
some boys and girls for several hours
while investigations are going forward
and if they are not completed that
day, these children must be kept over
night. When there is no place avail
able for such overnight entertainment,
these boys and girls must be provided
with room at the home Of the proba-
ton officer. Very naturally. there are
occasions when this is not in the least
convenient and sometimes not pleas
ant. But il must be done, neverthe-
less. If one is TO perform his duty.
City Asked to Cooperate
$50 the probation officer goes to
both the town and the city and pre-
sents a plan whereby rooms may be
furnished and made available for i'm
mediate use; place where investiga-
tions and interviews may be held and
where people may be detained for as
long period as necessary to prepare
their cases for disposition by the ju.
venile court. Such an apartment can
be equipped and furnished at cost
of 1912 year, half Of this TO be paid
by the town of Putnam and half by
the city. The selectmen of the town
approve of the plan and are Willing
that the town shall defray half the
cost. To put Putnam in the ranks
with other forward looking, progress
sive communities, all that is necessary
now is for the city council and the
mayor to approve Of the project and
vote 20 share the cost with the town