Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-06-28

glasses and con.
Judce RortbeImr. sulting the report
before her. tells
me Jennie has run away. This Is the
third time. You are her parents,
Anna and John. Can't you keep your
girl happy at homer"
The Printznaks both talk at once
and Jennie starts to cry. The little
judge holds up a hand, quiets things,
organizes the speeches with few
gentle. encouraging words, and the
story of an Grant girl proceeds. The
look of fear leaves their faces, Jennie
starts to hunt for her handkerchief
and the judge. knowing it will be in
vain, whips one from a drawer appar-
entity containing endless new hand
kerchiefs. and hands it to her with
friendly smile.
Cost Stopped Drinking.
'Is there drinking in your home,
Jennie?" she asks.
mo. ma am, not any more. Pa gets
it sometimes, but Ma can't afford 1t.
1t costs SIS cents a glass. Things are
all right home now"
why did you go away? Tell me
the truth, Jennie"
Jennie drags out disjointed story
a room, and boy friend with a car.
There was trip, an accident, no
money, a night or two spent in the
locker room of a deserted bathhouse,
hunger, WEAKNESS, disillusion and
trouble generally. Pa locked Jennie
out when she crawled home and Ma
had a fight with him for doing it.
There was a general miX-up, and now
the PritZnak family was in court 20
be Strengthened out by woman who
probably knows more about human
nature than any one anywhere outside
the Salvation Army.
inquiries About Work.
care you working, John Pritznak?"
John is working, he volubly ex-
plains, as a street car conductor. 1t
is not true he takes anything" Any
how, hardly anything. He did before
the war;" and lost his job. During
the war the company had to re-em-
ploy him because of the man-shortage.
John has never been drunk since.
Honest, judge, not once. Would the
company keep him on If he took any
thing?
please, your honor" 1t Is the
probation officer speaking up, II have
thoroughly investigated the Pritznak
home and find it clean, well managed
and all right every way. Jennie wants
to return to it. She realizes her
foolishness and if she and her parents
have a new understanding everything
will be agreeable. Jennie will work
and contribute to the house."
The judge considers. Will Jennie
take a place in a family, working
daytimes and sleeping home? She
mods eagerly that she will. Very well.
Now all three of you, and Mrs. Quin-
Ian, go into that room and talk things
over.
Human Stream Passes.
They go, and the steady stream of
erring humanity that passes by hun
dreds and thousands before Judge
Barthelme resumes. Truant girls,
girls who are bad because ignorant,
shoplifters, runaways, unmarried
mothers, feeble,minded adolescents,
incorrigibles, idle and homeless, de-
serted-the young of all sorts and
conditions who are thrown unfairly
against the world.
But almost no mention of drunken
ness.
II wanted you here on the BENCH"
said Miss Barthelme to me, $50 you
could see for yourself how few cases
come before me from drink. 1t was
not so before the Volstead act. In
those days-and have been IA years
in the Juvenile Court out of every
20 who came here either were in
toXicated or were here as a result of
their own or some one else's intoXi-
cation. Since prohibition we do not
have one such case in a month! Do
you see why l am so earnestly a
'dry'?"
Thinks Money Does IL.
Judge Barthelme is convinced 1t
is the huge sums of money involved
in the liquor interests, the saloon
keepers, brewers and others who wax
rich from the appetites of the weak
and the convivial, that keep alive the
debate on prohibition and the tempta-
ton to drink.
II am no fanatic about It," she as
sures us. II come of family with
European background, and no thought
of depriving people of wine either in
public or private. But in France and
Switzerland they do not drink as
Americans do. Hard liquor is harm
full when used as a beverage, and
every one knows it,
IL we AUNT the muCn VdunL6u
light wines and beer we shall only
have saloon of new type with the
same old results of misery, cruelty,
poverty, suffering and crime. 1t Is
not possible to regulate 1t, and the
money should be spent on the homes.
Expresses Disagreement. -
II do not agree with those who say
the working man gets his drink just
the same. With the closing Of sa-
looms he became interested in his fam
lily and had ambitions for himself.
know it. see it daily. You yourself
have seen an example"
The Prjtznaks. Judge Mary re-
turned to the bench from her cham
bers, where we had gone to talk, and
disposed of the Pritznaks. The three
Of them went off-pa, ma, and Jennie
with her new handkerchief and newly
, discovered knowledge that home was
best if your ma and pa did right by
you and you had job, and the gray.
haired lady on the judges bench
promised to be friend and would al.
ways advise and help If anything
went wrong.