Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-03-31

TINS IS the Second dTItcte OF q series
On the House Of Detention and the tpork
Of the WoHsGn's Bureau. The conciud-
ing article Till appear tomorrow.
From the day of his birth the boy
had been destined for the priesthood.
He was the only son of a widowed
mother, an illiterate Polish woman, in
Northern mill town. Through the years
she had toiled to keep him in school
and to keep worldly ideas out of his
head. She had been sustained by a
glorious vision of a day when her boy
would stand before her upon an altar,
clad in ornate robes, at the celebration
of his first mass.
She pictured the raising of the host,
the bowed heads of the congregation,
the ethereal music from the organ loft,
the incense, the glory of God descend
ing upon her child. This vision had
enabled her to hold her head up
through all sorts of adversely. He was
a quiet, StudiouS boy He led his class
in high school. He thought of no other
career than that planned by his mother.
He was an altar boy at the village
church.
Then came the time for him to enter
the seminary. The proper arrange
mentS were made. The mother was
putting his clothes in order.
But the boy had a prosperous uncle,
a man of the world, who was generous
by fits and starts
Sought to Sow Wild Oats"
"You ought to see the world before
you go to the seminary, kid" he said.
"You won't get much of q chance after
that Sow few wild oats. Here-take
this and go as far as it will carry you"
He thrust into the boys hands roll
of bills-altogether it was almost $500.
Now this boy. strange to say, had very
dim ideas of what was meant by SOW
ing wild oats. He started out to see
the world. He had never travelled be-
fore. A policeman picked him up at
the Union Station in Washington, pass
ing out IS bills to crowd OF colored
children who had gathered around him.
He was sowing his wild oats" before
going TO the seminary. There were only
a few bills left when the policeman
stopped him.
Naturally this looked suspicious. Who
was the boy? Where did the money
come from? He told his story. To the
policeman it seemed preposterous.
Meanwhile, the mother, frantic at
the boys disappearance, had appealed
to the police of her home town and
through them query had come to the
Woman's Bureau here, which keeps
lookout for lost children. They checked
back on the boys story and found it
true in every detail.
On the face of it this looked like
ludicrous situation, but it was far diff
ferent for the boy and his mother. He
was involved IN scandal. He had
fallen into the hands OF the police, He
never would be allowed TO enter the
seminary. Her visions were blasted.
Boys Career Is Saved.
But the Woman's Bureau were able
to arrange matters so that the youth
was returned TO his home without pub
licity, he entered the seminary few
weeks later, and has written a fervent
letter of thanks for saving his career.
He is through with Sowing wild oats"
This is one case of scores dealing with
lost children which are handled by the
Woman'S Bureau under the direction of
Mrs Van Wrinkle. Boys and girls are
continually running away from home
and frantic parents appeal for help are
sent in. The little boys start out West
to fight Indians" or they plan to go TO
sea. Their little heads are fun of the
exploits of their favorite fiction charac
tiers. And little girls start out to find
their fairy princes. They come from all
sorts of homes. A strange restlesSnesS
seizeS children with the coming OF
Spring. Their imaginations wander far
from the humdrum surroundings of
home, with his dreary routine of chores
and seedlings Sometimes they go
amazingly long distances. Often they
arrive in Washington, pennyless and
homesick, from distant cities.
Here the Woman's Bureau steps In.
The children, In most cases, have been
punished enough for yielding to the
overpowering wanderluSt. They are
cold and hungry. They need neither a
scolding nor a spanking. There is one
person in the whole world they want
to see and that is mother.
But the burly, gruff police sergeant,
however he may strive to change his
personality for the occasion, is q poor
substitute for mother. He hardly can
help frightening the lost children. His
very uniform does that, however father
~ may be the man behind the polished
buttons. In any event, this Is hardly
the time for children to come In contact
with the machinery Of justice devised
Tor their erring elders.
Can Substitute for Mother"
WITT the policewoman it is different.
She has an instructive way with chill
oren. She can be temporary substi-
tute for mother" Nearly every child,
of course, either has run away from
home or has had a strong impulse,
defeated only by circumstances, TO do
so. 1t is an almost universal episode in
the idyl of childhood. There is nothing
criminal about it. 1t is part of the
pattern of child behavior, and the
policeWomen know it. Yet unfortu-
nately, it may bring the boy or girl in
direct contact with the harshness OF
the law.
All the child runaways, however, are
not idyllic. Washington, like every
other big city, has its hell for children,
where almost unbelievable things hap
pen. 1t is in handling such situations
as these-in broken homes and with
drunken, feebleminded, filthy parents
and guardianS-that the utmost skill
and tact of the policewoman is called
for. She must enforce the law and
at the same time act outside the law