The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-12-08
Denies Student Drinking

y
By Times Special
GARY. Ind, Dec. 8.-Use of liquor
by school children of this city, where
only few days ago 19-year-old
Arlene braves died following a
drinking orgy. Is very limited, ac-
cording to William A. Writ, city
school superintendent and founder
of the famous Gary plan of edu-
eaton. Miss braves was graduated
from high school here in June.
Discussing the death, Writ de-
clared:
Certainly it was an awful thing
"a most regrettable occurrence.
But the same sort of tragedies oc-
Cured before prohibition and in
my judgment, will continue to oc-
cur so long as liquor is obtainable."
Continuing a discussion Of drink
ing among high school students, the
superintendent said:
L think the public generally has
a wrong opinion about the amount
of drinking among high school stu
dents. Personally, I don't believe
there is any considerable amount of
drinking in or around the Gary
schools. At any rate, there is little
Of it in evidence.
Some students may drink at par
ties because they want to be smart
Others may detach themselves from
parties and do their drinking in
automobiles. The boys Mushrooms
in the schools occasionally may wit
ness undetected schoolboy drinking.
Drink to Be Smart
Generally, however, drinking
among students is confined to very
small groups. Three or four boys
bottle They drink Not because
the stuff tastes good, but because
they think it's smart to drink.
Our policy regarding drinking in
the schools is rigid Hence, fragrant
instances of violation are rare. We
can not expel students who are
known to drink outside the schools,
in their own homes with their par
ents or at parties; but we can and
do bar them from honorary activi-
ties such as school dramatics and
athletics.
NO student who drinks Is allowed
to take place among the outstand-
ing members of the student body.
AbsoIves Police
1T is true that on the Saturday
preceding >the Emerson Horace
Mann football game four boys, all
members of the Horace Mann team,
were declared ineligible because they
were caught drinking liquor 1t is
unnecessary for me to say that the
Horace Mann team was crippled
considerably by the action, but it
had to be taken.
IAN investigation by Charles D.
Lutz, principal of Horace Mann, dis
closed the name Of the man who
sold the liquor to the four boys.
Mr.. Lutz filed a complaint with the
city, police. In a weeks time the
police captured Clarence johnson,
the same alleged 'bootlegger' who
now is involved in the braves trag-
edy. He was fined 500 and costs
and sentenced to thirty days in Jail
in Gary city court, but 1 understand
he wriggled out on an appeal. I
do not blame the police for that. 1
know they did what they could to
aid us"
Youths Morals Better
Reminded that he had been head
of the school system here twenty
three years, Writ was asked:
DO you find moral conditions
among Gary's school children better
y or worse than they were when you
founded the Gary school system?'
He replied:
Moral conditions among our
children are patiently better than
they were twenty-three years ago.
Never in my long experience as an
educator have I seen such clean
cut, forward looking young men and
young women step out of their
graduating classes as in recent
years. But our adults-the moral
conditions among them are emphat-
ically worse than they were when
I first came to Gary. I say this
with particular reference to liquor
drinking and wild parties All this
sets a poor example for our growing
generations.
Writ denied that after the braves
tragedy he instructed principals to
hold assemblies in schools for the
purpose of warning students not to
drink.
I'VE had no occasion to do so,
he explained.