Evening star., 1939-08-13

starts long time before his crime, and is
likely to continue long time after It. Two
criminologists associated with Harvard Uni
versity have followed the devious careers of
$40 young men who - between 1911 and
1922 were released from the Massachusetts,
Reformatory Some of the $40 were followed
through fifteen years; others, after five years,
we're lost entirely. But the net conclusions
are startling Four -ffths of these men - from
five to fifteen years after their release from the
reformatory were still mreformed and
engaged in crime.
In many places this preparation for future
crime has been part of our court and prison
system. A Delinquency Committee working
in cooperation with the Boys Bureau in New
York City has described the procedure: The
first offender is handcuffed and taken to the
Tombs Prison. He is herded, with vagrants,
drunks, drug addicts and gangsters, into
narrow hall on the second floor of the prison.
There ne is fingerprinted, searched and as
signed to cell. On his way - his arms loaded
with blankets, two tin bowls, cup and spoon
- the prisoners peer at him and jeer his de-
iected progress At mealtime he is fed, animal
fashion, through the bars. At night his sleep
probably is interrupted by vermin or prowling
rats.
When his case comes up for trial his treat
ment, too often, is strictly according to the
letter rather than the spirit of the law. You
are dangerous, incouigible little gangster,
nuisance to society,"" said judge in passing
sentence on a seventeen-year-ol boy No
account was taken of the fact that his at
tempted robbery was first offense; that he
was drunk; that social workers who had got
acquainted with the boy in Jail had been
impressed with his character possibilities. No
one was ready to take chance on his future,
so he went to Jail, a criminal in the making.
But there is another and equally dramatic
aspect to this story of the seamy side OF
the picture of Americas young men. An
awakening is under way - an awakening to
the fact that, for the education of young
criminals, society is largely to blame. Many
communities now realize that the actual crime
is only symptom - and are moving to get
at the disease.
Under the auspices of the probation de-
partment and the juvenile court, Los Angeles
has established sixty co-ordinating councils,
set up on neighborhood basis and represent
ing the city's character building agencies
The membership of these councils includes
more than 1,5OO citizens and officials. The
job of each council is to prevent youths edu-
cation in crime by providing education of
different sort.
How this is accomplished is illustrated by
the story of Echo Park. Echo Park is section
of Los Angeles with large foreign popula-
ton Neither public nor private social agencies
had ever given it much attention. Juvenile
delinquency was rising at rapid rate. The
streets were alive with gangs and the police
had their hands full. When -ordinating
council was set up in the district its first move
was to make careful survey, the results of
which disclosed widespread poverty, unstable
homes, few play areas. The survey also dis
covered, in the center of the worst part of the
district, an old church that had been closed
for seven years.
The councils second move was to call
meeting at that church. The meeting was
attended by representatives of the service
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