Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1943-11-17

orc of two or three automobiles within the past
year
one afternoon they got restless; One of them
had an automobile that he had sold to announcer
OF the four AS a preteXt for a trip TO traverse
City they gave the necessity of clearing up a iien
on the title of this car In favor OF urn IN
Traverse CITY, This could have been taken care
of by the use of one sheet of writing paper ana
one Scent postage stamp.
They left Detroit about or 2 o'clock in the
afternoon and drove To Traverse City IN one
seated car with a couple OF them riding IN
rumble seat. There was only $40 among the four,
inspte of what they had all been earning-when
they worked, from S45 to $50 week
All the rest of it had been blown in. None
had bought any apprecable amount OF bonds or
stamps and those that they had bought mad
mostly been redeemed at the earliest possible
moment
When they got to Traverse City they went
TO the home of the father of one, who is farmer
about III miles from the city.
The boys mother was overjoyed TO see
him that she cooked up monumental farm
dinner and gave it to them at o'clock at night
When they had done full Justice TO this repast
they got up and put their hats on.
And then she said
Boys, got your beds all fixed up. Whenever
you want to 20 to bed, 1t Is all right"
I'VE are not going to stay; we are on our
way"
The father said
well, YOU are not going to leave here now;
1t Is 10 o'clock"
The nice little boy said
Get the hell out of my way, YOU old blankety
blank, or will knock your head off"
At the same time he picked up chair and
prepared TO do So
The father. being one against four, thought
that discretion was the better part of valor.
They went back to Traverse City They
parked their car near Front street and two OF
them went down and broke into service station,
where the Traverse City boy had worked. ana
where he told them he could ind the money.
had a
trick on him After he had left his employ ne had
bought safe, and they could not break INTO the
safe. So all they got was pocketful OF gasoline
coupons and sparkpugs They thereupon lett
Traverse City about midnight and started on
their way back 10 Detroit
At Pontiac they undertook to sell some Of
their gas coupons and actually made the sale
But almost at once the purchaser 7elt misgivngs
of conscience maybe and notified the police, who
picked them up.
Here is case of four young men all OF
whom had good enough homes. The father OF
one is working at the Briggs Manufacturing
Co. in Detroit and making 500 a week ms
lad was IS years of age, and he was making $40
week but not living al home. He had lett
home and was living in a boarding house
The family conditions of all were perfectly
respectable.
Why should young men in their nth year
be making the exaggerated amounts of money
which they throwing away?
Is II necessary Tor lnern lHdSfluCn as uley
making that amount 10 go out and steal
something? Why were they blowing II in on
senseless pleasures and not making any contr-
button to the public welfare?
All of them had left school because school
was not exciting TO them and because they
wanted to be working and making money and to
be their own masters.
None expressed the slightest regret for any
thing that he had done except to be so foolish as
TO get caught.
One bit of testimony gave hint as TO the
situation.
Just after the boys left Detroit. one of them
said:
job"
asked him if the other boys knew what he
meant He replied Yes" Then asked him what
he meant He said oh. TO break in some place
and swipe something.
Then l asked him where he learned what
this thieves jargon, pull job meant and ne
finally recoected that he had heard the phrase
used in one of the movies which, apparently,
represented to these four youngsters the last
word in educational refinement.
THESE three cases are more less typical.
L More playground facilities are not going to
remedy them
said have no suggestions to make.
l do diagnose, however as a part OF the
(a) Parental incompetence or indf.
ference
(b) An educational system, which 10
by people, Of Whom do not have
accurate appreciation Of human nature IL
the adoieseent stage.
(c) The pernicious effect Of the un.
utterabie rot that is presented TO young
America in the n,ovies and the radio.
II is a splendid thing to try TO remedy the
so-called juvenile delinquency. 1t is all right TO
ask as one part of that remedy more playground
facilities in the backyard neighborhoods in cities
However you cannot cure situation that is
typfied by the cited here by gentle taps on
the wrist and coddnC.
Young America has got to learn that in this
life everybody has TO do something that he does
not want 70 do. and that the things that are
really worth doing and accomplishing are the
things that are hard 10 do and hard TO accom-