RUSSELL SAGE FOUNDATION PUBLICATIONS

A study of children in the Chicago Juvenile Court. This is the most thorough and comprehensive report that has yet appeared of the methods, problems, and achievements of a children’s court through a series of years. The cases of more than 14,000 boys and girls, the conditions surrounding them, and their treatment by the court, are dealt with in a way to throw new and valuable light on the problems relating to dependent and delinquent children.

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Four volumes prepared for the Eighth International Prison Congress.

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Written by a distinguished group of American prison administrators and reformers.

PRISON REFORM. By CHARLES RICHMOND HENDERSON (Editor), F. B. SANBORN, F. H. WINES, and others

CRIMINAL LAW IN THE UNITED STATES. By EUGENE SMITH

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PENAL AND REFORMATORY INSTITUTIONS. By SIXTEEN LEADING AUTHORITIES

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PREVENTIVE AGENCIES AND METHODS. By CHARLES RICHMOND HENDERSON

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PREVENTIVE TREATMENT OF NEGLECTED CHILDREN. By HASTINGS H. HART

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THE PITTSBURGH SURVEY. Findings in six volumes, edited by Paul U. Kellogg. 8vo. Fully illustrated. Maps, charts, and tables. Price per set, postpaid, $10.

Women and the Trades.By Elizabeth Beardsley Butler. 2d ed. 440 pages. Postpaid, $1.72.

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Wage-earning Pittsburgh.420 pages. Price, $2.50 net. (In press.)

WEST SIDE STUDIES. Embodying the results of an investigation into social and economic conditions on the Middle West Side of New York, carried on under the direction of Pauline Goldmark. In two volumes. 12mo. Illus. Price per volume, postpaid, $2.00.

Boyhood and Lawlessness.Illus. 204 pages.

The Neglected Girl.By Ruth S. True. 148 pages.

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The Middle West Side: A Historical Sketch.By Otho G. Cartwright. Illus. 60 pages.

Mothers Who Must Earn.By Katharine Anthony. Illus. 224 pages.

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SAN FRANCISCO RELIEF SURVEY. Compiled from studies made by six prominent relief workers. Illus. Map. 8vo. 510 pages. Postpaid, $3.50.

WORKINGMEN’S INSURANCE IN EUROPE. By Lee K. Frankel and Miles M. Dawson, with the co-operation of Louis I. Dublin. 8vo. 450 pages. 145 tables. Bibliography. 2d ed. Postpaid, $2.70.

FATIGUE AND EFFICIENCY. By Josephine Goldmark. Introduction by Frederic S. Lee, Ph.D. Appendix containing comparative schedules of hours and extracts from laws regulating women’s labor. 8vo. 358 pages. 4th ed. Postpaid, $2.00.

THE DELINQUENT CHILD AND THE HOME: A Study of Children in the Chicago Juvenile Court. By Sophonisba P. Breckinridge and Edith Abbott. 8vo. 360 pages. Postpaid, $2.00.

CO-OPERATION IN NEW ENGLAND: Urban and Rural. By James Ford, Ph.D. 12mo. 260 pages. Postpaid, $1.50.

SOCIAL WORK IN HOSPITALS: A Contribution to Progressive Medicine. By Ida M. Cannon, R.N. 12mo. 272 pages. Postpaid, $1.50.

WOMEN IN THE BOOKBINDING TRADE. By Mary Van Kleeck. Illus. 12mo. 290 pages. Postpaid, $1.50.

ARTIFICIAL FLOWER MAKERS. By Mary Van Kleeck. Illus. 12mo. 280 pages. Postpaid, $1.50.

SALESWOMEN IN MERCANTILE STORES. Baltimore, 1909. By Elizabeth Beardsley Butler. Illus. 12mo. 234 pages. 2d ed. Cloth, postpaid, $1.08. Paper, postpaid, $0.75.

THE STANDARD OF LIVING Among Workingmen’s Families in New York City. By Robert Coit Chapin, Ph.D. 8vo. 388 pages. 131 tables. Postpaid, $2.00.

MEDICAL INSPECTION OF SCHOOLS. By Luther Halsey Gulick, M.D., and Leonard P. Ayres, Ph.D. Illus. 8vo. 244 pages. 4th edition, completely revised. Postpaid, $1.50.

LAGGARDS IN OUR SCHOOLS. A Study of Retardation and Elimination. By Leonard P. Ayres, Ph.D. 8vo. 252 pages. 4th ed. Postpaid, $1.50.

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CORRECTION AND PREVENTION. Four volumes prepared for the Eighth International Prison Congress. Edited by Charles Richmond Henderson, Ph.D. 8vo. Price per set, express prepaid, $10; per volume, $2.50 net.

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Penal and Reformatory Institutions.By Sixteen Leading Authorities. Illus. 358 pages. Postpaid, $2.70.

Preventive Agencies and Methods.By Charles Richmond Henderson, Ph.D. 454 pages. Postpaid, $2.68.

Preventive Treatment of Neglected Children.By Hastings H. Hart, LL.D. With special papers by leading authorities. Illus. 430 pages. Postpaid, $2.70.

JUVENILE COURT LAWS in the United States: Summarized. Edited by Hastings H. Hart, LL.D. 8vo. 160 pages. Postpaid, $1.60.

CIVIC BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR GREATER NEW YORK. Edited by James Bronson Reynolds, for the New York Research Council. 8vo. 312 pages. Postpaid, $1.50.

HANDBOOK OF SETTLEMENTS. Edited by Robert A. Woods and Albert J. Kennedy. 8vo. 342 pages. Cloth, postpaid, $1.50. Paper, postpaid, $0.75.

CARRYING OUT THE CITY PLAN. By Flavel Shurtleff. Introduction by Frederick Law Olmsted. 12mo. 360 pages. (In press.)

SURVEY ASSOCIATES, Inc.PUBLISHERS FOR THE RUSSELL SAGE FOUNDATION105 EAST 22d STREET, NEW YORK

FOOTNOTES:1Mention should also be made of other fellows of the Bureau whose work in connection with the West Side Survey is not included in these publications. They were Elizabeth B. Butler, senior fellow; Lawrence K. Frank, Robert C. Sanger, Garret P. Wyckoff, Howard Nudd, Marie S. Orenstein, and Frances Perkins, all junior fellows. The last three published the results of their investigations in magazine articles.2The names of the 294 boys studied were obtained from the following sources: 1909 court list, 202; Big Brother Movement, 43; special club studied, 10; Charity Organization Society, 8; additional children in families studied, 20; known through investigators on other topics, 6; known through other children, 2; through church, school, settlement, 1 each.3See Chapter VI, The Boy and the Court, pp. 79 ff.4Thirteen families had lived in the district less than five years, and the length of residence of 58 families was not ascertained. See Appendix, Table 3,p. 168.5Pushcart vendors gather here and line the sidewalks, and the neighborhood shops and markets display their wares on outdoor stands to attract the Saturday night trade.6See Cartwright, O. G.: The Middle West Side: A Historical Sketch. (West Side Studies.) Russell Sage Foundation Publication. In Press.7The People’s Institute has undertaken, January, 1914, a neighborhood work, which will correlate and broaden the various recreation activities now going on in the Middle West Side. A social center has been opened in Public School 17, on West Forty-seventh Street, on the initiative of the local school board. The People’s Institute has taken executive charge of the work. About this center there will be focused a neighborhood movement, which will work in De Witt Clinton playground, on West Fiftieth Street pier, in the public libraries, and on the streets.8See Cartwright, op. cit. In Press.9See Anthony, Katharine: Mothers Who Must Earn, p. 7. (West Side Studies.) Russell Sage Foundation Publication. New York, Survey Associates, 1914.10Of 222 fathers whose country of birth was known, 81 were born in the United States, 64 in Ireland, 27 in Germany, and 17 in Italy. Other countries were represented by numbers ranging from seven to one. Among 227 mothers, the United States was given as the place of birth of 92; Ireland, of 72; Germany, of 18; Italy, of 15. The numbers from other countries ranged from eight to one. The country of birth of 19 fathers and of 14 mothers in the 241 families could not be ascertained.11See Appendix, Tables 4 and 5,pp. 168and169.12See Chapter VI,pp. 95ff.13For account of one of these raids see Chapter IV,pp. 48-49.14This term is commonly applied to all the thugs and loafers of the Middle West Side.15New YorkTribune, December 18, 1911.16New YorkTimes, June 26, 1911.17New YorkWorld, February 24, 1910.18See Appendix, Table 6,p. 169.19For further data regarding size of families, see Appendix, Table 7,p. 170.20For economic status of the mothers in 222 of the 241 families of delinquent boys, see Appendix, Table 8,p. 170. See also Anthony, op. cit., p. 59.21The conjugal condition of the parents in 233 families is shown in the Appendix, Table 9,p. 171. For eight of the group of 241 families this information was not available.22The relief records of 86 families who were known to have received aid, and the duration of the relief records in 73 of these cases, are given in the Appendix, Tables 10 and 11,pp. 171and172.23For the full text of the law referred to, see Consolidated Laws of New York; the Penal Law; Laws of 1909, section 2186, chapter 88.24Compare with classification of arrests according to analysis of offenses made in the Bureau of Social Research, as given in Chapter II,pp. 16-17.25There were two cases in which an arrest was made on more than one charge.26Separate courts were established in Brooklyn in September, 1903; in the boroughs of Queens and Richmond in September, 1910; and in the county of the Bronx in January, 1914.27Until recently the judges of Special Sessions sat in rotation in the children’s court. The disadvantages of this system, under which it was seldom possible for the judge who had first passed upon a case to follow it to its conclusion, led in 1912 to some modifications in the direction of more permanent assignments of children’s court judges. Further improvements were made in 1913. Four judges of the Court of Special Sessions were designated as children’s court judges, and they constitute a committee on children’s courts. For the greater part of the year one judge sits in the children’s court in Manhattan, another in the court of Brooklyn, and since January, 1914, a third sits on different days of the week in the courts in Queens, Richmond, and the Bronx. The fourth is chairman of the committee and sits about three months in the year in each court. This new arrangement minimizes rotation in office and permits specialization.28This has been completely changed since a special judge was assigned to the court. When he is sitting, frequently one and a half hours will be given to one case alone and there is rarely a day when there are not two sessions, morning and afternoon. Sometimes the Manhattan court does not adjourn until 7 p. m.29A modern court building is now in process of erection in East Twenty-second Street, between Lexington and Third Avenues.30The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (Incorporated). Thirty-fifth Annual Report, Dec. 31, 1909, p. 17.31“As prepared by the New York Prison Association, the bill was applicable to both children and adults, but owing to the active opposition of the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, it was amended in the legislature so as to apply only to persons over sixteen years of age. It was claimed by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children that existing laws made adequate provision for the treatment of delinquent children.” Report of the Probation Commission of the State of New York, 1906, pp. 8 and 9.32Commission to Inquire into the Courts of Inferior Criminal Jurisdiction in Cities of the First Class. Final Reports. New York Assembly Documents, 133rd Session, 1910, Vol. 26, No. 54.33Changes made in 1913 have been discussed on p. 87.34Folks, Homer: Juvenile Probation in New York.The Survey, xxiii: pp. 671-672. (Feb. 5, 1910).35The public is indebted to these volunteers for providing some probationary care for charges of the court before official probation was established. As soon as this was done, they were relieved of the undue pressure under which they had worked without proper equipment and aid. With the direction and supervision of the trained official representatives of the court, volunteer co-operation may now be developed and made highly useful.36In March, 1912, as the result of an active campaign, 12 probation officers who had passed the civil service examination were assigned to the Manhattan children’s court and made officers of the court, drawing their salary from the city. In 1913, the number of probation officers was raised to 20. The effectiveness with which the new probation work operates is, of course, a subject on which we have no data. The court still faces the difficulty of having too small a staff for the number of cases. The Manhattan court has over 10,000 cases under treatment in the course of a year. In Chicago, the average number of cases is only about 5,000 and there are 30 regular probation officers and 30 police probation officers, making a total of 60 persons to handle this smaller number of cases.37Jack Spinner’s mother was required to secure $1,000 bail—and fortunately she was able to secure it from the members of her church—for a “$500 burglary,” the articles in question being two small bundles of kindling wood which, as it was afterward proved, the boy had not taken.38“Everybody in the district knows him. Everybody knows where to find him, and nearly everybody goes to him for assistance of one sort or another, especially the poor of the tenements. He is always obliging. He will go to the police courts to put in a good word for the ‘drunks and disorderlies,’ or pay their fines if a good word is not effective. He will attend christenings, weddings, and funerals. He will feed the hungry and help bury the dead.“A philanthropist? Not at all. He is playing politics all the time. Brought up in Tammany Hall, he has learned how to read the hearts of the great mass of voters. He does not bother about reaching their heads. It is his belief that arguments and campaign literature have never gained votes. He seeks direct contact with the people, does them good turns when he can, and relies on their not forgetting him on election day.” Riordan, W. L.: Plunkett of Tammany Hall. A Series of Very Plain Talks on Very Practical Politics, pp. 168-169. New York, McClure, 1905.39The installation of official probation officers and the adoption of the new system of records have removed this obstacle to the judge’s obtaining a comprehensive view of cases and reaching wise decisions. At the present time a careful preliminary investigation is made by the probation officer and presented in written form to the judge, prior to disposition of the case.40For statistical data see Appendix, Table 12,p. 172.41Two-thirds of all the cases handled in 1909 involved minor or trivial offenses, according to the Handbook of the New York Child Welfare Exhibit, 1911. Section on Laws and Administration, p. 162.42As already indicated official probation has taken the place of the “parole” system since this chapter was written.43This use of the term “parole” is not strictly correct. “Parole” more properly applies to the supervision of delinquents after release from institutions.44Since the above was written, a new system of records recommended by the state probation commission has been adopted by the court for the use of probation officers. They cover all cases investigated or on probation since March, 1912.45For three of the 95 paroled cases this information was not available. Data concerning the remaining 92 cases and the 1,492 paroled cases disposed of by the Manhattan court in 1909 may be found in the Appendix, Table 13,p. 173.46This condition was changed with the installation of the official probation staff in March, 1912.47In 1913 a law was enacted for the appointment of three physicians to examine children for mental defectiveness. As the Civil Service Commission refused to declare the positions exempt, however, no appointments were made; but an examination will undoubtedly be held to make up a list of physicians from which these offices may be filled. In the meantime the children’s court judge sends many children to the clinic conducted by Dr. Max Schlapp in connection with the Post-Graduate Hospital.48See also Anthony, Katharine: Mothers Who Must Earn, p. 9.49New YorkEvening Mail, April 28, 1911.50For truancy records see Appendix, Table 14,p. 173. In classifying the boys studied according to the extent of their truancy, a distinction was made between those who were, according to our standards, really delinquent, and those who were included in the inquiry for some other reason. Data are available for 215 of the 294 boys included in our study.51For occupations and wages of the boys who were at work see Appendix, Table 15,p. 174.52Counted by children.53Counted by cases, and classified by terms in popular use, because statutory classifications which are clear to the lawyer are likely to confuse the layman.54Counted by cases.55Counted by cases.56Counted by cases.57Counted by cases.58Counted by children.59Counted by cases.60Counted by children.61Counted by cases.62Counted by cases.63The names of girls given in this book are fictitious.64This name is commonly applied to all the loafers and thugs from Thirtieth to Sixtieth Street.65See Chapter II,p. 19, and Appendix A,p. 121.66Reynolds, Stephen, and Wooley, Bob and Tom: Seems So, A Workingman’s View of Politics, p. xv. London, Macmillan, 1912.67Now commissioner of corrections, New York City.68Annual Report of the New York State Reformatory for Women at Bedford, 1907, p. 25.69For more detailed data with regard to conditions in the 55 families to which the 65 girls dealt with in this study belonged, see Appendix A, Economic Condition of the Families,p. 121.70See Appendix A,p. 121.71Ibid.,p. 121.72For the relation which the number of children had to applications for relief among these families, see Appendix A,p. 123.73For further data concerning the broken families in the group, and the extent of wage-earning among the mothers, see Appendix A,p. 124 ff.74See Anthony, Katharine: Mothers Who Must Earn, p. 166 ff. (West Side Studies.) Russell Sage Foundation Publication. New York, Survey Associates, 1914.75See Appendix A,pp. 128-129.76For discussion of housing and rent in the 55 families, see Appendix A,pp. 126-128.77Of the 55 families, 25 were affected by excessive drinking on the part of one or both parents. Twelve of the mothers were known to drink to excess. For further discussion, see Appendix A,p. 129.78For data concerning attendance in four schools in the West Side district, and a comparison with attendance in all the public schools, see Appendix B,p. 132.79Ayres, Leonard P.: Laggards in Our Schools, p. 38. Russell Sage Foundation Publication. New York, Charities Publication Committee, 1909.80In 1913 the requirements were raised so that a child under sixteen must reach a 7A grade before she can take the school examinations. The board of health requirements also have been strengthened.81Wells, Herbert G.: The New Machiavelli. New York, Duffield, 1910.82These statements of the girls are corroborated by the following paragraphs from a recent study:“During the past few years aggressive measures have been taken by different reform organizations aiming to bring about a more wholesome atmosphere in connection with public dances, especially those attended by the poorer boys and girls. Proprietors have been induced to employ special officers to attend the dances and keep order, prevent ‘tough’ and ‘half-time’ dancing, and protect innocent girls from the advances of undesirable persons. The duties of the special officer are difficult to perform. If he interferes too much, the dancers go to some other place where they enjoy more freedom. As a result, the honest proprietor who endeavors to conduct a respectable hall loses patronage, while the disreputable owner makes all the profit. Again, the young people who attend these balls know immediately when a person different from themselves appears in the hall. At once the dance becomes modest and sedate, and the visitor goes away to report that ‘while conditions are not what they should be, yet on the whole there is great improvement.’“A social club gave a ball on the evening of March 23, 1912, at a hall in East 2nd Street. The dancing was very suggestive. The special officer was entertaining a police sergeant, but neither made any effort to regulate the actions of the dancers. The next afternoon another club occupied the hall at the same address, with the same special officer in attendance. Suddenly, when the dancing was in full swing, the officer hurriedly rushed among the dancers and told them to ‘cut it out’ as three detectives had just come in and he did not want to see the place closed up. A girl, apparently thirteen years of age, was dancing at the time and the officer put her off the floor, loudly declaring that the proprietor did not allow young girls to dance in the hall. Things resumed their former aspect, however, as soon as the detectives retired.”—Kneeland, George J.: Commercialized Prostitution in New York City, pp. 68-70. Bureau of Social Hygiene. New York, Century Co., 1913.83See Cartwright, O. G.: The Middle West Side: Historical Notes. (West Side Studies.) Russell Sage Foundation Publication. In preparation.84The solidarity of this colony of Italians is not necessarily typical of other colonies in the city, some of which are known to be well represented in the charity organization records of their district. One charitable agency reports, for instance, that in a certain upper East Side district, nearly 90 per cent of the families applying for relief in 1912-13 were Italian; but Italians undoubtedly formed a large percentage of the population.85Among a group of 86 families visited, the length of residence in the district was obtained for 79. Of these, 51 families had lived in the district more than ten years. Eighteen of the 51 had come direct from Italy and 33 had moved here from other parts of the city.86While the men in the group visited were found to be engaged in an unusual variety of occupations—laborer, barber, waiter, and 40 others were recorded during a general investigation among Italians in the district—most noticeable was the group of well represented occupations in which the whole family can share.87A law prohibiting employment of women in factories after 10 p. m. became effective July 1, 1913.88When a family is found to be no longer in need of relief, the case is technically referred to in the offices of the relief society as “closed.” If further relief is needed at a later date, it is “re-opened.”89See Chapter II, In the Grip of Poverty,p. 19.90For statement regarding births and deaths of children in 31 families, not all of whom had relief records, see Chapter II,p. 23.91See Devine, Edward T.: Misery and Its Causes. New York, The Macmillan Co., 1909.92See Chapter II,p. 22.93Breckinridge, Sophonisba P., and Abbott, Edith: The Delinquent Child and the Home. Russell Sage Foundation Publication. New York, Charities Publication Committee, 1912.

1Mention should also be made of other fellows of the Bureau whose work in connection with the West Side Survey is not included in these publications. They were Elizabeth B. Butler, senior fellow; Lawrence K. Frank, Robert C. Sanger, Garret P. Wyckoff, Howard Nudd, Marie S. Orenstein, and Frances Perkins, all junior fellows. The last three published the results of their investigations in magazine articles.

2The names of the 294 boys studied were obtained from the following sources: 1909 court list, 202; Big Brother Movement, 43; special club studied, 10; Charity Organization Society, 8; additional children in families studied, 20; known through investigators on other topics, 6; known through other children, 2; through church, school, settlement, 1 each.

3See Chapter VI, The Boy and the Court, pp. 79 ff.

4Thirteen families had lived in the district less than five years, and the length of residence of 58 families was not ascertained. See Appendix, Table 3,p. 168.

5Pushcart vendors gather here and line the sidewalks, and the neighborhood shops and markets display their wares on outdoor stands to attract the Saturday night trade.

6See Cartwright, O. G.: The Middle West Side: A Historical Sketch. (West Side Studies.) Russell Sage Foundation Publication. In Press.

7The People’s Institute has undertaken, January, 1914, a neighborhood work, which will correlate and broaden the various recreation activities now going on in the Middle West Side. A social center has been opened in Public School 17, on West Forty-seventh Street, on the initiative of the local school board. The People’s Institute has taken executive charge of the work. About this center there will be focused a neighborhood movement, which will work in De Witt Clinton playground, on West Fiftieth Street pier, in the public libraries, and on the streets.

8See Cartwright, op. cit. In Press.

9See Anthony, Katharine: Mothers Who Must Earn, p. 7. (West Side Studies.) Russell Sage Foundation Publication. New York, Survey Associates, 1914.

10Of 222 fathers whose country of birth was known, 81 were born in the United States, 64 in Ireland, 27 in Germany, and 17 in Italy. Other countries were represented by numbers ranging from seven to one. Among 227 mothers, the United States was given as the place of birth of 92; Ireland, of 72; Germany, of 18; Italy, of 15. The numbers from other countries ranged from eight to one. The country of birth of 19 fathers and of 14 mothers in the 241 families could not be ascertained.

11See Appendix, Tables 4 and 5,pp. 168and169.

12See Chapter VI,pp. 95ff.

13For account of one of these raids see Chapter IV,pp. 48-49.

14This term is commonly applied to all the thugs and loafers of the Middle West Side.

15New YorkTribune, December 18, 1911.

16New YorkTimes, June 26, 1911.

17New YorkWorld, February 24, 1910.

18See Appendix, Table 6,p. 169.

19For further data regarding size of families, see Appendix, Table 7,p. 170.

20For economic status of the mothers in 222 of the 241 families of delinquent boys, see Appendix, Table 8,p. 170. See also Anthony, op. cit., p. 59.

21The conjugal condition of the parents in 233 families is shown in the Appendix, Table 9,p. 171. For eight of the group of 241 families this information was not available.

22The relief records of 86 families who were known to have received aid, and the duration of the relief records in 73 of these cases, are given in the Appendix, Tables 10 and 11,pp. 171and172.

23For the full text of the law referred to, see Consolidated Laws of New York; the Penal Law; Laws of 1909, section 2186, chapter 88.

24Compare with classification of arrests according to analysis of offenses made in the Bureau of Social Research, as given in Chapter II,pp. 16-17.

25There were two cases in which an arrest was made on more than one charge.

26Separate courts were established in Brooklyn in September, 1903; in the boroughs of Queens and Richmond in September, 1910; and in the county of the Bronx in January, 1914.

27Until recently the judges of Special Sessions sat in rotation in the children’s court. The disadvantages of this system, under which it was seldom possible for the judge who had first passed upon a case to follow it to its conclusion, led in 1912 to some modifications in the direction of more permanent assignments of children’s court judges. Further improvements were made in 1913. Four judges of the Court of Special Sessions were designated as children’s court judges, and they constitute a committee on children’s courts. For the greater part of the year one judge sits in the children’s court in Manhattan, another in the court of Brooklyn, and since January, 1914, a third sits on different days of the week in the courts in Queens, Richmond, and the Bronx. The fourth is chairman of the committee and sits about three months in the year in each court. This new arrangement minimizes rotation in office and permits specialization.

28This has been completely changed since a special judge was assigned to the court. When he is sitting, frequently one and a half hours will be given to one case alone and there is rarely a day when there are not two sessions, morning and afternoon. Sometimes the Manhattan court does not adjourn until 7 p. m.

29A modern court building is now in process of erection in East Twenty-second Street, between Lexington and Third Avenues.

30The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (Incorporated). Thirty-fifth Annual Report, Dec. 31, 1909, p. 17.

31“As prepared by the New York Prison Association, the bill was applicable to both children and adults, but owing to the active opposition of the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, it was amended in the legislature so as to apply only to persons over sixteen years of age. It was claimed by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children that existing laws made adequate provision for the treatment of delinquent children.” Report of the Probation Commission of the State of New York, 1906, pp. 8 and 9.

32Commission to Inquire into the Courts of Inferior Criminal Jurisdiction in Cities of the First Class. Final Reports. New York Assembly Documents, 133rd Session, 1910, Vol. 26, No. 54.

33Changes made in 1913 have been discussed on p. 87.

34Folks, Homer: Juvenile Probation in New York.The Survey, xxiii: pp. 671-672. (Feb. 5, 1910).

35The public is indebted to these volunteers for providing some probationary care for charges of the court before official probation was established. As soon as this was done, they were relieved of the undue pressure under which they had worked without proper equipment and aid. With the direction and supervision of the trained official representatives of the court, volunteer co-operation may now be developed and made highly useful.

36In March, 1912, as the result of an active campaign, 12 probation officers who had passed the civil service examination were assigned to the Manhattan children’s court and made officers of the court, drawing their salary from the city. In 1913, the number of probation officers was raised to 20. The effectiveness with which the new probation work operates is, of course, a subject on which we have no data. The court still faces the difficulty of having too small a staff for the number of cases. The Manhattan court has over 10,000 cases under treatment in the course of a year. In Chicago, the average number of cases is only about 5,000 and there are 30 regular probation officers and 30 police probation officers, making a total of 60 persons to handle this smaller number of cases.

37Jack Spinner’s mother was required to secure $1,000 bail—and fortunately she was able to secure it from the members of her church—for a “$500 burglary,” the articles in question being two small bundles of kindling wood which, as it was afterward proved, the boy had not taken.

38“Everybody in the district knows him. Everybody knows where to find him, and nearly everybody goes to him for assistance of one sort or another, especially the poor of the tenements. He is always obliging. He will go to the police courts to put in a good word for the ‘drunks and disorderlies,’ or pay their fines if a good word is not effective. He will attend christenings, weddings, and funerals. He will feed the hungry and help bury the dead.“A philanthropist? Not at all. He is playing politics all the time. Brought up in Tammany Hall, he has learned how to read the hearts of the great mass of voters. He does not bother about reaching their heads. It is his belief that arguments and campaign literature have never gained votes. He seeks direct contact with the people, does them good turns when he can, and relies on their not forgetting him on election day.” Riordan, W. L.: Plunkett of Tammany Hall. A Series of Very Plain Talks on Very Practical Politics, pp. 168-169. New York, McClure, 1905.

“A philanthropist? Not at all. He is playing politics all the time. Brought up in Tammany Hall, he has learned how to read the hearts of the great mass of voters. He does not bother about reaching their heads. It is his belief that arguments and campaign literature have never gained votes. He seeks direct contact with the people, does them good turns when he can, and relies on their not forgetting him on election day.” Riordan, W. L.: Plunkett of Tammany Hall. A Series of Very Plain Talks on Very Practical Politics, pp. 168-169. New York, McClure, 1905.

39The installation of official probation officers and the adoption of the new system of records have removed this obstacle to the judge’s obtaining a comprehensive view of cases and reaching wise decisions. At the present time a careful preliminary investigation is made by the probation officer and presented in written form to the judge, prior to disposition of the case.

40For statistical data see Appendix, Table 12,p. 172.

41Two-thirds of all the cases handled in 1909 involved minor or trivial offenses, according to the Handbook of the New York Child Welfare Exhibit, 1911. Section on Laws and Administration, p. 162.

42As already indicated official probation has taken the place of the “parole” system since this chapter was written.

43This use of the term “parole” is not strictly correct. “Parole” more properly applies to the supervision of delinquents after release from institutions.

44Since the above was written, a new system of records recommended by the state probation commission has been adopted by the court for the use of probation officers. They cover all cases investigated or on probation since March, 1912.

45For three of the 95 paroled cases this information was not available. Data concerning the remaining 92 cases and the 1,492 paroled cases disposed of by the Manhattan court in 1909 may be found in the Appendix, Table 13,p. 173.

46This condition was changed with the installation of the official probation staff in March, 1912.

47In 1913 a law was enacted for the appointment of three physicians to examine children for mental defectiveness. As the Civil Service Commission refused to declare the positions exempt, however, no appointments were made; but an examination will undoubtedly be held to make up a list of physicians from which these offices may be filled. In the meantime the children’s court judge sends many children to the clinic conducted by Dr. Max Schlapp in connection with the Post-Graduate Hospital.

48See also Anthony, Katharine: Mothers Who Must Earn, p. 9.

49New YorkEvening Mail, April 28, 1911.

50For truancy records see Appendix, Table 14,p. 173. In classifying the boys studied according to the extent of their truancy, a distinction was made between those who were, according to our standards, really delinquent, and those who were included in the inquiry for some other reason. Data are available for 215 of the 294 boys included in our study.

51For occupations and wages of the boys who were at work see Appendix, Table 15,p. 174.

52Counted by children.

53Counted by cases, and classified by terms in popular use, because statutory classifications which are clear to the lawyer are likely to confuse the layman.

54Counted by cases.

55Counted by cases.

56Counted by cases.

57Counted by cases.

58Counted by children.

59Counted by cases.

60Counted by children.

61Counted by cases.

62Counted by cases.

63The names of girls given in this book are fictitious.

64This name is commonly applied to all the loafers and thugs from Thirtieth to Sixtieth Street.

65See Chapter II,p. 19, and Appendix A,p. 121.

66Reynolds, Stephen, and Wooley, Bob and Tom: Seems So, A Workingman’s View of Politics, p. xv. London, Macmillan, 1912.

67Now commissioner of corrections, New York City.

68Annual Report of the New York State Reformatory for Women at Bedford, 1907, p. 25.

69For more detailed data with regard to conditions in the 55 families to which the 65 girls dealt with in this study belonged, see Appendix A, Economic Condition of the Families,p. 121.

70See Appendix A,p. 121.

71Ibid.,p. 121.

72For the relation which the number of children had to applications for relief among these families, see Appendix A,p. 123.

73For further data concerning the broken families in the group, and the extent of wage-earning among the mothers, see Appendix A,p. 124 ff.

74See Anthony, Katharine: Mothers Who Must Earn, p. 166 ff. (West Side Studies.) Russell Sage Foundation Publication. New York, Survey Associates, 1914.

75See Appendix A,pp. 128-129.

76For discussion of housing and rent in the 55 families, see Appendix A,pp. 126-128.

77Of the 55 families, 25 were affected by excessive drinking on the part of one or both parents. Twelve of the mothers were known to drink to excess. For further discussion, see Appendix A,p. 129.

78For data concerning attendance in four schools in the West Side district, and a comparison with attendance in all the public schools, see Appendix B,p. 132.

79Ayres, Leonard P.: Laggards in Our Schools, p. 38. Russell Sage Foundation Publication. New York, Charities Publication Committee, 1909.

80In 1913 the requirements were raised so that a child under sixteen must reach a 7A grade before she can take the school examinations. The board of health requirements also have been strengthened.

81Wells, Herbert G.: The New Machiavelli. New York, Duffield, 1910.

82These statements of the girls are corroborated by the following paragraphs from a recent study:“During the past few years aggressive measures have been taken by different reform organizations aiming to bring about a more wholesome atmosphere in connection with public dances, especially those attended by the poorer boys and girls. Proprietors have been induced to employ special officers to attend the dances and keep order, prevent ‘tough’ and ‘half-time’ dancing, and protect innocent girls from the advances of undesirable persons. The duties of the special officer are difficult to perform. If he interferes too much, the dancers go to some other place where they enjoy more freedom. As a result, the honest proprietor who endeavors to conduct a respectable hall loses patronage, while the disreputable owner makes all the profit. Again, the young people who attend these balls know immediately when a person different from themselves appears in the hall. At once the dance becomes modest and sedate, and the visitor goes away to report that ‘while conditions are not what they should be, yet on the whole there is great improvement.’“A social club gave a ball on the evening of March 23, 1912, at a hall in East 2nd Street. The dancing was very suggestive. The special officer was entertaining a police sergeant, but neither made any effort to regulate the actions of the dancers. The next afternoon another club occupied the hall at the same address, with the same special officer in attendance. Suddenly, when the dancing was in full swing, the officer hurriedly rushed among the dancers and told them to ‘cut it out’ as three detectives had just come in and he did not want to see the place closed up. A girl, apparently thirteen years of age, was dancing at the time and the officer put her off the floor, loudly declaring that the proprietor did not allow young girls to dance in the hall. Things resumed their former aspect, however, as soon as the detectives retired.”—Kneeland, George J.: Commercialized Prostitution in New York City, pp. 68-70. Bureau of Social Hygiene. New York, Century Co., 1913.

82These statements of the girls are corroborated by the following paragraphs from a recent study:

“During the past few years aggressive measures have been taken by different reform organizations aiming to bring about a more wholesome atmosphere in connection with public dances, especially those attended by the poorer boys and girls. Proprietors have been induced to employ special officers to attend the dances and keep order, prevent ‘tough’ and ‘half-time’ dancing, and protect innocent girls from the advances of undesirable persons. The duties of the special officer are difficult to perform. If he interferes too much, the dancers go to some other place where they enjoy more freedom. As a result, the honest proprietor who endeavors to conduct a respectable hall loses patronage, while the disreputable owner makes all the profit. Again, the young people who attend these balls know immediately when a person different from themselves appears in the hall. At once the dance becomes modest and sedate, and the visitor goes away to report that ‘while conditions are not what they should be, yet on the whole there is great improvement.’

“A social club gave a ball on the evening of March 23, 1912, at a hall in East 2nd Street. The dancing was very suggestive. The special officer was entertaining a police sergeant, but neither made any effort to regulate the actions of the dancers. The next afternoon another club occupied the hall at the same address, with the same special officer in attendance. Suddenly, when the dancing was in full swing, the officer hurriedly rushed among the dancers and told them to ‘cut it out’ as three detectives had just come in and he did not want to see the place closed up. A girl, apparently thirteen years of age, was dancing at the time and the officer put her off the floor, loudly declaring that the proprietor did not allow young girls to dance in the hall. Things resumed their former aspect, however, as soon as the detectives retired.”—Kneeland, George J.: Commercialized Prostitution in New York City, pp. 68-70. Bureau of Social Hygiene. New York, Century Co., 1913.

83See Cartwright, O. G.: The Middle West Side: Historical Notes. (West Side Studies.) Russell Sage Foundation Publication. In preparation.

84The solidarity of this colony of Italians is not necessarily typical of other colonies in the city, some of which are known to be well represented in the charity organization records of their district. One charitable agency reports, for instance, that in a certain upper East Side district, nearly 90 per cent of the families applying for relief in 1912-13 were Italian; but Italians undoubtedly formed a large percentage of the population.

85Among a group of 86 families visited, the length of residence in the district was obtained for 79. Of these, 51 families had lived in the district more than ten years. Eighteen of the 51 had come direct from Italy and 33 had moved here from other parts of the city.

86While the men in the group visited were found to be engaged in an unusual variety of occupations—laborer, barber, waiter, and 40 others were recorded during a general investigation among Italians in the district—most noticeable was the group of well represented occupations in which the whole family can share.

87A law prohibiting employment of women in factories after 10 p. m. became effective July 1, 1913.

88When a family is found to be no longer in need of relief, the case is technically referred to in the offices of the relief society as “closed.” If further relief is needed at a later date, it is “re-opened.”

89See Chapter II, In the Grip of Poverty,p. 19.

90For statement regarding births and deaths of children in 31 families, not all of whom had relief records, see Chapter II,p. 23.

91See Devine, Edward T.: Misery and Its Causes. New York, The Macmillan Co., 1909.

92See Chapter II,p. 22.

93Breckinridge, Sophonisba P., and Abbott, Edith: The Delinquent Child and the Home. Russell Sage Foundation Publication. New York, Charities Publication Committee, 1912.

Transcriber’s Note:Obvious printer errors corrected silently.Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation are as in the original.

Obvious printer errors corrected silently.

Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation are as in the original.

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