Life — May 5, 1927 — page 8: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Life When Parents Fail Pr epts is a clumsy world cA for children. They are Ss {constantly running in- ®') to the barbed wires of our grown-up principles and con- ventions. Every year thousands of them get into trouble which brings them before the Juvenile Courts for punishment or wisely tempered mercy. Rarely are these unfortunate youngsters reallybad. Nearly always the hidden cause behind their waywardness is lack of training or proper guidance at home. Oftentimes, physical con- ditions cause their abnormality. When health is restored the vi- cious tendencies often disappear. Warm-hearted men and women in all parts of the coun:ry are doing splendid work in helping to salvage these bits of human driftwood. Organizations have been formed which send volunteer representatives to the Juvenile Courts to take boys and girls on probation and so save them from slipping into lives of crime. The kindly folk who do this work are “friends at court” to these youngsters. Delinquent children are by no means found to come only from homes of poverty. From well-to-do and even rich homes have come children with tenden- cies toward crime which have amazed their parents. Too late these fathers and mothers learned that in reality they never had known their sons and daughters. May Day—Children’s Day May First has been set aside by the nation as a day on which mothers and fathers, philanthropists and public- spirited men and women, interested in America’s future, join in one great pur- pose—the big, important work of check- ing up the health of the children of this country. It is a great forward step to set aside a definite day to have eyes, ears, noses, throats, and teeth examined for possible physical defects. But why stop half-way? Examine minds just as thor- oughly for possible mental troubles. In May, then, after you good fathers and mothers have found out whether or not your children are sound and healthy, physically, you will want to have an old-fashioned, heart-to-heart talk with © vrrmicee the youngsters and learn what they are thinking about, who their com panions are, and where they spend their time. More especially will you want to do this if you have ever spent a few hours in a Juvenile Court where you will have learned that the young offender, in nearly every instance, lands in court because of bad companions or want of proper home training. Lacking a friend at home, a child may need a friend at court. Fach year more than 200,000 children are brought before the Juvenile Courts charged’ with more or less serious offenses. Seventy-five per cent of all adult offenders begin their criminal careers before reaching the age of 21, The steps are fast from. petty thieving to murder. In the three year period, 1 point ever recorded. In 1926 there were approximately 10,000 homicides. In recent years our homicide rate has been 600% greater than that of Canada and 1400% greater than that of England and Wales. 923, 1924 and 1925, the homicide mortality rate in the United States mounted to the highest ACR is to understand emotionally.” Child”. Even the best of children develop tendencies hard for parents to understand. These faults, if uncorrected, may produce seri- cous consequences. As Judge Arnold of the Juvenile Court of Cook County, Illinois, says, “The first job of a parent of a boy im, not only physically and morally, but The Metropolitan has prepared a booklet, “The Mind of the Itmay help you to deal fai children in solving the many vexit connection with them, Send for it. It will be mailed without cost. HALEY FISKE, President. irly and wisely with your problems that come up in oe METROPOLITAN LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY ~NEW YORK Biggest in the World, More Assets, More Policyholders, More Insurance in force, More new Insurance each year Published by —1r Minn Pros. aver Dora AT comicbooks.com