"the vulgar display of wealth"
"Parental Neglect"
In these two words District Attorney Charles J. Dodd, who prosecuted the four young murders recently sentenced to the electric chair, summed up one of the chief causes of the problem Brooklyn faces today—the problem of the boy on the streets [ . . .]
“A very large share of the blame rests upon the shoulders of parents and it cannot be shifted. They do not exact from their children that obedience to parental authority which is the first vision of government. The restraining influence is absent in too many homes. There is a tendency on the part of many parents to choose the line of least resistance, the easiest way, so they let the children drift and shift for themselves. Then, when a serious situation arises, they try to shift the burden to the shoulders of the State by having the children committed to an institution. The best institution is not a substitute for the home influence and cannot be.
“If parents will not accept the responsibility which is their plain duty, I do not know how they can be made to realize that responsibility so long as they are within the law. Many parents have succumbed to the allurements of the world—moving picture shows, dances and other amusements which take them away from the home—and the children suffer during their absence. [ . . . ]
”When I was a boy the young folk used to go to church morning and evening and it seems to me there was less crime then. Now there is not so much church-going as there used to be and that is not a good sign. People prefer to listen to a sermon on the radio to going to church.
“One thing that which contributes toward crime is the vulgar display of wealth flaunted in the eyes of the young—jewelry and the motorcars. Many crimes have resulted from the desire of young men to acquire for themselves some of the wealth they see in the possession of others; to have cars of their own for example. This display of wealth is a constant temptation to weak-minded youth.” [ . . . ]
[Edward V. Riis, “Parental Neglect . . .” Brooklyn Daily Eagle, March 23, 1924.]
In these two words District Attorney Charles J. Dodd, who prosecuted the four young murders recently sentenced to the electric chair, summed up one of the chief causes of the problem Brooklyn faces today—the problem of the boy on the streets [ . . .]
“A very large share of the blame rests upon the shoulders of parents and it cannot be shifted. They do not exact from their children that obedience to parental authority which is the first vision of government. The restraining influence is absent in too many homes. There is a tendency on the part of many parents to choose the line of least resistance, the easiest way, so they let the children drift and shift for themselves. Then, when a serious situation arises, they try to shift the burden to the shoulders of the State by having the children committed to an institution. The best institution is not a substitute for the home influence and cannot be.
“If parents will not accept the responsibility which is their plain duty, I do not know how they can be made to realize that responsibility so long as they are within the law. Many parents have succumbed to the allurements of the world—moving picture shows, dances and other amusements which take them away from the home—and the children suffer during their absence. [ . . . ]
”When I was a boy the young folk used to go to church morning and evening and it seems to me there was less crime then. Now there is not so much church-going as there used to be and that is not a good sign. People prefer to listen to a sermon on the radio to going to church.
“One thing that which contributes toward crime is the vulgar display of wealth flaunted in the eyes of the young—jewelry and the motorcars. Many crimes have resulted from the desire of young men to acquire for themselves some of the wealth they see in the possession of others; to have cars of their own for example. This display of wealth is a constant temptation to weak-minded youth.” [ . . . ]
[Edward V. Riis, “Parental Neglect . . .” Brooklyn Daily Eagle, March 23, 1924.]
posted by A. Mattson at 8:17 AM
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