3. Are you inclined to support the doctrine that the State in dealing with a criminal should entertain no idea of punishment; that it should simply treat the criminal as a sick person? Give reasons for your

answer.

4. Does the constitution of this State say anything about crime? about punishments? What does the Constitution of the United States say about punishments (142) Are those who have been convicted of crime in this State permitted to vote?

5. What industrial schools, reformatories and asylums are supported in this State? What is a juvenile court?

6. What notable persons have been accused of treason in the United States? Has there ever been a conviction for treason?

7. Prepare a five-minute paper on The Elmira Reformatory.

Hint on Reading.-F. H. Wines, "Punishment and Reformation."'

L

CHARITIES

Charity a Function of Government. Society always has its poor and unfortunate, and the problem of dealing with poverty is hardly less perplexing than the problem of dealing with crime. Poverty and crime are often found together, but they are not related as cause and effect, for pauperism may decrease while crime is increasing, and vice versa. The causes of poverty, like the causes of crime, are to be sought largely in social and economic conditions, and the true cure for poverty consists in the betterment of those conditions.

That it is the function of government to care for the dependent class has long been recognized. Among the ancients a portion of the tithes was by law devoted to the In ancient Rome corn-laws provided for the distribution of grain from the public granaries to those who could not afford to buy. Throughout the middle ages charity was for the most part administered by the church, but in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the governments of Europe began to legislate for the poor. In the reign of Elizabeth England passed a law requiring each parish to support its own poor, and this law served as a model for poor-laws in the colonies, and later was imitated. by the several States.

The Care of the Poor a Function of Local Government. The federal government has no charitable functions. It maintains homes for its worn-out sailors and soldiers, and

pays vast sums as pensions to those who have served in its wars; but what it spends in this way is regarded not as a gift, but as a debt. Congress sometimes extends quick relief to communities which have been visited by fire or flood, but such assistance cannot properly be called charity.

Power for public almsgiving flows from the State. In the more recently adopted constitutions provision is broadly made for the subject of pauperism, just as provision is made for the subject of crime. The legislature usually imposes upon each locality the burden of caring for its own poor. Charity thus begins at home. The State government seldom dispenses aid directly to the dependent poor.

The civil division which most frequently has charge of public charity is the county. There are often county directors or overseers of the poor (p. 200), and these have charge of the county almshouse and of the distribution of funds to the needy. In States where there is a vigorous township government, the township, and not the county, administers the charities, and likewise in a well-organized city a department of charities often relieves the county of its charitable function.

Outdoor and Indoor Relief. There are two historic methods of helping the poor, the method of outdoor relief and indoor relief. Outdoor relief is the relief of the poor in their homes; indoor relief is given to the poor who have become inmates of almshouses. In most of the States the two methods are employed side by side. The applicant for aid sometimes receives a small sum of money to be spent by himself in his home; sometimes he must go to the almshouse for food, clothing and shelter. Whether aid shall be given indoors or outdoors is a question which the authorities of the locality decide, each case being judged according to the circumstances attending it.

The reasons for outdoor relief are these: (1) it is kindly, since the recipient is not separated from his friends and

family; (2) it is economical, since it costs less on an aver age to assist a person in his home than it does to support him in an almshouse; (3) it would be impossible to accommodate in almshouses all who apply for aid.

The reasons against outdoor relief are: (1) it increases the number of applicants, because it is less disgraceful than the indoor system; (2) it corrupts politics by tempting the authorities to extend aid in return for votes; (3) it reduces the rate of wages, because its recipients can afford to work for less than their self-supporting competitors.1

The Defective Classes. Government extends its aid to the defective classes as well as to the dependent and helpless poor. A century ago paupers, defectives and criminals were often huddled together within the same walls and subjected to treatment that was sometimes barbarous. Now there are separate institutions for each class. Moreover, the defectives are also divided into classes and are cared for in separate institutions. Thus we have institutions for the blind, for the deaf and dumb, for the insane, for the feeble-minded, for the epileptic, for the deformed.

As a rule, the expense of caring for the defective classes is too heavy to be borne wholly by the local government, and it becomes necessary for the State to care for them. In almost every State the central government provides hospitals for the insane, schools for the deaf and dumb, schools for the blind, and reformatory schools for juvenile offenders. These State institutions for defectives are supported in part by State revenues, in part by contributions from the local government.

State Boards of Charities. In about half the States there have been established State boards of charities. The duties of these boards vary, but usually the State board of charities exercises a close supervision over all the State reformatories and institutions for the defective classes, and inspects 1See A. G. Warner, "American Charities.''

the charitable work of the localities and makes a report thereon to the governor or to the legislature. In several instances this board possesses a very substantial power. Thus in New York the State board of charities visits, inspects and maintains a general supervision of all institutions, societies or associations of a charitable, corrective or reformatory character, whether State, municipal or unincorporated, and it can enforce in these institutions a humane and wise administration.

Organized Charity. Of course government is not the only almsgiver. We give to the beggar whom we pass on the street; well-to-do people often make it a point to extend regular assistance to certain destitute families; churches of every denomination engage in charity work; societies and associations for the relief of the poor abound in every community.

Until quite recently private charities as well as public were indiscriminate and unorganized, and the results of the haphazard giving were often unfortunate and sometimes ludicrous. Alms unwisely extended sometimes converted a person who was simply needy into a professional beggar, and the abundant sources of aid often invited the lazy to quit work and live entirely upon charity. This was possible when by a little diplomacy and cunning one could exploit the benevolence of perhaps a half-dozen churches and as many societies.

In 1869 in England, and a little later in America, a movement was begun to organize charity work, and the results which followed were so satisfactory that charity organization societies were rapidly formed. Societies of this kind, known as associated charities or united charities or the bureau of charities, exist in nearly one hundred and fifty cities in the United States.

Organized charity aims:

1. To secure coöperation and unity of action among all charitable agencies, public and private.