TrtlS UK&liUfJ JiUNUAY JOURNAL, rOLilL,Inu, SUNDAY MOKN1NO, JULY 'ii, 10 LB
66 JD r
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A Development of the
fBig Brother'; Move
ment in Which-Mrs.-William
K. Yanfebilt
'and "Other Prominent
New York Women
Are Interested
hn HE Big Sister Organization" is .
I "a. movement to "enlist your per- V
sonal interest in behalf of unfor
tunate girls (particularly those tdming before
the children's court), and also small children
brought before the court because of improper
guardianship."
Concisely put, this is the platform of a
movement begun some six months ago by
Mrs. William K. Vanderbilt, who for a num
ber of years has been devoting a great deal
of her attention to welfare work, including
the erection of large blocks of flats especially
adapted to the needs of tuberculosis suflcrers.
Associated with Mrs. Vanderbit are
some of the foremost women of New York.
iff.
'VI
And they have been giving not only money,
but their own time and attention, to putting
the title of their organization into' actual prac
tice. A most significant sign of the times it
xis, when the sex that but a few years ago was
wont to shun the erring as if they had been
lepers is now willing to go into the humblest
of homes to reclaim the ones who are going
astray.
Eminently successful is the work, too,
because its practicability nas been froveai py
a similar organization the Big Brother
M nutment which is nenn beinr conducted in
utiii,.tun imt uimn tv tji.
of the nation.
"- - '""" " " ' :"
EEVER slnoe the Big Brother Movement was
founded, sbout seven years ago. It has been
followed closely by Mrs. Vanderbilt, who has
herself often attended the children's court, ex
tending aid, in the quietest manner, to many an un
fortunate. More recently, she determined that the best man.
tier of assisting her own sex would be to found an
organization similar to that conducted by the men.
This she did. Mrs. Willard Tarker, Jr., was chosen
treasurer, and an executive committee, composed of
Mrs. Louis S. Morris, Mrs. William May Wright and
Mrs. Willard D. Straight was selected. All of these
women, as well as many others who are giving their
time and money to the work, are thoroughly well oft
la this worlds gooda. And that is why, very often,
their efforts are effective. A wayward girl who
would be disposed) to resent advice from ordinary
sources is naturally Impressed when she is approached
by a woman of such standing. Her ambition U
aroused. She feels that if it is worth their while to
reclaim her, It is worth her own while to be reclaimed.
What is more, perhaps, she comes to realize that It Is
possible lor her to lead an honest and respectable
life, and this Is no small matter to one who may have
been exposed to the biting criticisms of a gossipy
neighborhood.
HOW THEY WORK
A better Idea of the manner In which the work Is
conducted may be gained from the 'Suggestions to
Big Sisters" than in almost any other way. They tell
what the women are to do, and ow they are to do It
Tet there is another factor the woman who finds
the girls to be aided. Hhe is Mrs. Madeleine W. Evans,
a thoroughly experienced court investigator, who at
tends most of the sessions of the children's court.
Like the representative of the Big Brother Movement
Roy F, Parsons, she is recognized by the Judicial
authorities, who, In many cases, are willing to turn
children over-to her on probation. Sometimes, when
the offenses are not serious, girls are placed in her
charge wlthdut being arraigned,
a "Some of ur-best work. In my opinion, Is done in
this way," said Mrs. Evans recently. "We have gained
a great deal If we can keep a girl's name off the court
records'. Very often It saves her from being a marked
person in her neighborhoods and any one can appre
ciate what that means.
"For the same reason, a great deal of our work
bas to be conducted as quietly as possible. Fre
quently, indeed, we assist families to move from one
part of the city to another, so that a girl who has
been the subject of comment In a neighborhood can
get a fresh start.
"For those who cannot be assisted in their homes,
we have a country house on Long Island. It Is on
the estate of William K. Vanderbilt, Jr.. at Little
TCecltrann lTnanief-qTiiTe a ntimtier or gins to uve
In quietness and seclusion, until they have time to get
cn.tneir leet again, ana Degin a new me. ai aoou
as possible we secure positions for them, and then the
Big Sisters keep in touch with them, to aid and
encourage them in keeping away from, their old asso
ciations, ii'-,.,.
i
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-IlllHilH.ll
"It la not unusual for the girls to beoome greatly
attached to the Btgrsisterg, ana wo have 'any number
of touching letters from those who have been enabled
to become self-respecting and self-supporting.
"In the great majority of cases, we find, the girls
are not naturally wicked; they have simply been the
victims of wayward associates. Once they are brought
to see where they are heading, and receive personal
comfort and encouragement, the whole course of their
lives is changed. ;
"We feel. Indeed, that we can work most effectively
with the girls under 15. who are brought to the chil
dren's court- While we have no age limit, most of
our efforts are concentrated on them. Occasionally,
"otheroiingr'wTDtrtiS a "referred :'"ttf'" ui.'" atid " w
endeavor to do the best we can for them; but. In the"
long. run. the surest method of. securing lasting re
forms Is to begin before the damage has been too
jjj aJj trtlg wOrR. II JS Wo poroni element mai
..counts most. With ths girls as with tho boys, sym-
pihy"Ti":tninostff self-help. ' What
tha Big Brother Movement bas already accomplished
has demonitrated this". Between April 1, 111. and
March 3), 1912, there were 847 men who looked after
one or more boys. , As s, result, 211 youths wers placed
In good positions, 309 were sent to summer camps,
and 41 needy ones were placed tn homes In the coun
try. -
All told, 1S7 cases were handled, with a total of
2028 Investigations. This Is the result of the move
ment started aevea jears Rgoiy JBarnest iC Coulter,
then a clerk In the chlldrenra court, nnd later a mem
ber of tjhe law firm of Coulter, Bond & McKlnney.
From the start the movement attracted the sup
port of some of the most Influential men of New York,
Odlcf font
AI
BOUT fifty years hence, when politics
shall hive taken on aspects ' none of us
living today dare forecast, there may be
a convention in Chicago. 111., of Wichita,
Kaj., or Buffalo, N. Y., or some other vast metropo
lis of that new era, at which a great, despairing
leader will arise and cry out : ,
"Shall this powerful nation, with its 300,
000,000 of people, quail before its ancient destiny
and bow democracy's proud head to the effete
lands of Europe by abandoning its traditional loy
alty to the gold standard in favor of this rare and
unprocurable medium of exchange, platinum? Is
our immense reserve of gold, the worshiped
wealth of the ages, nothing more than pitiful
dross? Shall we ruin our gold mining industry in
order that the most treasured, most ductile, most
beautiful of metals shall be arbitrarily reduced to
the shameful office of making pans to wash the
supper dishes in?"
Which, allowing for oratorical hyperbole, is
precisely what we may possibly do, some time or
other, if gold keeps on becoming very much more
common, and platinum should become somewhat
less rare than it is now.
Already the goldsmith's art has, to an " ap
preciable extent, been transferred to a platinum
basis and for only one reason in the world besides
the circumstance thaj the new metal happens to
be so rare that gold is dross by comparison. As
for intrinsic merits, gold never had. any notable
superiority over metals infinitely more obtainable;
but- the only time iron money was minted was
when old Lycurgus, in Sparta, used' it wjth the
.deliberate purpose of destroying the value of all
-uuuey.-&-a ,meaiura., o-exchange
N
OWADATS, when the society reporter spills
superlatives over the Wedding gifts of some
famous heiress, leading place Is gives the
jewelry with platinum Settings, Jewelers will
' IIP " T:r
ill . AV y r '
and at present the officers are: President, flYanklln
C. Hoyt of the children's court; vice presidents,
Luther H. Lewis and Robert L. Gerry; chairman ot
executive committee, . Earnest L. Coulter; secretary,
Charles A. Taussig; treasurer, Francis J. DanfortU;
directors, the Rev. Wilton Merle Smith, I. D., Louis
de F. Downer, J. Van Beuren Mitchell, Nicholas Dan
forth Walter T. Dlack, Charles L. Inslee, C. Robert
Langenbacher, J. Beaumont Spencer, Charles F.
Po wllson, Horace H. Shoemaker, William B. Osgood
Field, Frank Wi Pearsall, John H. Prall arid Peter O.
Gerry.
What stands out above all other things In con
nection with the movement Is ihe record of efficiency
as measured by the small number of relapses on the
part of those who have been taken In charge by the
Big Brothers During the entire year ending Octo
ber 1, 1U, there were but 90 out of the 219S boys
who had been cared for who were returned to the
children's court This Is a percentage of 98 on the
reform side of the ledger.
$3.84 SAVES A LAO .1.
i
And this Is accomplished at an average expendi
ture of 82.84 for each boy aided. For this amount, per
Individual, three boys' clubs are maintained In the
several summer camps are conduoted, to which are
sent,,raore than 300 youtJi,; an office Is inaln,tl!0L.to
which over 120O boys call, voluntarily, for guidance.
In a twelvemonth; a eourt inspeetlon service Is pro
vided, and temporary financial assistance Is granted
when necessary.
Certainly there can be no lack of economy charged
against the Big Brother management
Tet of course, a large amount of the service Is
performed Individually by those enrolled as Big
Brothers. One man, in particular, has had as many as
ninety boys under Jils -cre-t a-41mv-w4th -only the
partial assistance of a friend. He earns his living,
too; but he loves the work for boys above all other
things, and is never so, happy as when entertaining a
crowd of youngsters.
Good Enough Aow
2' 'v. -
say that an appreciable utility Inheres In the use of
platinum as a background or bedding for diamond or
pearl; but a better reason is that like the cowrie
shells the early savages used as cash-, ft is somewhat
hard to get and, therefore, much more expensive.
It.has Alwaja-beea JiArtt-.la.gatibut-Oiiara fcave-
been times, and they only a few years ago, wnen
wealth and beauty would have been Insulted by the
gift of a complete toilet set In platinum, such as now
only the wealthiest of the millionaires Would dream'
ot assembling for a bride.
"Huhl" the mother of today's bride would have
- . .-. " " ' - . :" -
D. SYrat'oAr:;
YfnJtrtt'r;
Stjser
i roxtp 4t'K$e,4tfc. "Bt'f . 'Barters
In a great many cases, the employment problem
Is that which most demands attention, And, accord
ing to the court Investigator, Mr. Parsons, it is often
solved by the good common sense of the average
business man.
"The boy himself Is the main thing, from the way
most of them regard the situation," said Mr. Parsons,
reoently. "They want bright, active, ambitious
young fellows, and the lad himself Is his best rec
ommendation if he fllla their requirements. . The past
Is never as much a consideration as the present snd
they seldom have cause to regret their judgments.
"What is better than recommendations, perhaps,
Is the fact that the boys are constantly being stlmu
lsted to do their best Not only do they have the
friendship of their Big Brothers, but they become in
terested In the clubs that are maintained for them.
There Is a club night once a week, gymnasium
classes and the like.
"Again, for such boys as cannot be cared for else
where,, we have a farm at Stockton, on the Delaware
river, near Trenton, N. J. A complete change of
environment, good bousing and toealthy food rllt work '
wonders with youngsters who would seem hopeless
while under the Influence of their city associations..
"In fact we got the farm as the result ot the
efforts of one of our Big Brothers to reform a.Ud
whom i e'wttFcall BilKHT was a wild one, at first ;
he lived In 'Hell's Kitchen,' where it la right to steal,.,
but a Tsfri to be caugh't " When he came Into court he
was hardened to his fate. But a Big Brother was
assigned to his case, and seemed to make gome
progress. He took care of BUI every Sunday from 9
A.M. to 1 P. M. Tet one day a week was plainly not
enough, and Thursday evening was added to Bill's
civilized Itinerary. Ithelped a lot. And as Bill was
getting another square meal a week, he began to
pick up. '
"StiHHt was apparenthat-if any lasttngr changS
was to be effected, BUI would have to be reaoued
from 'Hell's Kitchen.' The problem was solved when
a friend of the general secretary gave us the farm,
and other friends looked to the furnishings. One of
said when she Inspected the presents twenty-five
years ago. "Pity they didn't send me some good,
honest tin baking pans and coffee pots. The metal
would have cost nearly as much."
A dozen years ago and these are, official figures
no more than 400 ounces troy of platinum were
mined In the United States, and nearly all the rest
of the world's supply came from the Ural mountains,
tn Russia, as it does still. It was worth the paltry
sum of 260O little more than 6 an ounce, and that
at a time when Its importance In electricity for the
manufacture of incandescent bulbs was fully
appreciated.
But note how craftily everything that can possibly
become money is studied throughout the world.
Russia, potentially rich In Its practical monopoly of
the rare metal, had already begun to mint its plat
inum In a special form of. coinage, which called for
high' values In small weight and compass. Weight for
weight, the value fcf these coins was midway between
those In silver andgold. a very useful compromise for
small pieceslike a 5-ruble coin, which, worth I2.55V4
In American money, would be a cumbersome cart
wheel in silver, smaller than a losable dime In gold.
But the platinum, worth then about one-fourth its
weight In gold, gave a coin between a quarter and a
half dollar, with legal tender value slightly above
$2.50 almost Ideal in Its relation between bulk and,
purchasing power.
Any one today who happens to have Ave rubles In
.platinum, minted on the basis of ten or fifteen years
ago, possesses an Intrinsic cash asset of about $23.
The Increase has been nearly 900 per cent Gold now
Is worth $20 to $21 per ounce troy; platinum is quoted
at $66 to $S7 per ounce, almost three times as much.
Yet the world's output has multiplied in direct s
proportion to the enhancement of the value, a remark
able phenomenon, an.d In surprising defiance of the :
rule that Increased quantities are attended by lessened
values. Russia n'y ,donl hn''i'fhli ,!
ptinun?sprlce "single" notch higSer'during its brief
history of leaping values. It Is on the sound, unfail
ing basis of supply and demand,- with tfce demand "
steadily so fs!r ahead bt the increased supply that
the clamoring world is rwtlllng to pay always higher
rates to get its coveted slender quota.
la the United States alone,- as estimated, by leading
Setnt, or jfurntner Camp of rie.
SUGGESTIONS TO BIG SISTERS
Don't patronlza. Tou may know mor about virtu, but
tht girl It probiblr a bttr xprt on .tamputloa X ,
Call on the girl la her nemo. Tou cannot anter Into real
" rmpathy wUh her until you know tht lift. tht
tht air aha breather
Vet acquainted with her fathei and mother. Tn battla '
It half won when you have gained the aonfldenea ot
tha parents. By coming to know the family rou aaa
often how them how to help tht girl, and yoa
help them,
too.
Bee what ran be don to Improvo home condition. Tha
lack of real horn Ufa' la generally tht oanaa ot tbt
glrl'a troubla. -. ..- t
If the girl la not In arhool or at work, the flrat thing t
do la to get her back Into tcbool, If poelbl., A Big
Slater -can do wonder In arouelng a girl' ambition.
If tht family ned her help, get her a petition l
good turroundlnga. '
Find ant where the girl tpenda her crenlnga. Voet el
them pend them In the ttreet. It It your buatntag
to provide a better place more attraetlra, not to yoa.
but to tha girl. ; . W"' W
B latereatej In a glrl'a miereata. Take her to ft tonoarl ;
!4
' r-
tr to a good, clean thow. Try to eneouragt tht habit
of reading; gtva or loan htr a book ot magaslaa. -wjf
When you have learned to know the girl, have hair
charqh or settlement elub, or place her lit a T. W.
C. A. educational claM. Find out whether ha attends
Sunday tohool or church, -and take her with yon to
your own. . "
Invite her to your own home, and make her feel that
she Is welcome. It will ptrhaps be a ntw revelation
of "homo" to her. ., ,
Get her to writ to ytra eaee to er-whller aard-arways-aniwer
promptly. - :.
If you are away from town daring the summer, keep, to
touch with her and aea that b get a few weeks'
vacation In tha country. -' :
Above alt remember that you art a BIO SLSTXH. and
. bt patient rympathetlo and tactful. - ' - ' .
Do It MOW. Now la tho critical Uma when tha girl seeds
help.
If you believe that a girl unaided eanae always ever
com tho tendency ot unfortunatt environments, ef be
happy and good without 'the thing which mak for
happlneaa and goodneaa, you concur tn the Big Bute
Jatt oae thin more, pieaio report occasionally the eon
anion anil progress ot the girl or family under you
guidance. " ;r
them gave 11000 "torioms BdrsesVcdwsTTjfts "n
chlikens to put on It Another added 84000 to provtd'
lor-a -well, a "topograpWiar lUrvey lhal'may: oe'lh
forerunner of a manual training school, and the lika."
It was on April 24, 1911, that the first boy went t
the farm. In the person of Bill. A capable superln
tendent In the person of Edward MacDonald, a grad
uate at Good Will Farm, Hinckley, Me., was secured
but, even with his salary and that of a farmer, th
cost of maintaining twenty boys at the place for oji
year does not exceed f 5000. For $175 one lad can b
assured ot a comfortable home for a twelvemonth i
For the city boys tho several summer camps affor
Ideal outings, and the good they do may be lnferre
from the fact that the lads gain from three to aixt
pounds during their outings of from two to eight wek
The principal camps are at Groton, Mass., and la .Dele
ware county. New York. ,
Jewelers, we now use 6000 ounces tor ornameo'
formerly made exolusively of gold; and only conjee
ture can surmise how much greater la the utlllsatl
of the newly precious metal In the manufacture
Incandescent lamps and crucibles for laborato
purposes, where It Is employed extensively because i
its Immunity against acids. , . ,f4
Of course, no monetary expert would dream 4i
ing a platinum standard of coinage under existlr.
conditions, notwithstanding shrewd Russia's promt
employment of the output of its own mines for thu
very use. The drawback Is platinum's , relatlv
scarcity. It takes now more than $6)0,000,000 tn gol '
for the specie circulation of the United States alon 1
and all the platinum mined in the world wouldn't e
our millionaires have more than a small 'pocket
piece each to play with, if this Country were to mak
it the standard medium of exchange. But th
astounding rise in Its intrinsic value, combined wit
the fact that It Is indispensable in' so important a
Industry as electrio lighting, may bring about explo
rations for deposits, and improvements In methods c
extraction, which, combined, could possibly furals
volume enough to meet the exigencies of the world.
coinage.
IDEAL FOR DIAMONDS
Meanwhile, jewelry has been absolutely 4omlnat
by the pallid stranger, first because it is now so valu
able, and, next, because goldsmiths, who sr artist
after all, have found in platinum their ideal frart.
for the diamond, king of gems. Two-thirds of all t;
more pretentious diamond settings now manufactui.
in the United States are In pure platinum; and gold, 1
that supremely important field, Is now nearly as se
lected as silver. The Jewelers' reason Is that the c-.
mond calls for a neutral-color background to set for:
its brilliancy to perfection. Years ago that .one so'
slderation led to the extensive use of sliver In pr
erence to gold for diamond settings. But It was tu;
;that silver would Insist on tarnishing, and at lent:'
gold, undesirable as it was, became the main -
- pendente -of the craft- . "VV' ' .V
If will go to Europe snd study the !tl'.
Jewelry put out there -you wilt find that it Urni
almost like the old sllvsr, wbldii antiquarians trea.,
ae aiamyl-n i tt fa?-i-h-r--dl;dJ j..
value for the sake of assuring a white beKi-u.
the proud diamond. That la because the United .
is the only country which demand it pUuouM ;
best, free from the alloys which. In ;Curopen t
debase the platinum settings until If' f
guarantee of giving ths perfect gervlce t!iir t
' mands of them
i "v