COMMUNITY RUN BY CHILDREN

Otautau Standard and Wallace County Chronicle, Volume IX, Issue 452, 13 January 1914, Page 7

COMMUNITY RUN BY CHILDREN

MAKE AND ENFORCE THEIR OWN LAWS.

t A London Magistrate was present (says s the ' Daily Telegraph ' correspondent) when - the court of the Little Commonwealth at b Flowers Farm, Batcombe, 6at during the I j week-end to investigate certain charges 1 I which had been brought against the citi- ■* I zens of the unique community amongst 3 the hills of Dorsetshire. In this commu--5 nity a number of children — whose charae- " ters are not unblemished, they having been 1 sent to the farm from various juvenile 1 courts throughout the country — are fram- " ing their own laws, administering their own punishments, devising their own standards of conduct, and evolving a system ' of life unchecked by any authority beyond '< that exerted by their own public opinion. 1 They have a judge — a girl of 13— and the Commowealth constable is by no means physically the most powerful inmate of the farm ; indeed, -it is recorded that on the night of his appointment he was requested to see that a delinquent retired I to bed at a certain hour — and the said delinquent carried the constable up to bed m his arms ! The court crystallises the development of social consciousness amongst the citizens. It assembles twice a week, and on the night that I was a spectator by special invitation there were, besides the London Magistrate, a peer and a peeress interested onlookers. The judge was seated at a table with her clerk upon her right, a pile of pieces of paper on which complaints concerning citizens were written m front of her, and the citizens ranged respectfully m chairs within her judicial observation. At times her honor experienced great difficulty m deciphering the nature of the charge, but the clerk — a chubby, fairhaired girl — proved particularly efficient. Here are some of the complaints adjudi- , cated : — Deceit. . Deformation of character (so the complainant spelt -it). Breaking close bounds. Chasing boys out of close bounds. Leaving out new chopper and other tools. Keeping bedroom window shut. Burning oil on the fire. Breakfasting without washing face. Smoking. Making a "rough house'* — i.e., creating a disturbance. Playing with mortar mill and breaking rammer. Water taps left running m bathroom. Her honor's decisions were characterised hy some severity, and some of them were ingeniously just. The boys, for instance, who were careless m the matter of the tools, were sentenced to cleaning every speck of Tust from all the tools owned by the Commonwealth, and the lad who made rough house wa6 ordered to wash down the" stairs and landings. —Fined 2d for Contempt.— No disrespect to the judge is tolerated. One citizen pointed out that another citizen, against whom a charge was impending, had resumed her seat m the course of the evidence. "Rose,'' said her honor, sharply* "I fine you tuppence for contempt "of court. Stand up at pnee !" "Well," said the London Magistrate, when the court had finished its deliberations—some of the citizens., by the way, had been before him m a metropolitan police court before they came to Dorset — '•well, I wish I could penalise a few of my prisoners as they penalise 'em here. But, oh, the crowd of constables one would: Tequire to see the sentences were carried out!" In the Little Commonwealth public opinion is the chief constable, and m fear of that the stairs were washed and the tools scrupulously cleaned next day. Many of the laws are promulgated m the Legislature, of which Bob, a lad of 16, is the president, and I append a selection from the book' m which they are recorded : — No matches to be wasted. Girls are not to talk to boys during work. Citizens must not play the piano during working hours. No citizens allowed to smoke. * Boys whose rooms are not clean will lose a day's wages and be fined 6d. Citizens to go without breakfast on occasions of not washing. No citizen allowed to lock their bedroom doors. The only place m the Little Commonwealth that is locked is the shop, where citizens can purchase such luxuries as boiled sweets or such necessaries as boots, toothbrushes, and gloves. Each citizen can earn lis weekly by consistent work, and they have to pay 7s for their board. They have a special coinage, but certain of the citizens are so constantly m scrapes as to Have no capital at all, and are a. burden 'upon the community, who have had to purchase clothes and pay laundry bills for two delinquents. — Taxes 6s a Head. — The knowledge that misbehaviour means a charge upon the communnity's taxes causes every citizen to be critical of his ' neighbor. Just now the taxes are over 6s a head, and the balance-sheet prepared by the girl clerk shows the financial state of the Commonwealth: —

There is a common dining room and a play room, and one of the girls, with pretensions to cooking, prepares wholesome and satisfactory meals. Each citizen has a sleeping cubicle of roomy proportions, and the law of personal cleanliness is ruthlessly enforced by popular vote. Tlie other night there was a commotion m the bath-: room, and sounds as of a citizen being forced under water. This monologue alsowas heard : " Hands up all those who think we should duck him again. Carried unanimously," and then the protests and. smothered sounds were repeated. An unwashed citizen was being forcibly bathed. Two other cottages are being erected, as well as a bank, a shop, and a room for studious purposes — the citizens having expressed a desire to be instructed m various: sciences. ' In a short time the strength of the community will be raised to 40, and then youngsters, who otherwise might have been consigned to a reformatory and ultimately a prison, will, it is hoped, develop intouseful citizens. Mr H. T. Lane, the nominal director of the Little Commonwealth, who submits to its laws, and only offers suggestions when, invited to do so, is permitting the citizens a wide freedom to pursue their own courses, and he declared to me that the children were invariably right m their decisions. He has been connected with, similar institutions m America, but he exprssed the opinion that the English children were decidedly more responsive to the> system, and although the experiment is m its early stages he is very satisfied with: the progress which the 'citizfcw are making; of their own will, *•■

Debit. Fines £3 7 2 Damage 5 4 9£ Clothing 23 3 6A Taxes ... 19 4 £33 4 10 Fines paid on account... 2 1 0£ Debt ... £31 3 9±