Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-10-06
BOARD OF GUARDIANS
Number Of Children Under
Care the Past Year.
ANNUAL REPORT FILED
FINANCIAL REPORT SUBMITTED
SHOWING EXPENSES.
Agent Douglass Refers TO Need Of
Juvenile Court-0ther Mat
tiers Considered.
REPORT FILED

The annual report of the board of chill
dren's guardians was received by the Com
missioners today. During the year ended
June 80 last, which is the period covered In
the statement. the board cared for a total
of / ,275 children, $50 of whom became per-
manent wards Deaths, commitments to
the reform school, attainment of their ma
jority marriages and adoptiOns combined
to take a total of 1T children from the
control of the officers. Since July l. 1888,
when it was constituted by authority OF an
act of Congress. the board has received
total Of 1900 permanent wards. 633 OF
whom have since been discharged from
supervision for one reason or another, SO
that on June 30 there was total OF 1,261
children for whom the board was acting
foster parent s ss, a...s-.
After stating that appropriations for the
current year provide for total OF So, 4Oo
for the boards expenses, the board or guar
dams, in estimates recently submitted to
the board of charities, and later includeo
part of this report, asks that $!s,oOo
be allowed by Congress next year Most
of this increase is contained in provisions
for board and care Of children and Tor the
maintenance of feeble-minded children.
1t is stated that the salaries paid are
much lower than In any other prancn OF
the local government where dutiesAor equal
responsibility are performed, and a taple
is appended to the report showing compen-
sation allowed the various officials last
year, this year and in the ensuing year, the
totals being as follows:
1905, 81, $50; 1906, $3.50; 1907, SS,ooo. Inc
employees enumerated to whom these sal
aries are paid are: An agent, proDalion
officer, executive clerk, two placing ofhcers,
investigating clerk, record clerk, visiting
clerk, clerk and messenger. 4
e., tion
In furtherance of the effort toward com
pensations more commensurate with duties
performed, the board says:
1T appears to be difficult to displace the
ancient idea that persons who render serv-
ice for the upbulding of character In the
human heart and the relief of the dis
tresses occasioned by unfortunate circum-
stances of life are less worthy of pecunla'E
compensation for their time and labor IMAM
those who are employed in many otnet
occupations
The board earnestly solcits the restora-
ton and increase of salaries, as set forth
in their report.
Report of Agent Douglass.
The report of Agent Douglass, which is
appended to the boards statement of fact,
shows that 100 white children, under care
of the board, are inmates of various instl-
tutions, and that $40 colored children are
similarly ION expense" The remaining ma
jority, either on trial with relatives, on
trial for indenture adoption or elsewhere
temporarily disposed of, include 327 white
children and sol negroes. The reasons
which appeared to justify the commitment
of go permanent wards during the past
year Mr.. Douglass states as follows: DeS-
titute of proper homes. 1913; abandoned, Z;
children of unfit parents, 50, and children
who might be termed delinquent. 76.
Another of the agents tables shows that
= or1G
states in this country, besides the District
of Columbia. One DO yis indentured in
Cuba,
Speaking of the work of the probation
Your attention is directed to the de-
tailed report of the probation Of
ficer. The most gratifying fact shown
therein is that seventy-three less children
were placed on probation last year than the
preceding year. This practically means
that seventythree less children were be-
fore the court for offenses against the law.
Your agent has kept in close touch with
this branch of the work throughout the
year. being consulted on all important
cases by the probation officer and deci-
sion as to the proper recommendation to
make to the court being agreed upon"
Juvenile Court Needed.
OF the need for a juvenile court, Mr.
Douglass says:
II renew with all the emphasis at my
command the recommendations have made
In former years as to the wisdom of work.
ing for the establishment of separate ju-
venile court. All friends Of neglected child
hood throughout the District of Columbia
and they are legion-will never rest salts
fed until the very best machinery known
to the highest civilization of the world is
set here for the salvation of our youth"
He follows this with an extensive EXPOSE
ton of the reasons for the establishment Of
such a tribunal
Referring to the Hart Farm School. Agent
Douglass gives the following statement of
the conditions obtaining: '
Conditions surrounding the boards re-
lations with the Hart Farm School are far
from satisfactory. Here the law compels
the board to keep a fixed number of chill
dren at fixed rate under a contract. The
board has no power to enforce the terms
of the contract, if it thinks such contract
is not being kept. Its supervisory author
ity is practically nullifed.~- It simply dis
burses $4,000 of the public money in
prescribed way, without authoritative re-
sponsbility for results. The location of
the farm is well adapted for the purposes
of agricultural training for colored youth
The boys made to work the farm and
are brought under good discipline; the
school on the place to which each boy
goes a half a day gives good instruction
The instruction In the meagerly equipped
blacksmith shop to a small number of boys
is rather primitive. There Is no play room
for stormy weather; the dormitory facili-
the same is deficient; the provisions for
washing, both to the boys themselves
and their clothing-no suitable laundry and
no laundress at all being provided-are ex-
ceedingly poor. These and other deficien-
cies have been called to the attention of the
management, but up to this date have not
been remedied and 1t appears that under
the law the board is powerless to compel
any remedial measures.
Official Visitations.
1.-THE party with whom the board con-
tracts, William H. H. Hart, has for the
past year practically sublet the contract
l am reliably informed that he has per-
sonally visited the place but twice during
the year and then only for a little time
The personal touch with these boys, which
the board supposed II would get from the
genius of Mr. Hart, has been a minus
quantity and their moral physical and edu-
cational training has been let out to poor
ly paid help