The Mena weekly star., 1909-01-28
FOR THE CHILDREN
PRESIDENT IN CONFERENCE WITH CHARITY WORKERS AT
 WHITE HOUSE.
CAN BE BEST REARED IN THE HOME
importance of Preservation of Family Ties the Central Theme of Discus. sion by DeIegates--should Only Be Removed From the Home as Last Resort--Many Workers Speak.

Washington. Jan. 27.-The import anes of the preservation of the home l intact was the central theme of dis
 cussion at the conference on the care of dependent children which was opened by President Roosevelt at the White House late Monday. The sub | feet under consideration was should
 the breaking of home be permitted for reasons of poverty or only for
 reasons of inefficiency or immorality?' It was the unanimous opinion of an 1 array of notable charity workers that children can best be reared under the | influence of the home and that they should be removed from the family circle only when proper supervision
 at home has become impossible. It also was the consensus of opinion that where poverty exists in the home.
 state aid should be given.
 President Roosevelt. previous to calling the gathering to order received | the delegates in the East room. After outlining the scope of the work before | the conference, the president called Homer Folks, president of the state probation commission of New York. to the chair and spoke, in part, as follows;
 There can be no more important subject from the standpoint of the na. ton than that with which you are to deal: because when you take care of the children you are taking care of | the nation of tomorrow and 1t Is in cumbent upon everyone of ss to do
 all in his power to provide for the in terests of those children whom cruel | misfortune has handicapped at the | very outset of their lives. I earnestly
 hope that the members of this confer
 ence will take a progressive stand, so
 as to establish goal toward which
 the whole country can work. In other
 words, 1 earnestly hope each of you
 will consider not only the interests of
 his own immediate locality, but the in- terests of the nation as whole.
 There are. of course, several diff
 ferent types of conditions which you
 are trying to meet. believe we. all l of us, have come to the conclusion l that where possible the thing to be
 done for the child is to provide home | for 1t; and that where that is not possible, we should make the condi- tions as nearly as possible like those
 which the child would have in home. | There is ample room for all existing | institutions, but the work of extension | should, so far as possible. be work of extension in home placing; and
 where that is not possible, to make the conditions surrounding the child that
 cannot be put in home, as nearly as possible like those which would ob-
 tain were the child in home"
 The speakers who made strong
 pleas for the preservation of the fam fly ties included M. J. Scanlan, presi-
 dent of the New York Catholic Home
 bureau; Ernest P. Bicknell. president of the conference of charities and cor
 rection 1909; James F. Jackson, super
 intendent of the associated charities.
 Cleveland. O.; Judge William H. De
 Lacey of the Washington. D. C.. juve-
 nile court, and pr. Edward T. Devine,
 of New York.