The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-09-03

and let the parents pay what they can
and have the children when they want
them. There is also the field for the
fraternal orders. such as the MaSOnS
and odd Fellows, who wish to have an
orphanage for the children of their I'M
fortunate members. There is also the
field for private children's homes estab
lished by religious organizations for
benevolent purposes and to propagate
their religion, such as the Lutherans
and the Catholic institutions of the
state.
Purposes of Atchison Home.
1.-THE state orphans home at Atchison
covers three lines of work: First the
preparing and placing of children in
family homes; second, the returning of
children to parents who have recovered
their ability and are worthy; third.
preparing children to be self-support-
ing. The state can not afford to make
free boarding house and school of the
state home, as it would have a tendency
to encourage parents to neglect their
children and send them to the state
home, and therefore under the law the
state takes the full custody of the child
when it Is sent to the home. If parents,
from whom children have been taken,
rehabilitate their home life the state
will let them have their children on in
denture contract and in this way the
children can be used to help reclaim
their parents. If the county commits
sioners refuse to help a worthy mother
we have always opened the doors of
the state home at Atchison to her chill
dren and have kept them and educated
them at the institution until she recov-
cred her ability to provide for them.
We have also permitted some fathers to
take their mOtherleSS children to the
state institution with the understand
ing that they could get them when they
were able to take care Of them, but this
should not be carried too far, as it
causes parents to neglect their children,
and 1t also causes the counties to trans
fer their responsibilities and liabilities
to the state. Parents or others respon-
BILE for child's dependency or delin-
quency should be held to strict &C
countability.
The last legislature provided that
the state could recover from the par
ents of children at the state orphans
home the amount expended by the
state. Many of the parents who come
to visit their children at the state
home are strong, healthy, young peo-
pie, well dressed and able to hire a
hack to bring them out to the home,
at the rate Of 81 per hour, and yet for
some reason or other they can't give
their little ones Christmas presents.
1t seems as though the ease with
which the thriftless, improvident par
ent may shift his burden on to the
state makes the matter of abandon
ment easy, for he knows that the state
is bound as a matter of self protection
to care for his children. From the
time of the establishment of the state
charitable institutions until within re-
cent years no one made it his duty to
look into the financial condition of the
| inmates and of the persons who were
| legally responsible for their support.
Since our board took charge there has
been collected and paid into the state
treasury for the care of the insane in
| round numbers $145,000. of which over
$4,000 was collected and paid in during
the last fiscal year. If our board had
an attorney whose duty it was to visit
each county and investigate the estates
| of insane persons and of relatives
bound by law to maintain them great
deal more could be recovered annually
and some of the burden of public care
would be removed from the shoulders
of the taxpayers. Other states are do
| ing this. In some states like New York
each insane institution has an attorney
| for this purpose. If our board had an
| attorney for this purpose this attorney
could also see after such matters for
| the state orphans home. the home for
| the feeble minded and the state indus
trial schools, and parents could be he'll
| to their legal obligations and guardians
prevented from wasting the estates of
the inmates.
"H. c. BOWMAN"