The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1912-12-21
Continued from page ~
MOTHERS PENSION.

dependence of minors. Very properly
he began his investigation by consult
ing the judges of juvenile courts.
From them he learned that the great
majority of cases brought into chill
dren's courts are cited on dependent"
petitions. One judge stated that seven
ty-five per cent Of the cases brought
before him were cases of poverty. The
next step was to find how many of
these children were committed to in
stitutions and when he got the figures
he realized the great number of aching
hearts and ruined lives that resulted
from legally supervised poverty-the
cruel separation of children and moth
ers which past conditions created. We
must note here that the placing of
child beyond the control of his mother,
and taking away her legal right to it
was not on account of hard-hearted-
ness in the judges. In one instance a
juvenile court judge told Mr.. Neil that
he had sometimes walked the floor at
night unable to sleep because the har-
rowing scenes of the previous day
the separation of children and mothers
could not be driven from his mind
The Dread of Separation.
In going into the homes of the poor
to study the unfed children problem
he became convinced that charity and
social workers are not held in high
esteem by the wife of deserter or
prisoner The prospect of appearing
in juvenile court fills poor mothers
with wellgrouded fear. When he
asked those mothers how many in
family, he was told merely the number
of children in sight. In most cases
he knew the number and the ages of
the children before his visit, but found
it difficult to get the mothers to admit
the full number of those dependent on
them, because by admitting their bur-
dens they would in reality concede
their inability to procure for their fam
lilies the necessaries of life The lack
of means to support helpless little
ones, coupled with the failure of char
liable organizations, has too often COM
PEELED delicate mothers to become
wage earners at kind of work that
| in few years makes of them physical
wrecks. A simple though convincing
argument was here given that plainly
shows how unwise it is to permit a
widow or deserted mother to dissipate
| her strength. The owner of horse
will see to it that he is properly fed
and given sufficient amount of rest
and this not always from humane mo-
tives, but because it is a profitable
thing to do from business stand
point. Why should it not be much
more profitable to enable mothers to
have sufficient food and rest? They
should have adequate relief for them
selves and for their children, because
in their case we are confronted with
moral problem that is far graver
than the economic one.
sit requires little argument to con-
vince the public that great evils can
and do result from compelling moth
ers to become wage earners and leav-
ing their boys and girls without the
restraint necessary to keep the young
| from starting on the road to moral
ruin. Mr.. Neil cited cases where neg
lected children had become criminals,
and logically concluded it would have
been much cheaper to have fed and
properly cared for them when young
than to try and reform them by expen-
sive state methods when they had
almost passed the formative period of
life. He told of a murder committed
by boys who had been neglected in
their childhood days and stated that it
would have cost only one-tenth as
much to care for the mothers of those
boys and their families than it cost to
hang them after they had become
criminals on account of their training
in the back alleys.
The Mothers Pension Law.
The Mothers Pension Law as en-
acted in Illinois, and enforced with
such grand results in Chicago, is an
amendment to the Juvenile Court Law
and reads: IF the parent or parents
of such dependent or neglected child
are poor and unable to properly care
for said child, but are otherwise proper
guardians, and it is for the welfare
of such child to remain at home, the
Court may enter an order finding such
facts and fixing the amount of money
necessary to enable the parent OF
parents to properly care for such child,
and thereupon it shall be the duty of
the County Board, through it's County
Agent or otherwise, to pay to such
parent or parents at such time as said
order may designate, the amount SO
specified for the care of such depen-
dent or neglected child until the
further order of the Court"
Tt is seen by the foregoing amend
ment that 1t is the Office of the Judge
who rules that the child is dependent
to make legal order directing that a
certain number of dollars be paid to
tho cnmnntnnf mother for fhn caro- 0f