Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-11-25
TELLS OF WORK
OF CH|LDREN'S AID
Superintendent Cullen, of CATH
OIic Organization, Reports
at Annual Meeting.
SAYS PLACING.OUT SYSTEM
BETTER THAN INSTITUTIONS
Declares Youngsters Are Better
Observation-Disclosures Work
of Private Charity.

The work of the Catholic Children's
Aid Association was reviewed by
John A. Cullen, the superintendent,
at the annual meeting of the board
OF trustees in the rectory Of st. Pat
ricks Cathedral yesterday afternoon.
The society Is just ten years old.
Bishop John ]. o'Connor president
of the association, presided.
After Mr.. Cullen's report had been
read, Judge Thomas j. Lintott' john
J. Mulvaney and Mr.. Cullen were ap-
pointed as a committee to attend to
the legal details of the various rec
concentrations. Mr.. Cullen was named
to represent the society in organizing
the proposed legislative bureau, An
other committee was appointed to
take up the so-called "mendicancy
bill"
The trustees present were:
Monsignor J. A. Sheppard, Vice
president of the board; Rev. Charles
A. Smith, chancellor of the diocese
and the secretary, Monslgnor !. i.
Whelan: former United States Sena-
tor James Smith, Jr., Bernard M.
Stanley, jr., Joseph M. Byrne. Judge
Thomas j. Lintott, John j. Mulvaney,
Joseph J. Mullin, DIR. Martin ]. Syn
mott and James A. Butler.
Mr.. Cullen's report follows in part:
This years report completes the
first decade in the life Of the Catho-
lie Children's Aid Association. 1t is
submitted as a summary of the twelve
manuscript monthly reports already
in the hands of your executive board.
No attempt Is made to appeal to the
sympathies of the directors nor to
the readers, the aim being to inform
and to register progress on purely
business basis.
"Ten years ago this association
was Incorporated and grew out of
conditions which manifestly demand
I'D such an organization The doc
esan orphanages were daily turning
away deserving cases. There was no
room, all available space being occu-
pied by select and generally amiable
children whose institutional care was
considered necessary until the adj
vent of the self-supporting age. AS
q result of this conservative policy
Of Catholic asylums. according to
report by the Children's Bureau. the
population of the private Protestant
homes was 30 per cent. Catholic. or
other orphan Catholic children who
found their way into non-Catholic
families we have no record.
Children Benefited.
'This new departure In the rearing
of orphaned Catholic children, known
as the placing-out system and adopted
by the diocese ten years ago. does not
appear on the surface much of revo-
luton until one considers the effects.
"The first and most important
change has been in the lives of the
children themselves. We have noticed
that the foster-home child as COM
pared with the institutional child Is
more uniformly developed, its senses
are keener, its vehicle of expression is
freer, it's body Is more robust. It has
more spirit, combativeness, individual
ity and zip of the essentials that go
TO forge it's own way in the world at
the age of fifteen than the child of the
same age discharged from the institu-
ton.
THE placing out of children and
their after care is, however, but one
part of the work of the Catholic Chill
drep's Aid Association. A more press
ing and more trying field Is among
the neglected children of brutal par
ents in the large cities of the diocese,
children of the deserter, the drunk
ard, tho vicious, the sick and infirm,
the lazy and Indifferent, orphaned
children and half-orphaned children
THE problem of adequate relief for
the dependent child Is one that does
not receive from the State the serious
consideration 1t deserves, as COM
pared with the provision for the de-
linquents and detectives.
''1n the city of Newark alone there
are eight private orphan asylums en-
tirely supported by Voluntary con-
tributions, two of which are Catholic
and six monica tholic, exclusive of
other organizations for child relief.
These asylums provide daily for 1000
children, at an annual cost of about
100000
1.-THE overseer of the poor of New
ark reports that he pays to the State
Board of Children's Guardians for the
support of seventy-two children only,
or about 1920 year
Burden OF Care.
SIN this branch of charitable en-
deavor alone, namely, institutional
care of the dependent child, 1t is very
clear that the burden of support is
resting on Independent private organi-
nations. The city of Newark is typical
of other cities and municipalities in
the State. In their neighboring county
Of Morris private charity has the en-
tire custody and control of all chill
dren, even to the county charges. The
various poormasters of the county,
instead of placing the children they