Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-10-30
WELFARE OF CHILD
CONFERENCE TOPIC
Reports Made to Associated
Charities on Conservation
of Young Life.
THIRD CENTRAL MEETING
IN SERIES BEING HELD
Addresses by Miss Julia G. Lathrop,
DR.. A. ]. McKelway, DR.. ]. S. Wall
and Frederick A. Fenning.

and Frederick A. fleming.
Censure of conditions in the District
of Columbia that have put eight or
ten children of feeble minds in the
Government Hospital for the Insane
there to associate intimately with 300
adults, many of whom have acquired
vicious tendencies, was one of the
features of the conference of the
Associated Charities, held in the New
Willard Hotel last night
This censure came in an address by
F. A. Fenning. who promised that
through legislation now in progress
a new institution in the early future
Will be esta blished for the care of the
1eeble-minded children of the District.
Encouraging reports from many
agencies on conservation of child life
were received at the meeting This
was the third central conference in a
series of eight being held by the AS
soclated Charities, acting as social
service dlspensary. calling in special
lists to advise and treat of particular
phases of the work Wallace Streater
presided. Miss Jean Cole, assistant
secretary, read report on the work
done during the last year by the AS
Soc1ateQ Charities.
Baby Registration Urged.
That in the very first place where in
quiry was made by the child labor
bureau regarding baby birth registra-
ton, with a view to having authorita-
tive statistics on which to base efforts
for checking infant mortality, the pub
lie heart and conscience has been
touched. was the encouraging message
brought from the federal agency BY
Miss Julia c. Lathrop.
Miss Lathrop explained that baby
registration statistics must be had be-
fore effective and systematic work can
be done by her bureau, and that the
first two years of the bureaus work
has been along this line. That moth
ing particular has been done for Wash
ington she explained by the fact that
while many cities register but 30 or
so per cent of their babies. the Ma
tional Capital registers 1OI per cent.
She admitted that there are good
many defects in the child labor bureau.
and that there are too many costly
statistics. She says that thus far inquiry
on infant mortality and it's causes has
been made but in one center, and that
the report from that is promised by
been started in three other localities.
Real Work of Bureau.
AS an encouraging sign of success in
that first base of operations, Johns
town, Pa, she said she had a report
from the Associated Charities of that
place that the public. shocked at the
waste of young life shown by the in
vestigation, had started systematic
work for the preservation and conser-
walton of infants. She said that this
is the real work OF her bureau more
than the compilation of great volumes
of statistics that probably none Will
ever read.
one who had done more for regulation
of child labor than Congress or all the
state legislatures. DIR. MckelWay is
secretary of the national child labor
committee
a patriotic spirit with interest in local
affairs. He asked the friends of the AS
ISOLATED Charities to urge Congress to
pass the pending child labor laws.
He said that the pending bill con-
recommended by the American Bar AS
ISOLATION In discussing the Palmer
Owens child labor bill for regulating
the commerce between states OF prod
ucts of child labor, he reviewed the
historic friction between Virginia and
Maryland over commercial rights that
led to the Mount Vernon, the Annapolis
and then the Philadelphia conventions
that eventually evolved the interstate
commerce commission, and said that
similar legislation is in progress for
regulation of commerce in goods pro-
duced by child labor.
Suffered Least From War.
washington should have a very
happy Thanksgiving said DR.. Nickel
,,ru Y ..fnr w yhi n of ON has heen affect =