Williams news., 1914-03-26
Observations Of
 A Clodhopper
By TEMPEST

The Germans have @ custom in
 some of the provinces of providing
 food, raiment and shelter for old
 folks who have no way of making
 their own living. In some cases
 the children provide this and in
 the majority of instances it is done
 by the authorities.
 This peculiar bit of philanthropy
 is termed, evening bread , This
 because it is given in the evening of lif-. In this country many old
 folks are left to the mercy of the cold old world, and that is in most cases rather a poor. means of sus-
 taining life. They get barely enough to keep them alive and
 that is all Many sections of the country m main tain poor ia IDS
 which are the refuge of the aged and infirm. Most of the time, these farms are run by the man
 who bids the lowest. He is SUD-
 posed to furnish food, raiment and
 what other necessaries may be needed for the sum he specifics in
 his bid If he runs t.,e county
 hospital along wi h it, then he is
 supposed furnish medical at en tinn als
 As niatte- of business he var
 nus counties natural y try tD save all the expense hat they possibly can and the welfare If the patient is of only secondary consideration. Ofttimes the man who takes the
 c ,ntract to run either one of these institutions bids so low per capita
 that the attentions received by the patients are very meagre indeed Many mothers son lies on the filthy beds that are provided in
 some of these places in the coun- try with some malady in which he
 cannot obtain the necessary med
 icines because of the extra expense
 to the county, therefore must die. Instead of the popular method of letting these contracts to the low est bidder, why not let the county commissioners of the various coun- ties arrive at minimum cost per capita for the board, medical atten- ton and keep of the county indig- ents? Then hire some one to run these institutions for the counties. The parties to run the poor farms as now they do, to work only those able in the garden and not on the farm, to get half made from the general farming and the minimum per capita for, the care of the pat tents to run the proposition. The other half made from the farm to be placed in reserve fund each year, to provide extra medicines and accessories when needed in cases of contagious and infectious diseases wherein the food, drugs, physician's fees, raiment, bedding, nursing and other things should be presented to the board everyl month as paid, for their inspection. This in order to avoid graft. Then the institution should be inspected at least once month to see that
 the patients are provided for prop
 erly, that the bedding is kept in a sanitary condition, that the food is wholesome and nourishing, not
 Luxurious, that they have the ne-
 cessary drugs in all cases. The
 man who takes charge of such
 place should give bonds to a con siderable amount for the faithful
 performance of his duty. Under the present system there is little or no inspection and in
 cases of rare occurring diseases some patients must die for lack of
 necessary and expensive medicines. By bidding lower and lower each year the per capita becomes so low
 that the man who receives the con-
 tract cannot do justice under his
 contract and somebody must be the
 loser and it is a certainty that he
 will be the last one to suffer from
 that score. Then it is the inmates. 1 f,,.4 4Ian Id tlof ,.ro,,ld hc foo