Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1916-02-15
GERMANY PLANS
BIRTH INCREASE
Scientific and Government Officials
Band Together to Halt Decrease
In Population.


"Deutsche Gessellschaft fur Bevoelke-
rungs Politik." roughly translated, the
German Society for Population In
crease" the efforts of a relatively
small body of men to check the de-
crease that has been noticeable in the
German birthrate for more than 40
years have at last won widespread
recognition.
1t has taken the war, with its terri
BILE inroads on the pick Of German
manhood, to bring thousands to a re-
alization Of the soundness of the
claims of the few-that the birthrate
Of the empire is going backward, and
that, after the war, Germany faces the
retrogression that has been going on
in France if something is not done.
The new society, which informally
has been in existence for three months,
has mapped out very definite, concrete
plans for combating the ever-increas-
ing childlessness of the population.
These plans include a certain amount
Of legislation which apparently is ap-
proved by all parties, and an educa-
tional program by medical and peda-
gogical circles.
The legislation includes a revision
of taxation schedules which shall place
an equal burden upon the family man
and the bachelor so that the latter will
be literally driven into matrimony."
1t includes motherhood premiums"
intended to counterfeit the economic
difficulty of bringing children into the
world, and the burden of supporting
them.
OF great importance in the eyes of
the founders of the new society the
ease so rigid that the present tendency
to sterility, admittedly great, will be
greatly lessened, especially when TAX
en- in conjunction with the inclination
hoped, can be brought about The
society counts on a campaign to de-
crease the training period of trades
and professions so that young men will
become money earners at an earlier
time, and upon educational work by
family physicians and teachers.
Few of the rulers of the various
German states, large and small, but
have expressed themselves thorough
ly in accord with the ideals of the So
ciety's plans. Emperor William and
the king of Bavaria especially are de-
clared to be enthusiastically behind
the project. Only the social demo-
cratic party, of all the many parties
in the empire, has not gone on record
in favor of most or all of the detailed
plans, and only certain labor circles,
who fear that increased population
means lowered wages eventually, have
not taken up cudgels in behalf Of the
society.
The originator Of the movement may
be said to be Professor Julius Wolf,
enc CT the most distinguished and
widely known economists of Germany,
formerly of the faculty of the Univer-
sity of Breslau and now at the Tech
meal high school of Berlin He is
president of the new organization.
Russias gigantic increase in popu-
lation, the tremendous fertility of its
people, induced him many years ago
to begin studying the population prob
lem He devoted more and more time
to it as he came to realize how France
had gone backward, and how strong
tendency Germany showed to fol-
low in the same footsteps. His ideas
became increasingly radical as he
found that Germany's birthrate had
dropped from 407 per thousand in
1870 to 2S5 in 1911, and was still de-
creasing.
Gradually he has gathered around
him a group of the most eminent med
ical, scientific and pedagogical men
from every part of Germany who form
the nucleus of the new society. He
has written much on the subject, but
he has worked in other and more prac-
teal ways, and has interested the leg
islative forces on which he feels he
must rely to proceed practically.
The society proposes, first of all, a
revision of direct taxation. If mar
rage is to increase, it believes, bach
elors must be literally driven into
it" And to drive them into it, they
must be made to pay tax equal to
that paid by the man of an average
family. They now pay about the same
direct tax, and their advantage comes
in a smaller indirect taX-less for salt,
sugar, beer and other eatables and
drinkables because they have less
mouths to feed Therefore the matter
must be equalized by higher direct
tax, one which they shall feel as no
! indirect tax ever is felt
In recognition, however, that an in
Justice can easily be worked if gen
eral conditions, especially working
| conditions, remain the same as at pres
! emit, the society looks forward to a
REIMBURSEMENT of the existing appren-
ticeship and training periods through
which workmen and professional men
now have to CO. This readjustment
may have to be legislative it may
come voluntarily in many cases. In
/ the one way or the other, the society
/ holds, it must be made possible for the
young man to earn livelihood at an
earlier age than heretofore, and hence
! to marry earlier.
Professor Wolf is also a champion
of the motherhood pension system
now in vogue in Australia. He would
have the state offer 900 or 400 marks