The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1917-12-10
CARE OF CHILDREN
IN UNITED STATES
Is One Of Problems Forced Prominently
to the Surface as Result of the
Country's Participation
in the War.


, physical weakness, ignorance, untimel,
work and delinquency must be warde'
off from the future citizens Of the unite'
. States by patriotic effort and sacrifice
, on the part of our civilian population" il
! carrying out reasonable child welfar,
I program, is set forth in the annual re
children's bureau of the department O.
labor.
Sensational reports of an alarming
rate of Legitimate births adjacent Il
the great army camps and charges OF
; gross immortality were investigated by
the bureau in three different cities, named
in the charges, and in each case pro
nounced groundless.
Absolutely no foundation could be
found in any one of the three towns fol-
the statements made about the girls
there" says the report. 1T was case
of rumors added to rumors equalling
facts. The danger that instances of H.
legitimacy will result from the camps
exists, of course Undoubtedly the
alertness of army and navy officials in
this country to the need of providing de-
cent opportunities for social life among
the modified troops will be an important
factor in preventing the rise OF the IL
legitimate birth rate here
| Protection must be afforded by prop
er policing, but far more by provision of
ample social opportunities, ample hotel
and boarding space of unquestionable
character for every woman who visits a
cantonment town for any legitimate rea
son, suitable chaperonage and competent
| women guides to meet incoming trains.
For the lack of any or all these safe.
guards young men and women cannot be
held accountable To provide them eff
fectively is the business of officials and
of civilians no longer young
During the coming year. the bureau
expects to make countrywide study of
state provisions for the care and protee,
tion of dependent children and study
of Juvenile courts with respect TO the in
crease of youthful crime which expe-
rence in other countries has taught al
ways follows war
Studies of child welfare in the warning
countries have shown that there has
been decrease in both the legitimate
and Legitimate births, but that the de-
crease in the former has been greater.
TO smaller extent than in Europe, the
report says. the problem of war time
llegitimacy exists here and ''in making
plans for government allowances flor de-
pendents of soldiersl the question of sup
port of illegitimate children OF members
of the military forces must be consid-
cred"
The pressing essentials of the program
which the bureau considers necessary 10
guard the United States against the
aftermath of the war, are stated in the
report as follows:
81 Public protection of maternity
and infancy. last year $4,000 mothers
and 100000 children under five years of
age died Most of the deaths were pre-
ventable.)
SO. Mothers care for older children. |
Essentials: Adequate incomes, family al |
lowances for soldiers families mothers
pensions for civilians, special provision
for extraordinary needs; so far as re-
CURED to enable mothers of Older chill
dren to afford the home comfort and pro-
lection which are the best safeguard |
against delinquency.
SO. Enforcement of all child labor
laws and full schooling for all children
of school age Standards should be
81 Recreation for children and youth,
abundant, decent, protected from any
form of exploitation"
Permanent success in reducing infant
can be achieved only in con
nection with the protection of mothers,
according to the report, which adds that
by the bureau prove that
an adequate income earned by the ia
Their of a family is essential. Studies
made in eight cities showed that while
The mortality among infants born TO
families having less than $3.50 annual in
,ome was 1928 in each thousand births,
The average was reduced to ll9S when
he income ranged from $3.50 to $s49,
md was only GIL when the income was
more than 1850.
Where mothers were forced to go into |
industry by reason of insufficient other
neome the infant death rate was more q,
han twice as great as in families where
he mothers remained. at home. More
han one.fourth, or 25.s per cent, of the
athers of the families investigated, a
armed less than $3.50 year, while only I
me in eight, or 1871 per cent, had an in {
ONE of 81 $50 or more. The cities in i
-estigated were Jamestown, Pa, Mont 7
lair, n. j., Manchester, N. H., Brockton, t
lass, Waterbury, Conn, Akron, o., ?
saginaw, Mich, and New Bedford, Mass s
The number of women in industry has
increased since the United States entered o
he war and in the new workers an in v
rease was found in the proportion of a
married women to single women. The
Ugh cost of living was given as one rea- /
on for the return of wives to positions a
\ the Chicago stockyards which they u
cid before marriage. The report adds ii
THE employers feel that within the n
ext few months it will be practically IL
levitable that this increase in the num- a
er of women employed and in the pro- k
ortionate gain of married over single a
omen will go still further n
While close studies of maternal and d.
lfant mortality have shown the supe- st
or healthfulness of the country over n
ne cities, as a whole, il was found that Y
olation and low incomes may together ,
yerbalance fresh air and wholesome sur f6
Particularly in western graz a.
g states, where the population is sparse a
nd scattered, it was found that lack of 7
IRE and medical attention greatly in M
'eased the death rate among mothers ~
nd babies. Welfare work by industrial =
operations in cities has reduced mate
ally the mortality among mothers.
THE Importance of the care a mother
lsf.s III !. L l.