The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1918-01-24
MUST INCREASE
AID FOR POOR
Vermont Is Called Upon to
Meet a Very Press
ing Problem
SEC. w. H. JEFFREY
MAKES REPORT
Must Place Feeble Minded
Females Under Re-
straint

conference on charities and correction
held in this city to-day, William II. JET
frey, secretary of the state board o
charities and correction, after recountin
many of the serious situations fount
throughout. the state, said that Vernon
will never solve in satisfactory manne
the problem of the dependent and neg
lected child until il has made adequat,
provision by suitable legislative action
and by providing sufficient buildings fol
the confinement aud care of all feeble
minded females of child bearing age. He
continued;
Volume 2, page IL, of report of United
States bureau of education for 1914 saws
that the public cost per feeble minded
child each year is $555.42. or 20 times as
much. as the public expense for a normal
child. If the life expectancy OF feeble
minded is but 20 years, the birth of each
feeble minded child means public cx-
pense of 81 ,l0s.40.
Another case that has attracted some
little attention comes from the center
part of the state. The home consisted of
a COW barn or stable, dirty in the ex-
IRENE located in hollow at the foot of
a hill in mud, mire and filth. over which
the man with his wife and children were
making their home. Window holes were
cut at frequent intervals in the barn but
there were no window frames or covering
of any sort The interior of the house
was fully as filthy as the COW barn be.
meath. Notwithstanding these awful con
| full conditions. this man took our chair.
h, 10 10.
show him what beautiful view he and
his family had of Mount Mansfield and
CameI's Hump,
For the first six months of the exist.
ence of the board, we took under our Gus
tody and care 81 children, and provided
temporary or permanent homes for them.
Upon our petition. 10 children were sent
to the Vermont industrial school. Seven
10 the state school for feeble minded AT
Brandon Fifty poorhouses have been
inspected in several, very serious condi |
tions have been found, which in nearly |
every instance have been relieved. A |
large number of places have been inves |
tigated, involving some 200 children, who /
were living in homes SO fifty and degrad |
ing as to seriously endanger their future
and in nearly every instance the condi-
tions have been corrected or materially
improved. We now%haye IN our files 2il |
cases of this class for investigation.
On Jan. /. 1918, the overseers of the
poor reported that they were giving aid
to 1888 persons, aud that ,324 arc under
Is years o. age, "a are feeble minded
men, 20 are suffering from venereal dis
eases, % from tuberculosis and seven
from epilepsy. These figures cover 242
of the 246 cities and towns Of the state II
One of the most serious problems that
ronfronts the board, and one that seems 6
TO seriously interfere with our work, is :
the lack of provision for q shelter or re i
ceiying home. A place to which we NAV I
take children for the cleaning up process [
when committed to our custody. and tc
where they may remain pending an in a
rcstigation of applicants who are offer !
ng home. This is much to be desired +
md in fact practically essential TO the b
development of complete policy of child t
are and protection. o
During the existence of the board we il
nave received many applications from p
PERSONS offering homes for children which t
We have been wholly unable to consider, u
because we had no children available, in h
condition that would warrant the state a
n placing them. | am very glad to be r.
BILE to say that movement is now un. p
er way which promises a speedy soIu. ii
ION of this problem through the generos-
tv of our people. u
When the present law was enacted b,
reating the board of charities and pro- m
alton il took over the work which was "
cling done by the probation commission pr
nd the II county probation officers. az
On Jan. |, 1918, we had 622 persons of al
ur prison on parole, or upon probation
V the courts Six hundred and twenty b;
yo persons who have been found guilty OF
{ some crime and have been committed L
/, the care and custody of this board is
18th the hope that we can materially as DC
st them in regsining an honorable place 81
society and in becoming useful and OF
,sirable citizens. That many of these DC
-e feeble minded and large number DC
Electives, there can be no doubt Our -
-isons, our reformatories, rs well as our J
mshouses get n large number from the
eble minded class and from those who I
ere dependent and neglected children. ]
So far as possible we study each case
refully. and endeavor to render such
bstsntal positions. boarding places /!
ID give counsel and advice
Hon. Eugene y. Foss, governor of Mas :.
chusetts. AT a session of the American
-ison association al indianapolis, said: e;
,ei me add in all seriousness that the in
anagers of my own shops aud factories m
axe a more efficient and intelligent oh
rting aud reclamation of scrap metal co
an The laws have generally made of rs
oh