The public ledger. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968, 1919-06-09
MAYSv|LLE MAKES
GOOD SHOWING IN
WELFARE Survey
Conditions In This City Found Good
BY Experts-Lexingt0n and Ps-
ducah Lead the State.

Maysville ranks high In the Child
Welfare Survey Just made over the
state Of Kentucky according to the
star Of investigation who have been
making the survey.
Lexington and Paducah have more
nearly perfect child labor condition
and better enforcement Of the Child
Labor law than any communities In
the state, according to Mrs. L. r. Bush
formerly state labor inspector of Ala
bama, who has been aiding in the
child welfare survey of the state
which has been In progress since
March under the National Child La
Dor Commission.
Mrs. Bush completed her work this
week, and has returned to her home
in Alabama The report Of the staff of
eight experts who conducted the sur
vey in the state will not be published
until September.
The survey included education, re-
creation. child labor, delinquency, de-
tendency, the administration of insti-
tutions for children, juvenile courts
and all important matters relating to
children. The object Of the study was
to lay an International basis for ac-
ton toward a Kentucky Childrens
Code, a Standardization of all state
laws effecting children, the harmoni-
cation of the administrative machin-
cry of the state, counties, cities and
municipalities, and the coordination
of all child welfare activities. The
study was made at the request of the
Kentucky Child Labor Association and
several kindred organizations which
will present the report to the 1920 leg
islature and use it to influence the
platform of both political parties in
favor of progressive legislation. The
work was done by Edward c. Chopper,
assistant secretary of the National
Child Labor Commission, and a staff
of eight experts on different phases.
The survey started in Lexington
March 20, and was concluded in Lou
isville June 6. Sixteen representa-
tive counties in the mountain mining
and agricultural sections, in the blue
grass region, the pennyrile and the
purchase, with Jefferson county as an
example of a county dominated by a
city we're studied The records OF
schools, churches, charitable organi-
cations, juvenile and all organi-
cations, dealing directly or indirectly
with children we're used in the work.
The staff of experts included Mrs.
Bush; Miss Elizabeth Bliss, who in
vestigated educational conditions !;
Miss Mabel Brown Ellis, whose work
was in Juvenile delinquency; W. H
Swift, socialist in law and administra-
ton; Charles Gibbons, agricultural
and Industrial expert: Raymond q.
Fuller, recreational worker; DR.. II. H
Mitchell, who had charge Of health
Investigations; and Miss Theresa
Wolfson, who will follow up the work
done by the staff.
Miss Mabel Brown Ellis was in
Maysville for several days couple
Of weeks ago going over the records
in the County and Circuit Clerks Of
fees. Before she left Maysville, she
highly complimented Mason county
upon her record as to infant delin.
quency.
Mr.. Chopper said that no recommen.
dation for the enactment Of another
Child Labor law would be made, as
that introduced and passed by the
Kentucky Legislature largely through
the efforts of Senator Theodore Tunis
was an excellent one. 1t is not per-
feet, since 1t forbids the employment
Of children under legal age while
many of them are idle and out OF
school because of inefficient truant Of
ficers, he said. The great obstacle tc
school attendance in Central Ken
lucky counties Is the working of chill
dren in tobacco crops, as truant Of
ficers, when employed by counties
make little attempt to keep farmers
from working their, boys in the tobac-