Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1920-01-10
THE CHILDREN BORN OIJT Olt
WEDLOCK.

What rights do the laws of tn
country give to the child born our OF
wedlock? What responsibility has tho
State toward him? What method cx--
ISIS or placing part of the burden
Iot his support and education upon
the father? Can the child inherit pro
perty from either his father or his
mother! Has he right 10 his
iathers name? Does tho subsequent
HALL Rage Of his lnrents make him
'!S:iimafe in the eyes of the law?
lhese and many other questions about
the legal Obligations OF parents and of
tho state to children born out of wed
lock arc answered in a bulletin entitl-
Gu lllegitimacy Laws in the United
States and Certain Foreign Countries"
issued by tho Childrcn's Bureau OF
the U. S. Department of Labor.
Tho English common law, in some
prospects still unaltered in England
land i'll parts of the United States, re
CARDS the childr born out of wedlock
as the child OF no one" He bears
no legal relationship even to his moth
or, and tho subsequent marriage of
ms parents can not legitimate him.
Many OF our States have altered tho
common law by statutes more favor
aole TO the child. One Of the most
radical departures is found in tho
North Dakota law of 1917 which dc
clares every child the legitimate
child of his natural parents, but
which wcalSens this broad provision
10y the failure TO provide adequate ad
ministrativc machinery. Minnesota
in 19l7 passed a law which aims to
securo for children born out of we'd
lock the nearest approximation to
the care, Suppor' and education
mat they would be entitled to receive
lif bonn of lawful marriage" The
State Board of control is made the
child's official guardian; this board
may bring complaint IN ilegitimacy
proceedings and must see that the
child's interests are safcguarded
| PROVISIONS were adopted i'll Vir-
Ginia as early as 1855 whereby th,,
issue OF certain annullcd marriages
could be made legitimate and where
by subsequent marriage could legiti
mate issue. and tho child could In
merit from the mother. These provis
ions arc not even yet universal In
This country. -Four States havo no
provision for legi;imation by subse--
quent marriage, and many limitations
arc placed upon the right Of children
or annulled or void marriages to he
considered legitimate.
Attention is called in this report To
tho fact that our legal provisions for
tho support Of the child born out Of
"ediock are inadequate-the payments
prescribed arc often too low, and in
most OF the States tho period of sup
port Is too brief, sometimes reaching
only to the childs 10th or 18th year,
In one State only a single pay
ment of $50 is required; in
ano;her $40 distributed over three
years Is required. The two most lib
!eral States have allowances that to.
tai In ono case. $2.750 for the first
10 years of tho child's life and in tho
other S1,760 for the first eleven years
OF tho child's life.
| Tho report suggests that i,legitf-
macy legislation In tho United Stat
les might DO improved by uniform
provision for the establishment of
legitimacy; the lcgitimation of chill.
dren OF null or subsequent
marriages; possibility OF adopt
ION by tho father; and dcclara.
ton that the relation Of mother and
lchild is The same whether the child
is legitimate or not.
In addition to Il critical analysis Of
t1llegitmacy legislation in this coun
try tho report contains an analysis of
lcertaln phases of tho various State
laws in tabular form, the complete
text OF all the State laws, the illegl
tlmacy provisions of the Codes of
France, Germany and Switzerland
and reference index to the United
States illcgitimacy laws.