Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1921-01-18
EVERY CHILD IN
KANSAS To HAVE
HOME BENEFITS
New Mothers Pension Law
Is Being Urged So That
Children viii Not Have to
Depend on Charity.
(By The Associated Press.)


Topeka, Kans., Jan. livery
child in Kansas, regardless of
wealth or poverty, will have the
benefit of home life and a moth
er's care under a bill amending the
present mothers pension law,
which will be urged before the Leg
islature by the children's code
commission appointed by Cover
nor Allen.
Under the present statute coun-
ty commissioners are merely per
mitted" to grant pensions at their
discretion. The revised law makes
1t compulsory for the county to ex-
tend aid if investigation shows the
need. The law will be liberalized
in other respects also, including in
crease in the maximum monthly
allowance from $25 to $50, If the
recommendations of the code COM
mission are followed.
A recent survey of eighteen Kan
sas counties made by DR.. Florence
Brown Sherbon, chief of the divi-
sion of child hygiene of the state
board of health and secretary OF
the code commission, showed that
only forty-nine mothers receiving
pensions under the present law,
while approximately one thousand
mothers were in destitute circum-
stances and worthy of assistance.
At this ratio three hundred are
now receiving funds as compared
to six thousand who would be ELI
gible under the proposed measure.
Present Law Deficient.
1.-THE survey has shown that the
present. mothers pension law has
failed to accomplish its intended
purposes" declared Doctor Sher-
bon. 1.-THE amount designated as q
maximum is not sufficient to keep
any mother in a. home with her
children. More can be obtained
through the combined channels of
poor relief than through the pre-
sumably elf-respecting method OF
mothers pensions"
The new law provides for q
board of three women to be APP
pointed by the state commission
ers or by the probate judge, to in
vestigate applications for pensions
The report of the board is to be
accepted as final. Further investi-
cations of specific cases are to be
conducted at intervals of six
months to determine whether OF
not the pension is still justified.
If the mother is to be provident
and fit to have care of her child
rem and financially unable to sup
port them, the county commits
sioners will be required to pay he1
a monthly allowance not to exceed
$50 which may be Temporarily in
creased in case of sickness or I'm
usual condition.
Another proposed change in the
existing law would strike out the
provision that a pension can not BIZ
granted if relatives of the mother
are able to contribute to the sup.
port of herself and children. 1t has
been found that in many cases, &C,
cording to DR.. Sherbon, relatives
are financially able to advance
funds but are unwilling to do so.
Idea Is Widespread.
The 1920 report of the children's
bureau of the United States depart.
ment of labor shows that the
mothers pension movement II
widespread. Forty of the forty.
eight states have adopted some
form of mothers pensions. The re-
port states, however, that The
amounts granted are too small anG
not commensurate with the cost o.
living. States other than Kansa.
are planning to increase the
amount. A bill which will be in.
PRODUCED in the Nebraska legisla.
ture, for example, places the maxi
mum at SIS a month.
AS an indication of the need fol
an adequate mothers pension law
Doctor Sherbon cites the case of q
widow at Winfield who made in
quiry recently after reading that
liberalization of the law was con-
templated. This woman, who is
now 20 years old, writes that het
husband was killed last June and
that she is left with girl 8 years
old and an infant of a few months
She has no means of her own and
is living with her husbands peo-
ple