The Cordova daily times., 1922-10-27
LAW
 IN JUSTICE TO
 ILLECITlMATES

movement TOT securing greater measure of justice for the more than 32,0O0 children born out of wedlock in the United States each year, the United States Department of Labor through the Children's Bureau an nounced recently, has received the sanction of legal organization of the highest authority. The National Con- ference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, at it's 32d annual meeting held in San Francisco, approved uni form illegitimacy act and recommend ed it to the states for adoption. Pro- lessor Ernst Freund of the University of Chicago Law School was chairman of the committee which drafted the proposed law.
 The action of the commissioners was the outgrowth of series of re- gional conferences held in 1920 under the auspices of the Children's Bureau and the Inter-City Conference on H. legitimacy, to consider standards of legislation and protection for children of illegitimate birth In discussing the proposed law Miss Grace Abbott, chief of the Children's Bureau, pointed out that it deals almost entirely with the obligation of the parents for the child's support, and leaves open the questions of status and inheritance rights. She stated that it is in proceedings for determining paternity and compelling support that uniformity of state legis- lation is most essential. The difficult ty of bringing to trial a father who lives in another state from that in which the mother resides or who ab seconds to another state to escape his obligations has been one of the prin- cinal obstacles in the way of legal action.
 With few exceptions, illegitimacy laws now in force in American states date back many years and in the opin- ion of Miss Abbott are very defective by reason of low maximum age linn it's to which support can be required, small amounts authorized, limitations as to jurisdiction, possibility of set clement for extremely inadequate amounts, or ineffective means of en- forcing compliance with the judgment of the court.
 Extreme examples are the Tennes- see law which provides that paternity having been established, the father may be required to pay not to exceed $40 the first year, $30 the second, and %20 the third. At the end of the third ya2r the court shall dispose of the child as seems best; award is not for the mother but goes to the Commits ai0nor of the Poor In Alabama the court may order the father to pay not exceeding $50 per year for the support and education of the child In South Carolina the father can be required t0 pay &25-twice as much for twins. Tn statcs in which the amount is left to the discretion of the court, it has been influenced in the type of provision made for the child by the Common Law doctrine that tho father was in no way obligated to support his illegi- timata offspring and bcausp his tOrically the modification of that doc trine hos come through poor relief leg islation
 Tho proposed law places upon both narents of a child born out of we'd lock the obligation of furnishing him maintenance, education and support The father is made liable for the eT- pcnses of the mothers pregnancy and confinement The obligation of the father, where his paternity has been judicially established in his lifetime or acknowledged by him, is enforce able against his estate, having regard to various factors relative to the child, the mother, and the fathers lawful family.
 Under the proposed law court action to enforce the obligation of the father may be brought in the community and state where he is permanently or tenn porarily resident, or in which the mother or child resides or is found This, together with other provisions relating to jurisdiction, would reduce the ease with which the father is now able to evade his obligations by going from one state to another
 The judgment for support given by the court when the defendant is found to be the father is to be for annual