Evening star., 1922-03-26
Some Measures Now Pending in Congress
In Which Women Have Special Interest

July gives the bureau three assistants at $1,000.
one at $4,000 and one at $4,000.
In the case of bota bureaus the increases
were recommended by the budget bureau under
Gen. Dawes reduced by the House. restored by
the Senate and finally agreed to In conference.
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When it was realized that one out Of every
four Americans drafted for service In the world
war was iterate. that IS per cent Of the boys
arrival In camp were found to have physical
defects that might have been removed, and that
surveys regarding health conditions of sclool
children revealed not more than 25 per cent Of
them physically fit. men and women alike were
shocked. and bills to promote education, health.
Americanzation and other welfare measures
were introduced in rapid succession in both
houses. There today literally hundreds of
such bills pending before committees.
The Towner-Sterling BILL providing for the
creation Of a department of education. with
federal appropriations amounting to $100000.00O
to aid the states In dealing with the problems of
illiteracy, the education and Americanization Of
aliens. and for the partial payment of teachers
salaries to provide better instruction and extended
school terms, especially in rural schools and
schools in sparsely settled localities. money
to be apportioned to- any state which falls to pro-
vide equal sum for the same purpose. is the
best known and most widely approved of all the
education bills. As the Smith-Towner bill, it
favorably reported with amendments by the
House committee on education and Senate COM
mittee on education and labor In the last Con-
gress. and still further revised. intro
duced last April by Representative Towner OF
Iowa and Senator Sterling of South Dakota.
Action in committee was halted by the introduc-
ton of bills providing for a public welfare depart
ment. which would include education as of
its four divisions, a plan strongly opposed by
those regarding education major and not
minor consideration. Action on both bills is now
awaiting the report of the joint congressional
committee he n izafi ~ fha
ment departments. which is in the hands of the
President, but has not yet been made public
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In the mean time. the Demonstrating bill.
which Is indorsed by the National Education As
ISOLATION, the American Council Education.
the American Federation Of Labor the General
Federation Of Women's Clubs. the Daughters Of
the American Revolution. the National Congress
Of Mothers and Parent-Teachers Association. the
National League OF Women Voters the Woman's
Christian Temperance Cnion the Women's Re-
lief Corps and the American Library Association.
and other national organizations. was brought to
the attention of President Harding in a petition
presented on October 81 1921. by group of
prominent men and women. including Mrs.
Thomas G. Winter, president of the General Fed
GRAFTON OF Women's Clubs, who the following
day received her appointment by the President
as one of the four woman members of the ad-
visory committee to the American delegation at
the arms conference.
The public welfare depa rtment bill. on which
joint congressional hearing was held last May,
was introduced. by Senator Kenyon Of Iowa and
Representative Fess of Ohio. both OF whom were
at the time friendly toward the Towner-
Sterling bill. The retirement Of Senator Kenyon
leaves Senator Borah Of Idaho at the head of the
Senate committee on education and labor, with
Senator Sterling as the ranking republican mem
Der.
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The Fess-Capper bill for the promotion of