Evening star., 1926-09-19
GUARDIANS REPORT
l,752 DEPENDENTS.
Final Review Ranks Capital
High in Children Under,
Public Care.

Washington ranks among the high.
est of the cities in the number of
children cared for under public super
vision. according to the Anal annual
report of the Board Of Chtldren's
Guardians, made public yesterday by
the District Commissioners.
Covering the operations of the
board during the fiscal year ending
June 80 last, when 1t passed out of
existence, the report showed that in
that period care was given to 1873
children. while on July there were
1852 children under guardianship,
board during the preceding II
months. 5- @es' = = r.''-
Adoption of the mothers pension
law was described in the report as
the longest forward step that has
ever been taken In the Districts pub
lie welfare endeavors An opinion
also was expressed that poverty is
the fundamental cause Of "a very
large number of cases" Of child de-,
pendency.
41,OOO Children Investigated.
Domestic situations numbering 747,
involving 1.473 children. came to the
attention of the department of in
vestigation and advice of the board
during the year Fifteen children
were placed In adoption homes. 346
in free homes with relatives and
friends. 172 over lS years of age
were placed on wages. with work and
living conditions supervised.
The report pointed out that since
the organization of the board in 1892,
3,407 children were cared for until
they reached the age of 81, many
from infancy. Temporary care was
given to 1854 and 59S feeble minded
children were educated and trained
Investigations of living conditions
were made of nearly al 900 children
who were reported neglected, aban
doned, abused or destitute.
Looking back over 33 years of ex
perience in public care of children.
disinterested observer might see that
the institutional group and foster
home group (of theorists) were equal
ly at fault. each claiming that it's par
ticular method was the proper one for
every type of dependent child said
the report To-day, we have come to
understand that any environment eX-
cept the normal and natural home
with the child's own parents, is
mere substitute for a birthright of
which the child has been robbed.
Original Home Held Best.
Such substitute can hardly he
expected to be as good as the normal.
original home: for the ties of blood
and natural love and affection have
been broken Yet it has taken a
quarter of a century for even social
workers to see that both methods are
often bad and that each has place
Sya Ioa oiI 81 f@, %1A
child.
1T is now generally agreed that
the method of foster home care for
normal dependent children is su
perior to institutional care, if the
foster home is properly selected and
closely supervised by competent, prac-
tica1, trained social workers.
1T also is agreed that the foster
home method without proper investi-
cation and supervision is the most
dangerous substitute for the normal
home. The normal home, however
poor, from a material standpoint. is
better than its best substitute.
Separation Called Crime.
Social workers now realize that the
crime of the last SO years in welfare
work has been needless separation of
tHlku anu dICHI-ltlC
breaking up Of homes by those who
professed to advance social progress.
In the name of welfare work chill
dren have been kept in institutions
and foster homes at great expense
to the public when. with or without a
small amount Of aid, the proper type
of social work would have saved not
only the taxpayers money, but also
the home and normal heritage of the
child.
Congress. at it's last session. pro-
vided for public aid to dependent chill
dren in their homes. and that action,
together with consolidation of public
activities in the Public Welfare Board,
constitute the longest step forward in
the Districts public welfare en-
deavorS.
Poverty Fundamental Cause.
ANY thorough survey through the
records OF the District of Columbia
will show that. in very large num-
her of cases, poverty was the funda
mental cause of the child's depend
ency.. The dependency ratio of Wash