Evening star., 1933-10-12
their own resources finally have to come
to the relief agencies.
Relief Bill Must Be Paid.

THE Unemployment relle1 Dill 1Or
this country must be paid. Most OF it
is coming from public money. That IS,
it is coming from funds appropriated
by city councils, county commissioners,
State Legislatures and the United States
Congress.
"The Federal Government Is COM
mitted to paying q fair share. Last
May, Congress appropriated $500, 900 900
to help the States carry the burden.
There are approximately $4,000, 900
left now. That is not enough to pay
the whole bill for the care Of the desti-
tute unemployed. Many State govern
ments recently have put up large
amounts, others must do likewise Cities
and counties are putting up a great
deal and most Of them are living up to
their responsibility very well. The
money will come from these three
sources, Federal, State and local govern
ments. The bill will be met by all
three paying their share.
Relief has been very inadequate in
many places throughout the country. A
number of cities and States gave relief
to their destitute last Winter and
Spring on basis that amounted to half
have been as low as 81 q month per
family.
1.-The Federal Government is not GO
ing to countenance relief on a standard
so low that the needy unemployed are
only calory or two ahead Of the Grim
Reaper. We are going to see that relief
Is given quickly and on basis Of rea-
sonable adequacy.
Allowances to Be Raised.
1--WE have taken steps to raise relief
allowances. Many Of them have been
raised already, and we are going to keep
at this until relief all over the country
is given on a reasonable basis.
Here is where this matter Of food
food in this country Warehouses are
full of it. It is glutting the markets
and rotting on the ground
President Roosevelt several days ago
authorized the formation Of a corpora
ton to buy up surpluses of the kind Of
commodities that can be distributed to
the unemployed who need them. The
Federal Surplus Relief Corporation re-
ceived it's charter last Thursday.
"It will take these surplus products
off the market and turn them over to
the State relief administrations to add
to the relief already being given.
Briefly, its function Is to get these sta
Piles and give them to the State relief
administrators, who will put them in
the kitchens Of the needy unemployed
to relieve want and hardship.
I'm the last few days great many
inquiries have been made about what
kind Of products will be bought up,
what the total cost of getting, process
ing and distributing them will be, and q
lot of other pertinent questions.
I'VE will buy only the kinds Of food
products and other staples that the
needy unemployed can use. The guam
tity will be governed by the need.
These surpluses will be given to the
! needy over and above the relief allow
ances they are now getting. The pur-
pose is to raise the standard Of relief.
IT should stop this giving Of relief on
the basis Of half starvation.
100000 Children on Rolls
"There are about 100000 children
in the families receiving relief. The
Children's Bureau Of the Department
Of Labor has been doing a lot Of check
ing up on the effect Of the depression
upon children. They show that among
the school children In one industrial
State malnutrition jumped from Is to
Is per cent between the school years OF
1881 and 1882. We know that NAL
nutrition has increased.
Such things are bound to happen II
you try to feed family Of four or five
children on some Of the indefensibly
low rates Of relief that have existed in
many parts Of the country.
eff children are required to go
through that important stage of child
hood without sufficient food, they will
reach their adult years stunted, phys
ically unfit, and mentally backward.
81 have asked the State relief admin
istrations to pay special attention to the
needs Of children. While we are STEP
ping up the amount of relief given to
families, special consideration will be
given to the children who are getting
improper food or not enough food.
"The relief officials will determine,
after investigation, the children who
come to school In an undernourished
condition. If they are from the families
Of the unemployed ON relief rolls, they
may be provided with nourishing food
I furnished at the school. Besides this, I
have asked the relief officials to increase
their efforts to provide sufficient food in
the homes, especially milk, so that the
younger children, as well as those old