The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1936-01-23

ways supported them, living now with
another man, and receiving money
each week at the hands of our County
Welfare Staff.
There are cases in which men have
plead guilty and were fined for boot
Logging and they were put on relief
rolls Immediately. In one case a man
who was fined 100000 on such a
charge was given relief Immediately
and was still drawing relief benefits
up until the time this investigation be-
gan regardless of the fact that he was
able to raise the money to pay his fine
The records in this case are on file
in our relief office at Oakland and can
not be denied.
We found able bodied men living in
idleness on farms classified as "Part-
time employment of Farm Group
where employment on PWA is not fea-
sible." The committee is happy to be
able to report, however, that in most
of these cases we find the men have
been assigned to work on WPA pro-
jects since this investigation began.
There are cases in which the
widowed or divorced children of we'll
to do families have returned to their
homes, and are living now with their
parents in their comfortable houses,
and getting direct relief, regardless of
the fact that the parents are fully
able to provide them with every ne
cessity of life, and would be doing so
cheerfully were it not for relief.
We found people on the rolls living
comfortably in their own homes who in
addition are blessed with more of this
worlds goods perhaps than will be ne
cessary to sustain them through the
remainder of this life, yet they have
made application for relief and relief
was granted at the hands of our Coun-
vt Welfare Staff. In view of this we
are forced to the conclusion that the
staff has been too lenient in granting
relief to hundreds of. cases who have
been on the rolls from time to time in
This county.
Many of our most thoughtful citi-
zens believe that relief as it has been
handled in the past constitutes detri-
ment and menace to our people rath-
er than a help and after considerable
observation and careful elaboration
this Committee has concluded that
this is true.
We believe that our conclusions are
fully borne out by the figures pub
lished in the Baltimore Sun on Janu-
airy 18th, 1886, wherein it is shown
that Garrett county received out of
the State relief funds the sum of $685.
323.43 for the period from April LIST to
December 31st. Carroll county, which
like Garrett, is largely an agricultural
county with a population of nearly
twice that of Garrett, requires only
about one dollar for relief to fourteen
dollars spent in Garrett. Our sister
county of Allegany with a large in
dustrial and mining population and
ton of our county, spent out of State
funds for relief $112,391.63. In other
words, there was spent from State
relief funds nearly three dollars per
capita in our county and only about
$3.50 per capita in Allegany. This
committee is of the opinion that the
above comparisons with other coun-
ties similarly situated fully bears out
our contentious that relief problems
in our county have not been properly
handled.
That there are some worthy and
needy cases being helped through the
medium of relief cannot be denied,
but the retarding effect that too much
relief has had upon individual initia-
tive and private enterprise has caused
many of our thrifty and thoughtful
citizens to view the entire relief pro-
gram with alarm.
By way Of suggesting remedy for
the above conditions, we believe that
the standard by which relief is granted
should be made more drastic, so that
relief will be granted only in cases of
absolute necessity.
To that end we favor a system that
will permit each political unit to form
its own relief organization without
any interference or supervision from
a centralized authority. Our Board of
Commissioners is responsible to the
people for our county finances, and re-
lief should be handled by an organiza-
ton over which the Board could eXer-
else complete control.
To maintain the present relief orga-
nization would provide burden that
would soon break the backs of our
county taxpayers. The committee has
before us an estimated budget for the
month of January, in which the esti-
mated cost of direct relief will be
$4,370.70 and the administrative costs
for the month will be $1,770.84.
We believe it would be we'll to dis
pense with an executive secretary re-
ceiving $166.66 per month; half
dozen case workers receiving $500
per month, plus mileage; a staff of
four office workers at $4,000 per
month, together with rent, heat, light,
and accessories. We recommend this
suggestion to the citizens and tax
payers and submit that the money
thus saved if carefully and prudently
administered, would probably, care for
every needy citizen in our county.
We believe that the people of Gar
rett county possess as great a degree
Of stamina, fortitude, and perseyer-
anee as that which enabled our ances-
tors to endure, and finally triumph
over opposition, misfortune and re-
verses. We view with alarm and
greatly deplore the introduction of a
| system which tends to lower the indie
pendent standard and self respect of
many of our citizens, who could make
their own way and could be masters
of their own destinies, by substitut-
| ing relief for the moral obligation of