Evening star., 1945-05-13
Subcommittee
Closes Hearings
On DC. Budget
Industrial Home
Hires Ex-Convicts.
Women Testify

House. Appropriations Committee
closed its hearings yesterday on the
1946 District budget amidst the
pleas of civic leaders to appropriate
sufficient funds to remedy chaotic
conditions in child care institutions
here.
Chairman Coffee announced the
group would meet in executive ses-
sion this week when a final draft of
the bill is expected to be written.
During its final session the COM
mlttee heard charges that ex-
convicts had been hired as employees
at the Industrial Home for White
Children. The assertions were made
by Mrs. John Summerscale and
Mrs. Arthur Paul, members of the
Georgetown Committee on Child
Activities.
Low Salaries Hit.
The witnesses, who recently COM
pleted an inspection of the home
declared that low salaries prevented
the institution from hiring desirable
employees.
THE salaries paid there attract
only the lowest type of employee"
Mrs. Paul declared. She added that
if proper salaries were paid much
of what Is wrong with the home
could be corrected.
At one point during her testi-
mony, Representative Coffee inter-
rupted to say that the committee
would assign investigators to de-
termine conditions at the home. B..
Mrs. Summerscale declared that
because of faulty supervision, in
mates of the home who are there
because of economic circumstances
are often "brutalized" by inmates
with criminal tendencies.
Ahern's Work Praised.
Both witnesses pointed out, how
ever. that they did not mean to
criticize Daniel Ahern, Superinten-
dent of the home. "Mr. Ahern has
done the best he could under almost
impossible circumstances" Mrs. Paul
declared.
Other witnesses before the COM
mittee yesterday included Col. o. w.
Tufts, chairman of the Community
Chests budget committee, who
asked equalization of relief funds
provided by private agencies and
the Board of Public Welfare.
An exceedingly acute" situation
exists here because public relief
grants don't measure up to that
given by private welfare agencies,
Col. Tufts declared. "Harmonizing
of grants would remedy the situa-
ton, he said.
"At present, persons on relief
jockey around so that they will get
their funds from private rather than
public agencies" he said. This
complicates everything"
Decent" Home Endorsed.
Charles V. Morris of the Correc-
tions Division of the Council of So
cial Agencies asked that funds be
voted so that the new mental hy-I
giene clinic could maintain facilities
to aid alcoholics.
The need for decent" Receiving
Home for Children being sought for
the District by the Public Welfare
Board was indorsed yesterday in
written report presented to Chair
man Coffee by a special committee
of the Council of Social Agencies
headed by G. HoWland Shaw.
The committee said it approved
the boards efforts to include a de-
tention home for children awaiting
trial in Juvenile Court or being held
as witnesses; shelter for emergency
care for dependent children, and
diagnostic clinic offering medical,
psychological and psychiatric care
for children.
Special Study Urged.
1t urged, however, that separate
units be set up for these three serv-
ices, pointing to the danger of
spreading delinquency by having de-
pendent and delinquent children
housed together.
The committee, composed of rep
resentatives of the councils division
of family and child welfare and cor
rections division, also recommended
special study of such "sore spots"
as staff shortages in agencies deal
ing with children and lack of space
in the District training schools.
1t said the Public Welfare Board
should be "encouraged" in its plan
to study the total institutional situ-
alton here so that requirements may
be based on real need as to types
and capacity"