Evening star., 1945-04-30
(Second OF a Sertes.)
BY SARAH FLINN.

alton in the homes for delinquent
and wayward children in the Dis
trict. Three of the homes, which
were discussed in an article in The
Star yesterday, are in need of i'm
mediate and extensive repairs and
all need additional staff.
Wartime conditions can be blamed
partly for the conditions-material
is not available for the immediate
erection of new buildings, and the
manpower shortage is not limited
to District institutions.
However, the Board OF Public
Welfare began asking five years ago
that money for architects plans
for new buildings be appropriated
by Congress. 1t asked almost two
years ago for money to buy avail
able property for the National
Training School for Girls. 1t has
asked repeatedly for pay scales for
employees comparable to private en-
terprise In wartime.
Conditions Long Standing.
Due to lack of funds the archi-
tects' plans have not been begun.
The appropriation for the National
Training School is so limited that
there is a good chance it may fall
short of the price set by law for
the property. The pay scales are
still in the lowest brackets.
Representative D'Alesandro, Demo-
crat, of Maryland, led an investiga-
ton of the institutions in 1910, and
at that time called for new build
ings and changes in personnel, Mrs.
Roosevelt also denounced the homes
then, and civic groups, including
the Washington Federation of
Churches and the Council of Social
Agencies had meetings to discuss the
problems and their solutions.
Welfare officials point out that
one reason why physical repairs
to the old buildings have not been
made is that since 1910 the board
has hoped and believed that changes
would be made Immediately, and
that it was better not to spend
money improving buildings which
they believed woud be abandoned.
However, the general condition
remains the same. No civic group,
aside from the Federation of Wom-
ems Clubs, which recently began an
investigation, has raised the ques-
ton of what is to be done now.
Officials have requested the Dis
trict repair shop repeatedly to fix
such immediate needs as falling
plaster, leaking roofs, broken win
dows. Even these requests are long
delayed - sometimes for months.
The District Repair Shop is so
undermined that no matter how
urgent the need, it must wait on
manpower.
Insanitary and Unsafe.
So, for the next six or eight
months at minimum, the several
hundred children in these institu-
tions must continue to live in build
ings which are in such a condition
of disrepair as to be insanitary,
and unsafe. Unless all plans for
building new homes-which will be
discussed in following article
come through on schedule, this
condition may continue a great
deal longer.
The only answer to it would be
to increase the number of en-
ployes at the District repair shop,
or to increase the salaries of the
workers there to equal union pay,
so that it would be possible to find
the additional personnel to hire.
This is q step that could be taken
by the House Appropriations Sub
committee, which begins hearings
Thursday on the 1916 District bud
get.
The lack of space In the homes,
forcing young children to be housed
along with older. more difIicult chill
dren. cannot be finally solved until
the new homes are built. Additional
personnel would allow for better
segregation at the Industrial Home
for Colored Children at Blue Plains.
Md, where there are two buildings
not In use.
PeSaibls Relief Seen.
Possible relief may come TINS sum-
mer for tho Industrial Nome achoel
fof white Children, 9tss wisconsin
avenue NV, and for the National
Training BehooI for oifls. ksoo
Isoushbofoush road NV, Congress
has appropriated eioo.o0o 10 pur.
chase jolly Acres, near Laurel.
Nd where the Nstlenai Tfalnins
nehoai viii be- maved, Welfare ON.
eisla are hoping all negotiations will
be- completed By early summer, and
by fall the buildings on the land
would be put into condition for
their new occupants,
There u a possibility. however
That there Will be lons delay hef,.
The land Is now owned by the
Lutheran Inner Mission Society Of
Baltimore, and this society at the
beginning of the negotiations asked
almost twice as much for the
land as Congress has appropriated.
The n,Iestioy1 urill he decided nv i,lrv