Evening star., 1948-05-25
III. ). Funds 10 Foster
Big Families Urged
IAt PTA Convention
By Colt HendIey. Jr.
Sfor Stoff Cosrsspendsnt

E1An4NO, 10dy OPASS
of the increasing birth rate which
is threatening to overflow the Ma
tion's schools within few years,
delegates to the annual convention
of the National Congress Of Parents
and Teachers were told last night
that they're not having enough
children.
It's this way, Robert ]. Havighurst.
education professor at the Univer-
sity of Chicago, said:
Due to the rapid and continuing
spread of birth control knowledge
and practices. significant section
of our population now has too few
children to reproduce itself.
Declared Socially Unhealthy
The two-child family may be
fashionable, but 1t Is socially un-
healthy" he declared, adding that
the so-called upper middle class is
not reproducing. If Harvard, Yale
and Princeton-not to speak of We'll
lesly, Smith and Vassar-were to
limit their enrolment to children
of former students, in 100 years en-
rollment would be down to one
fourth what it Is now, he said.
He recommended that the Gov
ernment encourage large families by
giving each father and mother a
generous allowance in addition to
the salary paid by their employer
and throw in a large income tax
avoropfiop for children
Urges Stronger Family Life.
DR.. Leonard w. Mayo, vice presi-
dent of Western Reserve University,
told the convention that the United
States is a middle-aged Nation and
the only way 1t can survive will be
by strengthening its family life.
We are no longer the youngest
Nation in the world he declared.
That distinction belongs to Russia.
With 48 per cent of her current
population under 20 years of age,
Russia is the only industrial coun-
try with large, young and fast
growing population"
His solution is for the Nation to
take care of every possible child
through decent education, health
facilities and housing. This work
must be done by the local COM
munities-with the aid of the State
and Federal governments, he said.
These two speakers, who closed
the first day of the three-day con-
vention, were hitting at one of the
PTAs four points in its continuing
program Of unfinished business"
Basis of Discussions.
These points, around which the
convention is based, are school cdu-
cation, health, world understanding
and parent and family life educa-
ton.
The convention is not a policy
making one. The PTA program to
combat the fast-growing school
crisis has been established pre-
viously around those four points.
The idea at this meeting is to en-
courage local units to step up their
efforts for local. State and national
legislation to forestall the break
down of the country's education sys-
TEN as well as show what Is being
done.
For instance Mrs. Stanley g.
Cook of Indian Head, Md, chair
man of the Legislation Committee,
pointed out a problem arising in
communities where the Federal
/ Government is setting up various
projects-such as atomic energy de-
velopment plants.
Burden Falls on State.
When the Government goes into
such a community the local Gov
ernment stops getting taxes from
that land. But the whole load of
paying for the schooling OF the
thousands OF children dumped into
the area falls on the State-and
most of them are unable to carry
their present loads adequately. she
said.
During the war the Lanham Act
provided money for schools on Fed
eral reservations. But now there is
no such legislation. Mrs Cook said.
A bill has been introduced in the
Senate which would provide funds
for the United States Office of Edu-
cation to distribute for educational
purposes in such cases. But needed
is bill to provide the school build
ings themselves.
She said the PTA intended to
bring this. to the attention of the
various Government agencies con-
cerned so that some legislation could
get under way.