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U. S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
JAMES J. DAVIS, Secretary

CHILDRENS BUREAU
GRACE ABBOTT, Chief

FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR
DEPENDENT CHILDREN
<5à

Bureau Publication N o. 136
(Revised)

WASHINGTON
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
1926

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A D D ITIO N A L COPIES
O f THIS PUBLICATION M A T . BE PROCURED FROM
THB SUPERINTENDENT OF DOCUMENTS
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON D. C.
AT

35 CENTS P E R COPY

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CONTENTS.
L e t t e r o f transmittal.

ThS tite IeI° Pment ° f GhlId PlacinS~in theU nited..................................................

Page.
v
1

I ^ £Pren^;ic^l^u'n:hv^J D"

The Child in the Boarding Home________________ M a r y ^ . BoNrtz^
mf!eCw* P1r0bi ems ^nvo^ved in Foster-Home Care_Leon W Frost
The Work of a State-Wide Child-Placing Organ------------------

33
51
65

The Development o i P r a d n g -b V t'w o if i F i ^ T l

o “

1S 0 f P la c e m e n t

in F r e e

F a m ily

M u r p h y ---------

Stoneman---------

Safeguarding the Dependent Chi'ldTs M ^ t e F ^ d K
arme
Physical H ealth________________
TTn„ QnD tt
The Relation between Social Work” with FamF
‘

GWinS-------

enks’ M' D __

113

'
t

lie s a n d C h ild -C a r in g W o r k , _________________ _._R e v Tohn

Cooperation between the Children’s Agency and
y.
. Other Community Resources,_________________ c . V. W illia m s
State Supervision of Placing-Out Agencies_____ Ellen C . Potter M D
Psychoclimcal Guidance in Child Adoption____ Arnold Gesell, M . b . I I I I

135
149
165
193

Appendixes:

Conclusions of the “ White House Conference,” from the
Proceedings of the Conference on the Care of Dependent C h ild r e n
held at Washington, D. C., January 25, 28, 1909_P_____
ld e ’
Appendix B Resolutions on Standards Relating to"“ CMldren in Need
of Special Care, from the Minimum Standards for Child W elfare

207

Welfare, 1919 6 Washington and Regional Conferences on Child
Appendix C. Selections from

Appf adlx P* List o f references on foster-home care for dependent
children m the United States and foreign countries__
*™ nd*X- 5 SeJeeted books and pamphlets on child care and train
ing of interest to child-placing agencies and foster mothers____

'C cM G O O

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213
217
242
289

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LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL.

U. S.

e p a r t m e n t of

abor,

C h i l d r e n ’s B

ureau,

Washington November

1925.

S ir : There is transmitted herewith a revised edition o f the Chil

dren’s Bureau report on Foster-Home Care for Dependent Children,
which now consists o f 12 articles by representative people who are
at work on the particular aspects o f the problem which they discuss.
The plan for the report was worked out by Emma O. Lundberg,
director o f the social-service division, and the list of references and
the selections from reports for the appendix were prepared by Laura
Hood, o f the division staff. The revised edition includes a new
section on Psychoclinical Guidance in Child Adoption, and a number
o f new references, including several on adoption, which are printed
as addenda to the bibliography.
Respectfully submitted.
G race A

Hon. J ames J.

bbott,

Chief.

a v is ,

Secretary of Labor.
V

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILD PLACING IN THE
UNITED STATES.
H

a s t in g s

H. H

art,

LL. D.t

Director of the Department of Child Helping, Russell Sage Foundation.

DEFINITION OF CHILD PLACING.

The only legal definition known to the writer o f child placing in
families is to be found in Article 16, section 300, of the State chari
ties law o f the State of New Y ork : “ The term 1place ou t’ * * *
means the placing o f a destitute child in a family, other than that
o f a relative within the second degree, for the purpose o f providing
a home for such child.” 1
Dr. William H. Slingerland offers a working definition, as fol
lows : “ Child placing in families is placing destitute and neglected
children, temporarily or permanently, in families other than their
own, for the purpose o f providing care and homes for them.” 2
He thinks that children placed with relatives o f the second degree__
grandparents, brothers, or sisters—should not be reported as u placed
out,” but as “ placed with kin.” Doctor Slingerland’s definition of
child placing applies to children placed in free family homes with
out payment o f board; children placed in boarding homes, the board
being paid either by relatives or by some association; and#lso chil
dren placed in homes at wages.
A child may be placed in a home either (1) directly by the action
o f one or both parents, or (2) by a physician, a baby-farm matron
or some other individual, or (3) by a placing-out society, or (4)
by the officers o f an institution to which he has been legally com
mitted, or (5) by duly authorized public officials.
EARLY CHILD PLACING.

The use o f the family home as a refuge for the dependent and
neglected child is not a new plan. From time immemorial generoushearted people have opened their homes to children who were or
phaned or abandoned by their natural protectors.
1 F iftieth Annual R eport o f the State Board o f Charities o f the State o f New York
1916, Vol. I l l , p. 216.
K’
•Slingerland, W illiam H.„- C hild-Placing in Families, pp. 40 and 41.
Foundation, New York, 1919.

Russell Saae

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

The first case mentioned in the Bible is that of Abraham, who
adopted his nephew, Dot. The second case is that of Moses, who
was adopted by Pharaoh’s daughter.
Dr. W. H. Slingerland, in his book, Child-Placing in Families,
says:
The earliest chronicles of legal child placing are found in the Old Testament
scriptures, and in the Talmud * * * From the time the national life began
with the giving of the law, immediately after the exodus from Egypt, about
1500 B. C., they placed orphan and fatherless children in selected family
homes * * * Psalm L X V I I I , 5, 6, declares that God is “A Father of the
fatherless,” and that He “ setteth the solitary in families.” * * * In the
Talmud is this suggestive statem ent: “ The blessed man, * that doeth righteous
ness at all times,’ is the man that brings up an orphan boy or girl until mar
riage has given him or her another home.” *

Doctor Slingerland says further:
In the early Christian church the same type of service (the method of pro
viding for dependent children by placing them in foster homes) prevailed for
nearly or quite 200 years and never has been wholly displaced * * * After
all possible free homes had been utilized, the church began boarding children
with worthy widows, paying for the service by collections taken in the various
congregations. This was the real genesis of the boarding-out system, not orig
inated in the nineteenth century.*

THE APPRENTICE SYSTEM.

In 1562 the English Government legalized an apprentice system,
which amounted to child slavery. The indenture system was im
ported from England to the United States and prevailed extensively
in the early days of this country.
In 1660 the Massachusetts Colony passed an act authorizing select
men who “ shall find masters o f families negligent o f their duty,
whereby* children and servants become rude, stubborn, and unruly
* * * take such children or apprentices from them and place them
with some master who will more strictly look into and force them to
submit unto government.” The idea o f master and servant was
prominent for many years.
Children were placed with farmers, mechanics, or housewives, who
utilized them for domestic service and other profitable labor. This
apprentice or indenture system was open to abuses which are apt
to arise whenever the profit to be had from the labor of the child
is uppermost in the mind o f the foster parent. The bound boy or
girl was often deprived o f education and overworked, and in many
cases was cruelly treated.
The indenture system in its original form has almost entirely dis
appeared in the United States. Under the old system, the child
was placed under a contract which provided that he should remain

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DEVELOPMENT OF CHILD PLACING IN TH E UNITED STATES.

in the family so long as the conditions o f the contract were observed.
Under the modern apprentice system, the right is usually reserved to
remove the child at the discretion o f the placing agency, for the
reason that it may often be manifest that the home is a misfit or
that the child is unhappy or retarded in his development, even when
no violation o f the agreement can be shown.
THE FIRST ORGANIZED CHILD PLACING.

The New York Children’s Aid Society.
The pioneer o f the organized child-placing movement was Charles
Loring Brace, who in 1853 organized the New York Children’s Aid
Society and began sending dependent children to country homes in
different States. Mr. Brace took issue with those who advocated
a long course o f training in institutions for dependent children,
lie maintained that institutional care was unnecessary for healthy,
normal children, except for very brief periods. He took children
from the streets of New York and sent thousands o f them to farm
and village homes. A t first the children were distributed without
much formality and without much supervision. The writer was a
personal witness to the distribution o f a group o f these children in
an Ohio farming village about 1862 and a similar distribution in
a farming village o f Minnesota about 1882. In each case the dis
tribution was made by an agent o f the society, assisted by a local
committee, and in both cases the distribution was made without ade
quate investigation and without sufficient subsequent supervision.4
In later years the society learned to select homes with greater
care and to establish closer supervision. In the earlier years of the
society children were placed in the States o f New York, New Jersey? Pennsylvania, and Ohio; then in Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and
Minnesota. In recent years the wards of the society have gone
largely to Oklahoma and Texas. An interesting sidelight on this
stage o f the work is the fact that it was easier to find homes for de
pendent and neglected children in a new and primitive community
than in a more advanced and wealthy community. This is partly
because people o f moderate means are more ready to make sacrifices
and take trouble than are the wealthy and also because the pioneer
community recognized that these children as they grew older would
become an asset in the development o f the new country.
Other early child-placing societies.
The organization of the New York Children’s A id Society in
1853 was followed by that o f the Henry Watson Children’s Aid
Society in Baltimore in 1860; the Boston Children’s A id Society,
4 See article by H. H. H art on “ Placing out children in the W est,” in Proceedings o f
the National Conference o f Charities and C orrection, 1884, pp. 143-150.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

1864; the Brooklyn Children’s A id Society, 1866; the New York
State Charities A id Association, 1872; the Children’s A id Society of
Pennsylvania, 1882; and the Connecticut Children’s A id Society,
1892.
All these societies in their early days received children with in
sufficient investigation. Children o f unmarried mothers were re
ceived with little hesitation. Societies placed children in homes
o f which they had very limited knowledge. The supervision after
the children were placed was inadequate. A t first considerable reli
ance was placed upon volunteer visitors whose work was irrespon
sible. The paid employees had little or no previous experience
and no technical training except such as might be given by the secre
tary o f the society. Records were meager and inadequate.
W ith experience, standards for the work became established. E x
perience and training came to be considered essential qualifications
o f secretaries and field workers. The importance o f thorough case
work and complete records was recognized. Budgets were increased
as the public came to understand and appreciate the work. Schools
for social workers grew up in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and
other cities. The importance o f family ties and the sacredness o f
family relations were more clearly perceived and more faithfully
respected. A wholesome dissatisfaction developed toward careless
and imperfect work, with aspiration toward higher and higher
standards.
In Massachusetts a remarkable group o f child-placing societies
came into existence: The Children’s Friend Society, the Children’s
Mission to the Children o f the Destitute (now known as the Chil
dren’s Mission), the New England Home for Little Wanderers
(which became a placing-out society), the Boston Society for the
Care o f Girls, the Church Home Society, and the Child-Placing De
partment o f the St. Vincent de Paul Society. Under the leadership
o f Secretary Charles W . Birtwell, o f the Boston Children’s A id So
ciety, these independent societies gradually came into closer affiliation
until they have now established efficient cooperation.
In 1867 the Commonwealth o f Massachusetts, under the inspiration
o f Dr. Samuel J. Howe and Frank W. Sanborn, began systematic
placement o f State minor wards. Subsequently the city o f Boston
and other municipalities in Massachusetts organized placing-out
departments. Here the Boston Children’s A id Society exercised a
potent influence.
The placing-out work o f the New York Children’s A id Society
was limited mainly to older children, but the society developed large
activities in schools for neglected children and homes and sanatoria
for handicapped children, confining its activities mainly to children
o f the borough o f Manhattan in the city o f New York. The Brook
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DEVELOPMENT OF CHILD PLACING IN TH E UNITED STATES.

lyn Children’s A id Society undertook similar work for the borough
o f Brooklyn.
THE CHILDREN’S HOME SOCIETY.

In 1883 there was organized by Rev. M. V. B. Van Arsdale, in
the city o f Chicago, the American Educational A id Association, to
assist deserving children in obtaining an education. In the following year the name was changed to the (National) Children’s Home
Society and the organization became a child-placing agency. The
society began operations in the State o f Illinois, but soon spread into
other States, increasing rapidly until there are now 36 accredited
State children’s home societies—one for each State of the Union ex
cept Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland,
Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island,
and Vermont. (A ll these States except Arkansas, Louisiana, Rhode
Island, Indiana, and Nevada have children’s aid societies in their
principal cities which do a general child-placing work.)
The children’s home society movement began in the Middle West.
It differed essentially from the children’s aid society movement be
cause it extended its work into rural communities from the start,
whereas the children’s aid societies were urban societies at the begin
n in g and several o f them still continue to be exclusively city organi
zations. The founder o f the children’s home society, Rev. M. V. B.
Van Arsdale, began without any financial support. Sometimes he
did not collect enough money to pay his expenses; he used to carry
small articles for sale in order to meet such emergencies. The early
State superintendents and their field workers had to collect money for
the support o f the work as they went about looking after neglected
children. Their salaries were contingent, uncertain, and pitifully
small. Many o f them were clergymen who were accustomed to such
uncertain incomes.
As the movement extended, some strong organizations grew up,
while others grew very slowly and failed to develop strength or to
accept modern, progressive methods. They have suffered from the
fact that no one o f them has any pension system and they have
been reluctant to discard workers who have become worn out in the
service.
For many years, the prosperity and success o f a State children’s
home society was apt to be measured by the number o f children re
ceived and placed in homes; but in recent years less stress has been
put upon numbers and more upon the quality o f the work done and
upon constructive work to preserve the child’s own home. Most of
the societies are receiving a much smaller number o f children than
they were a few years ago.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

Thus far the children’s home societies have made very little
use o f the boarding-out system. Their children have been placed
almost entirely in free homes, usually with the expectation that the
child will remain as a member of the home. A large proportion of
their children (in some States as many as one-half) are legally
adopted by the foster parents. Another large proportion become
permanent members of the foster home but without legal adoption.
In the early days o f the children’s home society there was very
little case study with reference to the acceptance o f children, es
pecially with reference to the children o f unmarried mothers. It
was usually taken as a matter of course that the unmarried mother
must, give up her child and that it was proper for the society to accept
it. A superintendent of one o f the most active children’s home
societies once said to the writer: “ I believe that the fact that parents
are willing to give up a child establishes a prima facie case that the
child should be accepted by the society.”
All of these societies in their early beginnings were in straits for
financial support and were under temptation to accept childien if
some financial aid was available. Most o f them were accustomed to
receive children from public authorities. In some cases a State
appropriation was made for the support of the society. In Ken->
tucky an annual appropriation of $40,000 was made. In Kansas a
small State appropriation was allowed. In Pennsylvania an annual
State appropriation is made to the Pennsylvania Children’s A id
Society and the Western Pennsylvania Children’s A id Society to
cover the expense o f supervising children placed in family homes.
In some States appropriations are made from county treasuries
to child-placing societies, sometimes as lump-sum allowance for
each child received and sometimes as periodical appropriations to
cover the actual expense o f caring for the child.
On the whole, there is a steady improvement in the standards and
methods of the State children’s home societies, though even to this
day there is a great diversity in their efficiency. Their national or
ganization, now known as the Children’s Home and Welfare Associa
tion, meets annually in connection with the National Conference of
Social Work.
CATHOLIC CHILD-PLACING AGENCIES.

In 1898, the St. Vincent de Paul Society of New York established
a placing-out agency known as the Catholic Home Bureau for De
pendent Children, which was organized and developed by William J .
Doherty, its executive secretary. This organization became a stand
ard child-placing agency for 18 Catholic institutions for children in
the State o f New York.

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DEVELOPMENT OF CHILD PLACING IN TH E UNITED STATES.

The Catholic Children’s A id Society was organized in New Jersey
in 1903, by the late Rev. Father Francis Foy, and has become an ac
tive and efficient child-placing agency. The Catholic Humane
Bureau o f San Francisco was founded in 1907 by the union of the
Humane Bureau o f St. Vincent de Paul and the Catholic Settlement
Society. Well-organized Catholic child-placing organizations now
exist in a number o f the larger cities, many o f them under the
auspices o f the St. Vincent de Paul Society and others as departments
o f diocesan Catholic charities bureaus.
In the city o f Cleveland the diocesan bureau has united with the
Protestant and other child-welfare organizations in establishing a
central bureau for the investigation o f applications in behalf of
neglected children and for the assignment o f children to agencies
which are o f their own religious faith. The different religious bodies
have thus far cooperated with this agency to a very remarkable
degree.
;

THE LUTHERAN KINDERFREUND.

In 1902 the German Lutheran Church organized the Lutheran
Kinderfreund in Wisconsin and began placing children in family
homes. The work proved popular and speedily developed 14 different
societies in as many States. A similar undertaking was started by
some o f the Scandinavian Lutheran organizations, but has not, ap
parently, justified the hopes of its founders. It does not appear to
have shared in the progressive improvement o f the older placing-out
societies. It is to be hoped that it will be revised and expanded.
DISCUSSIONS OF PLACING OUT IN THE NATIONAL CONFERENCE
OF CHARITIES AND CORRECTION.

For 25 years an earnest discussion was waged in the National
Conference of Charities and Correction between the advocates of in
stitutional care for dependent children and the advocates of the plac
ing-out system. Gradually the tide turned in favor of the placing-out
plan. In the conference o f 1898 indications of agreement appealed.
At the conference of 1899 Hon. Thomas M. Mulry, president of the
St. Vincent de Paul Society o f New York, presented a remarkable
report from the committee on the care o f neglected and destitute
children, which proved to be the final word of this long-continued
discussion and which laid down a platform that has been accepted
with practical unanimity by Protestants, Jews, and Roman Catholics,
trustees of children’s institutions, and managers of children’s socie
ties. This great report became one of the classics o f the National
Conference o f Charities and Correction.

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FOSTER-HOME OARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

STATE, COUNTY, AND MUNICIPAL PLACING OUT.

About 25 State agencies with authority to place children in family
homes exist in the United States, but no one of them does a placingout work comparable in numbers or organization with that of Massa
chusetts. On November 30, 1921, the division o f child guardianship
o f the Massachusetts State Department o f Public Welfare had under
its care and supervision 12,039 children. O f these children 3,9185
were in boarding homes and 1,362 were in free homes, without pay
ment o f board, making a total o f 5,280 children placed in family
homes. The city o f Boston has for many years maintained a childwelfare department. On January 31, 1921, this department had
under its care 1,387 children, o f whom 680 were in boarding homes
and 281 were in free homes; thus it has placed in homes a total of 961
children.
In many o f the States there are county agencies which have au
thority to place children in family homes; among them are the States
of Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Ohio, and
Indiana.
Ohio, Indiana, and Connecticut have county children’s homes
established with a view to making them temporary homes from which
children could be placed in family homes. The tendency has always
been to accumulate children in county homes and to minimize the
placing-out work. In Indiana there has been a very great diminu
tion o f the population o f the county children’s homes owing to the
activity and efficiency o f the child-welfare department o f the board
o f State charities.
Indiana for many years has had county boards o f children’s
guardians which had a certain degree o f responsibility for the care
o f the dependent and neglected children o f the county.
In the State o f North Carolina there have been established, by
recent legislation, county boards o f public welfare whose duty it is
£b care for all children in the county who are public wards.
Experience has generally proved the work o f county officials in
placing and supervising children in family homes inefficient and un
reliable, but efforts during a number o f years to improve their work
through State supervision have met with encouraging results.
In the State o f New York, the State Charities A id Association was
organized in 1872 to work for improvement in the care o f the de
pendent and defective. The New York State Charities A id Associa
tion has developed a very remarkable cooperative work with the
county superintendents o f the poor and the county supervisors re
sponsible for children who are public wards. One by one the
counties have been induced to establish a department o f child welfare
* Including 181 children in homes partly supported by the State.

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development of child placing in th e united

STATES.

with a trained worker in charge. This trained worker has been
nominated in most cases by the New York State Charities A id As
sociation and the association has established close cooperation with
these county agencies, organizing plans for training o f the local
workers and assisting the counties in placing children who need to be
removed from their original environment.
The county agencies make careful case studies o f applicants and
provide for their immediate needs—family rehabilitation, medical or
surgical treatment, temporary boarding out, and so forth—but when
a homeless child is to be provided with a permanent homp. this is
usually done through the central office o f the State charities aid
association, whieh maintains a trained staff. In this way a vast im
provement has been made in county care o f children.
The Pennsylvania Children’s A id Society has established similar
cooperative relations with county children’s aid societies and county
poor directors on behalf o f children who are public wards. The
result has been a gradual improvement o f the public care o f de
pendent children in eastern Pennsylvania.
The bureau o f children o f the Pennsylvania Department of
Welfare, established in 1921, is working actively and efficiently for
the improvement o f the child-placing work o f the State by the
organization o f district conferences for the study o f improved meth
ods and by efficient and sympathetic supervision o f the work.
In Maryland the Henry Watson Children’s A id Society, which
formerly restricted its work to the city o f Baltimore, has ex
tended its range to cover the entire State by the organization o f
county groups, with a great improvement in the care o f neglected
children in the outlying counties.
PLACING OUT FROM INSTITUTIONS.

Orphan asylums and children’s homes.
Nearly all institutions for dependent children eventually place out
a large proportion o f their children in family homes. Some institu
tions o f this class are simply boarding places, where parents or public
officials send children for temporary care. The institution does not
assume their legal guardianship and they are ultimately returned to
the parents, to the court, or to the public agency from which they
were received.
There are still a few institutions, like the large home at Mooseheart, 111., which undertake to bring up children to young manhood
and womanhood, until they are able to care for themselves. But
nearly all o f the orphan asylums and children’s homes o f the United
Btates place children in family homes; in other words, while the
child is still under their care, by virtue o f their guardianship, they
place the child in a home o f their own choosing. Usually their

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

guardianship continues for the time being, and they are supposed to
exercise some degree o f supervision. Under these conditions they
become distinctly placing-out agencies.
Public institutions.
There are a considerable number o f public institutions for depend
ent children which have authority and are expected to place children
in family homes. Such are the “ State public schools ” for dependent
children o f Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Wisconsin; the
State home o f Colorado ; the State home and school o f Rhode Island ;
the Montana State orphanage; the “ soldiers’ orphans’ homes” of
Maine, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, and
Kansas ; and the county children’s homes, o f Ohio, Indiana, and
Connecticut.
The State public schools o f Michigan and Minnesota have adhered
steadfastly to the placing-out method, have developed fairly adequate
staffs o f placing-out agents, and have refused to grow. The soldiers’
orphans’ homes, so called, have magnified the institutional idea of
bringing up children and fitting them for self-support before dis
missal. In recent years most of these institutions have endeavored
to develop the placing-out method, but usually they have been ham
pered by their old traditions and it has been difficult for them to de
velop efficient placing-out work.
The county children’s home system, which prevails in Ohio,
Indiana, and Connecticut, has never been satisfactory in any of
these three States, where it has been extensively developed. In each
o f these States the original law contemplated the early placing of
children in family homes; but the number o f children in each institu
tion was so small that the temptation to accumulate children, es
pecially in those homes which were fairly efficient, was almost irre
sistible. The number o f wards of each home was so small that the
directors did not deem it necessary to employ trained placing agents,
and supervision over the foster homes was universally inadequate.
In recent years, children’s bureaus have been established in each
of these three States, and these bureaus have made strenuous efforts
to develop the child-placing method in the county homes and to
secure adequate supervision. Much improvement has been made, but
to this day the county children’s home system is unsatisfactory.
THE CHILD WELFARE LEAGUE OF AMERICA.

For about 10 years an annual midwinter conference of child
placing agencies has been held, usually in the city of New York.
Out o f this meeting grew the “ Bureau for the Exchange o f Infor
mation,” consisting of child-placing societies which exchanged litera
ture through a central office and finally established cooperative rela
tions to facilitate the care and supervision o f placed-out children

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d e v e l o p m e n t of c h il d p l a c in g i n

the

UNITED STATES.

whose foster parents might move from one State to another. The
Bureau for Exchange o f Information grew in interest and usefulness
until it included 68 child-placing agencies. The bureau had, how
ever, only a very meager budget.
These agencies gradually came to feel that the bureau should be
expanded into a cooperative agency for the improvement o f the
standards o f child-placing work. A committee was appointed to
take this matter in hand, and as a result the Bureau for Exchange
o f Information was reorganized as the Child Welfare League o f
America. The Commonwealth Fund was induced to make an appro
priation of $25,000 per year for five years to test the usefulness and
efficiency of the organization. The league secured the services of
Dr. C. C. Carstens, o f Boston, as director. His active work began
January 1, 1921, and under his leadership the Child Welfare League
o f America has become a recognized and efficient agency for the
improvement o f placing-out work throughout the United States.
The membership o f the league consists mainly o f child-placing
organizations. -Minimum standards for membership are prescribed,
referring to staff, budget, equipment, and methods. The member
ship has increased in a little over two years from 68 to 98. The
admission of a number o f applicants has been delayed because they
have not yet met the standards.
The membership o f the league includes children’s aid societies,
children’s home societies, societies for the prevention o f cruelty to
children, State and county public agencies for the care of children,
and a limited, but increasing, number of institutions which place
children in family homes.
In addition to the annual midwinter conference at New York
regional conferences have been held in Chicago and Atlanta, and a
regional conference is proposed to be held in Texas for the South
west. A regional conference was also held for western Canada in
Alberta.
The league has recently organized a committee on “ group move
ments in child care ” to help “ religious, fraternal, civic, and mili
tary-veteran organizations to develop their interest in child welfare
along fines that will prove valuable to all concerned.”
TENDENCIES IN CHILD-PLACING WORK.

The following extracts are quoted from the 1922-23 annual re
port of Dr. C. C. Carstens, director o f the Child Welfare League o f
America:
1.
There is a strong tendency, and one to be wholly welcomed, for both
child-placing agencies and children’s institutions to come, into helpful rela
tions with each other.
72693°'— 26----- 2

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F O S T E R -H O M E C A R E -FOR D E P E N D E N T C H I L D R E N .

Many causes have contributed to this result. The spirit of competition in
social work is discredited among honest and intelligent workers. The needs
of the child are given more consideration. Cooperation is no longer practiced
merely as lip service but is aeted upon. To this the development of councils
o f social agencies and chests has contributed.
In certain States, institutions are adding field-work service for intake and
follow-up work. Where formerly the superintendent or an underling took a
little time off for the investigation, which was generally not much more than
“ a lick and a promise,” now it is considered an important part of the work
of the institution. This is particularly found in some progressive southern
States.
In other places, the child-placing ageney is being coordinated with the insti
tution so as to have the case carefully looked into. I f a home adjustment
can be made it is done without the child coming into the institution at all
except perhaps for certain professional services. I f the child comes in it is
given shelter, examination, study, medical and psychological care, and then
is later placed where it will have the most advantageous development.
In
this way the institutions become receiving homes also and serve many more
children. A considerable number o f institutions are developing such diag
nostic receiving homes.
2.
The various States are learning the use and value o f the boarding home.
A s one comes to recognize the importance of keeping parents' and children
together whenever possible, or reuniting them whenever advisable, the adop
tion and free home fails to meet all the needs. The boarding fam ily home
comes into successful use where the free home does not serve. In some places
boarding work is done in institutions or by groups in families. But neither
provides the fu ll advantages of real fam ily life.
There should rarely be
more than four children at board in a family, and usually fewer, so that the
children may get family home upbringing. N o home should be used that does
not give the boarded child much more than is paid for by the board money.
This provides against commercialization of the work.
Such homes can be
found but require persistent and careful home finding. * * *
5. There is a noticeable tendency for family-welfare societies to develop
child-placing departments and in a few instances to combine children’s agencies
with their work. This development can generally be traced to the failure of
existing children’s agencies to meet new situations and new needs that have
arisen.
The American Association for Organizing Family Social W ork has appointed
a committee to study the situation, and the appointment of a committee of
the league has been authorized by our executive committee. It is proposed
that there should be five persons from each agency; that these separate com
mittees have joint meetings and consider questions relating to the interrela
tions of the agencies either as they arise theoretically or in the fields of each
national agency. The members of the league are requested to send to its
oflice any matters that would have interest for this committtee.

THE W HITE HOUSE CONFERENCE.

On January 25, 1909, only six weeks before bis retirement from
the presidency, President Theodore Roosevelt convened the White
House Conference,6 which proved one o f the notable events o f his
• See Proceedings o f the Conference on the Care o f Dependent Children. Sixtieth Con
gress, second session, Sedate Docum ent No. 721, pp. 8-14. Government Printing Office,
W ashington, 1909,
V

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DEVELOPMENT OP CHILD PLACING IN TH E UNITED STATES.

administration. He invited about 200 people, representing every
phase o f child-welfare work, to spend two days in discussing the
needs o f dependent children. They came from nearly every State
o f the Union and they represented State boards o f charities, State
agencies for the care o f children, children’s aid societies,
children s home societies, societies for the prevention o f cruelty to
c lldren, orphan asylums, children’s homes, and juvenile reforma
tories ; they included Catholics, Protestants, Jews, and people of no
religious affiliation.
When the conference met there was considerable doubt as to
whether so large and diverse a body would be able to agree upon the
fundamental questions o f child welfare—especially those with refer
ence to the relative merits o f institutional care and placing out in
amily homes. But after two days o f full discussion the conference
adopted by unanimous vote a platform of 3,000 words which repre
sented the consensus o f opinion of the representatives o f every form
o f child-helping work.
Among the conclusions thus unanimously adopted were the fo l
lowing with reference to the place o f the family home in relation to
dependent and neglected children: 7
Hom e life is the highest and finest product o f civilization. It is the great
motive force o f mind and character. Children should not be deprived o f it
except for urgent and compelling reasons. Children o f parents o f worthv
character suffering from temporary misfortune, and children o f reasonably
efficient and deserving mothers who are without the support o f the normal
breadwinner, should, as a rule, be kept with their parents, such aid being
given as may be necessary to maintain suitable homes for the rearing of the
children. * * * Ekcept in unusual circumstances the home should not be
ro en up for reasons o f poverty, but only for considerations of inefficiency
or immorality. * * *
*
A s to children who for sufficient reasons must be removed from their own
homes, or who have no homes, it is desirable that, if normal in mind and body
and not requiring special training, they should be cared for in families when
ever practicable. The carefully selected foster home is for the normal child
the best substitute for the natural home. Such homes should be selected by
a most careful process of investigation, carried on by skilled agents through
personal investigation and with due regard to the religious faith of the child.
After children are placed in homes, adequate visitation, with careful consid
eration of the physical, mental, moral, and spiritual training and development
of each child on the part of the responsible home-finding agency is essential
It is recognized that for many children foster homes without payment of
board are not practicable immediately after the children become dependent
and that for many children requiring temporary care only the free home is not
available. For the temporary, or more or less permanent, care of such children
different methods are in use, notably the plan of placing them in families, pay
ing for their board, and the plan of institutional care. *
*
*
Unless and
until such homes are found, the use o f institutions is necessary * * *
pp. 195 200 fo r complete text o f conclusions o f the conference.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

The proper training of destitute children being essential to the well-being of
the State, it is a sound public policy that the State through its duly authorized
representative should inspect the work of all agencies which care for dependen
children, whether by institutional or home-finding methods. * * * The infor
mation so secured should be confidential, not to be disclosed unless by compe
tent authority.

REAFFIRMATION OF THE CONCLUSIONS OF THE WHITE HOUSE
CONFERENCE.

In the conclusions quoted above, the White House Conference
committed itself unanimously and unequivocally in favor o f fam ily-.
home care as the ideal plan of dealing with homeless and neglected
children.
In 1919, nearly 10 years later, the Federal Children’s Bureau
called a conference of representatives of child-welfare work through
out the United States.8 This conference appointed committees to
formulate minimum standards o f child welfare. The committee on
minimum standards for the protection of children in need o f special
care adopted the following resolutions on the principles o f child
placing :
The conclusions of the W hite House Conference of 1909 on the Care of
Dependent Children are reaffirmed in all essentials. They have been guides
for communities and States in reshaping their plans for children in need
of special care. They are recommended for consideration to all communities
whose standards do not as yet conform to them, so that they may be trans
lated into practice in the various States.
*

Before a child is placed in other than a temporary foster home, adequate
consideration should be given to his health, mentality, character, and family
history and circumstances.
Arrangements should be made for correcting
remediable physical defects and disease.
Complete records of the child are necessary to a- proper understanding of
his heredity and- personality, and of his development and progress while
under the care of the agency.
*

Careful and wise investigation of foster homes is prerequisite to the plac
ing of children. Adequate standards should be required of the foster families
as to character, intelligence, experience, training, ability, income, environment,
sympathetic attitude, and their ability to give the child proper moral and
spiritual training. When practicable children should be placed in families of
the same religious faith as the parents or the last surviving parent.
A complete record should be kept of each foster home, giving the information
on which approval was based. The records should show the agency’s contracts
with the fam ily from time to time, indicating the care given the child intrusted
» Minimum Standards fo r Child W elfare. U. S. Children’s Bureau P ublication No. 62,
W ashington. 1920. See pp. 20 1-204 fo r complete text o f resolutions relating to “ children
In need o f special care.”

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D E V E L O P M E N T OP C H I L D P L A C IN G I N T H E U N I T E D S T A T E S .

to it. In this way special abilities in the families will be developed and con
served for children.
Supervision o f children placed in foster homes should include adequate
visits by properly qualified and well-trained visitors, who should exercise
watchfulness over the child’s health, education, and moral and spiritual de
velopment. Periodic physical examinations should be made. Supervision of
children In boarding homes should also involve the careful training of the
foster parents in their task. Supervision should not be made a substitute for
the responsibilities which properly rest with the foster fam ily.

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CONSERVING THE CHILD’S PARENTAL HOME.
J. P ren tice M tjephy ,
E xecutive Secretary, the Children’s Bureau of Philadelphia.

THEORY VERSUS PRACTICE.

The conservation o f home relationships for socially handicapped
children has been, on the whole, a rather academic matter for most
o f us. Partly by reason o f the amount o f work to be done by any
given agency ; partly by reason of the lack o f coordination between
children s welfare agencies and other social agencies in given com
munities; partly by reason o f lack o f trained and adequate staffs
and o f even minimum standards o f method and technique, the real
significance o f child-caring work has not been grasped by specific
children’s societies and institutions, by some organizations doing
family and other specialized work, nor by the general public. There
has been a general theoretical agreement that children should pref
erably grow up with their own parents and in their own homes;
that social values o f the greatest importance are guarded and en
hanced if this relationship between parents and children can be
protected and developed. This was very admirably expressed in the
conclusions o f the 1909 White House Conference on the Care of
Dependent Children— “Home life is the highest and finest product
o f civilization. Children should not be deprived of it except for
urgent and compelling reasons.”
Through many National and State conferences called for the con
sideration o f general and special problems affecting family life and
child life, there has appeared a constant approval o f all methods of
work that tend to protect the home. W e see, however, a great dif
ference between theories and practice when we survey the mass of
child-caring work that is being done in the United States. It is not,
therefore, trite and unnecessary to discuss just how far the parental
relationship and all that is valuable in family life may be safe
guarded in work dealing with children in need.
THE EXTENT OF CHILD DEPENDENCY.

The need for conserving family experiences for the child life o f
the nation is further borne out by the large number o f children in
the United States that receive foster care. The number o f children
cared for in foster homes throughout the country runs into the hun17

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

dreds o f thousands in any given year, and the total annual financial
expenditure for the services extended to these children reaches a sum
which no one can give with accuracy but which is huge beyond ques
tion. The grand total for the country can, in a measure, be estimated
from the totals for certain States: Pennsylvania has more than 500
child-caring agencies annually caring for approximately 50,000 chil
dren.1 The State of New York has 233 children’s agencies, which in
a given year cared for 46,064 children. Massachusetts has 87 child
caring agencies, both public and private, which in 1921 cared for
19,002, children. According to a special report issued by the Boston
Council o f Social Agencies,2 in the city o f Boston alone 34 private
child-helping agencies in one year gave care to 4,500 children— a
service which cost $1,235,023.
On the basis of reports coming from a few of the States and of
data contained in the Federal census reports, it is conservatively
estimated that all the public and private child-caring agencies and
officials throughout the country have in care at this time approxi
mately 250,000 children. O f course, in any given year there is a
considerable turnover, so that the actual number of different children
cared for is larger than the average number in care throughout the
year. The importance* therefore, o f a wise and adequate handling
of all those problems that come before a welfare agency in regard
to the separation of children from their own people is outstanding.
The question is, furthermore, of supreme importance to family and
child-welfare agencies, to juvenile courts, and to public officials, as
they tend toward a joint consideration of the essential difficulties to
be met in handling applications that involve potential foster care
for children.
WORK OF CHILD-CARING AND FAMILY AGENCIES INTER
RELATED.

It has been a mistake in policy for the specialized child-caring
and the specialized family agencies to act in many instances as though
the phases of child-welfare work which each group faced were
essentially separate and distinct. Happily these two types of
agencies are coming to see that their responsibilities are interrelated.
Prospects are thus opened up for a more fundamental type of child
caring work than has hitherto been seen except in very rare instances.
Child-caring organizations are not free from family-protection re
sponsibilities, and family agencies are never free from the responsi
bility for seeing that good standards of work for children are estab
lished in their communities. The two groups of agencies named, of
i Statement made on authority o f Pennsylvania Department o f W elfare.
* B ulletin No. 5. May, 1923.

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CONSERVING TH E CH ILD ’S PARENTAL H O M E.

course, include public and private services and every type o f agency,
whether it be associated charities, a public-welfare department, a
juvenile court, a detention home, an institution for children, a society
to protect children, or a children’s aid society.
THE NECESSITY OF HIGH STANDARDS IN WORK FOR CHILDREN.

It is true o f social work, as o f every other field of human activity,
that quality o f service does not come by chance. It is a peculiar
criticism o f social work that to a very large extent the general public
places too low a value upon the qualifications which members of
welfare staffs should have in order to do their work. There can be
no adequate conservation work with children unless the work is
done by people of broad intelligence and education and fundamentally
sound character. Staff workers, particularly with children’s agen
cies, are too generally selected without thought as to their special
training and their fitness not only to understand children, but to
work with them. Good staff workers should therefore be one o f the
main planks in a child-welfare conservation program.
Executives of experience and devotion.
Certainly no executive o f any o f the agencies classified above can
safely be trusted to do the right kind o f work unless he has had a
very definite experience, now commonly designated as case-work
training. This standard, o f course, immediately rules out many
present executives o f these organizations; but the progress made in
the last decade in improving the personnel o f social agencies gives
cause for the utmost optimism for the future in this matter of exec
utives. No notable or even average piece o f work for children has
been done by executives who did not bring great native and acquired
abilities to their work. The lack o f trained leadership has placed
a very heavy handicap upon child-welfare work in many commun
ities, and finding the “ way out ” from numberless unwise manifesta
tions o f philanthropy for children will be possible only under a new,
highly experienced, and devoted leadership. The time is past for
the use in social work o f people whose experience can best be de
scribed as nondescript. The next decade will see the investment of
truly vast sums in a wide variety o f new child-welfare projects which
will often be initiated out o f their proper sequence unless the right
leadership is at hand to advise, guide, and direct those who wish to
serve through their money and their effort.
Staff workers of the highest type.
Next in importance to executive workers come general staff mem
bers. The situation with reference to the rank and file o f those who
serve on the staffs o f children’s organizations is most depressing, in

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

State alter State. I t requires unusual abilities to render adequate
service to children, or to see that such services are rendered by others.
Standards in regard to the education, general and technical training,
health, experience, and financial compensation o f staff members need
radical changing. W ork for children as done by children’s agencies
is in far too many instances in exactly the same status as that o f the
poorest and worst equipped rural schools in the United States. W e
see beyond question that men and women of the highest type are
required in the performance o f country-wide health and educational
programs. The same restrictions and conditions as to personnel are
equally binding in the field o f social work and its subdivision of
child welfare.
. .
One who visits many different types o f child-welfare agencies is
too often impressed by great inadequacy on the part o f those who are
actually in charge o f the children. This is a manifold danger, be
cause in almost no other field of welfare work is the appeal to the
average layman so great as it is where children are involved. Mil
lions o f dollars both for capital and for current use are annually
poured out for child-welfare work, and in many instances these
funds are unwisely applied because the donor was ill advised by the
social workers to whom he intrusted them. Those who prophesied
that there would be a marked falling off in gifts for welfare work as
a result o f the war certainly did not foresee the attitude of the
public in regard to children. Various organizations are sweeping
the country with truly gigantic projects for aiding children in need,
and many o f these plans call for care o f the children away from
their own people. It is not a part o f this discussion to consider
these specific child-welfare programs, but the essentials o f any good
child-welfare conservation plan should have general application to
them.
L im iting the case load o f individual workers.

Social work has suffered severely from having had to run on a
quantity, as against a quality, basis. It is o f course quite evident
that a public agency is less able to limit its work than is a private
agency. Yet extraordinary progress has been made in recent years
by public agencies in the extent to which the work load per staff
member has been reduced, expansion in work o f the agency being
registered by increasing the staff rather than overloading individual
workers. The private agency is in a more favorable position so far
as limiting work and .thus expressing a definite qualitative service is
concerned. The failure to stress the evils going with any attempt
to do the utmost amount o f work without regard to standards has
cost child-welfare work dearly. As agencies improve the methods
o f work they understand its real meaning better and are more able

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CONSERVING TH E C H IL D ’ s PARENTAL H O M E.

in each instance to protect the interests o f all the persons involved.
It is wise to limit the work o f an agency so as to be able to give good
care to such children as are received, even though it may be necessary
to refuse many applications o f great urgency.
Adequate salaries for adequate work.
Hand in hand with the securing o f suitable staff members must
go a program o f adequate remuneration for work done. No success
ful appeal can be made to men and women o f education and char
acter, who are being sought out by every profession and department
of production, unless reasonably adequate personal standards o f liv
ing are assured them. The exception to this rule occurs in the case
o f the unpaid services which certain great religious orders provide
for children o f the types under discussion. However, in these
same religious circles notable work is being done under the direc
tion o f salaried men and women who measure up to the highest
standards, and it is clearly evident that in the secular fields the serv
ices o f properly equipped workers can be secured only on a basis o f
adequate compensation.
It is a common experience that it is easier to secure money for
capital outlay or for the support o f children under foster care,
than it is to secure funds ftfr the payment o f high-grade workers
who will see wherein gross disbursements can, with the utmost
safeguarding o f the children, be very materially reduced.
THE NECESSITY FOR INFORMATION AS A BASIS FOR ACTION.

In any community there arise day by day a myriad o f applications
o f all sorts calling for the removal of children from their own
homes and their placement for some kind o f care either in an in
stitution or in a family. These children include those whose parents
have died, are in prison, or are sick, incompetent, mentally ir
responsible, immoral, unmarried, or in poverty. The children them
selves present a wide range o f mental and character difficulties ex
pressed in various forms o f misconduct and delinquency. In these
diverse and often complicated situations it is impossible to act with
wisdom without knowing a great deal about the child and his family
although the attempt to do so is constantly being made.
I f family life is worth saving and developing, i f sparing a child
the experience o f having to grow up with strangers, and having
parents train and care for their own children represent the normal
and desirable situation, then the methods followed in the reception
o f children by child-caring agencies will have to be generally re
organized and standardized. It should be realized that in many
communities the child-welfare work that is most fundamental and
most enduring is not necessarily done by children’s organizations,

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POSTER-HOME CARE POR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

Whether or not a child need be taken from his own home depends
to some extent upon what protective agencies exist in his community;
and this information can be brought out only through careful
inquiries made at the time o f the child s proposed reception by
a child-caring agency.
Miss Mary E. Kichmond has given an outline o f the general re
quirements in the matter o f reception information,3 and this is sup
plemented in various papers appearing in the Proceedings o f the
National Conference of Social Work and in statements given in the
annual reports of the leading child-welfare agencies in the country.
Saving to a child the potential resources in his own f amily is possible
only through a clear and comprehensive understanding of just what
it is that makes up the child’s history. Because public and private
child-welfare workers have been so largely in doubt as to the causes
which brought the children to them, they as a group have played a
minor part in work looking to the prevention of child neglect, de
pendency, and delinquency.
REMOVING THE CAUSES OF FAMILY BREAKDOWN.

We have all solemnly agreed that family homes must not be broken
up because of poverty, yet many children throughout the United
States are removed from their own people simply because of insuffi
ciency of family income and all the immediate ills which follow in
the wake of low wages. A general lack of information in the recep
tion department also leads many o f these same child-welfare groups
to act in ignorance o f conditions o f ill health, mental disability,
parental incompetence, inadequate recreational facilities, bad hous
ing, and improper school adjustments.
Supplementing the fam ily income.

Adequate protection of the relation between parents and children
begins with an income sufficient to maintain normal social standards.
This is a matter to which very few child-welfare agencies ever refer
in their reports. They seem not to know that all too frequently they
remove children from their own homes for the purpose of giving
foster care when the outstanding lack is sufficient family funds for ele
mentary necessities. The family-welfare agencies have been increas
ingly concerned with the necessity for supplementing the inadequate
income of many o f the families with which they are in contact in
order thereby to keep the family groups unbroken. The country still
awaits, however, the wide expression of the principle that a chil
dren’s agency must not count it good work to spend money for the
foster care o f children if the unfitness o f the children’s own homes is
* Richmond, Mary E . : Social Diagnosis.

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Russell Sage Foundation, New York, 1917.

CONSERVING TH E C H ILD ’ S PARENTAL H O M E.

clue entirely to poverty. Many examples can be found tbe country
over o f richly endowed children’s agencies whose wards must be good
children o f good mothers who are widows and therefore without sup
port. It surely seems incongruous for us to go on approving o f this
state o f affairs. It would seem as though in the face o f such situa
tions we need a new index o f values to show what are the truly fun
damental forms of child-welfare work.
I f the reception o f a child is made a matter of serious thought and
careful planning, it will become a general practice to discover and
bolster up all those family groups which with special and outside
assistance, generally costing less than foster care, can be kept intact.
Where reputable agencies inquire carefully into all applications,
they generally find that disposition other than foster care results in
about 75 or 80 per cent o f all cases. In general practice, however,
most communities, including their many social agencies, seem to have
few resources when faced with cases o f family need. Among the
first plans considered is the breaking up o f the family. Childwelfare surveys show a surprisingly large number o f children in care
who really should have been left with their own parents or whose
need for foster care the child-caring agencies are unable to prove.
I f an agency or institution is spending from $500 to $1,200 per year
per child under care it should in each case be possible to prove easily
and quickly the necessity for such care.
Prevention through health protection.
To function normally one must be well, yet many o f the children
coming into foster care show physical disabilities. The same can
also be said about their parents. It is therefore an important part
o f the work o f both child-welfare and family-welfare agencies to do
everything they can to protect and to promote the health interests
o f those under their care. I f every public and private family-wel
fare agency could give adequate health care to all its clients the
number o f applications ultimately going to children’s agencies would
be materially reduced. “ Well clinics ” need to be organized all over
the country for the purpose o f dealing with incipient physical diffi
culties before they reach a serious stage. I f this were done fewer
and fewer removals o f children from their own homes would take
place, for ill health is one o f the prime factors in the breaking up of
families.
It is already demonstrable that prenatal and postnatal clinics
have had a most definite effect in improving the health standards
o f mothers, and this in time will mean that more mothers will live
to take care o f their children. It is very clear indeed, therefore,
that an organization working with families or children which is not

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

directly and vitally participating in a high-grade health-promotion
program is not doing all that it should in the matter o f conserving
family life for children. This health program should include care
ful examinations, all necessary laboratory tests, and provision for
necessary treatment where such can not be had from existing
agencies. A liberal share of the costs o f such work is a proper charge
in the budgets o f both family-welfare and child-welfare agencies.
Better housing.
The existence of much bad housing, with all its effects on home
life, means that child-welfare agencies must now care for many
children whose families resort to foster care as a means of escape
for the children from home conditions. Therefore the solution of
the housing situation is another fundamental step in the conserva
tion o f parental relationships for children.
Recreation.
I n ’ a number o f the cases handled by family and child welfare
agencies the situation is on the border line between dependency and
delinquency, and in these cases there invariably appears the factor
o f poor or utterly negligible recreational life. This is just as likely
to be the case in the strictly rural community as it is in the densely
crowded city. Consequently understanding and planning for the
recreational needs of children, and also o f adults, represents another
important method o f safeguarding family life.
THE TRAGEDY OF SEPARATION.

It is important that everyone responsible for the well-being of
children should have a pretty dear concept o f the child. I f we had a
truer and deeper understanding of the mental and physical life of
the child there would be less intentness on the execution of plans
which are more likely to injure than to help the children affected.
Although it may be unpleasant to realize it is natural for children to
view with questionings and criticisms those whom they meet in fos
ter-care agencies. Children suffer far more than we realize when
they enter upon a period o f foster care; and their sufferings—cer
tainly mental and often physical—should be taken into consideration
when plans for the separation o f children from their own people are
being thought out. We have built up a rather pleasant picture of
superperfect children’s organizations into which the children slip
rather easily and where they are supremely happy. Now for good
and clearly convincing reasons this is not generally the case, and
when the realization o f this fact becomes more general greater and
greater safeguards will be thrown about the child as he first comes
under consideration.

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c o n s e r v in g

the

c h i l d ’s

parental

home

Dr. Alberta S. Guibord, in a very remarkable paper on “ The
landmap o f the dependent child,” 4 shows a clear understanding of
what passes through the mind o f the average child when he enters a
agT Cm •AxS-She i>01ntS ° Ut’ an imP°rtant factor in dealing
vith such a child is his predisposition to influences which make for
delinquency and social inefficiency. This is so because o f the emo
tional disturbance incident to family breakdown.
c ] » T L T / h0UI d b 6 int™stel?
the responsibility o f separating
of i l w /
• ne‘ \ ° ™ Pe° ple Wh° is Unable
Set the child’s point
o± new , to weigh what it will mean to him to be separated even for a
f f " ° d fr° m Paref ts and bro*«™ and sisters, and to under
stand that for the great mass o f children any foster-eare program
mvolves insurmountable difficulties. Wherever a reasonable anfount
. " f ''natl0n ls seoured about any child, the placement o f that
child under foster care fairly bristles with problems. A child-placm g agency must be very definitely conscious o f the limitations o f its
w ort i f it is to execute reasonably careful placements and eonseUS ^

a‘ W

not neglected and

¿ ¿ P 1? Stai! 0f any agency called upon to decide whether a child is to
lemain in his own home will do better work i f it is thoroughly perthe ldea that itS pIan o£ help ia Probably following in
the wake o f some social tragedy, or that such a tragedy will occur
unless a very radical and far-thinking job is done by the agency in
question. Barring certain exceptions, children should not c L e L t o
the care o f placing agencies until every effort has been exhausted to
keep them within their own family groups, and they must never be
considered, as detached from their families at the time o f the in
^ ■ J z r - s e e ^ workers “ the ^eld o f child weI&re do not con,
? yP f od ™
*bey are now giving an ideal one. These
leaders do not see that a multiplication o f child-caring organizations
o f the various types now in existence or the doubling o f their endowments necessiirily would improve the conditions o f child life in the
United States Bather are they convinced that i f such funds could be
placed at the disposal o f more immediately protective and preventive
agenmes a new and higher type o f child-welfare work would result
and this work would be for children who in all probability would
never have to be removed from their own homes.
THE LIMITATIONS OP FOSTER CARE.

Certain outstanding aspects o f children’s work can be strikinglv
presented through an outline o f the essential limitations that face
those who must be in charge o f the children. First is the limitation
‘ The Survey, August 16, 1920, pp. 614-616

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

as to the number of good foster homes available. Next, staff workers
represent the average folks whom one meets every day and are usually
no better equipped to meet the difficulties which children present
than are the average run o f parents. Third, when an agency tries
to obtain for each child in care a reasonably normal home environ
ment it enters upon an outlay o f funds which the general public is
quite unprepared to meet.
Child-caring work has hitherto been judged on a basis of low per
capita costs, but as higher standards have been applied to every de
partment and every person engaged in it the costs have mounted to
sums which would have seemed incredible years ago. When an
agency spends on one child in a given year the equivalent of the
average income for the average family in the United States, there
immediately arises the question: Can such an agency justify such
expenditure? I f there happen to be other children in each of the
families from which this agency has selected its wards the further
question arises, Would it not be better to allow the special child in
each case to remain with his own mother (granting him to be a halforphan) and give the family the amount of money which would
otherwise be spent for foster care, plus the total thought, time, and
service which the agency’s personnel gives to each of its wards?
SUBSIDIZING THE HOME.

Every observing children’s worker knows of many cases in which,
if she could have expended on the child’s own family life j,ust what
she has spent on one member of the family in money and care, the
whole family situation would have been immeasurably improved.
This fact should have great weight in the consideration of the prob
lems of dependent children. The mothers’ assistance or mothers’
pension fund movement has kept with their mothers large numbers
children who* in the absence of this support would have required
the care of social agencies. Nothing could be more anomalous than
a situation in which mothers, because o f poverty, are forced to give
up their children to agencies to receive foster care at an expense far
greater than the cost of providing for the children in their own
homes and with their own mothers. Yet this process goes on in
practically every State in the Union. It would seem to call for
radical action everywhere. Moreover, where the resources of the
family agency are inadequate to meet the relief demand made upon
them, steps should be taken to ascertain to what extent the resources
o f certain o f the children’s agencies could be used for general family
relief as against special child relief. Large benefactors and pro
moters o f country-wide plans for child welfare should be made to

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CONSERVING THE CH ILD’ s PARENTAL HOM E.

seejhat in a vast majority of the communities o f the country actual
child-welfare work is now many Japs ahead of the work of the
organized and incorporated children’s agencies. This is said with
out any intention to disparage the work of the children’s agencies
in any way; but wages, health, good housing, and all the other
essentials o f normal family life are influenced only slightly by them.
Moreover, potential benefactors in the children’s field should be
urged to leave their money free from narrow and hampering restric
tions as to use.
The more liberal grants of public aid to mothers with dependent
children, commonly known as mothers’ pensions, have tended in many
communities to reduce the number of children in the care o f chil
dren’s societies. The report of the Department of Public Welfare
o f the city of New York shows a steady decrease in the number o f
children under care at the close of each fiscal year since 1916. For
that year the number under care was 22,117; for 1921, in spite o f
an increase in population and much unemployment, the number under
care was given as 15,951. Undoubtedly better methods in the recep
tion of the children accounted in part for this decrease, but the pub
lic grants or pensions to many mothers in their own homes also exer
cised a great influence in keeping children out of the hands o f
child-caring agencies.
The figures for the Massachusetts child-caring agencies for the last
two years also show in many instances a falling-off in percentage
o f children under care compared with the increase in population.
It is much easier to get money for the work o f specialized childwelfare agencies than it is to get money for general family agencies.
In Boston 5 25 family-helping agencies dealing with 32,500 indi
viduals in their own homes spent last year $522,573, whereas 3 4 chil
dren’s agencies giving complete care to 4,500 children, and super
vision and other nonfinancial help to 20,500 additional children,
spent in one year $1,235,023. The situation is even more striking
in Philadelphia,6 where 90 child-caring organizations, with an aver
age o f 2 0 ,0 0 0 children in care, spent in 1920 approximately $5,500,000, and 5 family-welfare agencies spent in 1922 approximately
$750,000. Yet a potentially heavier child-welfare load rests on the
family agencies, notwithstanding the fact that they have far less
to spend in any given year. The interpretation of this situation
needs to be taken in hand by the child-welfare leaders in collabora
tion with the family-welfare leaders, and its significance should have
the widest publicity.
5 Bulletin No. o, 1923. Boston Council o f Social A gencies
• Unpublished study, Children’s Bureau o f Philadelphia«
;

72693°— 26-------- 3

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

WORKMEN’S COMPENSATION LAW S AS PROTECTION FOR THE
HOME.

The attention o f all students o f welfare work should he called to
the effect that workmen’s compensation laws have had in protecting
family life. Through this one movement a great army o f families
throughout the United States has been lifted out o f a condition of
dependency on either public or private relief. Twenty years ago
children o f workers injured or killed in industry filled the institu
tions while their mothers worked and lived alone, having a hard
time to eke out a mere existence. Eeal compensation for such injury
or death o f the father represents a great advance in family protec
tion. Moreover, the compensation movement has resulted in means
for encouraging accident prevention which are keeping increasing
numbers o f workers from even being injured.
THE SCHOOL AS A FACTOR IN STRENGTHENING THE HOME.

In some communities the juvenile court has been accurately char
acterized as the largest and most important child-welfare agency,
the largest family-welfare agency being given second place. Yet
the public schools represent an organization o f child-welfare forces
that in volume o f work and importance of service easily transcends
all other child-caring organizations. The newer psychology, partic
ularly in the studies o f experts like Dr. William Healy, Dr. Bernard
Glueck, and Dr. Augusta Bronner, has revealed the importance of
the early years o f childhood. Next to the home in its influence on
the young child comes the public school. Hence the necessity for
augmenting in every possible way all that the public schools can do
in their work for children." It is not sufficient that the teacher know
her children as pupils in the classroom. The influences that bear on
children outside the school determine to a very large degree just what
permanent values they will carry away from their school life. The
teachers are doing social work in their particular field, but it is often
likely to be futile unless it is brought into close contact with all the
other social forces affecting the child.
To meet the need, to give the backgrounds of the children, to
reveal accurately just what they have or have not in their own homes,
is the serious task o f a new group which has come into the schools
in Philadelphia. This group, best known as visiting teachers, are
teachers with special experience in the field o f social case work. They
help the whole school staff to understand, and therefore better to
teach, the child who for any reason whatsoever is not making a
good adjustment through the school activities. I f the visiting teacher
does good work, she catches up in their very incipiency many sig
nificant acts and character developments. She treats them as the oc
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CONSERVING TH E C H ILD ’ S PARENTAL H OM E.

casion demands and thereby prevents them from becoming outstand
ing difficulties which may lead to delinquencies or to bad adjustments
with parents or other members o f families, with the consequent dan
ger o f the child’s separation from his own people. The visiting
teacher represents an improvement in results over the best work of
the best attendance officers.
The children who are misfits in the school are the first responsi
bility o f the visiting teacher. Children o f this group— who a few
years ago would generally have been thought to need care in parental
schools, if not industrial schools—through the visiting teacher or
the attendance officer trained as a social worker, have been adjusted
satisfactorily while remaining in their own homes. No one can com
pute what this means to these children. The placement o f a child
presenting problems o f conduct, with many other children facing the
same difficulties is a step which should be taken very reluctantly. The
more one studies prisons and reformatories and the results o f their
work, the greater becomes the determination not to introduce an in
dividual to such a life if the means are at hand for preventing it.
Understanding the individual is one o f the first steps in this preven
tion.
THE JUVENILE COURT SAFEGUARDING THE HOME.

The juvenile court is too well known to need any interpretation
here. However, it must be cited as an important agency which has
enormous possibilities for the safeguarding o f family relationships.
One o f the remarkable developments during the last 40 years of the
nineteenth century was the breaking away from the habit of punish
ing adult delinquents by prison commitments. Sifting out the more
hopeful and most trustworthy adult delinquents for probation re
sulted in enormous financial saving to the State in the maintenance
o f prisoners and also in the sums necessary for prison extension and
equipment. Probation also saved for the delinquent’s family his
financial support and his presence. As the principle has come to be
applied to juvenile delinquents it has had an even more beneficial
effect.
When one realizes how short is the period o f care given in most
industrial schools, one can not but believe that careful probation
would in the long run produce more lasting results than these short
intensive periods of training for large numbers o f children o f about
the same age, brought together because of the commission o f various
acts o f delinquency. Commitment to an industrial school is a
shock to most children. O f course, many children enter the in
dustrial school from homes that were broken up before the court came
into action, but these represent on the whole the smallest segment o f
the total group. Child-welfare agencies which desire to be con
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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

sidered alert and actively to support constructive work will watch
their juvenile courts. The juvenile court following good social case
work methods and staffed with well-trained probation officers will
exert a powerful influence for keeping homes unbroken. It is, of
course, still too true that the juvenile court, in the matter of actively
taking over the best methods o f social case work and covering its
specific field throughout the country, is only in its initial stage;
yet this beginning represents a great victory over previous condi
tions, and it is fair to say that the results achieved in the face of great
handicaps thoroughly warrant the experiment.
The juvenile court has cut into the field o f agencies operating
under the general name o f “ societies to protect children from
cruelty,” and this is entirely in accord with principles o f progress.
It is well that private organizations should not exercise quasi police
power. The authority has been frequently abused in the past.
Where children are to be removed from their own homes for cause
which must be reviewed before a court o f record, the authority for
such action should rest with a public agency such as the juvenile
court, in contrast with a private agency. Children are going to be
better protected from cruelty and neglect and from thoughtless and
wholesale removals through the perfecting o f the juvenile court’s
methods, and it is time that we began to concentrate our energies on
achieving this end. Agencies change as do other organizations of
mankind and it will be entirely fitting for the child-protective
agencies to advance into a new and different field.
SPECIAL TYPES OF CHILDREN.

For certain special classes o f children there seems to be no ques
tion o f the necessity for foster care. Foundlings, in spite o f care
ful efforts to locate parents, continue, in large cities at least, to have
small chance o f return to relatives. O f deserted children, this is
much less true. More information can be found with less difficulty
about children of the latter group. Yet the attitude o f mind and
the mental health of the parent who deserts a child and leaves him to
strangers make it very difficult to fasten the responsibility for physi
cal care of the child on such a parent. Such a parent can sometimes
be held to his financial responsibility for the child, even over long
periods, but success here calls for very careful and very thorough
social work.
.
In regard to children born to unmarried parents, the trend is
definitely in the direction o f continued care and responsibility for
the child by the parents. I f good reception methods are followed,
if social backgrounds are sought and social causes are looked for,
separation of unmarried parents from their children is usually found

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CONSERVING TH E C H ILD ’ s PARENTAL H O M E.

to be unwise and undesirable; yet many children’s agencies and
many organizations working with unmarried mothers countenance
such separations as soon after birth as they can safely be effected.
I f “ knowledge is power,” i f acquaintanceship with the facts is a
necessary preliminary to any sound social policy, such would seem
to be the case in this field o f illegitimacy.
CONCLUSION.

We must dispel the ideas o f the general public that most o f the
children coming to social agencies for care are full orphans, that in
general the agencies are dealing with children who have no rela
tives, and that practically all our dependent children are separate
and distinct from those classed as delinquent. It is unquestionably
true that relatives are a weak support in the cases of many children,
but it is also undeniably true that many good relatives carry a load
of child care that is greatly underrated and misunderstood. The
best children’s workers fully understand that .the selection and use
of relatives for the care o f children whose own families are breaking
calls for very careful social work. It is when such work is not done
that we strike disaster.
The concluding thoughts are these: That the ultimate good of
underprivileged children will best be secured if every effort is
put forth to safeguard their own home interests; that more lasting
social good will result from conserving family life and relationships
than from creating an ever-increasing number o f separate caring
agencies, to take children out o f the circles which they know best
and prefer and to which they generally return after their period o f
foster care is over.

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’ i

; í;\v

i'0'S

J jB H B
5 •;»tiW$'-'{tií*

míÉï|{fÿ^f|RÎ ir?-,
I :y ;

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THE ESSENTIALS OF PLACEMENT IN FREE FAMILY
HOMES.
E dm ond J. B utleb ,

Executive Secretary Catholic H om e Bureau for Dependent Children, N ew York.

INTRODUCTION.

Up to the beginning o f the nineteenth century the prevailing
method in this country o f dealing with orphans and the children of
shiftless, poverty-stricken, deserting, sick, or unworthy parents,
whose relatives were either unwilling or unable to care for them,
was to turn them over to the custodial care o f poorhouses, poor
farms, or similar places o f incarceration. As public institutions
these so-called homes for the poor were administered by officials ap
pointed for political reasons. For the most part they were lacking
in the qualifications necessary for adequate service to their poor
charges, and their principal claim for a continuance in office was
based upon a record o f economical management.
The evil conditions resulting from this method o f child caring
grew to such proportions as to induce high-minded citizens to est
tablish private orphanages and homes for children as a means of
providing for them in a more huipane way. The movement was
slow in its development. It required 30 or more years to create the
general interest necessary to produce a response commensurate
with the needs o f the work. From that time on the private institu
tions grew rapidly. Opposition to the old system grew apace and
developed a public opinion which during the latter part of the
century forced the passage in many States of laws prohibiting the
commitment o f children to poorhouses or similar institutions. There
after public institutions entered the field to share the task o f child
caring with those maintained by private agencies.
During the century o f administration o f private institutions and
the early period o f State institutions little was done to develop
methods approaching the standards o f the well-equipped and wellmanaged children’s orphanages and homes o f the present time.
Lacking these standard^ the average administration was content to
provide housing, food, and clothing o f the plainest type and a small
amount o f education. The directors, managers, and friends o f these
institutions were actuated by the highest o f motives. They <rave
themselves and their means to the welfare o f the children whose
33

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

care they assumed. It is not surprising that some o f them failed to
measure up to the duty and quality of service required.
The publicity given unfortunate results in isolated cases of chil
dren poorly cared for in private institutions, the general apathy and
ignorance of the public as to the proper methods o f institutional care,
and the lack o f adequate inspection, supervision, and helpful pub
licity, all combined to make child-caring institutions the object o f
persistent attack during the last 20 years. The most extreme critics
have gone so far as to advocate the abolishment o f all child-caring
institutions, on the theory that “ the worst family home is better
than the best institution.”
.
.
.
.
An extract from a recent article on the subject of institutions by
Dr. Charles H. Johnson, secretary o f the New York State Board
of Charities, may be cited as a refreshing contrast to the attacks of
these unreasonable, uncharitable critics:
The thousands of earnest people in this State who are giving their lives to
institutional service, taking the place of fathers and mothers who have
neglected or deserted their children, acting as caretakers for the aged and in
firm many of whom have been abandoned by their own families, watching
over the sick and the disabled at the cost of their own leisure and comfort,
have little support from the public whenever anyone wishes to attack their
respective institutions.
. , ,
...
The truth is that the institutions to-day are, as a rule, conducted on a high
plane of human interest and that the standards of individual care are being
constantly raised.

As a result of the long-continued campaign of criticism many wellintentioned persons, actuated by a sincere desire to be helpful to
the dependent child, are obsessed with the idea that the only way
to secure the future welfare of such a child is to place him in a free
family home or in a boarding home, irrespective o f the needs and
rights of the child or of his status with respect to parents or other
relatives.
That placing out, boarding out, and legal adoption are excellent
means to a desirable end requires no argument. In specific cases and
under certain conditions this proposition is so generally admitted
by all persons engaged in child-caring work that it would seem
entirely unnecessary to engage in any controversy with regard to the
matter. During a period of more than 40 years in which the writer
has been in personal contact with directors of institutions he has
never met one who did not hold that a normal family home is the
best place for a dependent child. In view o f the general attitude
with respect to these methods o f child caring, it is surprising that
any o f their advocates should find it necessary to resort to abuse
of well-regulated institutions.
^
Persons who desire to engage in placing out, boarding out, and
legal adoption should do so with an open mind, realizing the neces
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TH E ESSENTIALS GE PLACEMENT IN FREE FAM ILY H OM ES.

sity o f dealing with each case on its individual needs and merits
ìathei than as a means o f opposition to the child-caring activities of
others whose methods and motives in their own field are deserving
of the greatest respect and gratitude.
The placing o f dependent children in free family homes did not
begin as a modern activity. Through all the centuries it has been
pi acticed as part o f the methods of all organized charities and among
nations and peoples where no such organizations existed. A m ong
many races and groups of people it was carried on, as an act o f love
o f neighbor, to such an extent as to make other means for the care of
the orphan unnecessary.
During the last 25 years, however, placing out has been made the
subject o f special study and development, with the result that it is
now recognized as one o f the most important factors in any welldevised plan for the welfare o f dependent children. This study and
development and the experience o f those engaged in the work as a
specialized activity have made it quite obvious that placing-out
service, unless carried on in accordance with approved standards,
not only will fail to secure good results but will be responsible for
destroying the future welfare o f many if not most o f those for whom
help is intended. This may seem to be an extreme assertion, but its
proof may be found in the thousands o f human wrecks seeking the
aid of charities as the result o f bad placing-out work.
The following is an extract from the resolutions adopted by the
White House Conference:1
The carefully selected foster home is for the normal child the best substitute
for the natural home. Such homes should be selected by a most careful process
of investigation., carried on by skilled agents through personal investigation
and with due regard to the religious faith of the child. After children are
placed in homes, adequate visitation, with careful consideration of the physical
mental, moral, and spiritual training and development of each child on thè
part of the responsible home-finding agency, is essential.

This conclusion, which is in harmony with the experience o f those
who for many years past have been engaged in placing-out work,
clearly indicates that only those who are qualified to do the work
intelligently and in compliance with the specific requirements for
effective service should engage in it. It is not work for individuals
who are unable to give the personal investigation and long-continued
supervision necessary. Unless they feel assured that they can meet
these requirements they should not enter the work.
Bureaus o f charity or similar organizations undertaking to establish placing-out activities as special or subsidiary work should realize
the necessity for a complete understanding o f the work before starti Proceedings o f the Conference on the Care o f Dependent Children, held at W ashington
1). C., January 25, 26, 1909. Sixtieth Congress, second session, Senate Document No 7 2 l'
p. 10. Government P rinting Office, W ashington, 1909.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

ing to function in this field. Without such understanding disastrous
results are sure to follow.
In the folio wing.pages will be found an outline o f the knowledge,
service, and equipment necessary for successful placing o f depend
ent children in free family homes, arranged in divisions under the
following titles: The child, The foster parents, Selection o f home
and foster parents, Visitation and supervision, Legal adoption, Dis
charge from supervision, After care, and Administration and records.
THE CHILD.

The following extract from the resolutions adopted by the Con
ference on Child Welfare held under the auspices of the Children’s
Bureau o f the United States Department o f Labor, in May, 1919,
may be offered as a proper guide for persons o f any creed or without
creed who undertake to provide for the future welfare o f children:
•The fundamental rights of childhood are normal home life, opportunities
for education, recreation, vocational preparation fo r life, and moral, religious,
and physical development in harmony with American ideals and the educa
tional and spiritual agencies by which these rights of the child are normally
safeguarded.

As a general proposition, it may be said that any normal healthy
child is a placeable child ,2 but there are special conditions which
may render the placing out of such a child undesirable.
The age o f placeable children may be briefly stated as follow s:
Boys up to and including the age o f 14; girls up to and including
the age o f 10. The placing o f girls over 10 years o f age does not
give promise o f good results particularly where there are other
children in the family or where adults suffering from the infirmities
o f old age or physical or mental afflictions are not adequately
cared for by members o f the family or adult attendants. Under
these circumstances flagrant exploitation of child labor and neglect
o f schooling are apt to oecur, especially with girls between the ages
o f 1 0 and 15. The experience o f placing-out agencies will show
that the most successful results occur in the cases o f children placed
when below the age o f 5 years.
It is contrary to the designs of God and nature to separate parent
and child because o f temporary disability. When poverty, illness,
or even improper guardianship makes it necessary to care for a
child outside his own home, nothing should be done to cause a
definite and continuous separation if there is hope o f rehabilitating
the parent and restoring the normal relation. As the natural order
provides for parental care, based upon love and affection, for the
* N o t e . — The discussion in this paper relates to placement in free homes fo r adoption
and does n ot refer to boarding-home care.

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TH E ESSENTIALS OE PLACEMENT IN FEEE FAM ILY HOM ES.

£7

support and training o f the child, it also demands a reciprocal
service for the aged based upon filial love and duty. When, there
fore, there is possibility o f reuniting parent and child, such a child
is not placeable in a free foster home. He should receive temporary
care in a boarding home or institution.
It is necessary, before undertaking to place out a child, to secure
definite information as to his family history, religious affiliation,
and physical and mental condition. Lack o f such information may
later create serious problems detrimental to the interests of the child
and his foster parents.
Careful investigation should be made as to the cause o f death or
o f the present mental or physical condition o f parents in order to
ascertain what, if any, unfavorable inherited tendencies may develop
in the child. I f there is any probability o f such tendencies, the child
is not placeable. Such a child should be cared for in an institution
or a carefully selected boarding home until experts decide that there
is no possibility of such traits developing. The child should then
receive, if possible, the advantages o f a normal free home.
«
No child should be placed out who is suffering from any physical
or mental defect. A ll such children should receive the care and at
tention necessary to bring them up to normal standards before place
ment.
No child should be placed without sufficient guaranty that he will
be kept at school until he reaches the age o f 16.
THE FOSTER PARENTS.

In view o f the fact that the vast majority o f the families o f our
country consist o f persons having a limited amount o f wealth, an
ordinary education, and little or no social distinction, it would be
unwise, if not futile, to set up standards o f too exacting a character
for foster parents. We should realize that most, if not all, o f the
children we aim to help do not come from homes where at any time
unusual conditions of wealth prevailed. I f we can secure homes
and foster parents among the wealthy it is well to do so, but it does
not necessarily follow that children so placed have better prospects
than those placed with families who have been.accustomed to making
personal sacrifices to maintain their position in life. In fact, the
latter type may contribute more to the child’s welfare by giving him
greater personal attention than could be expected from those who
delegate such care to a servant.
The aim should be to secure as foster parents persons who desire
a child for the child’s sake. They should have an assured income,
sufficient to insure proper care o f the child. They should not be
advanced in years, otherwise the child may lack the continuous care

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foster - h o m e garb for dependent ch ildren .

necessary to enable him to reach manhood under their supervision.
They should show a wholesome attitude o f appreciation o f the needs
of the young in matters o f companionship, recreation, and reason
able freedom from restraint, to guard against making the home a
virtual prison for the child. They ought to be persons of good
physical and mental health, industrious and thrifty, with at least
average education and intelligence. And they should enjoy the re
spect and indorsement o f their pastor and neighbors as law-abiding
and respected citizens.
They should be of the same religion as the child to be placed with
them and should be vouched for by their pastor as persons who are
regular in the performance o f their religious duties and as persons
who will provide proper religious training for the child assigned
to them.
SELECTION OF HOME AND FOSTER PARENTS.

The methods to be adopted for finding homes will vary according
to the experience o f those engaged in the work. “ Sob stories” may
develop appeals for children, but most of these will be from persons
who demand impossibilities. Well-planned advertising through
good mediums is expensive. Considering the results, there is a
serious question as to whether the money thus expended might not
be used to better advantage in other directions. Some publicity,
however, is necessary. Interesting and appealing press items and
stories will play an important part in preparing the way for other
methods.
A careful, conscientious agent can produce more satisfactory re
sults than can be secured by any other method. In making his appeal
to prospective parents he has the opportunity to prevent much waste
of time and money which is needed for investigation, by selecting
approved sections and neighborhoods and desirable-families, and by
choosing certain localities so as to minimize the cost o f supervision
after placements are made. He will also learn o f the local oppor
tunities which may offer helpful assistance to the family in matters
of education, religious training, recreation, companions for the child,
etc. This method of securing homes will be found the most satis
factory.
Application for children should be made upon a blank form
prepared to secure sufficient information to enable the agency at once
to decide whether it is advisable to proceed further and to guide the
agent in making an investigation concerning the applicants and their
home. The blank should also contain an outline o f the specific terms
upon which the placement is to be made and an agreement to comply
with these requirements, which should be signed by both husband and
wife.

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THE ESSENTIALS OF PLACEMENT IN FREE FAM ILY HOM ES.

Following the receipt o f an acceptable application for a child the
most thorough investigation should be made concerning the appli
cants, the members of their family, the home and its equipment, and
its environment. This investigation to be complete should be made
by a duly qualified agent, and the report o f the agent should include
definite information on the following lines:
The foster 'parents. Definite information should be secured as to
age, nationality, personality, obvious physical and mental condition,
education, intelligence, religious and general character, prob
able attitude toward children, atmosphere o f the home 5 how long
parents have been married, where and by whom the ceremony was
performed; previous experience, if any, in the care o f children; the
occupation and earning power o f the foster father and o f any other
members o f his family in the home contributing to the support o f the
home and fam ily; whether the home or other property is owned, and
if so, whether title is clear and unencumbered; and whether the
family has a savings account or other assets indicating thrift and
ability to meet and deal with ordinary reverses. I f the family has
heretofore had a placed child, where did the child come from, what
was his age, how was he treated, is he still in the home ? I f not, how
long did he remain, why did he leave the home, where did he go, and
what is known concerning him? In all cases both husband and wife
should be interviewed to guard against a possible unwilling sub
mission o f either to the coercion or objection o f the other in the
taking of a child into the home.
Other members of family.— I f there are children of the foster par
ents in the home, a record should be taken of their age, sex, character,
health, and (if o f working age) occupation and income. I f any such
children are not in the home the reasons for their absence should be
stated. I f any persons other than the husband, wife, and children
are in the home, details should be given concerning them and their
relationship to the family. Definite information should be procured
concerning all hired help in the home, their age, character, habits,
etc., in order to safeguard the placed child from any unfortunate
results due to intimate association with such persons of an unde
sirable age or type.
Neighbors.--Inquiry should be made as to the character o f the
immediate neighbors o f the family and the probable companions o f
the child.
Type of child desired and treatment contemplated.— Definite in
formation should be obtained as to the type o f child desired, sex,
temperament, other requirements and motive for procuring the
child. Inquiry should be made in regard to provision for child’s
attendance at church and school, sleeping accommodations, oppor-

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

tunities for social life and recreation, and foster parents probable
methods o f discipline. In the case o f boys desired for farm homes, it
is important that in addition to the foregoing details the reports
should clearly show size and character o f farm ; acreage under cul
tivation; whether it is what is known as a milk farm ; if so, the num
ber o f cows and other cattle and the methods o f disposing of the
milk; the number and character o f hired help ; work or chores,' if any,
expected o f child ; willingness to provide for regular attendance at
school until the age of 16 ; and the prospect of some compensation
within a reasonable time after the end o f the school period.
References.— In addition to interviewing the persons named by the
applicants as references, the agent should call upon some persons of
good standing in the home section who are not related to the appli
cants for an impersonal and discriminating opinion o f them. As
children should be placed with families o f their own faith, it is
necessary that the agent should interview the pastor of the appli
cants to secure definite information as to the performance o f their
religious duties and the probability o f the child’s receiving the at
tention needed for his spiritual welfare.
The home.— The exact location o f the home should be stated and in
country sections its local name and post-office address; its distance
from church and school should be ascertained. The type of dwelling
—entire house or apartment—number o f rooms, sanitary conditions,
lighting, ventilation, and furnishings should be noted, and also, in a
farming section, the number, kind, and condition o f outbuildings.
In all cases the upkeep o f the buildings, the care o f the rooms in the
home, and the adequacy o f the sleeping-room accommodations of the
family should be described.
Environment.—It should be stated whether the home is located in
a residential, business, or slum district, or in a farming or sparsely
settled country, etc. The general type o f the surrounding buildings,
by whom they are occupied, their state of upkeep, the community
conditions maintained by the public officials, and facilities for
recreation and outdoor life should be noted.
Travel to and from home.—The lines of transportation to the
location of the home, and, if in a country district, the distance of
the home from the railroad station and the facilities available for
traveling to the home, telephone number, and any other information
which may prove a convenience and timesaver in the event of place
ment and subsequent visits o f supervision, should be mentioned.
I f the home is located in a section where families are separated by
great distances and there is no opportunity for the child’s association
with desirable companions of his own age that fact should be stated
with details concerning the situation.

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TH E ESSENTIALS OP PLACEMENT IN FREE F A M ILY HOM ES.

I f the agent should discover any facts not called for by this out
line which tend more fully to place the aspect o f the case before the
agency prior to decision or action he should include them in his re
port.
It may be thought by some persons that an agent would have
difficulty in getting responsive replies to the numerous inquiries set
forth and that the applicants might resent such an extensive in
vestigation as too inquisitorial; but if the agent is trained in his
work and knows what facts and information he should get he will
be able, by engaging the foster parents and others in a general and
friendly conversation, to secure the needed replies to most of the
questions without direct or specific questioning.
VISITATION AND SUPERVISION.

Placing out and supervision are not and can not be looked upon as
separate pieces o f work. From the time the agency begins the search
for a free foster home, procures one, and places the child in it, trans
ferring the child as necessity requires, up to the time when the agency
is able reasonably to declare that the child no longer needs super
vision, all the work done in connection with the care o f ‘that child
is a continuing act, which is not complete nor well done i f supervi
sion is discontinued prior to the legal adoption of the child or his
proper discharge from further oversight by the agency.
Within a-month after a child has been placed an agent o f the plac
ing-out agency should visit him with a view to learning whether the
home fits the child and whether the child fits the home and is a
welcome member of it. Thereafter the child should be visited regu
larly by the visiting and supervising agent not less than twice each
year and as much oftener as the necessities o f the case demand. No
person or agency should engage in placing-out work unless prepared
to follow this method and provide adequate supervision for the
period necessary to insure good results. To place out without such
supervision is a most serious and culpable neglect o f the child’s
welfare.
Before agents start on a tour o f visitation they should consult the
case records o f the children to be visited and should take with them
complete memoranda concerning the personnel o f the family, the
important matters disclosed by preceding visits which call for special
attention, suggestions previously made as to needful changes or im
provements and promises of compliance therewith, and correspond
ence conducted in the interim with regard to the cases.
While the supervising visit does not call for as wide a scope of
information as is required for the original investigation o f the home
and family, it is o f equal importance, since assurance that the con
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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

ditions upon which the approval o f the placement was based are
maintained is absolutely necessary.
When a child is visited the agent should inquire carefully into all
the matters described in the following divisions o f the subject and
make a complete report o f his findings, together with such recom
mendations as he may consider desirable.
The home.
I f the agent discovers that the foster family is living at an ad
dress other than the one stated in the case record he should record
the old and new addresses and make a comprehensive report o f the
new home, its location, etc., on the lines followed for first investi
gations.
He should note any addition to the family. I f hired persons or
others are introduced into the home, some information should be
secured concerning them and the effect that their presence in -the
home may have upon the child.
All changes indicating deterioration in the approved conditions
o f the home or its neighborhood should be noted by the agent, who
should keep in mind the requirements, as to sanitary conditions, ade
quate light and ventilation o f living and sleeping rooms, cleanliness
and comfort, and the maintenance of outbuildings, if any, in sani
tary condition.
The foster parents.
The agent should learn whether the foster parents’ interest in and
affection for the child are well established and likely to continue.
I f there is any dissatisfaction with the child the agent should find
out its cause, and if there is any possibility o f adjustment the agent
should give the matter immediate attention and not await action by
the agency. (The agent should not limit his service to gathering
* information ; he should be able and willing to contribute helpful
and constructive advice to both foster parents and child.) I f the
situation indicates that adjustment is impossible the welfare of the
child demands immediate removal and a new home.
Other items that should be noted are methods of discipline ; atten
tion and care in illness ; interest, and helpful assistance in religious
and scholastic training; in the case of older children willingness to
give some financial recompense for services and to train and encour
age in habits o f thrift; and any changes in the religious, social, or
financial status of the foster parents.
I f the foster mother? from either choice or necessity, engages in
any regular or continuous occupation outside the home, thus depriv
ing the child of his most pressing need, constant motherly care and
attention, the child should be removed.

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TH E ESSEN H A L S OF PLACEMENT IN FREE FAM ILY HOM ES.

The child.

The agent should carefully ascertain and record all the facts bearing upon the health, contentment, happiness, and proper training
and general welfare of the child, particularly with respect to the
follow ing:
Health.—I f the physical or mental condition o f the child is found
to be impaired, it is the duty of the agent to discover the nature of
the trouble, whether the child is receiving medical care, and, if so, the
opinion of the physician as to the possible outcome of his treatment.
I f the family is unable or not disposed to furnish the medical care
and attention necessary, the child should be removed at once.
Bodily comfort.—I f the child lacks a proper sleeping room and
equipment and he has not a sufficient supply of underwear and out
side clothing and shoes, or if his bodily comfort is neglected in any
manner, arrangement must be made by the agent to correct such
conditions; and if this is found impossible the child should be re
moved.
'
•
Contentment and happiness of child.—I f the child is in a good
home with affectionate foster .parents there is no reason why he
should be unhappy or discontented. If, therefore, the agent learns or
feels from contact with the child that he is unhappy or discontented
it is absolutely necessary to take immediate action to remove the
cause of his being so; and if this can not be done the child should be
transferred to another home.
Conduct, reports, complaints.—I f reports or complaints are re
ceived concerning the conduct of the child they should be thoroughly
investigated. It is quite conceivable that the act complained of may
in some instances be a reaction against unreasonable and extreme
methods of discipline, inability to guide and direct, laxity or entire
neglect o f proper discipline on the part of the foster parents, or
deprivation o f recreation and o f a reasonable amount o f outdoor
life and pleasure. Whatever the cause may be it should be discovered
and adjusted by the agent.
Scholastic training.—The agent should exercise great care when
visiting a school and interviewing the teacher with regard to the
child not to provoke neighborhood or school gossip or disturb the
relations between the foster parents and child, particularly where
the latter believes that his foster parents are his real parents. In
such cases, the agent should refrain from identifying himself as a
representative of the agency to any person outside the immediate
family of the child, and from doing or saying anything in the pres
ence of the child which might cause the latter to learn his true rela
tion to the family.
72693°—26----- 4

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPEEDEET CHILDREN.

Complete details should be secured, for the use of the office force,
as to the location and character o f the school, with information as to
the school period, name o f teacher, attendance officer, grade progress,
attendance, and home assistance. Special care should be taken to
note any failure to send children to school for the opening sessions,
as the habit o f entering school a month or six weeks after the be
ginning of the term can not fail to prove detrimental to the progress
of the pupil. It is not sufficient to say in the report that the child’s
attendance at school is regular. The report must state whether the
child attends every day during the school session. I f the child does
not do so, an explanation must be made as to the absence and the cause
for it. I f the cause is one that is inexcusable, provision should be
made to change conditions at once. When making a report con
cerning the fact that the agency’s ward has ceased going to school
the agent should not use an indefinite term such as “ finished,” as
this is meaningless, but should state definitely why the ward no longer
goes to school and give his class standing or grade when he left.
Foster parents and wards should be induced to extend the educa
tional period as far as possible, as a means to their mutual advantage.
It would be difficult to establish any standard by which every child
may be judged as to his proper grade in school It is also difficult
at times to discover the cause of retardation, many children develop
slowly, others slowly up to a certain age and then quickly. The
agent can not be expected to be a wizard in dealing with this subject,
but he should resort to every means available to discover whether
the child’s retardation is due to any physical or mental condition
which may be cured. In coming to a conclusion in regard to what
appears to be retardation, he should bear in mind that many if not
most o f the children placed out have been neglected or deprived of
the training they would have received in normal homes and that in
many such eases what may appear to be retardation, as it is com
monly understood, is nothing more than the result of neglect and
lack o f training before they came under the care of the agency.
As the agent should have some guide for his inquiries and investi
gations with regard to ages and grades the following table, pre
pared on lines recognized by the Board of Education of the city of
New York as representing average conditions in the schools of that
city, is submitted for guidance;

School Grade Table.
678LO- 1 1

7 years____________________________________________
8 years-------------- -------------------------------------- --------------9 years----------- -------------------------------------------------------years------------ ------------ -------------------------------------------

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1 A ,1 B ,2 A ,2 B .
1A, IB , 2A, 2B.
2A , 2B, 3A, 3B.
3A, 3B, 4A, 4B.
4A, 4B, 5A, 5B.

TH E ESSENTIALS OP PLACEMENT IN FREE FAM ILY HOM ES.

11- 12 yeans________
1 2 - 13 years__ „_____ _
1 3 - 14 years__________
1 4 - 15 years_________ _

--------- ----------------------------------------------- _ 5A, 5B, 6 A , 6 B.
-------------------------------------------- ------------- 6A , 6 B, 7A, 7B.
--------------------------------------- ----------------- 7A ,7B, 8A, 8B.
-------------------------------- 8 A, 8B, first-year high school.

Instructions issued in 1912 by Dr. William H. Maxwell, city super
intendent o f public schools o f the city o f New York, showed the
upper limits o f the normal age in regular grades as follow s:
First year_________________________
Second year_________________________
Third year__________________________

g
9
20

Ages.

Fourth year_________________________
Fifth year____________________ t_____
Sixth year__________________________

u
12
13

As the standards are not alike in all States or cities, agents using
this table may have to adapt it to local terms, but in reporting on
and dealing with conditions found in such cases they should refer
to them in such manner as will identify them with the corresponding
period or grade of the foregoing table.
Religious training.—1Î it is important that the child’s bodily com
fort, schooling, and general material welfare be carefully conserved,
how much more important to conserve his spiritual welfare. In or
der that the child may receive proper spiritual training the agent
should carefully inquire into the attention given to such training by
the foster parents and to the foster parents’ observance o f their religious duty 5 example is more effective than preaching. Conditions
o f neglect or indifference as to religious training should not be al
lowed to continue. In adjusting difficulties arising under such con
ditions the agent should approach the task prudently and tactfully
and if necessary secure the cooperation o f the pastor o f the family
in doing so. I f all efforts fail to secure the necessary result the
child should be transferred to another home.
Labor cmd compensation.— The future welfare and interests of
children who are placed out demand that serious consideration be
given to the question o f work by the children.
In arriving at a conclusion as to what action should be taken with
regard to procuring reasonable compensation for the labor o f the
child the agent should be guided by the following suggestions :
I f the foster parents give to the child the same consideration that
they would give to a child o f their own, keeping him at school in
definitely, providing him with all the advantages of a high-school
or college education, and expecting o f him only such household du
ties as would fall to the lot o f any young person growing up in a
family, the question o f wages should not be raised.
If, however, the child is removed from school as soon as the law
allows, and all his time thereafter is taken up by labor in behalf of
or for the material benefit o f the foster parents, some provision
should be made to secure for him a compensation for his services

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

The amount o f the initial or progressive compensation will have to
be regulated by the circumstances in each case ; the age o f the child,
the length o f time he has been in the home, the care and affection
bestowed upon him, the amount and character of the services or
labor, are all important factors in arriving at a decision. The time
when such compensation should begin is another matter which will
have to be regulated by the circumstances in each case. It seems fair
to assume, however, that the child should begin to receive wages not
more than one year after he leaves school and begins to devote his
entire time to his foster parents, doing work which otherwise they
would have to pay for.
The matter o f vocational guidance should also receive attention,
especially in cases in which the child, though remaining in the home,
secures outside employment.
Savings.—I f the child is encouraged to be industrious and secures
compensation for his labor, the agency has not completed its work
unless it develops in him a desire to save a reasonable proportion of
his earnings. The surest and most dependable method of develop
ing the saving habit is the opening of a personal account in a savings
bank. Substitutes for this method should not be accepted. Foster
parents may say that they will care for the child’s money and that
it may be drawn as desired. It is bad policy to make the foster par
ents the banker and debtor o f the child. The growth of such an in
debtedness is sure to breed trouble. The child lacking possession of
his money or the bank book may never really acquire the sense of
ownership. The agent should make the foster parents realize, in a
manner which will not give offense, the necessity for the adoption
ol the savings-bank method. After the bank account has been started
the agent when visiting the home should question the child concern
ing the matter, giving such advice and encouragement as may be
necessary to keep his interest and desires centered in a successful
growth and continuance of his funds in the bank.
The agent should not accept promises of future compensation or
remembrance in wills in lieu of adequate or satisfactory wage for
service; nor should he accept the now generally discredited promise
of generous compensation when the child attains his majority. W ith
out question of the honesty or motives o f those who make such offers,
the fact remains that promises to pay and to provide compensation
by will are dependent for fulfillment upon the integrity and the
ability o f those who make them and are often ignored for slight
cause; in some cases a reason for breaking them is provoked. The
further fact that there is no certainty as to the continuation o f the
child in the home or that the home will remain intact or desirable
for the period covered by the promises makes it quite obvious that

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TH E ESSENTIALS OF PLACEMENT IN FREE FAM ILY HOMES.

these methods o f meeting the financial needs and rights o f the child
should not be accepted.
General observations.
I f the agent discovers when visiting a home that the child has run
away, it is his duty to use every means possible to discover why the
child left and where he went. It is much easier for him to secure
such information by local inquiries and interviews with the com
panions o f the child, and he is more likely to succeed by this plan of
investigation than by depending on correspondence. He should
exhaust every local opportunity o f locating the truant and discover
ing the cause o f his departure before leaving the neighborhood of
the home the child has abandoned.
I f a child has been in an ideal home with excellent foster parents
for a period o f five or more years and conditions indicate a continu
ance of such favorable conditions, the number of visits may reason
ably be reduced to one in each year, to be supplemented by a system
of correspondence which may satisfy the necessities o f the case.
The agent should never leave unadjusted conditions in the home
on the assumption that the agency can settle them. Since he is on
the ground and has the opportunity personally to get all of the facts
available and necessary, it is his duty to exhaust every possible
means to settle such matters.
LEGAL ADOPTION.

It has recently become quite a fad among a large number of en
thusiastic and well-meaning persons who lack accurate knowledge
concerning the subject o f legal adoption, to look upon that method
as the best one for adjusting any and every problem arising in con
nection with dependent children. But the possibility—it might
reasonably be said the certainty—exists o f disastrous results, not only
to the foster parents but more particularly to the child, if the caution
necessary in the procedure is ignored.
It is nothing short o f a crime to prey upon the distress and despair
o f a parent suffering from extreme poverty or serious illness for the
purpose o f securing the surrender o f a child for legal adoption. The
proper procedure in such circumstances is to exert all possible means
to help the parents to secure a return to normal conditions where
the relations o f parent and child may be maintained in the manner
intended by God and nature.
Another activity in this line is the increasing policy o f separa
tion -from his mother, by legal surrender, o f the child born out of
wedlock, the surrender in many cases being planned before the birth
o f the child, who is thus deliberately and criminally robbed of his

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FOSTER-HOME CASE FOR DEPENDENT 'CHILDREN.

birthright— a mother’s nurture, care, and love. There should be a law
in every State in the Union prohibiting the legal separation o f a
child from his mother for at least six months after his birth.
Persons undertaking to arrange for the legal adoption of a child
should realize the necessity for giving due consideration to all
aspects o f the rights o f parent and child before taking any steps
in the matter. They should know that mere surrender o f the child,
even if such surrender is properly executed (which is not always the
case), does not carry with it the right to consent to legal adoption;
that the adoption may be legally and successfully attacked i f the re
quirements o f the law are not observed; that the so-called abandon
ment o f the child as a basis for the right to proceed with legal adop
tion is subject to review; that the parent is entitled to his day in
court and, if he can show that he did not intend or deliberately plan
to abandon his child and that his doing so was the result of poverty
or illness and consequent inability to meet his obligation at the time,
it is more than likely that his right to his child will prevail.
The foregoing reasons, and many others which might be cited, are
sufficient to show that only those well trained in the procedure of
adoption and possessing a broad, sympathetic view o f the natural
needs and rights o f parent and child should engage in the work.
In any event there is absolute necessity for avoiding precipitate
action. I f it be deemed necessary to safeguard the interests of the
placed-out child by careful investigation o f the character o f the
foster parents and their home, and long-continued supervision o f the
interests o f the child after placement, is it not equally necessary to
make the same type of investigation and conduct the same kind of
supervision for a probationary period o f at least one year before
permitting legal adoption?
DISCHARGE FROM SUPERVISION.

As a general proposition, supervision should not cease until the
child has attained the age o f 2 0 years.
This standard does not apply to cases disposed o f by adoption;
the agency’s jurisdiction automatically ends upon completion o f
the legal formalities o f adoption. Nor does it apply to such ex
ceptional cases as may arise from time to time in which it becomes
desirable, because o f unusual conditions, to cease visitation in the
interest o f the future welfare o f a child. Such conditions might
exist when the child has been living for a number o f years in an
ideal home, under the most favorable conditions, believing that his
foster parents are his real parents, and a strong bond o f affection
exists. The necessary publicity o f visitation by the agent might
in such a case result in breaking up existing relations. These

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TH E ESSENTIALS OF PLACEMENT I F FREE FAM ILY H OM ES.

cases, however, will always be small in number as compared with
the whole, and can not be used in fixing the period for necessary
supervision.
It has been found by experience in dealing with children who are
not in their natural homes—those o f their parents—that the most
critical period in the lives of such children lies between the ages o f 16
and 2 0 in the case o f boys and between the ages o f 14 and 2 0 in the
case o f girls. It is during this period that the child begins defi
nitely to manifest that spirit o f youthful independence and disre
gard for authority whieh results so disastrously in some foster
homes which lack the tempering affection o f father and mother
found in the normal home. In such cases the aid and advice of
the agent are needed to adjust the difficulties and restore harmony.
It is during the same period that the boy and girl develop an earn
ing capacity which should be properly directed, and for which
recognition should be secured by procuring for them a wage com
mensurate with their services and with home conditions. Such a
wage will give the child and opportunity to put something aside
for a possible break in home conditions or for some other adversity.
Where such recognition is denied, children should be removed and
placed in other homes where they will receive adequate recognition
and compensation.
Foster homes are subject to the same fatalities as befall those of
normal type. Death, sickness, adversity, or other causes may lead
to the breaking up o f the home, and as a result the child placed in
the home may be forced put into the battle for existence at an age
when a boy or girl is unable to make the struggle unaided. Again,
intemperance or other adverse influences may enter the home and
cause it to become so disorganized and unsafe as a shelter for the
young that a child previously placed in it should be removed. It
surely can not be claimed that boys or girls o f immature age are
competent to meet these adverse conditions and make proper provi
sion for themselves unaided. It should be and is the duty of child
placing agencies to anticipate such results by a continuous supervi
sion up to a time in the life o f the child when they may feel certain
that the work they undertook in placing the child in the home o f
strangers is completed.
AFTERCARE.

Complete service in placing-out work requires that at the closing
o f a case and the discontinuance o f supervision the agency should
send, to the foster parents an acknowledgment o f its appreciation and
thanks for their cooperation and assistance in the support and train
ing o f its ward, and to the ward a friendly announcement o f the

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

closing o f the case and the statement that this procedure should not
be looked upon as the act o f bidding him farewell. He should be
advised to remember with gratitude the care and affection bestowed
upon him by his foster parents and should be encouraged to con
tinue to look upon the administrators o f the agency as friends to
whom he may appeal at all times when the service o f a friend is
needed. The agency should be willing to assist its former wards
whenever adversity or trouble of any kind prompts them to appeal
for advice or aid.
ADMINISTRATION AND RECORDS.

Since the work in which the placing-out agency is engaged is of
such vital importance to the complete welfare o f its wards, it is neces
sary that it should be administered by persons carefully trained in
the service and under methods and systems o f records which will
insure an adequate source o f information and guidance.
The executive and agents o f the society are the persons upon whom
the success o f its work depends. While college education adds to
their equipment, for persons possessing good judgment and intelli
gence, special training in social service, and a fairly good knowledge
o f human nature, and broad-minded enough to enable them success
fully to deal with the many types o f people they will meet, a good
general education may suffice. .
As the details o f the history of the child and his parents and the re
sults o f the investigation o f the foster parents and their homes and
o f the visits by the agents for the supervision o f the child in the home
are constantly necessary to meet legitimate inquiries concerning the
child and his care or to solve problems or shape methods during the
period o f supervision, a complete system of records is necessary.
When children are legally adopted certified copies o f the court
orders of adoption should be procured and filed with the records o f
such children.
The records should be kept in such form as to make it possible to
secure promptly complete information concerning all the children
placed by the agency, their foster parents, existing conditions in the
homes under supervision, and details as to discharges from super
vision and after care.
The work o f the agency is confidential in character, and great care
should be exercised in giving information concerning its wards or
foster parents.

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THE CHILD IN THE BOARDING HOME.
M a r y E. B oketz,
H m d -worker, H om e Bureau, H ebrew Sheltering Guardian Society, H ew Y o r k .

Success in dealing with dependent children depends upon the at
titude o f many beside the child himself and his caretakers. What
good to try to impress upon the child that dependency is not in it
self a stigma, if the attitude o f the community implants in him a
sense o f social inferiority?
No child should be considered dependent except in the sense
that all children are dependent. Is not the rich man’s child also
dependent? I f the idea that all children are on an equal footing
so far as dependency is concerned could be made general it would
go a long way toward eradicating that feeling o f inferiority which
is the curse o f the charity-bred child.' Taking children out o f in
stitutions and caring for them in family homes will only partially
solve the problem.
Aside fi om what can be done in changing the community point
o f view, the agency caring for children must get away from the
old idea o f alms and personal philanthropy. Never mind whether
the child is grateful. The child is entitled to all that can be done
for him. It is his birthright, and the child-caring agency merely
acts in loco -parentis. But teach the child that he is expected to make
the most o f his abilities and expect him to take as large a share)
o f social responsibility as he can when he grows older.
THE AGENCY’S SERVICES TO PARENTS.

With the hope of helping children in such a way that no f e e l i n o o f inferiority may develop in them, the Home Bureau o f the He°
brew Sheltering Guardian Society has offered its service at cost to
self-respecting wage-earning parents. Labor groups and benevo
lent orders have been rather impatient with private philanthropy
and have frequently started their own social service. They are the inbetween group who suffer through their very self-respect; they are
not rich enough to hire specialists nor yet poor enough to accept
their services gratis. The labor groups have, therefore, taxed them
selves in order to provide at cost medical service, convalescent serv
ice, and recreation, and more than one labor group and benevolent
order are planning national orphan asylums. The labor group has
51

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

a rich field available among its own membership for the placement
o f children o f workingmen in the homes o f brother workingmen.
The home o f a mechanic is a very satisfactory place for children.
His work is likely to be continuous, his wage is steady, his stand
ard o f living is regular. He rarely looks for relief o f any sort,
and he makes the backbone o f society. His home is a simple, health
ful, normal environment, and his children can go as far as their
own abilities and the opportunities available in the community will
take them.
Children’s agencies should help educate self-respecting workers to
take care o f the dependents o f their own group; to show them that
high-grade supervision o f children in foster homes is worth paying
for; and until they are ready to do it for themselves, using modern
methods, to offer such service to them at cost. Show the working
father that placement of his children in a supervised home is a form
o f protection for the children as well as for himself. The fact that
this service is supplied at cost for the child whose parent can support
him will react favorably both upon the parent and upon the so-called
dependent child, for no distinction should be made between the types.
o f homes offered to the children who are charges o f the agency and to
those paid for by their parents. Neither should there be any dif
ference in the kind of clothing supplied them, even though the
parents’ rate include the cost o f clothing.
FOSTERING THE CHILD’S SELF-RESPECT.

How many child-caring agencies realize how much a child’s ap
pearance means to him in the fostering o f his self-respect and in
dividuality? The old method was to bring the child, ragged and
dirty, to the foster home, in the hope o f arousing the pity o f the
foster mother for the “ poor orphan” and so persuading her to keep
him. That is psychologically wrong. It breeds the idea that “ any
thing is good enough for the poor orphan.” I f instead, the child is
bathed and clothed from head to foot in new clothing which he, him
self, approves and is proud of, before he is taken into his foster home,
the agency has gone a long way toward engendering respect for the
child on the part o f the foster mother.
It is not an unnecessary and foolish thing to spend time and money
on trifles for birthday presents. The little gift from the office o f the
agency means much to the foster child, and it is well, repaid. It calls
the attention o f the foster parents to the important fact that another
year has passed in the life o f the child, and they can hardly help
taking some cognizance o f that fact themselves. It brings the same
message to the child’s own parents, who in their misery may have
overlooked this seemingly unimportant event.

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THE C H IU ) IN TH E BOARDING H OM E.

Workers with dependent groups frequently lack the ability to make
the dependent” retain something o f the feeling o f independence and
ownership which every human being is entitled to have. The re
lationship between the agency and the child is artificial at best; but
the child-placing agency can come nearer to offering the child a
normal environment than can the institution, and can more easily
avoid the danger o f total pauperization o f the individual. In the
home children learn, as children should, the value and cost o f things,
the facts o f life and death, joy and sorrow. Even private schools
are introducing make-believe stores and letting little children wash
dishes, cook, set the table, and so on. Is it not more healthful for the
children to get this experience in a natural rather than an artificial
way? In a foster home where the mother usually does all her own
housework, Irene is sent to the store knowing that she must get from
the butcher a chicken weighing just 3 pounds for Friday night’s
supper and how much Auntie can afford to spend on it. “ She has
seen tired eyes bent over the mending basket. She knows where the
patches and buttons come from, and she has seen Auntie’s old skirt
suddenly changed into a beautiful new middy blouse for herself.
She has seen Uncle make a cover for a chair that was worn out, from
a remnant that cost only thirty-nine cents.” Adele and Ethel learn
all the nice little amenities that are expected in the family. They
go visiting with grandma and are sure that her daughter has the
cunningest baby in the world.” They know when to send New
Year’s greetings, how to go visiting alone, and how to save and spend
money. Also, when grandma’s back aches after a particularly try
ing wash day each tries to get there first and spare her from bend
ing over to unlace her shoes. No matter how short a child’s stay is
in a foster home, for that period he or she must be a recognized mem
ber o f the family.
THE CHILD’S PARENTS AND THE FOSTER HOME.

The supreme importance o f the natural tie between parent and
child is often overlooked in work for dependent children. The
worker earnestly interested in helping the child may see as a neurotic
or apparently worthless individual the parent whom the child
reveres as the wisest and best person in the world. This reverence
for parents is in a sense an egotistic instinct; i f a child’s parents
are worthless, so, he may feel, is he. His own self-respect is tied
up with the feeling that his parents are “ all right ” ; and disregard
o f the child’s attitude may do him an irreparable injury. A special
effort should therefore be made to maintain close connection between i
the child, the foster parents, and the child’s own parents.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

Rose, an attractive child, was placed in the home o f a childless
woman. No one could have received better care than did Rose
in this home, yet the arrangement did not work. The foster mother,
with no children o f her own, yearned for the love o f a child. She
knew that Rose had no mother, and took her for that reason. But
Rose had given to her father the love due both parents. She ap
preciated her new home and tried to respond to the foster mother.
Her father, in an effort to cooperate, visited her less frequently,
but instead o f matters growing better, they grew worse. A real
antagonism developed, and yet Rose herself could not tell the
cause. W hy not capitalize that love of Rose for her father and
make it a real power for good and progress? Place Rose with a
woman who has children o f her own, who lives very near the
father and who is willing to have the father visit her home daily,
if he so desires. This was done, and the child not only showed
the same affection for her father but in her great joy had more than
enough to share with the foster family.
An agency must make a special effort to counteract the natural ten
dency of the foster mother to belittle the parent who has failed. The
worker may attempt to interest the foster mother in a child’s neurotic
mother by explaining that perhaps she and the visitor herself
would have done no better had they experienced all the strain that
this woman had to live through before parting with her child;
or she may suggest that a father seems uninterested only because he is
ashamed that he can not do the things he would like to do for
his child. The agency should strive to make the father realize that
what his little girl needs and what no one else can supply is the
knowledge that he remembers and cares for her. The agency may
tell him: “ Your little girl is properly clothed and fed, she re
ceives good medical care and all things needful that money can
buy. But it is you that she wants, and a little gift from you cost
ing only a few pennies will make her happy because you have
remembered her.” The agency will be repaid tenfold for keeping
up the interest of the parent in the child and that o f the child in
the parent. A growing association between parent and visitor,
constant interpretation o f the parent to the foster mother and of
the child to the parent, and above all respect for the natural rela
tionship between parent and child—these are matters o f the greatest
importance in proper placement.
THE ATYPICAL CHILD.

Most placed-out children have been through tragic experiences;
so when one talks of “ the normal home for the normal child ” it is
necessary to stop and ask what constitutes the normal child and the
normal home. Certainly almost everybody, and perhaps to a greater

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TH E CHILD IK THE BOARDING H OM E.

degree than the average every one of the placed-out children, has
kinks in his personality that need straightening out. The question,
then, is what can the normal home do for the child who is atypical
in his social experience and in his physical and mental development?
Ih e normal boarding home can do and has done much for the
physically retarded child. The foster mother understands orders
in regard to physical care and regulation of diet and habits. In my
experience the foster mothers have taken for granted that they them
selves will care for the children in all illnesses except contagious
diseases and very severe diseases, such as pneumonia. Is it fair to
talk about “ the commercial foster mother ” ?
Only a beginning has been made, however, in helping the mentally
handicapped child. Yet it can be understood that the emotionally
unstable or mentally retarded child would find life even more diffi
cult in a large group than in a family, unless in a highly specialized
environment. The psychiatrist who has made a study of about 50
such children formally under the care of the home bureau has been
impressed with the “ marked physical improvement o f these children
under foster-home care ” but also with “ the marked lack o f improve
ment in regard to emotional control under the same care,” He says
that “ it is asking too much of a retarded or unstable child to sit
through five hours of mental work a day. After five hours of strain
* * * he is bound to be a source o f trial and annoyance to
foster mother, neighbors, and playmates. I f the mental activities of
the emotionally unstable child were to be combined with rest periods,
manual work, and play, the normal home might do the rest.”
But the suggestions of the psychiatrist can not be carried out by
an agency without the cooperation o f the school system. The schools
o f New York are doing much to help children with special problems.
For “ cardiacs ” all stair climbing is avoided, and there are rest
periods, mid-morning lunch and dinner served at the school, and con
stant physical examination. For the child o f limited vision, sightconservation classes are provided. These are steps in the right
direction. The physical problems are more tangible, but the needs
o f the emotionally unstable child are none the less serious.
For one group of maladjusted children, help has already been
given. Educators are beginning to realize that a child who day after
day endures the ignominy o f sitting in a class with much younger
children, is apt to have “ a chip on his shoulder.” To-day, in New
York City, it is possible to place such a girl or boy in a vocational
class that has its headquarters in a high school, where all association
will be with girls and boys of the same age. Academic subjects are
taught this group for only a short period each 'day, and their manual
work is shared with the high-school children. This program has
more than once changed a troublesome girl or boy into an attractive

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

one. But these facilities for the extremely retarded and the defec
tive child can not help the neurotic or the’ superbright child, and
these children also must have opportunities provided to suit their
special needs.
Some time ago Reuben was brought to the agency by his father,
a workingman, merely because he was a bad boy and the father
could not manage him, although his older brother got along well.
Reuben had heart trouble; but in his father’s opinion that was only
a minor matter, and he had been given treatment at clinics only about
once a year. Mr. K was surprised when the agency went out of
its way to find a home for Reuben where he would not have stairs
to climb and where his diet would be supervised, and to enroll him
in a school where he could try out various vocational subjects in
addition to his school work. “ W hy,” said he, “ do you take so
much interest in my child? You are nothing to him, and I, his
father, am ignorant o f all these things.” The boy is now self-sup
porting in part. Two years ago Mr. K would have looked forward to
the time when Reuben could come home and help support the fam
ily ; but he has been educated to understand that the child, not him
self, should have first consideration, and now asks that Reuben be left
where he is, despite the fact that he will probably have to help pay
the boy’s expenses.
It took three foster mothers and one visitor to help George grow
up. George came to the agency at the age o f 1 2 , having been dis
charged from a hospital for the tuberculous where he had
spent seven years. Through growing up in this abnormal environ
ment he had become a source o f annoyance and disturbance, at first
overpetted and then disciplined. A t 12 he was bright, quick-tem
pered, cruel to younger boys, and yet almost invariably loved by
the adults who knew him. He was handicapped by a glass eye and
two shortened fingers, the results of playing with a shell; and he
wore a brace because of a tuberculous hip. What wonder that people
felt sorry for “ poor Georgie ” and were inclined to pet him. But
his foster mother, though no less sorry for the boy, realized his ten
dency to self-pity and adopted a different attitude. All through
the period that he spent in her home, both she and the visitor o f
the agency impressed upon him that he could make good like other
boys, but he would have to make more effort and show that he had
more ability; and if he failed it would not be because he was phy
sically handicapped but because he had not the mental power nor
the stamina to make the effort.
Stimulated by this treatment, George showed great improvement
and he was then placed in a home where his further special educa
tion could be considered. When at the age o f 15 he entered high
school, so well had he overcome any tendency to self-pity that he

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TH E CHILD IN TH E BOARDING H OM E.

made the baseball team—brace and alL He is now taking a special
agricultural course, which seemed the best thing for him and to
which he was attracted. Before being entered for the full three-year
course he was sent fo r a six weeks’ vocational test and his teachers
found him a very apt pupil. Each o f the three homes in which he
has lived has been a factor in his life, and his foster mothers take
the place o f a family o f his own. He visits each foster home, but
does not make comparisons among them. They are all his homes,
and for each he has a “ soft spot.”
THE USE OF A TEMPORARY HOME.

Many replacements might be avoided if the responsible agencies
made themselves thoroughly familiar with the children and their
families and also placed the children temporarily in observation
homes. By observation home is meant not a temporary shelter with
a mation in charge but a boarding home with a woman who knows
how to receive strange children, who during their stay with her can
interpret them to the visitor, and who can explain to the children
what is going to happen to them and prepare them for placement.
Temporary placement in an observation boarding home is much
more satisfactory than immediate placement in a new home with a
woman who very naturally expects from the child an expression of
affection which he can not give while the wound of separation from
his own home is still fresh. The observation boarding home is far
preferable to the shelter or diagnostic cottage in that the child is living in the community, going to a public school, and mingling with
other children o f the neighborhood, much as he will do when finally
placed. And a better opinion can be formed as to the sort o f ad
justment he is likely to make in any given environment.
From this observation home the child may “ go on a visit,” osten
sibly to spend a week-end with friends o f the agency’s worker, and
if he is returned to the temporary home he is spared the feeling that
the new home did not want him. After such a visit, the foster
mother is approached and the child is talked with separately. Even
when it does not seem advisable to make the placement, the child
has almost always enjoyed his visit. The foster mother, though she
may decide that the child is not the one she wants, will enter into the
spirit of entertaining a guest and will make the few days happy ones.
I f this method is used the child will not look on changes as terrible
experiences, and the foster mother will be quite ready to try again.
THE VISITOR’S FUNCTION.

The importance o f the personality of the agency’s visitor can not
be overemphasized. The visitor has the opportunity, to make or
mar a child’s environment. Is she an “ investigator ” from whom

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POSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

the foster mother feels she must hide things, or is she a friend ? One
visitor had left the staff o f the home bureau, and when the new one
came to Mrs. X she was greeted w i t h - “ W e are so glad to see you.
Miss E meant so much to us. W e could tell her everything, and she
brought us news from the outside world—told us o f some o f the mis
takes and successes o f the other foster mothers. W e hope you wi
come often and be as good a friend.” This is a long way rom e
old idea of the u snooping investigator.”
. . . .
Close cooperation between foster mother and her visitor is a mat
ter o f growth. Giving orders will not bring it to pass. Let the
foster mother have a chance to make an idea a part o f herself; only
so can it be made certain that she will accept suggestions. Does not
any one feel better about carrying out an idea when it seems to be
all his own, even though it has really originated elsewhere? Ih e
tactful visitor drops a suggestion and at her next visit the foster
mother tells o f a new idea she is working out.
Perhaps the best word to sum up the visitor’s function is inter
preter.” It is her function to interpret the child, to the foster
parent, the parent, and the teacher, and to interpret the parent to
the foster parent and the child. For this it is necessary, first, to
have available detailed information as to the conditions leading to
the separation of child and parent, and second, to be amply en
dowed with human understanding and imagination.
Frequently the visitor makes the mistake o f trying to do every
thing .for the child herself. Things should be done for the child
through the foster mother as far as possible. I f the child is to be
brought to the office for examination or taken to the hospital the
foster mother should do it, unless she can not possibly leave her
home. Suggestions as to the child’s care and training can be made
sometimes to the foster parents and sometimes to the parents.
THE ATTITUDE TOWARD BOARDING HOMES.

The agency must not diminish its efforts to change the point of
view o f the community toward boarding out, if the plan o f child
care in foster homes is to be promoted. The notion is still prevalent
that a foster mother who receives pay is either in dire need or so
mercenary that she would starve the bodies o f the little dependents.
Can it be wondered, then, that many a woman who might be inter
ested in becoming a foster mother keeps that fact to herself? One
woman said, “ I would like to take a child, but my husband says
that people will think he can not support me.”
One foster mother had lost two babies in the old country. She
had always missed them but had never thought o f taking a child
into her home. She could not adopt one and would not board one

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THE CHILD IN THE BOARDING H OM E.

because it was not considered the ‘‘ nice ” thing to do. Yet she was
really anxious to care for a child and had much to offer one. Because
o f this misunderstanding, years passed before a child had the benefit
o f her home. Recently she saw one of the boarded children in the
home o f a friend whom she respected very much. She has now
taken a little boy. How she wishes she had done it years a go!
Another foster mother exclaimed: “ W hy didn’t the home bureau
make me understand it 15 years ago ? ”
Much has been said about the difference between free homes and
boarding homes. The popular idea that all boarding mothers are
commercial and all mothers who offer free homes angelic, is a grave
hindrance to child-placing agencies. The plan o f placing children
in boarding homes suffers because this wrong idea in the community
makes it more difficult to attract the right sort of foster mother.
On the other hand, the easy acceptance of a free home because it
is a free home is more likely to be detrimental to the child. After
all, motives are mixed. The foster mother who frankly says that
she can use the money may realize the obligation she has assumed
as clearly as the one who offers a free home, and may be just as
much interested in the child’s welfare and just as kindly. The
woman who says she simply wants to give a child a home may also
have a measure o f self-interest. Whether with free homes or with
boarding homes the questions to be decided are: What is the per
sonality of the foster mother ? What is the family make-up ? What
are her own children like? What do the friends and neighbors
think o f the family ? Whether the woman is paid or not is imma
terial. The aim must be to secure a good foster home, and then
make satisfactory adjustments. But it is undoubtedly a little easier
for an agency to supervise and give instructions to the foster mother
i f she receives some remuneration than if she offers a free home.
The foster mothers should be told that they, as well as the agency’s
staff, are paid workers; theirs is in a larger sense a voluntary
service without which the agency’s work would be lost. The foster
mothers come to the office of the agency to get things that belong
to the children, and the agency serves them on behalf of the children.
I f they have had any feeling of shame about boarding the children
their attitude will change, and they will become willing to interest
members o f their own families— as well as lodges and sisterhoods—
in the matter and thus become the greatest sources o f assistance
in finding new homes.
The position o f foster mother must be recognized as a dignified
one. Tell the foster mothers and make them feel that they are,
with you, students—coworkers in child- care. Organize the foster
mothers into a league. Do not be afraid o f having them meet
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FOSTER-HOME CASE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

together. You can keep the plane o f the meeting high, and there
need be little worry as to the danger o f petty gossip. Keep them
informed o f general child-welfare activities. Teach them to be
proud, instead o f being ashamed, by making them feel that they
are among the chosen few. “ Just think,” says Mrs. ft, a out of
300 homes offered they use only 50, and mine is one o f the 50!”
Frequently the foster mother remains a factor in the life o f the
child’s family long after the organization has ceased to supervise
the case. Mrs. H , who had not visited the agency for three years,
returned to ask for a child to care for and told o f the two little^
boys who had been in her care five years before. She had visited
them in their home, had explained with great patience to the step
mother things which she had learned about the proper approach
to them, and had been a constant go-between for the children and
the stepmother. In fact, she. had been doing case work o f a high
type without either pay or recognition. I f such interest can be
nurtured in foster mothers the agency ceases to do merely a child
placing job and becomes a source o f unending helpfulness in the
community.
RAISING THE STANDARDS OF THE FOSTER HOME.

To many foster mothers the periodic mental, dental, and physical
examinations seem at first unnecessary. One foster mother put
it thus: “ When my children were young, I took them to a doctor
when they were sick, to the dentist when they had a toothache.
You tell me to bring these children to the doctor whether they are
sick or well. Even if they are not thin, you keep on weighing them.
You send them to the dentist whether they have a toothache or
not.” But in her expression was a respect for the newer method,
and she added: “ I wish someone had told me to do these things
for my own children.”
Mrs. B was no longer very young when she took Sylvia into her
home. Sylvia’s mother was tuberculous and Mrs. B was very glad to
take Sylvia to see her regularly and to help make the mother’s last
days happy. When she realized that the mother’s days were num
bered, she promised that the child should always have a home with
her. Her home offered wholesome food and good outdoor life in a
community which had excellent school facilities, but it was so woe
fully old-fashioned that an American child growing up in it would
soon become ashamed of it. The visitor began to explain the need
o f attractive surroundings—rugs, curtains, and the other little things
that would help make it more o f a home to Sylvia* Now that the
foster mother had a little girl— a thing she had never hoped to have—
she began to look forward to having her own home instead o f simply

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TH E CHILD IN' TH E BOARDING H OM E.

putting more o f her husband’s earnings into the bank, and to-day
she has one o f‘the most attractive homes in the suburban community
in which jshe lives. Sylvia has a piano, and on her last birthday she
was proud to invite the girls in the neighborhood to her party. So
tactfully was this change brought about that the foster mother will
probably never suspect that the visitor was in any sense a factor.
It is best that the boarding homes should be homes that have not
been wrecked by disease or destitution. Aside from the fact that the
payments for board are likely to cover little more than cost and that
it would be dangerous to use a home that had not an adequate budget
for its own needs, there is the more important objection that the
child would be removed from one abnormal situation merely to be
injected into another. His stay under the supervision o f the agency
should be in a home that is intact and has normal relationships.
Child-caring agencies are inclined to overlook the opportunity
available to them to become educational factors in the community
through their influence over the foster mother and her friends.
THE RIGHT USE OF PUBLICITY.

The right kind o f publicity will not stop with the foster mother,
borne day, if not to-day, the work o f the agency will need the backing
o f the community; and this will be lacking unless a foundation had
been laid by means o f the right kind o f publicity. One organization
running with a deficit felt sure that the churches would come to the
rescue. The churches did not come to the rescue—because no one
had told them o f the work the agency was doing. There seems to be
little doubt that social service requires publicity. It would be a pity,
however, if all the publicity were centered on the raising o f funds.
The entire publicity program should center, instead, around the
spreading o f an idea. Make the stories live so that every newspaper
will carry them, and you will awaken the type o f interest that can be
used later in placing children. An agency that is busy placing chil
dren in homes and certain that this is the better method, often fails
to realize how very little interest the general public takes in the work
it is doing. Almost everyone has known children who had to be
taken from their own homes. But few know what becomes o f these
children, or have given any thought to the question of-what would
be the best way o f caring for them.
The value o f publicity should not be measured merely by the
amount o f money subscribed or the number o f homes offered as a
result o f it. There is another reason for publicity besides spread
ing the idea o f foster-home care. Taking care o f a child may be
an ordinary boarding job, or it may become a stimulating experience
to a woman who as housewife has few contacts with the outside

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

world; and the agency’s publicity work will be a way o f adding to
that stimulus. Even if the newspaper stories were read by no one
outside the agency’s own foster-mother group, the effort expended
would be well repaid. Such articles give each foster-mother a feel
ing that she is part o f a large program. They should therefore be
sent to the local papers, so that the foster mothers will be on the
lookout for them and will clip them and show them to friends. The
interest aroused will be reflected in a finer attitude in the homes and
in better standards o f care.
SUCCESSFUL PLACEMENT.

What constitutes a good placement? Does it mean sending a child
to a beautiful home with up-to-date physical facilities and foster par
ents who are socially and economically in better than average circum
stances?- Not necessarily. A child who is not very bright should
be placed in a simple home with good people who do not make many
demands on life and will not expect too much of him. It means a
great deal to a child o f this sort to be with people who think his
remarks bright and who will encourage his limited mentality instead
of discouraging him by over-stimulation and over-expectation.
The right foster mother and home can be found for almost every
type of child, if the agency only has the facilities to look for them.
Not every foster mother is waiting to get a blue-eyed golden-haired
little girl. Some, if properly approached, will be glad to undertake
a difficult task and share in the pride of success with it.
It was not expected that the home o f Mrs. S would work so well
as it did for Nathan, a boy who came to the bureau at the age o f 9
years. He had a tumor o f the brain and had never gone to school.
After he was placed in a home where he would have individual at
tention and be sent to school it was found that he suffered from
chronic headaches. The home was building him up physically, but
he was getting nowhere in his studies. After a thorough examina
tion, it was concluded that the headaches were simply a defense
on the part o f the child—that the work was too difficult for him.
He was taken out o f school- and placed under the instruction of a
private tutor, who made little effort to give him information but
taught him to concentrate. After three months she felt this end
had been aceomplished and suggested that the boy be returned to
public school on a part-time basis. The school cooperated and per
mitted the boy to attend daily from 1 0 o’clock to 12. A ll went
well until the summer. Nathan was then sent to a suburban foster
home where there were two younger children, with the idea that in
the fall he was to be returned to the city and to the same school.
But the visitor noticed a change in the boy in this vacation home.
The foster mother in the city had been so fearful for his safety that

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TH E CHILD IN' THE BOARDING H OM E.

his own natural fears were accentuated and he did not dare to cross
the street alone, nor to indulge in any games with other children.
Ihe busier foster mother in the country sent him out to play with
her two little children, and he soon became interested in joining other
boys Frequently the foster mother would tell him to watch over
the little ones. When schooltime came this boy who had been be
set by constant fears asked to be permitted to take the little boys
to school. He would have to walk a mile a day in all kinds o f
weather. What should the agency do ? After all, he was still a
child with a tumor. He was brought back for examination to the
hospital where he had had radium treatment for years. The doctor
was pleased with the boy’s self-confidence. His physical condition
was good, and the doctor advised that the chance be taken. A winter3°1f snowstorms llas come and gone, and the child still thrives*
and best o f all, he has a reason for going on, a new faith that he
can do the things that other boys do and that he can help a child
weaker than himself. This accidental success will become a guidepost o f action in similar cases.
Lillian, a little girl of 4, was mentally retarded and, it seemed,
ahnost defective When told to sit, she sat, and sat until she was
told to stand. She neither spoke nor asked for food. She seemed
hopeless. She had an insane mother and a feeble-minded father.
The psychiatrist thought it hardly fair to class as defective a child
who had never had an opportunity in normal environment. The
home available afforded no special'type o f care; but it offered good
food and a clean bed, and the foster mother showed a most kindly
interest and willingness to cooperate, which were, perhaps, the big
gest factors m the situation. To-day the little girl is attractive
alert, bright-eyed, and doing well in school and at home.
The problem o f children whose care has fallen upon the State or a
private agency can not be solved happily for them until society re
alizes its obligations to these dependent children. In Dorothy’s
case, perhaps, has been achieved what is ardently hoped for in every
placement but rarely attained. Dorothy is a part of the family the
school, and the town in which she lives. She gives and goes to par
ties; she is on the programs of entertainments; she knows when the
rent is due. She quarrels with her foster sisters and brothers and
saves her pennies to buy them presents. And no one tries to hide the
fact that Dorothy came “ from a society.” . The visitor is introduced
to neighbors and friends as u the lady who comes to see Dorothy.”
The whole relationship is simple and natural. No attempt is made
to cover up Dorothy’s past as something out of the way. It is ac
cepted, and so is Dorothy. For her, “ no make-believe^, society no
make-believe family, no make-believe virtues, but real familv real
society, real life.”
V

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SPECIAL PROBLEMS INVOLVED IN FOSTER-HOME CARE.
L eon W . F

eost,

S ecreta ry , Children’s A id S o ciety o f D etr o it .

In this paper it is proposed to confine the discussion definitely to
a few essential features o f the process involved in placement of
children in temporary boarding homes. This will include reference
to limiting intake by means o f adequate case work, the functions of
a case-working department, the selection and preparation of board
ing homes, the necessity for adequate records, the basis o f the divi|sion o f work in a large agency, and a few other related matters.
What is applicable as a method o f procedure in one locality may
ik ®
suitable in another. Child-caring societies are ordinarily
found to reflect to a large extent the community in which they oper
ate. Standards are usually only as high as the public demands; an
active and intelligent board o f directors is therefore o f fundamental
importance. But the fact that social vision and a high degree o f in
telligence are lacking in the board o f directors is no reason in itself
why the standards and methods o f an agency should lag, nor is it
necessary if the social consciousness o f a community is undeveloped
or at low ebb that the agency should reflect this attitude.
INTERPRETING CHILD-CARING WORK TO THE COMMUNITY.

The child-caring society is not functioning properly i f it does not
take into account its own responsibility for molding public opinion.
The awakening o f the community is entirely possible through a
gradual but well thought out and unsensational plan o f action ex
tending over the entire period o f the life o f the individual agency.
No reference is now being made to campaigns for raising funds
an immense problem in itself, which must be met by means adapted
to the psychology o f the people one is attempting to interest. Rather
the year-round program o f education o f the community as to the
problems o f a child-caring agency should be in mind. The once-ayear campaign o f education for fund raising is certainly not suf
ficient, nor is the occasional story chosen for its melodramatic side
lights going to put the child-caring organization in proper touch
with the community. The interpretation must be dignified (and
by this is not meant a dry ” ), illuminative, and continuous. The
whole problem o f interpreting child-caring work rightly and con65

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

sistently is vital, and comparatively few of the existing agencies
make full use o f their resources in this field.
The appeal for support is very likely to be sensational in char
acter, and many agencies have been content to allow public opinion
to regard their work in such light. This may prove a boomerang,
for public confidence gained through emotionalism and untempered
by real understanding is difficult to maintain or to reestablish once
the emotional appeal diminishes. The loss is tangible and can be
prevented. It must be kept in mind that all social work does not
center in the child-caring agency. The work of the society is an
important part o f a social program, it is true, but still only a part,
and the publicity program must be of such a nature that the com
munity will see the society in a properly balanced relation and
with the right perspective. Child-caring agencies have too fre-'
quently sinned in this respect. The society can not interpret its
work to the community unless it understands its relation to other
forces. Has the staff really assimilated the problems of the society,
or is each member just doing his or her specialized job? Does
each member o f the staff thoroughly know and understand the sig
nificance of other social agencies of the community, and their rela
tion to his own society? Has each a real conception of the com
munity and its social resources as a whole and an idea o f relative
values? Is the staff itself working in circles? Is the organiza
tion as a whole able to interpret itself to the community ?
NEED FOR CENTRALIZING RESPONSIBILITY.

A society doing child-welfare work from the case-work standpoint
usually develops out of local conditions, and consequently all types
o f organization are extant among such societies. It seems desirable,
whenever the work is o f great enough scope to warrant it, to have at
least two rather distinct departments. The first department should
be responsible for all family case work done by the society, and as
such should control all intake and all releases, since accepting chil
dren for care outside their own families is family case work of a most
important type. The second department should specialize in the
job o f caring for the children that have been accepted by the society
for either temporary or “ permanent ” care. There are numerous
advantages in having a society so organized, and there are no serious
objections except when the small size o f an agency makes such a
division o f duties impractical.
Any organization or business doing effective work must be able to
centralize or place responsibility. Certainly this is the case in childcaring societies, where every detail must be given careful consider
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SPECIAL PROBLEMS INVOLVED IN FOSTER-HOME CARE.

ation. In order to approximate good results, the organization must
be so ordered that an individual is made responsible for each par
ticular phase o f the work.
I f the two distinct departments mentioned are postulated, all family case work should be handled exclusively in one o f them. This is
important for a number of reasons. In the first place, child-caring
societies having high standards o f case work always attempt to make
the natural home o f the child suitable, rather than remove the child
to a temporary new home. This policy is based upon sound and
fundamental principles. A child’s own home, if conditions can be
made safe, is better for him than a boarding home. I f good case
work seems to warrant a temporary removal, efforts are then directed
toward building up the natural home so that the child may be re
turned to it. This end should be consistently worked toward wher
ever possible, with careful consideration o f the interests o f the child
himself, the family, and the community. The reestablishment o f the
child’s own home can be accomplished best by a family case worker
who is enabled to give her entire time and attention to this sort o f
work. The danger o f narrow specialization can be offset by so organ
izing the agency that every member o f the staff may become ac
quainted with the duties and functions o f every other member.
LIMITING INTAKE THROUGH CASE-WORK METHODS.

These considerations lead logically to a subject which is con
stantly being more and more emphasized in child-caring societies—
namely, regulating intake through case work. It is easy to succumb
to the fallacy of judging the importance o f a society by the number
o f children in its care, or to the temptation to reduce per capita costs
by swelling the number o f charges. This perhaps makes “ g o o d ”
publicity, but what o f the child? By intelligent planning, a thoroughly high-grade family case-work department can do much to
stop unnecessary infiltration. Divided duties and functions, of
course, lead directly to a division o f time. A worker who must
divide her time between family case work and child-caring work is
a specialist in neither, and, in general, expert service can not be ex
pected o f her.
INVESTIGATION AND RECORDS.

A discussion o f what constitutes good case work with families
would be out o f place here; information on this subject is available
to those who wish to obtain it. But the point o f view o f the child
caring agency is just a little different from that of the average
case-work agency, and it may be o f some value to bring out a few
o f the factors involved.

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FOSTER-HOME GABE FOB DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

It is assumed that full face-sheet information will be obtained
in every possible case, as well as all information for other essential
forms1 used in child-caring work.
It is more especially the material which goes into the chrono
logical case record that needs to be considered. The steps and
general plan employed in working on each family case in a certain
child-caring agency are outlined below. It is not intended to offer
any extended brief for this particular plan, and very possibly it
would not be suitable for all child-caring agencies. From experi
ence it was found that, given a number o f case workers, varied points
o f view would be reflected in the records. Certain workers tended
to emphasize one phase, and the records o f others were apt to be
more complete on other types o f information. In order to secure
greater uniformity o f method it was found advisable to require that
the information gathered in all first investigations be dictated,
arranged, and numbered after the following plan:

Procedure for Investigation.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

B rief description o f type o f family.
B rief description of conditions in the home.
Statement of man (facts bearing on situation).
Statement of woman (facts hearing on situation).
W h y man or woman really applied for help. (W a s pressure
brought to bear on them by other agency or individuals?)
6. H ealth : State, in detail, any physical disability. Name of
doctor or hospital caring for man, woman, children. Give
reports from doctors, hospitals, clinics, etc.
7. D eb ts: Dates debts were contracted; dates of payments on
sam e; dates due and amounts of present unpaid balances.
8. Family budget in detail, showing income and approximate nor
mal or necessary expenditures.
9. School reports o f children.

The instructions were that if any enumerated point was not
covered by the investigation, or if it was impossible or impracticable
to make a search at the time for this information, the explanation
was to be given under the proper number. In all cases the regular
chronological case-history sheets were to show this numbering, so
that it would at once be obvious if any point was not covered. The
nine points were considered only an irreducible minimum; it was
not assumed that the case worker would be satisfied with so simple
an investigation as this plan provided for.
Under this system the supervisor of case work is provided, very
early in the history o f the case, with a concrete statement o f the
assumptions upon which the representative o f the society is working.
1 A n excellent collection o f these form s has been prepared by the Child W elfare League
o f America. (130 E ast 22d Street, New Y ork) and samples are supplied by the league upon
request.

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SPECIAL PROBLEMS INVOLVED IN FOSTER-HOME CARE.

As soon as possible after certain other supplementary information
has been obtained, the case worker is required to state in the record ~
what plan she is following. In the left-hand margin o f the form
used the word “ plan” appears in capital letters. As this plan is
modified on the basis o f subsequent information, a statement o f
the new plan is added, the words “ revised p la n ” being written
opposite it in the margin. The purpose o f this is obvious. In the
first place the supervisor can be sure that the case worker is work
ing toward a definite end; and at any time it can be assumed that
the latest plan stated is still being followed. Careful constructive
criticism is made with a minimum expenditure o f time and effort,
and unworkable or ill-advised plans o f case workers can be caught
early in the history of the case. The fact that a worker must
definitely state what her intentions are tends ta clarify her thinking, particularly in complicated family problems. A ll too fre- —
quently the young worker believes that she is doing a good piece
o f work when she is merely piling up in her chronological record
a mass o f more or less disconnected facts which may or may not
have signal bearing on her problem.
This procedure in the case records is followed by summaries made
usually at six-month intervals, especially where the case is a “ heavy ”
or complicated one. These summaries are o f a simple character
and in the following form :
1
F ir s t

su m m a ry:

1. Problem.
2. Status at first contact
3. Treatm ent
S econ d s u m m a r y :

1.
2.
3.
4.

Problem.
Status at first contact
Later developments.
Treatment.

F in a l su m m a ry :

1.
2.
3.
4.

Problem.
Status at first contact
Diagnosis.
Treatment

The time required for the preliminary study varies, o f course
m different types of cases; this point can best be determined bv
each agency on the basis o f the type o f cases being handled.
A ll this work justified itself only if it assists to better knowledge
o f individual cases. By some such procedure considerable limita
tion o f intake and the return o f many children from boardinghome care to their natural homes should be found possible. Thej
return o f children to their own homes when conditions permit is
perhaps one of the easiest matters to neglect, particularly i f the
parent or parents make themselves inconspicuous by prompt paving
o f all bills.
J s

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

Even with the best theoretical safeguards, through pressure of
work errors of omission will occasionally occur. The monthly
statistical report required o f each case worker seems the-best op
portunity for the check-up. For this purpose a printed form is
used, with a space at the left-hand side to list alphabetically on the
first of each month all active cases the individual worker has in hand.
At the right are columns to list calls, letters written, and so forth.
As each piece o f work on a case is done it is checked in the p'roper
column, from the field notebook, as soon as the worker returns for
her office work. By totaling at the end of the month, the report
may be completed in a very short space of time. On the reverse
side o f this -sheet should be listed all cases which have not been
worked on during the month just completed, with the date of the
last dictation on each. I f because of pressure of work or for any
other reason no work has been done on an “ active ” case during
the current month, it is certain that the individual case worker using
this system will be fully aware o f that fact, as she has to examine
the chronological record in order to. ascertain the date o f last dic
tation.
In the child-caring department forms which are modifications
o f those just described are used with equally satisfactory results, to
safeguard the children in boarding homes. Each child should be
considered by the agency as an individual and should have his own
complete separate record. He should be studied and his actions
noted in his individual record as carefully as possible. The case
worker for children should enter facts in the record and try to keep
out her personal feelings. She is not a mental diagnostician and is
not supposed to be one, although she must attempt to anticipate
the need for mental diagnosis and secure it whenever it seems de
sirable.
At this point it may be mentioned that the case record o f each
child bears the same number as does the case record o f the child’s
family. In a large organization this has a certain advantage. For
instance, if three children are accepted from one family each child’s
record bears the family case record number. I f one child is released
from the boarding home of the agency the contents o f this par
ticular child’s file are clipped together and placed in the back o f the
family file. I f the child is readmitted, his previous file is then
taken from the back of the family file and follows him again, while
he is in the agency’s boarding home. Thus the child-caring depart
ment always has the former record o f its experiences with the indi
vidual and from the date of the child’s readmission can continue his
care on the basis o f such knowledge o f the case. When all children
from one family are finally released, the worker in the family case
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SPECIAL PROBLEMS INVOLVED IN FOSTER-HOME CARE.

work department has this cumulative knowledge o f the children in
volved at her disposal, and she is the one who must now utilize this
information.
THE FUNCTION OF THE CASE-WORK DEPARTMENT.

It may prove of some interest to present a list o f the services
performed by the case-work department, or department o f investi
gation and advice. This is at best simply experimental; from time
to time new services and possibilities are noted as being proper
functions o f this department. Each case worker is supplied with
such a list having blank spaces under each general classification.
As she discovers new possibilities for helpful work in the com
munity m her regular line o f duties she notes them, and new lists,
including these additions, are occasionally made and distributed to
the case workers. The purpose of this is to furnish new impetus to
the individual’s work in the field and particularly to answer the
question o f the new staff member, “ What else can I do?” It is also
o f value in answering the questions o f interested people as to what
a case-work department o f a child-caring society can do other than
merely to “ investigate” people and their conditions o f living. So
far, the varied services of this department have been listed under
eight general headings, about as follows: ( 1 ) Physical treatment:
Hospital or sanatorium, dispensary, private physicians, clinic treat
ment (type), examination (type). ( 2 ) Employment secured:
Temporary; permanent. (3) Education: Secured special or vo
cational training; secured instruction in household economics or in
sewing; children kept in school beyond working age; home reading
encouraged (results). ( 4 ) Recreation: Fresh-air care ; day outings;
cultural opportunities afforded; recreational opportunities afforded!
(5) Material relief: Boarding-home care given (free or partially
free ; terms made) ; household goods obtained ; food obtained ; cloth
ing obtained. ( 6 ) Legal aid: Nonsupport ; search for deserter*
support order obtained; juvenile-court action; other court action;
reference to Legal A id Society; special lawyers recommended; ad
vice regarding separate maintenance. (7) Placing o f adults5 and
children: Temporary shelter for children; permanent care through
the society; children boarded out; day-nursery care secured; in
stitutional care for adults; institutional care for children. ( 8 )
General improvement o f conditions : Connections with relatives
strengthened; church connections strengthened; friendly visitor
obtained; sanitary or housing conditions reported for correction;
transportation to other localities obtained; removal to better home
in city; home reestablished.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE POE DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

WORK WITH THE CHILD IN HIS OWN HOME.

As has been stated, all cases originate and are handled in the case
work department. A ll children accepted for care in boarding homes
are accepted there. The same department is made responsible for
the return o f children to their own homes, and it is the special job
o f this department to get the children back into their natural homes
just as soon as good case-work principles permit. Therefore, a
family case record always remains “ active ” until the child is re
leased from the boarding-home care o f the society. Even after the
return o f the child to his natural home, the case remains open if
further work is to be done either with the child or with the adult.
The work with the individual child in his own home is done by the
family case worker who had and continues to have charge o f the
family. No family case should be closed after a child is released
to go to his natural home until a definite written report from the
child-caring department is in the hands o f the family case-work de
partment. I f the child-caring department recommends further
treatment or supervision o f the child after he leaves the boarding
home, this is assured. I f the recommended treatment is purely
medical and can be advantageously handled by some agency specializ
ing in medical work, a letter in the family file must show that the
problem has definitely been handed over to and accepted by the proper
agency. One can readily see how dangerous would be .the prac
tice o f proceeding differently, especially when a child in a board
ing home has been receiving a series o f treatments still uncompleted
at the time when he leaves the home.
THE BOARDING HOME.

Selecting the home.
The child-caring department should keep a careful chronological
record o f each boarding home, including the full data obtained in
the searching preliminary investigation. This record will certainly
be o f value in making future placements. A detailed outline under
the three headings material, personnel, and social has been found
of considerable value in pointing out some of the essentials to be
considered in choosing and accepting new boarding homes, and it
would be o f particular value in investigating prospective adoption
homes. In this way a picture of the home can be obtained from the
three main angles. I f such an outline is used, lack of information
of an essential character concerning the prospective boarding home
can quickly be noted by the supervisor reviewing the field or by the
committee having charge of the boarding-home situation.
The chronological record o f the boarding home need not be ex
tremely detailed, but it should include such essentials as the names

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SPECIAL PROBLEMS INVOLVED IN POSTER^HOME CARE.

o f the children placed, the terms o f placement, date placed, date removed, and reasons for removal. Comments upon the way various
c lldren were handled in a boarding home are o f value in using the
ome for subsequent placements. Homes caring for special problem
children naturally require fuller records.
Educating the “ boarding mother.”
Since the success o f a child-caring society’s work will ultimately
be made or destroyed according to the type o f work which is done
m the boarding homes, the “ boarding mothers,” as they are called
for want o f a better term, must be carefully linked up with the so
ciety. How to do this most effectively and quickly is worth consid
ering. th e educational process should be started as soon as the
woman makes application to take a child into her home. A t that
time she is enthusiastic, and her enthusiasm should be capitalized
then and there. I f it appears, however, that she is not o f the edu
c a t e type— from the boarding-home point o f view— her applica
tion should not be accepted.
The boarding mother is really a member o f the staff o f the society
and forms a definite link in the chain of the child-caring work. I f
this link is weak, it imperils the whole system. Before handing to
the prospective boarding mother a formal application blank, which
to her will seem to be nothing but red tape, some worker in the
organization should sit down and talk with her in a human, friendly
manner about the problem o f boarding care for children.
When all preliminaries have been completed and the services o f
the boarding mother accepted, the educational work is carried on
by the home visitor o f the child-caring department. The home is
visited before a child is placed in it and at least every two weeks
during the entire period o f its use. The advisability of such fre
quent visits may of course be questioned, but this rule seems to be
more than justified by experience.
In addition to the home visitation carried on by the workers the
educational work with the boarding mothers is furthered by send
ing monthly letters to each. These are written in a personal manner, and are mimeographed and to save expense are sent out with
the monthly checks. The cost o f this service is very slio-ht • its ef
fectiveness is wholly dependent on the way the letters are Written
They should be couched m simple, nontechnical language, and should
be stimulating. An obvious advantage in this plan is that a yearmund program o f education can thus be mapped out in advance.
Each letter is so written as to carry one main idea, which can be
embellished and illustrated in rather telling and personal ways.
The visitors read each letter before it is sent out and then in their
contacts with the boarding mothers take up more in detail the points

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foster - h o m e care for dependent children .

covered. Thus the personal element is stressed, and the foster
mother becomes more closely connected with her organization. It
has been found that the foster mothers, especially in the country
districts, read or show these letters to their friends and neighbors,
and that by this means and through the increased interest of the
foster mothers many new and valuable boarding homes are dis
covered.
The work o f writing the boarding-home letters is centered in the
home-finding department. Greater interest is stimulated by^ asking
for replies and criticisms, a recital o f personal experiences with spe
cial problem children, or discussion of other aspects o f child care.
Frequently when a reply o f a boarding mother seems to be o f general
interest it is quoted in a later letter, proper credit being given. One
country boarding mother recently sent in an essay she had written
and read before her club on u The relation of the child in the home
to the school.” This short essay seemed so much to the point that it was used as the next regular letter. Incidentally, this particular
boarding mother is now doing a very creditable piece of educational
work in her community in interpreting the child-caring organization.
One. obvious danger is that the letters may become merely formal,
talking at the boarding mothers rather than talking with them. The
whole system has to be handled with care and thoughtfulness. “ Lec
tures ” will not be found effective. This is one reason why it is valu
able to quote the boarding mothers themselves at frequent intervals.
They appreciate it, and it makes the service seem more like their own
service.
M aximum number of children per home.

Children should not be placed on the basis of the physical capacity
of the boarding home. Three or four children per home should be
the maximum, and as an individual society obtains a larger number
o f potential homes this maximum may well be reduced, except for
special cases such as those in which it is desirable to keep children of
one family together.
PLACING THE PROBLEM CHILD.

To make successful placement o f the problem child, all the ele
ments o f the situation need even more careful consideration than in
the case o f the normal child. The problem cases include children
who have venereal infections (though in noncontagious stages), those
slightly epileptic, crippled and malformed children; those o f most
unattractive physical appearance (these children easily develop in
feriority complexes), enuretics, the deaf, the blind, or those partially
bJm d ; those with tubercular tendencies, the undernourished, children
oi doubtful mentality, the offspring o f physically degenerate fam
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SPECIAL PROBLEMS INVOLVED IN POSTER-HOME CARE.

ilies, incorrigible children, and those unrestrained in habits and tem
peraments; those with “ immoral ” tendencies, habitual truants, both
from school and from home; those who are exaggeratedly destruc
tive, the “ abnormally ” cruel; those having bad sex habits, etc. All
these types can be, and are being, well cared for in boarding homes.
Extreme patience and understanding are necessary in handling these
difficult cases, and an agency should not excuse itself for failures in
this field but rather frankly recognize them. Child-caring societies
are just coming to a full realization of what can be done for the
problem child through careful placement. A large and constantly
growing literature on the subject is available.
I f much o f definite value is to be accomplished for the problem
child, it is essential that the case-history picture be fairly complete.
The problem child is more than likely to be “ elusive.” From the
standpoint of the child-caring agency it is not enough that the child
is “ understood ” by the individual worker in whose charge he is
placed. There must be a central place of record where the worker
can be checked up and progress noted occasionally. The agency
must be assured that all essential details are being looked into with
regard to the care the child is receiving in the boarding home.
THE STUDY OF THE CHILD’S PROGRESS.

The next essential to consider is the study of the child himself.
Complete physical examinations are, o f course, necessary; mental
examinations also should be given where the need is indicated. The
best type of work can never be done without a thoroughgoing, prac
tical knowledge by the child-caring agency of the child to be placed
and o f his individual peculiarities and needs. In many cases this
knowledge can be gained only after the child has been placed under
care, and through careful observation o f the child’s reactions to the
boarding home selected and to the other new influences to which he
has been subjected.
The question o f what to include in the study o f the child has been
receiving constantly increased attention of late, particularly because
o f the greater use which child-caring organizations are making of
the services o f psychologists and psychiatrists. Experts will not
give opinions without a complete background o f essential facts. It
is clearly the responsibility of the individual agency, then, properly
to note and assemble such information. Merely as an experiment
the following outline was given the workers o f one society with the
idea that it would suggest in a general way the material which might
well be incorporated in the individual child’s record as the record
progressed. It is not supposed to be all-inclusive, and, after all, the
72693°—26---- &

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

records will be largely a result of the training given by the society.
However, the outline offers a basis, and each agency can devise one
which will meet its own particular needs.
W H A T IS YO U R C H ILD —
1. Physically.
2. Mentally.
3. Morally (socially).
P h ysica l.

(1 ) Specific medical attention child has had as to—
(a ) Examinations and tests made. By whom?
(&) Operations advised.
(c ) Operations completed.
(d ) Note in record specific results, if any are noticeable.
(e) Treatments advised.
( f ) W ere they consistently carried out, and with what effect?
(2 ) Physical appearance of child upon admission, during care, and at release.
(a ) Weight. According to standard table, is child normal?
(&) I f below standard, check up periodically and note results.
(c) Height. According to standard table, is child normal?
(d) I f below standard, check up periodically and note results.
(e) General appearance, attractiveness, etc.
(3 ) Personal hygiene.
(а) Note bathing facilities, regularity of baths, etc.
(б ) Keep careful check-up on teeth. I f they are in good condition,
state this from time to time after you have personally exam
ined them.
(c) I f teeth are bad, show in your reeord that you have had them
attended to, and whether this has had a marked effect upon
general health and conduct of child.
(d) Carefully inquire into personal habits of child and make
proper notation. D o not neglect to show follow-up work on
these points.
(4 ) Clothing.
(а ) Day garments.
(б ) Night garments.
(5 ) Food.
(а ) Proper diet (milk, etc.).
(б ) Improper (coffee, tea, etc.).
(e) Regularity.
(d ) Adequate amount.
(6 ) Sleeping conditions.
( а ) Q uarters.
(б ) Ventilation.
(e) Air space.
( d ) Sufficient coverin g.
Amount o f sleep.
( / ) Regularity.
(gr) Alone, or with whom?
17 ) Development o f child on other points than those noted above.
(e)

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SPECIAL PROBLEMS INVOLVED IN POSTER-HOME CARE.

M en tal.
(i)

( 2)

Mental status.
(a )
General impression.
(&) Note “peculiarities” and ability to make adjustments.
(c) Does psychologist need to be consulted?
(d) Has this service been obtained?
(e) Recommendations of psychologist.
i f ) Show in detail, and frequently, how they are being carried out
(ff) Note, in detail, results.
Formal education.
(a) Attendance at school.
(&) Progress in school.
(c ) Contact with teacher. Give names of teachers.
(d) Home work— assistance given.
(e) Note special ability, if any.

( f) Future training in vocational way. etc.
(3 ) Recreation.

(а) Outdoor play.
(б ) Indoor play.

(c) Time allowed.
(d) Type of play.
(e) Companions.
(4 ) Employment.
(a) Kind of work. Detailed information should be furnished.
\ &) Under what conditions?
(c ) Amount of time devoted to it?
(d) Special training given.
(e) Is child in any way*imposed upon by the fam ily?
(5 ) Development or progress on other related points than those suggested
M ora l or social.

(1) General conduct.
(«) Relation to playmates.
(&) Relation to adults or family.
( c ) Relation to school.
(d ) Relation to neighbors or community.
(2) Discipline.
(а ) Relation with those having right to expect obedience
(б) Self.
(3) Problems.

Type involved. Make comprehensive and specific notations.
(&) Outline of treatment agreed upon.
(e) In follow-up notations, indicate progress or lack of tt
(4) Influence of boarding home.
(a ) Religious standard.
(b) Ethical standard (moral).
(c ) Opportunities afforded— cultural, etc.
(d ) Church or Sunday-school activities.
(a )

SUMMARY.

To sum up, the factors involved in the placing o f children in pri
vate family homes, either temporarily or for longer periods, include
at least four main points: The child himself, of whom there should

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

be a thorough understanding and an adequate record; the home where
it is proposed to place the child, concerning the possibilities of which
there should be an equally comprehensive knowledge and an ade
quate record; consistent and continuous supervisional, educational,
or follow-up work by the society responsible for the placement; and
finally, an understanding of and adjustment to the community where
the child is being placed. A ll of these factors must be weighed and
given their share o f emphasis. Without a most careful and intensive
study of each the experiment is almost certainly condemned to fail
ure. Desultory work not only will not do but is highly pernicious.
One further point which should be emphasized is the personnel of
the staff o f the child-caring agency. Just as it would be unwise for
a business man to put inefficient people in places of responsibility;,
so the child-caring organization can not afford to do it. Because a
person has raised a family is not a reason in itself why the individual
can do expert child-caring work. Placement work must necessarily
mean the application o f common sense and o f certain more or less
fundamental principles arrived at on the basis o f both personal and
assimilated experience. Training can hardly be overestimated, and
neither can the danger o f employing poorly qualified workers.
I f the staff o f a child-caring agency think only in terms o f the
immediate present their work will be merely palliative. The fact
that good work does require imagination must not be lost sight of.
Any working basis must always be subject to modification in the face
of new facts. However, flexibility is not to be overemphasized so
that ideals and methods become wobbly. It must constantly be kept
in mind that insufficiency of information is always dangerous, if not
disastrous. One side o f a story is not enough. The particular point
must be viewed from all angles possible, and consequently all of the
existent resources should be utilized.
The child-caring society should consistently and thoroughly carry
out a year-round program o f intensive education with the boarding
mothers, for the character of the prospective temporary home is as
important a feature as the personality of the child that the organiza
tion is attempting to help. Tie up the two on a basis o f scientific
understanding, and the chances of success are good. Neglect either
at the risk of the child.

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THE WORK OF A STATE-WIDE CHILD-PLACING
ORGANIZATION.
By

lbert

Stonem an,

Stafe Superintendent, Michigan Children's Aid Society.

This will not be an abstract discussion o f what a State organization for child placing ought to be, ideally. The principles and
methods to be presented are those which have been worked out in
practice by the Michigan Children’s A id Society, and which, it is
believed, may be useful to all state-wide agencies placing out chil
dren. Seven such principles are here stated and will constitute the
topics for the different sections o f the discussion:
1. Making the organization actually state-wide in activity.

2. Broadening the scope of the work to include the various types of service
needed by the different districts and communities of the State.
3. Providing some service for every community, including those best equipped
with social agencies.
4. Making the facilities of the best-equipped communities available for the
most destitute districts.
5. Developing local responsibility.
6. Developing specialization in service.
7. Reaching beyond the child-placing society into preventive and constructive
movements for child welfare.

MAKING THE ORGANIZATION ACTUALLY STATE-WIDE IN
ACTIVITY.

A children’s society should be incorporated under the laws o f the
State, with the right to operate throughout the State. The govern
ing body o f trustees should include representatives from all sec
tions o f the State. Since so large a body can not be expected to
meet oftener than quarterly, a smaller executive board should be
chosen whose members are near the main office.
In centers o f population, so soon as the volume o f the work war
rants it, branch offices may be established to advantage. In each
o f these, a trained children’s worker should be placed as executive,
and in connection with her work a local advisory board o f directors
should be organized. In order to make the society function most
efficiently for such communities, there should be local provision for
the temporary care o f children pending their future disposition.
This can be accomplished most successfully by the establishment of
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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

a local group o f family boarding homes, as will be pointed out later.
Similar branch organizations can also be worked out to advantage
in rural districts which are at a distance from the main office. In
such districts a branch office and executive should carry on the work
of the society, somewhat as at the branch office in the large city.
It is desirable to link these branch boards o f directors with the
State board o f trustees by choosing the State board largely from
the representative persons on the branch boards in all sections of
the State.
In the counties not included in the jurisdiction o f these branch or
ganizations, local volunteer committees may be appointed, who will
stand ready to report cases o f neglect and dependency and to secure
confidential information concerning cases which may be referred to
them. Such a local committee, often the only one o f its kind in the
community, may prove to be the nucleus from which will develop a
more formal organization for the promotion o f social service.
Another extension o f the work o f the organization is practicable
through agreements with public and semipublic welfare agents,
such as Red Cross secretaries, public-health nurses, juvenile-court
officers, and school officials. Cooperation of a helpful kind can also
be had from women’s and men’s clubs which maintain standing com
mittees on child welfare, boys’ work, and the like.
Through the districts where local field workers o f the State are
not available, contact may be made from the main office by traveling
representatives whose services will be described in a later section.
Educational publicity as to the work of the State society should
be carried on continually in the city and county newspapers, farm
journals, and other publications, and also through the medium o f
the local boards and committees. This is important in order to
bring to the attention o f people everywhere the practical value to
every community o f the state-wide organization. In other words,
the people o f the large and small community should be made “ State
conscious ” in matters of child welfare, since the best-equipped com
munity is frequently self-satisfied and confident that it possesses all
advantages locally, while the least-equipped one may not even have
heard o f the opportunities the state-wide agency offers nor o f the
generally accepted standards o f child welfare. This “ State con
sciousness ” will come through the realization, by both the bestequipped communities and those least well organized and equipped,
o f the value to each o f them o f the services o f a state-wide society.
MAKING THE SCOPE OF THE WORK SUFFICIENTLY BROAD.

Within the boundaries o f any State will be found widely varying
stages o f development in social work and a corresponding variety
in the needs for service to children from complex social organizations

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WOBK OF A STATE-WIDE CHILD-PLACUSTG ORGANIZATION'.

down to no organization; from strong and intelligent community
spirit down to no community spirit or consciousness. Yet the state
wide society is under obligations to provide service for all; it must
be “ all things to all men.”
This situation presents an opportunity which is both bewildering
and fascinating. To a board o f directors and an executive with
imagination, initiative, and perseverance, such a field holds the
most attractive possibilities. It is not to be exchanged ior an easier
more circumscribed task, nor one which has been reduced to cate
gorical procedures.
In this interesting variety o f situations and cases, however, there
is one fundamental requirement as the first step in procedure, namely
thorough investigation. The results o f the process are summed up
m the phrase “ family history.” In places where the technique
o± case work is unknown, it will be all too easy for the children’s
worker to catch the spirit o f the locality and neglect this safeguardmg o f the work. The common request will be : “ Here is this child.
W ill you take him?” W ith the desire to get on pleasantly with
the local authorities, who are apt to bear down impatiently upon
her, the agent must still tactfully but firmly postpone the answer
until the decision can be based upon a careful investigation and in
terpretation o f the facts.
Based upon this investigation there are at least five possible de
cisions as to treatment :
1. That there is no cause for action.—After the matter has been
gone into thoroughly there will seem to be no need in some cases
for child care or family assistance. With perhaps some advice on
the part o f the worker, the case may be closed. Even here, however
a full record should be made o f the investigation and conclusions
for possible future reference. In the main office o f the society should
be an index o f all such cases, wherever they have been found in
the State. This section o f the index may be entitled “ Investigated
and not received,” and should be maintained as a confidential ex
change for all branches o f the society.
2 . That the child needs institutional care.—There will be other
cases where there is definite need o f service, but not such as a chil
dren s aid society is prepared to give. Perhaps institutional care is
needed, such as the State itself provides for certain classes o f pa
tients. Here it is the duty o f the children’s society not to drop
the case, but to see that the child in question actually receives the
help needed. Such cares also should be recorded in the main-office
index.
3. That the child needs care within its own home.—A third class
includes those cases which really need immediate help and per
haps continued local assistance from some agency. It is found that

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

the children ought not to be removed from their homes but should
be assisted in some way while with their parents. Perhaps the
service will be granting a money allowance, or helping the family
to secure an allowance provided for by State laws, such as mothers’
pension and workmen’s compensation. Perhaps the help should be
in the form of home supervision or friendly visiting. I f such a
case is found in a district where there is no active family-welfare
organization, then it would seem to be the obligation of the chil
dren’s society to undertake this family-conservation service. Such
children as are actually given substantial service may be counted as
« temporary-aid ” cases and be so registered in the index at the main
office. The folder containing the full record o f the case should be
kept in the local office o f the branch which is dealing with the family.
4. That the child needs to he temporarily removed from the
home.—In a fourth class are those cases where there is evident need
that the children should be removed from their own homes—but only
temporarily. The character o f the parents is such, mentally and
morally, as to warrant the return o f the children when circumstances
allow it. This indicates the need of the temporary hoarding o f these
children under proper influences during the period in which the
natural parents are being helped to get ready to receive back their
children. In order to keep the parents’ sense of responsibility strong,
as well as in the interest o f the children’s happiness, it is usually best
to keep the children in the vicinity o f their parents. It is therefore
necessary to have available good private family boarding homes
in different sections of the State. These may be grouped so as to
be supervised by a trained children’s worker in each center. The
history o f the case should be filed in the office o f the branch dealing
with the family. At the same time it should be recorded as a
“ temporary-aid ” case in the index at the main office.
5 . That the child needs permanent readjustment.—Finally there
is a class of cases in which it is evident, after all the facts are in,
that the only safe plan for the children is to have them removed per
manently from their natural parents or from their present situations.
This usually means that they are to be made permanent wards of the
society for the purpose of adoption. I f investigation shows their
heredity to be such that they are not proper subjects for adoption,
or if the physical or mental examination o f a child himself points
to the same conclusion, then it will be the obligation of the society
to see that institutional care or adequately safeguarded foster-family
care is provided.
It hardly needs to be said that in the reception o f every child,
whether for adoption or for temporary care, the greatest pains
should be taken to discover just what the child is, as well as his

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WORK OE A STATE-WIDE CHILD-PLACING ORGANIZATION*

previous history and circumstances. Only so will it be possible to
plan wisely for his future.
With children taken for adoption the policy should be different
fiom that followed when children are received for temporary care.
In adoption cases the child, instead o f being left in the vicinity of
his parents or in his previous environment, should be transferred to
another section o f the State, away from former associations, and a
plan made whereby he can start his life entirely anew. During the
peiiod o f transfer and preparation each child should be brought
into whatever community and given advantage o f contact with
whatever agencies and specialists he needs in order that his future
placement may be most successful.
When children are thus received for permanent care their full
history and the legal papers in their cases should be forwarded to
the main office o f the society instead o f being kept in the branch
office as in the temporary cases. In the general index such a child
is listed as a permanent ward.
It will be seen from the foregoing that the card index at the
main office will have three classes of cases, namely: Permanent wards,
temporary-aid cases, and those investigated but not received. These
cards should, for convenience, be o f different colors. The index thus
showing the names o f all children known to the organization in any
section o f the State furnishes a complete “ confidential exchange ”
for the different units of the society.
PROVIDING SOME SERVICE FOR EVERY COMMUNITY.

Communities which may be said to be well-equipped with social
agencies may be divided into three classes. In the first class may be
placed those which have three different types of agencies: First of
all, a family-welfare organization, either public or private, operating on the basis of real case work j in addition to this, one or more in
stitutions for the care of children; and finally, one or more case-work
societies which board out children in family homes. In the second
class belong those with two types of agencies: A family-welfare or
ganization and also provision for the institutional care o f children,
but no case-work society placing out children. In the third class5
are the communities having a family-welfare organization but no
agency especially interested in the care o f dependent and neglected
children.
Communities o f the first class, as described above, might seem to
have all the agencies and facilities needed for the care and disposition
of their dependent children. They might seem to be self-sufficient.
Usually such a city has this opinion o f itself, as expressed by
the officials and the representatives o f its local welfare agencies. Yet

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

even here there is service which the state-wide child-placing organi
zation should be prepared to offer, and which none o f the local insti
tutions or societies o f the city can do so w ell; and that is the placing
out o f dependent children for adoption in other parts of the State.
The local agencies are not equipped with a field staff throughout
the State, and this is essential to good placing out for adoption. In
adoption there is usually need for a complete change of environ
ment. A traveling nurse or other attendant is needed to transfer
the child to another part of the State. There, either a receiving
home or a private family boarding home is needed for the care o f the
child while he is being studied and prepared for placement, and
while his future is being planned. Meanwhile, there must be travel
ing workers, or workers stationed in other cities and sections o f the
State, investigating prospective foster families. Later, the child
must be taken to his future home, where he is to be placed on trial
for a period o f at least one year. During that trial period another
representative o f the society, or perhaps the same person, will have
the supervision o f the child and the home, send in to the main office
detailed reports on the situation, advise with the foster parents,
make adjustments when needed, and finally decide when and whether
the privilege of legal adoption shall be granted. A ll o f this is serv
ice which the local agencies of even a well-equipped city are not pre
pared to furnish so well as the state-wide society.
There are likely to be, also, other types o f work which the
state-wide organization may be needed and requested to do for such
a community; and this can be arranged for by working agreements,
entered into perhaps with the family welfare agency, or more prob
ably with a local children’s society or a group o f such agencies.
Whether or not this further service is planned, the handling of
adoption cases is certainly a specialization in which the state-wide
society can be especially helpful. This fact alone entitles the State
organization to an important place among the agencies carrying out
the program of social work for this class o f cities.
in communities o f the second class described above—those with
a family-welfare organization and with institutions for child care,
but with no society boarding out children in family homes— the
State society has a larger field clearly open to it. No matter whether
a receiving home o f the society is located here or not, there is always
need in such a city for selected and supervised family boarding
homes to supplement the child-caring service which the institu
tions o f the community may be rendering. This boarding-home
service can be made available and acceptable even to sectarian and
other special child-helping agencies of the city or district. It may
be recognized rather slowly by some agencies, because it may seem,
at first, like a rival enterprise entering the community; but if the

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WORK OS' A STATE-WIDE CHILD-PLACING ORGANIZATION.

85
I

boarding-home work is well done, it will gradually win the cooper
ation o f practically all o f the community forces interested in the
welfare o f children.
In cities o f the third class, where there is a family-welfare agency
but no child-caring agency o f any kind, not even a local children’s
home, the opening for the State society is still more clear and simple.
Here it may be possible even to prevent the unnecessary building
o f a local or sectarian institution, by demonstrating the possibility
o f utilizing an institution already available, viz., the family home.
It is easy to show such a community that the most economical
care o f the dependent child, as well as the greatest benefits possible
at any price, are to be had in a private family o f the right quality,,
where the child is mothered and fathered in an individual way and
supervised by a competent children’s worker. In this class o f
community all o f the child-caring work except in the very abnormal
cases can be done by representatives of the State society through
this family-home method. The facilities for any community can
easily be expanded or contracted to meet the need, by increasing
or decreasing the number o f foster mothers thus employed in their
own homes. Even defective children and children presenting
serious behavior problems can be handled to a surprising extent by
ehoosing and training boarding mothers to specialize with certain
o f the more difficult types. “ Subsidized boarding homes” also
can be chosen, in which service is engaged for the care o f a certain
number o f children, and paid for whether or not the full number
are actually placed in the homes. This method will provide for
emergency care o f children.
In making contact with cities of this third class, and in some
cases those o f the second class, it is often practicable and mutually
helpful to enter into special arrangements with the family-welfare
organization, which is logically the central social-service agency
o f the community. In some cases the family-welfare society will
encourage the State children’s agency to establish a branch o f its
organization in the community, in order that certain classes o f cases i
coming to the family agency may be referred to the childrenV
worker or that some competent organization may be at hand to take
over the immediate care o f children.
MAKING THE FACILITIES OF THE BEST-EQUIPPED COMMUNITIES
AVAILABLE FOE THE MOST DESTITUTE DISTRICTS.

The districts outside the jurisdiction o f the county branch organ
izations will be largely rural. For such territory two types o f serv
ice may be made available: A permanent branch organization or
periodical visits by traveling representatives o f the State society.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

Wherever the resources of the state-wide society allow it, a district
worker should be placed in charge o f a group o f counties. The
headquarters for the district should be at a place from which the
worker can go upon call to any part of the district. In this office
will be kept the records o f local cases. Clerical assistance should be
furnished when practicable so that the field worker can give full
attention to children’s cases. It will be desirable, and ultimately
necessary, to find temporary foster homes for boarding children in
or near the locality.
The representative in charge o f this branch will be called upon to
do pioneer work in her field. She will cover a large territory,
though not intensively, since intensive work would be impossible,
considering the undeveloped field. She will care for the more ob_vious needs and seek to develop in the people o f her district an un
derstanding o f the needs o f children, their possibilities, and the
methods o f helping them. She will do the entire work as outlined
in the former section for different types of cases. Perhaps there will
not be a single family-welfare organization in her whole territory,
and she will have to take the place of such an agency in the recon
struction o f family life. In cooperation with the State organiza
tion, she will transfer children to other parts o f the State and will
receive children from other sections to be placed in foster homes in
her territory. She will be assisted in her work at times by traveling
representatives of the society, sent on special business.
In addition to her child-caring activities this representative will
organize a district advisory board of directors. These will be repre
sentative persons in the various communities o f her section, whom
she will educate in the methods and principles o f the State organ
ization, in order to gain their loyal and intelligent support for the
work that needs to be done. Thus in the course o f time this terri
tory, through the branch organization, will be made conscious of
the needs of its own children, and also will be made aware of the
state-wide plans o f the society and the possibilities for underprivi
leged children.
Wherever there are health facilities and socially minded doctors
and nurses the branch representative will gain their cooperation in
behalf of children under her care. Through their aid and also
through the assistance o f the traveling workers of the society, she
will have boys and girls taken to hospitals, clinics, sanatoria, and
specialists in other parts o f the State for examination and treatment
when necessary.
There may be parts o f the State outside the jurisdiction of any
branch organization or where there are too few resources and avail
able leaders to support a branch organization, which very much

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WOBK OP A STATE-WIDE CHILD-PLACING ORGANIZATION.

need the service o f a children’s agency. Such territory will be served
by traveling workers under the immediate direction o f the main
office. The different types o f traveling workers desirable in such
territory will be discussed under the section on “ Specialization in
service.”
DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL RESPONSIBILITY.

The policy of emphasizing local responsibility is a sound one in the
wor mg out o f a businesslike financial system for the State organi
zation. The aim should be to make every geographical unit selfsupporting as completely and as speedily as possible. This policy
must not be insisted on too rigidly, however, especially in the early
stages of development. There always will be, undoubtedly, some un
developed districts whose needs for service far outstrip their ability
or their present willingness to pay. There are wealthy communities
and sections and there are others which are poverty-stricken. As a
start, it will be a practical necessity to draw upon the former for
investment in the latter.
It is surprising, on the other hand, how much the poorer district
will do toward the financial support o f its child-caring work, after
it becomes interested in having such work done. This interest comes
only through education. To make the great body o f people intelli
gent on child-welfare matters would be too long a process to wait for
Therefore, the obvious procedure is to choose a few socially minded
persons and to concentrate efforts to develop intelligent interest in
this group. A few persons can be found in almost any district who
are sufficiently socially minded to appreciate the needs of the children
and the possible benefits to be secured from the state-wide children’s
society.
Rural districts.

The county unit is usually the most natural and convenient for
child-welfare organizations, especially in rural districts, for States
are organized in their various departments on the basis o f the countv.
Courts having to do with dependent and neglected children are
county-wide in their jurisdiction. In rural counties, an unofficial
child-welfare board may well be organized, with a chairman and
secretary at the county seat and perhaps one member residing in
every township. Such child-welfare boards can perform a certain
limited class of service. They do not function to any great extent
however, unless there is frequent contact with them through cerre’
spondence or visits made to the members by the representative of
the society. She should make it a point to demonstrate to these
volunteers the methods o f the child-placing society and to keep them
interested in the work. The branch representative should become

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

personally acquainted with the individual members of these boards
in order wisely to select the task which each can be trusted to per
form, and tactfully to choose the person for the particular case she
has in hand. In the organization o f such county boards it is often
possible to effect close cooperation with other social workers if any
are there—such as the public-health nurse or the Rod Cross secretary.
It is usually wise to include the county school commissioner and such
other public officials as have an interest in the children o f the com
munity.
This development of local responsibility on the part of the lead
ing people in rural counties is especially important from the point
of view of the added service which it will bring to rural handicapped
children. The interests o f the state-wide organization itself are,
however, more prominent in the discussion o f the development of
local responsibility in the better-organized communities.
In dealing with rural districts which have few centers of popula
tion and in which the people are widely scattered and have as
yet no common interests, it has already been suggested that one of
the first duties o f the representative of the State society is to develop
in her territory “ community consciousness,” then perhaps “ county
consciousness,” and then 4; State consciousness.” Through these
stages of social education the State agency brings organized groups—
local boards and county boards—to take a more and more intelligent
and active part in the program o f the State organization.
The better-organized urban communities.

In dealing with the better-organized communities we find a differ
ent situation. Here the local community consciousness has often been
developed abnormally by local interests. A city, perhaps, adopts
a slogan which calls upon its citizens to support local products and
local organizations only. The community interests have concen
trated upon themselves all attention and all resources. A t this point
it becomes the task of the representative o f the state-wide organiza
tion to help local leaders in social work to gain a view of the broader
field; in other words, to help them to enlarge their narrow com
munity consciousness into State consciousness. This is necessary, not
merely for the self-interest o f the State children’s society, but
fundamentally for the best interests of the dependent children of
any city. It is extremely important that the state-wide child-placing
society shall find and maintain its appropriate place in the socialservice programs o f the cities.
The practical problem arises, how to make successful contact
with such cities, how to make the self- satisfied community, perhaps
rich in its local social equipment, recognize its need for the services
o f the state-wide organization. Under these circumstances, it is a

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WOBK OF A STATE-WIDE CHILD-PLACIHG ORGANIZATION.

case o f being “ all things to all men,” for there will perhaps be no
two methods o f approach which are exactly alike. In every city
theie is a situation peculiar to itself in regard to social-service or
ganization and attitude. The stage o f development may seem to be
just the same in two cities, and yet the attitude of one city may be
far different from that o f the other. This will necessitate opposite
policies of approach by the “ outside agency.” In one, the executive
secretary o f the local children’s aid society—or whatever the local
agency is—may be hostile toward anything that seems to him like
competition in his field. In the other, the executive may be broad
minded and able to recognize the advantage o f dividing the cases in
accordance with a working agreement, so as to give to the State so
ciety the type o f service to perform which can best be performed
under a state-wide system o f work.
Where the approach can not be made through the executive of
the local agehcy, it may be made through some socially minded and
influential citizens. A state-wide society which has been at work
for any considerable time and which has rendered wide service is
sure to have gained some friends in the city in question. Perhaps
there are foster parents residing there who are deeply interested in
the society. They may prefer to work confidentially because o f the
nature o f their connection with the local agency, yet they will find a
way o f helping the State society to gather and organize a local
board to back the work o f the society in that city. Here it is su
premely important that the representatives o f the State society shall
do nothing unethical in the matter o f seeking eases or promoting
their own activities locally. They should take care not to engage
m work which duplicates that o f the local children’s society, if it
is possible to avoid it. They should seek to do those particular things
which their organization and methods fit them to do peculiarly
well. And they should endeavor as soon as possible to have their
organization correlated with the other welfare work o f the com
munity through a central council o f social agencies, by registering
cases in a confidential exchange, and by any other means which
may be found to make the social service o f the community more
efficient.
J
Urban communities with less equipment.

In cities which we have grouped in the second class (those not having local children’s aid societies but having a central family-welfare
organization and one or more institutions for child care) and in
cities o f the third class (where there is a family-welfare organization
and no agency caring f o r ,children, not even an institution), it is
easy to make successful contact with the community. As has been
suggested earlier in the discussion, the executive secretary of such a

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

family-welfare organization, if well trained and broad-minded, is
very apt to encourage the State children’s society to organize a branch
o f the agency in that community. Frequently cases arise where the
principal problem to be solved is “ what to do with the child in the
situation.” Perhaps the thing most desired is to provide some proper
care for the child during a certain period, while case work is being
done with certain other members o f the family. Here the boardingout service o f the children’s society is needed. In some cases a f ar
ther separation of the child from the other members o f the family
is desired. Here the ability o f the State society to transfer the child
for placement in some distant home pending future developments is
appreciated. Indeed, it sometimes happens that a family-welfare
agency will offer free office room to the representative o f the chil
dren’s organization in order to have such a worker available for chil
dren’s cases. Perhaps the general secretary of the family society will
treat the local representative of the State society as a member o f his
own staff, so as to make the cooperation as perfect as possible, while
allowing thè children’s worker to conform to the policy of the State
children’s organization, to keep separate files for the children’s work,
and to report the cases to the State headquarters. When close super
vision o f the local children’s worker is possible by the State society,
and a more independent relationship to the children’s organization
in that particular city is desirable, an adjoining or separate office is
secured by the State society’s representative while maintaining close
cooperation with the local organization in the work. At the start,
most of the cases coming to the children’s agency in such a city will
come by way of the family agency, thus preventing duplication of
work in the community.
This spirit o f cooperation for mutual advantage and better service
to children has even gone so far in one community o f this State as
to result in the Staté society’s taking over and operating for the
family-welfare society a local institution for the temporary care of
children, thus putting all the child caring o f that community into
the hands of the children’s agency, on the ground that it is best
prepared to administer such service. In another instance a working
agreement has been entered into between a local children’s agency
and the State organization by which the children’s work o f that city
was divided, all the adoption work being given to the state-wide
society and temporary boarding cases to the local agency.
It may be seen from the foregoing descriptions that a state-wide
child-placing agency, by carefully studying its diversified field and
wisely choosing its method o f approach to the many different com
munities, may find itself in an interesting variety o f situations.
Here are some o f the contacts actually made by one such State society
in a series of cities : In one an independent office was opened in close

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WORK OF A STATE-WIDE CHILD-PLACING ORGANIZATION.

cooperation with the local federation of social agencies; in another
offices were shared with the city children’s aid society; in a third
an office was occupied with the family-welfare society; in a fourth
free use o f an office was granted in the city hall; in a fifth the
society operated in the courthouse; and in still another city it was
located with the county organization o f the tuberculosis society.
Possibly no two contacts in the whole State will be just alike.
Indeed, there is sure to be no exact duplication, because there are no
two situations quite the same. Yet with all these differences, great
strength may be built up by the State organization. Through widest
diversity there may come truest unity.
Local advisory boards.
In every branch there is one element common to all. As soon as
possible without straining the situation a local advisory board or
committee should be gathered together. The group is to stand
behind the local executive with moral support, cooperating with her
on the one hand and with the State executive on the other as repre
sentatives of their community. These are the persons through whom
that city and county are to be informed as to the methods and the
local value o f the State society and the State agency to be informed
as to local needs. Through them the local children’s work will
finally be put on the basis of self-support and self-administration,
closely linked up with the administration of the State organization’
Sometimes this group will start as a special children’s committee of
the board of directors of the family-welfare society. In other cases
it will start as an independent board. Very often the subordinate
committee will ultimately grow into the autonomous board.
As a help in financing the work these boards are of practical
value almost immediately. To illustrate: I f the city has adopted the
plan of the “ community chest ” for its social-service agencies,
usually one o f the first principles laid down is that only “ local ”
agencies may participate. In order not to be classed as an outsider,
the State society may show to the budget committee that it is an
agency with a local board o f directors, a local children’s worker,
and a group o f local boarding mothers taking care o f a number of
local children. Thus it is demonstrated that this child-placing so
ciety is as truly local as though it had built an institution in their
midst.
In case there is no community chest funds may be raised by an
appeal sent out over the names of the representative citizens on the
board. Even if a solicitor has to be sent in to canvass the field the
local board can do much by way o f personal indorsement and organ
ized publicity to make his efforts successful.
72693°—26----- 7

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

It is possible in certain situations for such committees to approach
city councils, city managers, or county boards of supervisors to pre
sent the possibilities o f service by the State children’s agency for the
dependent children o f the city or county. Sometimes arrangements
can be made on a strictly business basis for the city or county to pay
for such service, and thus support the child caring o f that city or
county by taxes, while leaving the agency entirely in the hands of
the private citizens.
Financing the poorer districts.
Along with the decided advantages o f getting support for such
work from pity community chests and public funds is the difficulty
of providing for the cost of administration o f the State society and
its unrecompensed services to the more destitute districts. City or
county taxes can not be drawn upon to pay for this outside work.
Funds from community chests, however, probably can be secured in
gradually increasing amounts from year to year, as the socially
minded people who contribute to these chests are made acquainted
with the valuable character o f the state-wide service. Leaders in
the city welfare movements can be brought to recognize the responsi
bility o f the centers of wealth to send assistance to the neglected
children o f the rural and poorer sections. One instance may be cited
as an illustration, that of the largest city o f the State, where a large
lump sum is appropriated each year from the community chest to be
used in rural places by the state-wide children’s society. In other
cities the cost o f State administration is provided for in the budgets
of the federations by payments toward secretarial service at the head
quarters, supervision of children in foster homes, cost o f transfer, or
other service. The specific expression o f this willingness to help
support the State society depends largely upon the mental attitude
of the executive and o f the budget committee o f each community
organization.
Local self-administration.
One o f the last steps in the development o f local responsibility is
bringing the local board to assume actual administration of affairs.
Inasmuch as the State board o f trustees is legally responsible for all
that the branch executive does, including the debts incurred, it is
necessary that close contact be maintained through the State superin
tendent. He must from the start control the situation, and must
maintain this influence by the establishment o f mutual confidence be
tween himself, representing the State board, and the local directors
and executive. He must see to it that he deserves their confidence
by getting their point o f view and really caring first for their inter
ests. It is always a mistake for the State executive to think more of

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WORK OF A STATE-WIDE CHILD-PLACING ORGANIZATION.

his State organization than he does o f the interests o f the particular
community which that State organization is expected to serve.
The nomination o f the local executive should be by the State execu
tive, because o f his appreciation o f the necessary qualifications; but
the confirmation o f such nomination should always be the privilege
and duty o f the local board. No person should be intrusted with the
direction o f the branch work who is not satisfactory to both parties.
The surest way to create interest and maintain it on the part o f the
branch board is to ask them gradually to assume the responsibility,
and finally actually to administer affairs, including the funds. A t
the start it is usually necessary to have the money pass through the
main office o f the society. But when it can be worked out, it is best
to let the branch become responsible for the support o f the work and
also for the payment o f salaries, board for children, clothing, rent
of office, cost o f automobile, and other expenses. In addition, they
will be expected to have sufficient interest in the State society to make
appropriate payments toward State administration. With branch
organizations thus developed and with members for the State board
of trustees chosen from these widely scattered but loyal local advisory
boards, the state-wide society becomes a mighty force for child wel
fare, an excellent example o f unity in diversity.
DEVELOPING SPECIALIZATION IN SERVICE.

The principle o f specialization is sound in administrative matters
and should be applied to the development o f the service o f child
placing. The details in working it out will depend considerably
upon the size o f the organization, the number o f workers, and the
types of territory covered.
Any person can do one thing better than he can do certain other
things, and he can do that one thing best i f he puts his attention
wholly upon it.
It is our experience that the soliciting o f money' and the doing
of case work with families and children belong to different fields.
So far as possible, then, the person who is specializing in one should
not be expected to do his best work in the other. There is hardly
room for argument against this on the ground o f economy, for
it seems certain that with a staff of, say, two field workers, the
sum total of results would be greater and better if each does one
kind o f work than if both do both kinds. The loss involved in
failure to follow up leads in either type o f activity in order to do
something in the other line has proved in actual practice to be a
distinct loss for both departments o f the work.
In the subdivision o f the children’s work different policies must
be adopted for different situations. In the branch where one worker

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.’

is put in charge at the start, she has the whole job to do. She
must investigate cases o f neglect and dependency, transfer children,
supervise foster homes, and keep her own records. Yet even this
one representative o f the society in this field often can put into
practice the principle o f specialization, as she becomes the co
ordinator o f the various allied agencies o f the city or county, by
utilizing in behalf of children under her care ^specialists in health
or recreation or education.
Just as soon as the branch develops sufficiently to make possible
two workers specialization begins within the organization. Perhaps
the assistant will be given the clerical and record-keeping part, in
addition to certain of the simpler interviewing and some of the
easier field work; while the executive retains for herself the more
important investigations, supervision o f certain foster homes, and
delicate situations with behavior-problem children, and also keeps
office hours for important interviews.
When the number o f workers has grown sufficiently to make it
practicable two or more distinct departments may well be estab
lished. Perhaps the division will be into “ investigation” or “ in
take” and “ child-caring.” Perhaps there will be one department,
or at least one person, doing only “ home finding” ; that is, looking
up and certifying homes to be used for boarding, free, or adoption
homes. These details need not be discussed here. But in all cases
there should be definite specialization in the work in order to have
it done well.
The application o f this principle to the state-wide agency is partic
ularly important, since the agency has to deal with the larger terri
tory where traveling workers are depended on to give the service.
For such territory there seem to be at least three kinds o f service,
sufficiently different to offer ground for classification. First, there
is the investigator of new cases. W ord comes from various direc
tions calling attention to cases of alleged neglect or dependency.
There must be one or more persons, depending on the size of the
field, ready to go without great delay to investigate the facts and
the needs and to respond to emergency calls.
Second, there will be the home visitor. Her work is to go quietly
and inconspicuously from home to home to decide whether the
children are wisely placed and whether they are developing well, and
by personal contact and advice to assist in the adjustment of difficult
cases. Such a visitor will.usually not hasten from place to place, as
the investigator does, but will finish one town and district before she
goes to another, although o f course emergency cases for this visitor
to handle will arise, and she will go here and there to keep in close
touch with certain special cases. But there is a difference between

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WOBK OF A STATE-WIDE CHILD-PLACING ORGANIZATION.

the two types o f work, and it will be found that one person can do
one o f these two kinds o f service better" than the other.
The third kind o f service probably calls for a different sort o f
preparation and ability from the other two. For this is needed the
traveling nurse or attendant, who takes children from one part of
the State to another. It is extremely important that this work
should be done by the right person. In the case o f infants, for
example, much depends—sometimes life itself—upon the physical
condition of the child at the end o f the trip.
The division o f the traveling children’s workers according to this
triple classification is justified in practice by the quality o f service
resulting, and it is not prohibitive for any society because o f any
appreciable increase in cost o f operation.
A by-product o f such specialization in service is the raising of
the standard o f work in the many social agencies with which con
tacts are made in the various communities o f the State. Some o f
these local agencies are in the early and cruder stages o f develop
ment. The State society has the opportunity, either by friendly
suggestion or by example, to improve the methods o f many such
community organizations both in case work and in record keeping.
Here, as in other kinds o f service, the State organization can make
available for the less advanced places the best methods to be found
in the most advanced communities. Its influence may reach even
further; institutions will imitate the method of boarding out chil
dren in homes, and church orphanages will begin to reduce their
population by placing out children in approved families o f their
connection.
EXERTING INFLUENCE BEYOND THE CHILD-PLACING FIELD.

There are possibilities o f influencing public opinion, legislation,
and administration o f State offices with consequent social and eco
nomic changes, which would mean more for the future welfare o f
children than the finest and most elaborate system o f placing out in
the present generation.
The executive officers and board members must be able to see be
yond present situations into future possibilities, and beyond the
boundary lines o f their own organizations into the larger field of
preventive and constructive measures for child and family welfare.
Even in the immediate field o f child placing effort should be
exerted outside the activities o f the particular society, to bring about
better State and county organization. One aim should be to make
support from State tax funds available for service to special classes
o f handicapped children. Another, to secure a State law making
permissive the establishment in every county o f a county childI*“''--

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

welfare board or department. Another, to create a child-welfare
department or division o f a department o f the State, with competent
personnel, having supervisory relations with these county boards.
Another, to help the State department to do many o f the things
for children which at present private agencies must do, and thus
to allow the private agencies to progress into new or more difficult
fields o f service.
The most enthusiastic supporter o f good child placing surely can
not think o f this same work going on and on interminably. It is
the duty o f those engaged in this kind of service so to work and
exert their influence that the time will come when child placing
shall rarely be needed.
For after all, the placing out of children—whether in adoption or
in boarding homes—is an abnormal arrangement. It would be better
if the natural parent were competent to keep his child, and i f the
foster parent could have children o f his own. Even in the granting
o f allowances to parents so as to prevent the separation of the child
from his family, the situation is an abnormal one. It would be far
better if social and economic conditions and the character of the
parents enabled them without extraneous aid to provide a good
home. Again, in dealing with cases o f illegitimacy one is constantly
impressed with the ultimate hopelessness of the problem in the large,
unless sometime, somehow, we can get behind the individual cases and
deal with the social and economic causes o f illegitimacy.
Since legislation and most other movements affecting general con
ditions are state-wide in character, a peculiar obligation rests upon
the state-wide children’s agency. The child-placing organization,
with its widespread constituency reaching out into every section of
the State, should have broader interests than merely its case-work
activities. It should be actively influential in bringing the day
when—to speak ideally—the Care and placing out o f homeless chil
dren shall belong to the outgrown past.

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THE DEVELOPMENT OF PLACING-OUT WORK BY INSTI
TUTIONS.
K

a t h a b in e

P. H

e w in s ,

G en eral S ecreta ry, T h e Church H o m e S ociety, B o ston .

Placing out by child-caring institutions is no new thing. It is
practically as old as the institution idea itself, in spite o f a popular no
tion to the contrary. The very phrase “ placing out ” probably orig
inated as connoting the opposite o f “ placing in.” In spite o f much
hesitancy in the formal acceptance o f the method and o f very great
differences in procedure it is none the less true, if the term is used
in its broadest and most inclusive sense, that placing out has been
resorted to by practically all orphanages.1 That this has not always
been done under the banner o f placing out nor according to the most
accepted modern standards does not alter the fact that many children
have been put into family homes, often for adoption or by indenture
and more rarely with the payment of board. The whole history
o f placing out is so interwoven with that of institutional develop
ment that it is difficult to determine which began first.
The by-products o f an industry have proved on occasion to be
quite as serviceable to mankind as the major products. Some insti
tutions have found this to be true o f their placing-out work. Their
histories as recorded in annual reports show that seldom, if ever, has
placing out been done at the outset in other than a desultory, half
hearted manner and always “ on the side.” I f there is an instance of
an orphanage which has entered upon placing out with deliberate
intent and equipped itself with a staff o f workers for this avowed
purpose, its experience is unique.
One agency began work as a missionary society, its representative
literally walking the city streets offering good advice to the children
whom he encountered. From time to time he placed certain o f these
children in free homes. Later on the need was felt o f a “ home ”
where temporary care could be given, and in consequence one was
1 The terms “ orphanage ” and “ institution V are used interchangeably in this article.
Orphanages, popularly supposed to shelter children bereaved o f one or both parents,'
seldom so lim it their intake. The United States Census o f 1910 showed that o f 111,514
children in institutions at the close o f that year 65.4 per cent were orphans, h a lf
orphans, and foundlings.
No distinction between these different classiflcations was
possible because o f lack o f uniform ity in record keeping am ong the various institutions.

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established. The emphasis for a time thereafter was on provision
for the immp.dia.tft shelter of abandoned and neglected children, who
were later put into family homes. Gradually sentiment swung
toward the provision of more permanent care in the institution, and
for a decade or more the annual reports o f this society were given
over largely to a description o f this phase of the work, touching
only lightly on its placing-out service. Again the emphasis shifted,
and for a second time the institution became the minor factor.
Finally it was abolished and was superseded by placing out, accord
ing to up-to-date methods, for all the children coming under the
agency’s care.
FACTORS WHICH ACCELERATED THE DEVELOPMENT OF PLACING
OUT.

Sooner or later every child in an institution will reach an age at
which it will become both impractical and undesirable for him to
remain longer within its walls. Even though the most ideal condi
tions prevail, there comes a day—it may be when he is 3, 7, or 12,
or in some instances not until he is 16 or 18 years o f age—when the
children’s institution is no longer equipped to minister to his needs.
A t this point any one of several things may happen to him. He
may go to another institution for education or correction, or, as in
the case of the feeble-minded, for custodial care; he may reenter the
community by returning to his parents or other relatives; or he may
go to a foster home, free or for board. Infant asylums meet the
situation by transferring to institutions for older children those
babies not claimed by death or placed for adoption who reach a stipu
lated age, usually 2 years. The institution planned on the congre
gate system and housing older children o f both sexes must cope with
the problem of sex segregation.
A practical reason for informal placing out, and one which has
operated, even against the will o f institutionally predisposed per
sons, to bring about the substitution of the family home for the more
formal care of the orphanage, is the pressure to receive more chil
dren, and the consequent necessity to provide acommodations for
them. I f children remain too long, the institution becomes clogged
at the point o f entrance. The superintendent of a mid-western
orphan asylum, writing of the development of placing-out work,
says: “ The institution was rapidly filling, so the next step was to
find homes in the country for these children. This went on for sev
eral years, and our institution family was constantly changing.”
A review o f the, annual reports o f a group of societies, covering
50 to 75 years of institutional work, reveals that they made almost no
inquiries prior to the reception of children. Had it been otherwise,

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hundreds would have been found not to need institutional care in
the first place, and in their cases the problem o f after-provision would
not have arisen. Many should have been kept with their mothers;
others should have been given homes with relatives. How large
this number is can never be known. It is certain, however, that
crimes against the rights o f little children have been allowed in the
name of charity, and, it must be admitted, continue to be committed
at the present day. The decision to separate a child from natural
ties should not be made until all reasonable efforts have been ex
hausted to develop family resources.
In the face o f the necessity of relieving the congestion in the
orphanage it was but natural to select for other forms of care those
children who failed to adjust themselves to its régime. Such mis
fits include a miscellaneous lot o f children who, because o f physical
handicap, temperamental peculiarity, exceptional mental ability
or disability, or other distinctive characteristic, were stamped as
undesirable members of the congregate group. Either they them
selves did not flourish in the routine o f the institution or they did
so at the expense of the other children. These were the so-called
trouble-makers known to every institutional administrator, and some
thing had to be done with them. Placing out was resorted to for
such children as an expedient in a dilemma, and not necessarily be
cause the method was held in high esteem.
Far-fetched as it may appear, the elements o f water, wind, and
fire have made their contribution to the development o f placing out.
The destruction o f a dormitory wing or a dilapidated cottage has
wrought wonders in this respect. Necessity is a compelling motive,
and family homes may be used at very short notice, especially when
selected without too much regard for the niceties. One orphanage,
which ultimately adopted placing out for all its children, began by
using foster homes for the boys as they reached the age o f nine years.
This was not done because the board o f managers were unanimous in
their approval o f the method. Far from it. It was resorted to
simply as a practical expedient when the boys’ dormitory became un
inhabitable. In another instance a society had outgrown its city
location and desired to move to the country. Here placing out came
as an afterthought, when no suitable site could be found.
FORESHADOWING PRESENT-DAY PLACING METHODS.

How well placed-out children meet the exigencies of their new
life depends in part on the training and equipment given in the in
stitution from which they are sent forth, as well as on the safeguards
which are placed around thèm as they enter and continue in their

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new environment. In the early days trustees and managers gave
marked heed to the first o f these conditions, but took little or no
responsibility for the adjustments o f wards who had left the pro
tection o f the institution.
In an annual report o f an orphanage for 1859 is recorded the sig
nificant fa ct: “ One boy was withdrawn by his mother, who stated
that she was able to provide for him.” On another page the same
report states: “ The committee corresponds with all who have been
dismissed from the home,” and, as if in confirmation, the following
letters received from a foster father and his charge are cited:
A s James can not write for himself, or but imperfectly, I have taken the
liberty to send a line or two merely to let you know that he is well and com
fortable, is not homesick, and seems to enjoy himself much. H e has attended
church and Sunday school punctually since he first came. H e tells me to tell
you that he has been a good boy and does not wish to go back. H e sends his
love to his brother and yourself.
[J am es:] I received Miss M ’s letter and I received your letter some time
ago with the sled and other presents, and I am much obliged to you for sending
them. I take this opportunity to write, as Mr. B is going to Boston to-morrow
and I thought he would tell you how I got along and what I am doing. I can
drive oxen to plow and I have the care of all the hens, and I brought in from
the hens 22 eggs to-day, and Mr. B has two men beside me and he says that if
I pick stones pretty smart for two days I might go afishing. I drive the cattle
to pasture every morning and bring them home at night. I am glad to hear
that Frank has got a place.

Such evidence o f effort to keep in touch with the children, slight
as it may seem in the light o f modern follow-up methods, indicates a
spirit that in later years expressed itself, through this particular
orphanage, in more and more placing out with constantly improved
means o f supervision.
As early as 1842, an institution which 50 years later formally
adopted placing out as its method o f child care, made mention in
its official report o f children dismissed to relatives or placed for
adoption. It was not until 1855, however, that this organization
made its first casual reference to “ hearing occasionally from those
given for adoption’’—some 15 years after the first child was thus
provided for. Three years later the following reference was made:
“ These children are first received in the institution * * * until
they are o f a sufficient age and are otherwise prepared to be useful
in families, to which they are indentured for a term o f years.”
Again no hint o f supervision. One orphanage disposed of the whole
question o f the afterlife of the children dismissed for a certain year
with the short sentence: “ Others have become o f age and have been
provided for elsewhere.” Sporadic accounts o f how boys and girls
progressed after leaving institutions filtered back occasionally
through various informal channels. For example, an annual report

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o f 1881 reads: “ About a year ago our matron * * * met a
farmer who said: ‘ I was a boy in that home once and had a sister
there whom I have long been trying to find.
It is worth noting
that this matron made such vigorous and well-directed efforts as
ultimately effected a reunion between this brother and sister so long
lost to each other.
CRUELTY OF WHOLESALE SHIPMENTS OF CHILDREN FOR
PLACING OUT.

In any chronicle o f the development o f placing out reference to a
certain dark phase o f this work can not be omitted. This relates to
the wholesale disposal o f children by sending them out by the car
load to distant States, there to be distributed among families almost
as though they were put upon the auction block and knocked down to
the highest bidder. In 1857 such an expedition was made from Bos
ton to Chicago, three days being occupied in the journey. In 11
days homes had been found for 46 children, and applications for 30
more were in hand. An annual report o f three years later, referring
to an incident o f this sort, reads: “ A large church was opened the
morning after our arrival. * * * Our plea for the children was re
sponded to in the most friendly and satisfactory manner, and in a
few hours every child had found a new and, we trust, Christian
home.” Thousands o f children have been lost track o f forever by
this unspeakably careless and cruel method o f placing out, which
has prevailed in some parts of the country up to very recent years
if indeed it is altogether abandoned at the present time.
FACTORS WHICH RETARDED DEVELOPMENT OF PLACING OUT.

Opposition o f superintendents and matrons.
A militant force in retarding the development o f placing out has
been the hostile attitude o f many, though not all, superintendents
and matrons. To guard jealously against what appears to be an in
vasion o f one’s own territory is instinctive, and most institutionally
minded persons view placing out as an entering wedge destined to
pull down the very bricks and mortar around which their interests
center. Trained to see things from a particular angle, they natu
rally hesitate to accept such a radical change as is involved in family
placement. They have fought honestly for the retention of the in
stitution, fearing a loss to the placed-out child o f an opportunity for
his fullest development—placing in their minds being synonymous
with exploitation. In view o f the methods previously discussed,
such a sentiment may well have been based on personal observation
and comparison o f the best institutional methods with the results o f
random placing. The weakness of their argument lay in the very

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marked difference between the best o f one method and the worst of
the other.
“ I f safeguards do not follow every child assigned to foster-family
life, the child-placing movement may become the strongest kind of
evidence in favor o f institution care,” says a well-known child-care
expert. With no experience as to what these safeguards should be,
children have been allowed, not infrequently by these same adverse
critics, to go to family homes many o f which have not even been
visited and about which little is known beyond the general impres
sions gained through a call at the orphanage by the prospective
foster mother or the recommendation o f a friend, or perhaps the
generally favorable representations o f the local clergyman. Small
wonder is it that children thus carelessly placed, who later have been
returned to the institutions as “ unsatisfactory ” (that all-inclusive
term), should bring back with them such tales,of indifferent care,
or even actual abuse and neglect, as tended to confirm previously
formed prejudices. One who is traditionally rooted and grounded
in the belief that the only way to provide for destitute childhood
is by the mass method argues that only thus can it be insured that
the child will receive -three square meals a day and a comfortable
bed and that only thus can all his time be accounted for and his ac
tivities supervised. The argument may be developed from a wrong
premise but at least it indicates a sincere and earnest desire to pro
tect innocent childhood. The more or less sporadic cases o f placing
out that come to the notice o f institution officials, being on the whole
o f the kind disapproved most o f all by advocates o f good placing
out, tend to strengthen this original belief. Their horizon narrowed
by the constant and insistent demands o f institutional responsibili
ties, superintendents and matrons generally lack the interest to pur
sue inquiries along lines foreign to the training and experience of
the average institution head. Only the exceptional superintendent
or matron is professionally inquisitive enough to take time to study
the technique of foster-home finding and supervision which observa
tion and experiment have slowly evolved for the child’s protection.
A ttitude o f parents.
Another factor in the retardation o f the movement is the attitude
of the parents themselves. A minority, to be sure, but still one large
enough to be given consideration, prefer to have their children in
the institution. To these parents the very tangibility o f the build
ings makes its appeal, as against the vague idea that they have
of the foster home; and until they can be shown that the latter is
really watched over, they very naturally look upon it with suspicion.
Stories o f abuse and neglect in family homes are cited in support
o f their preference. Sometimes consciously, but more often un
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consciously, these objections o f the parents are encouraged by o f
ficials o f the institution, who in turn use them as- arguments to
support their own contentions.
Absentee trustees.
Boards o f trustees, proverbially composed o f esteemed and con
servative gentlemen well known in their several communities for
sagacity and business integrity, took, especially in the early days,
only a remote interest in the actual management o f the institutions
for whose conduct they were accountable. The investment and con
servation o f funds was their chief concern. This and an annual
meeting, at which the report o f the lady managers was accepted and
an appropriation made for their further use of a sum never in excess
o f the income from endowment, were generally regarded as the sum
total o f the trustees’ responsibilities. Somehow it never seemed to be
any considerable part o f the duty of these men to inform themselves
personally as to how their respective institutions were being con
ducted, nor to concern themselves, except very remotely, with in
quiries into the aftereffects o f institutional life on their wards. The
early by-laws o f one organization made provision for more activity
on the part o f its trustees, specifically directing them to assume cer
tain obligations. A later report referred to difficulties encountered in
living up to these requirements: “ In the original plan of the society
it was provided that the gentlemen o f the board o f trustees should
exercise the same care and supervision over the boys that the lady
managers did over the girls, but of late years this excellent custom
has fallen into disuse.”
Subordinate position o f women’s boards.
The “ managers ” were a subordinate board of women, usually ap
pointed by the trustees and, except in minor details, given little or no
ultimate authority. They had their assignment, however, and it was
one that demanded concentrated time and labor. Charged with the
management o f the internal affairs of the orphanage, they were in
trusted only very remotely with the formulation of policies. Subject
to the restrictions and regulations imposed on them by the superior
board, they were free to run the institution; to engage and dismiss
the employees; to make regulations with regard to the admission and
dismissal o f children; and to minister to the children’s needs, both
physical and spiritual, during their stay. The yoke o f the trustees
must have rested heavily in some instances. One annual report re
lates that “ The result was * * * the adoption o f a new consti
tution giving more control to the board o f managers as to the internal
arrangements o f the home, and left the investment o f funds and the
control o f all finances o f the society, with the exception of annual

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mbscriptions [the italics are the present writer’s] in the hands o f
the board o f council.”
The members o f the board o f managers were selected from the
same social group, and frequently from the same families as the
trustees. Nevertheless there was a gulf fixed between them in matters
relative to the conduct o f the affairs o f the organization that was
hard to bridge. The trustees, with their big business interests, had
an attitude o f smiling condescension in the making o f an allowance
to the managers í o t their “ charity.” The latter, in turn, showed a
patient gratitude. When the two ends did not meet, the ladies supple
mented the grant from the trustees with amounts which they con
tributed or else secured through personal and often valiant solicita
tion.
FORCES IN THE EVOLUTION OF MODERN PLACING-OUT
METHODS.

Personal interest o f * managers.”
The board o f managers usually met once a month. During the
interim committees on repairs, dry goods, provisions and groceries,
fuel, and admission did yeoman service. The good women knew the
children by name as well as by sight; they visited the infirmary,
inspected the ice chest, had personal experience with the brokendown rocker, and were choked by the smoke emitted by the defective
kitchen flue. On Wednesday—or was it on some other day ?—-the
admission committee met regularly, rain or shine, summer as well as
winter. For two or three hours its members listened patiently to
pathetic stories o f fathers and mothers who appeared in person to
plead that their Josephs and Hannahs be given shelter. In the after
noon, taking time only for a hurried lunch, these same managers
would storm the offices of busy men o f affairs with stirring appeals
for help, which seldom failed o f response—from the request for $100
to replace the threadbare stair carpet to $1 for turkeys to gladden
Christmas Day.
Personal, direct, and frequent contacts o f such a homely nature
could not fail to have their beneficent effect on the understanding of
the practical problems connected with the daily lives o f the children.
The managers knew what was happening in the institution and some
thing of what befell the children when they left it. Managers o f
one orphanage met those from another and exchanged experiences
They gathered, not by prearrangement nor in formal conference, but
socially and accidentally. Common problems have a way' of-creep
ing into everyday conversation, and such difficulties encountered in
the institution as the age limit, segregation o f the sexes, the inciter of
mischief, the delicate child, the high mortality rate of infant asy
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lums, all had their turn at fashionable watering places and over the
teacups on the cool and shaded verandas among the mountains.
Here and there appeared isolated instances o f women dissatisfied
with the institutional method as the sole means o f caring for de
pendent and neglected childhood. When a manager took a delicate
child into her home and gave him a summer o f fresh air and per
haps companionship with her own children, as is chronicled in the
early annals o f more than one orphanage, her action was prophetic.
Recognition o f the need fo r supervision after placement.
In the earliest examples o f placing out, as has been remarked,
little or no cognizance was taken of the need for supervision. It was
enough that the child was given wholesome care while in the institu
tion. Having arrived at a certain chronological age, he must go
forth and thereafter depend upon himself or such chance friends
as fortune might send. When suitable homes could not be found
near by for two “ not bad boys, but full of health and activity,” a
report relates how they were sent for adoption to a far distant State,
“ where they are apparently surrounded by helpful Christian in
fluences.”
However, occasional rumblings as to the need o f aftercare, super
vision, or whatever else it may be called, for children leaving insti
tutions were heard even in the very early years of placing out.
“ Applications have also been made to adopt some o f the children,
and the board of managers propose to appoint a committee on dis
mission. * * * Such children should not be allowed to pass en
tirely from our protective influences, * * * and the persons who
adopt them should be required to keep us advised o f their welfare
and progress.” Thus reads the second annual report, published in
1858, of an orphanage that from its very beginning sensed the need
o f protective measures for those o f its wards who left the shelter
of the institution. An annual report for the year 1876, referring to
the subject o f finding homes for those who had “ overstayed their
time,” states: “ When we remember that these children, with few
exceptions, are obliged to go forth at 12 years o f age with no safe
guards o f family life around them, * * * it becomes a constantly
recurring question what to do with them as they get beyond the bene
fits of a home constructed only to educate and protect them in their
unprotected, helpless years.”
The very marked dissimilarity between placing out as practiced
in early times and the more modern conception has important im
plications. It is a distinction in technique, to be sure, and a very
marked one. This distinction in turn has its roots in a far more
significant difference, due to the growth o f a conscious recognition

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of responsibility for the child during later years, as well as while
he is in the orphanage.
Interlocking directorates.

In more than one instance family-welfare and kindred social
agencies have played an important though usually a quiet and fre
quently an indirect part in the development o f placing out by insti
tutions. Interlocking directorates, when not carried to an extreme,
may make a good medium for the exchange of ideas between organi
zations. The manager of a children’s orphanage who is at the same
time a member o f the case committee in a family-welfare society is
in a strategic position to accept and pass on views of family life that
may vitally influence policies. It takes very little yeast to leaven a
whole lump. Not, however, until one has personal knowledge of how
strong an influence for careful and intelligent placing out an indi
vidual may be, will one realize the full force of this statement.
Quietly and tactfully, in instance after instance, such a committee
member may bring to bear the argument for an approximation of
normal family life for children deprived of their own homes until,
often against its own will, even a conservative and institution-favor
ing body of directors will come to see the advantage of placing out
for the majority o f these children.
METHOD OF INTRODUCING PLACING-OUT SERVICE.

Given a recognition on the part o f a single board member of the
value in principle of placing children in carefully selected and as
carefully supervised family homes, plus an open-minded matron
willing to cooperate in an experiment, and the time is ripe for intro
ducing a placing-out service. Before actual operations may be begun
formal consent to the experiment must be secured from the board,
and some one equipped to carry it through must be at hand. The
former requisite is usually the easier to obtain, particularly if the
hypothetical board member who advocates foster-home care has been
preparing the others by a tactful and judicious sowing of the seed.
I f he will submit to training in the threefold art o f investigation,
homefinding, and supervision and will then devote enough time to
making a demonstration, this is the simplest way o f beginning, since
it involves no additional expense. It is, furthermore, an admirable
method of firing the imagination and inspiring the enthusiasm of
other board members. I f no board member is prepared to take this
training and to contribute his time to the cause, some other plan
should be devised. For example, a near-by child-welfare agency may
be asked to lend a worker. This is defensible cooperation to ask.
Courtesies o f this nature have been cordially extended from one
agency to another on the basis of a mutual interest, but such a re
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quest should be for a limited experimental period only. The third
and best plan is to provide for the salary o f a trained social worker,
either through the budget of the institution or through a special
contribution. This person should be made directly responsible to
the board, and should investigate applications for admission to care
as well as provide foster homes and supervision for children who are
ready to leave the institution.
REQUISITES OF APPROVED PRESENT-DAY METHODS OF
PLACING OUT.

Careful selection o f children to be placed.
The board being at least quiescent, if not enthusiastic, in its atti
tude and an especially qualified person being available for the under
taking, three essentials o f a good program o f placing out must be
considered. The first is the method o f selecting the children to be
placed. Not all children are placeable. By maintaining the oppo
site some advocates o f placing out have done great injury to their own
cause. I f the selection is to be made from the children already in
the institution rather than from new applicants, very great care
should be exercised not to lay too much stress one way or the other
on the child’s reactions to the group life. Many children act in quite
an opposite manner inside and outside institutions. It is wholly
unsafe to predict from institutional experience alone how a child
will adapt himself to the less formal life o f a family. The child’s
conduct in the institution, his relations to its inmates—children and
staff alike—are exceedingly valuable evidence, but their value as such
is greatly enhanced when they are considered in conjunction with
facts of heredity and early environment. By themselves they tend to
give a distorted impression o f character potentialities. The so-called
good child o f the institution— docile, obedient, and quiet under a
formal régime—may prove quite unequal to coping with the emer
gencies that arise in the everyday experience o f ordinary family
life. His conformity may be due to retarded mental development or
even to feeblemindedness. At any rate, these are possibilities to be
considered. The converse o f this is the good adjustment to normal
community life that is sometimes very strikingly shown in the case o f
a placed-out boy or girl formerly rated as abnormal and the terror
o f the institution.
Careful selection o f foster homes.
The second requisite, of equal importance with the selection of the
child, is the choice of a foster home. A ll that has been said about
care in selecting the child may be said also with reference to the
home. It is obviously futile to choose a child for placement unless
at least a fair chance exists that a home of the right sort is open to
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him. No one should be intrusted with the delicate task of adjust
ing a child to a foster home* wheither it be free, wage, or board
ing, who is not trained and qualified, to make a painstaking and
sympathetic inquiry into its resources, moral and financial, to study
the comfiaunity setting, and to appraise the character qualifications
o f each member o f the family,, all in terms o f the need o f the par
ticular child under consideration. A general but hazy desire on the
part o f a man or woman to be o f service is o f itself no guaranty of
the capacity to create a favorable atmosphere for a child’s best de
velopment. Families eminently qualified to care for some children
are totally unfitted to receive others. The boarding home located in
an unattractive district and perhaps lacking in educational and re
creational opportunities may be the one to give superior care to
delicate infants, especially i f it is presided over by a woman who not
only loves babies but has had experience and training in their eare;
the home o f a couple, however intelligent, with a 16-year-old boy of
their own would be wholly unsuitable for the reception o f a young
girl with irregular sex tendencies. The free home eminently qualified
to give permanent care to a young child would be ill adapted to one
with relatives to whom he is likely to return in a few months or to
a family o f children whose parents are unable to provide a home but
can and should visit them frequently and help in their support.
Children o f working age need as careful placing as younger ones;
An institution that keeps its wards up to the age o f adolescence has
the peculiar obligation o f seeing that they go into families that will
give them some measure o f affection and interest and do not look
on the acquisition of “ an orphan-asylum charge ” merely as a means
of solving their own irritating servant problem. The desire to se
cure cheap help leads many a harassed housewife to turn to an
orphanage in quest o f “ a strong, willing, and capable girl, who will
appreciate a good home.” The requirement o f deference, obedience,
and gratitude in return for hard work, an attic room, and a picayune
wage forms a sorry outlook for juveniles carefully reared in an in
stitution. It is becoming common knowledge that the transition
from a protected;, artificial setting to the unaccustomed freedom of
community life is a difficult adjustment at best for the adolescent
child, who finds himself under a heavy handicap in competing with
his peers. Little wonder that many children long for the protection
o f the institution, with all the attachments that it holds and the op
portunities which it offers for congenial social intercourse.. Nor
is it surprising that kindly matrons who have learned to love and
understand these children recoil from their accounts of the bareness
o f their lives outside o f the institution. The fault lies not in the
fact o f allowing the girls (and the same is true in principle o f
the boys) to go into family homes on a wage basis; the offense is that

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DEVELOPMENT OE PLACING-OUT WORK RY IN STITUTIONS.

10&

too little is known about these foster homes in the first place, and that
too little oversight is provided to insure a continuing knowledge o f
conditions.
Adequate supervision.
The third fundamental in a right development of placing out from
institutions is equipment for adequate supervision afteF the child
is placed. Only through intelligent oversight can placing out reach
its maximum possibilities as a system o f child care. It is as chimeri
cal to expect success from a method which involves the use o f many
homes, often in a widely scattered area, without a personnel sufficient
to cover the field, as to undertake to run an institution without a
staff.
I f it is true that the institution’s responsibility for its wards
reaches beyond its threshold, then it follows that supervision must
be given to every type of home. The boarding home which receives
compensation from the organization placing the child is the one over
which supervision is perhaps easiest to establish and maintain.
Here, as elsewhere, the best results are obtained not by the spy and
big-stick methods o f authority, but through a patient, friendly, and
constructive oversight on the part o f the visitor with a reciprocally
frank, cordial, and receptive attitude on the side o f the foster parents.
This is a partnership job, the common business being the welfare
o f the child.
Allusion has already been made to the neglect o f the wage home
from the standpoint o f supervision. Farmers and housewives who
receive children on a wage basis have not always been looked upon
by the institutions as foster parents. Many of these persons have
been led by wise supervision to recognize their obligations and to
take a right attitude toward their charges. Once convinced o f their
responsibilities, these employer foster parents have added to the
small wages opportunities for schooling, for companionship, and for
ultimate advancement.
The home that has had the least and might seem to need the least
supervision is that o f the well-to-do and intelligent couple who
have adopted a child because they are fond o f children and have
none o f their own. Suppose that the character of the prospective
parents is above reproach, as is their motive in adopting; that bar
ring unforeseen circumstances, the financial situation is secure; and
that a high degree o f intelligence exists on the part o f both the
adoptive parents. Where, one may argue, is the advantage o f im
posing on such a situation a follow-up which can only irritate,
which hinders the absorption o f the. child into the normal family
life, and which can be o f no possible benefit to either side. The
child will receive precisely the same care and affection which would
have gone to an own child had there been one. Unfortunately, there

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is enough evidence on the other side to argue for very careful super
vision over an extended period o f time for all children placed for
adoption. It is more and more conceded to-day by the best childwelfare agencies that supervision should continue in such cases up
to the time when the court actually consents to the adoption, and
at least a year is insisted upon for the trial period by those who
have given the subject most thought. After legal adoption takes
place most agencies feel that they have no further right to continue
oversight, though a minority are coming to believe that the inter
ests of the child, the family, and the community require something
more. Unless this is provided, in thousands o f cases, the actual re
sults of adoption can only be conjectured. Some, perhaps many, of
the children placed for adoption make a good adjustment, marry,
and continue the line of succession without serious difficulties; others,
after years o f struggle between temperaments which clash, reach the
breaking point, often with disastrous results to family and child
alike. No one knows what proportion of the total adoptions belong
to each group, nor can this be determined except through some method
o f follow-up that combines great discretion and due regard for the
rights o f all concerned.
Child-placing agencies get an aftermath o f unwise adoptions, un
wise sometimes in a way that could not be seen at the time o f place
ment. One such instance is that of a well-to-do young couple who
adopted a baby boy about whose heredity little was known. Be
lieving in the strong influence o f environment, they were content to
receive him when assured by laboratory tests that he was free from
venereal infection. As the boy approached the adolescent period
he o-rew wayward and troublesome, and a complaint was finally
lodged against him in court as a stubborn child. A t this critical
moment he was given a psychiatric examination, which showed
him to be possessed of unusually superior mentality, far above
that o f either adoptive parent. Here was a case o f maladjustment,
quite as extreme as though the child had been feeble-minded in the
lower range. A follow-up on the part of the institution respon
sible for this ill-matched adoption should have disclosed the un
usual caliber of this boy’s mental equipment in his early youth and
averted the subsequent tragedy o f unhappiness and disappointment.
Even though it had not been thought necessary to remove the boy
from the home, he might have been given opportunities for a free
development o f his faculties and so provided with an outlet for ac
tivities. As it was, they were dammed at the source and burst out
in undesirable ways.
Intelligent foster parents—boarding, free, wage, or adoptive—
usually welcome advice from some one experienced in dealing with'

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considerable numbers o f problems similar to their own and look on
a qualified visitor, as guide and counselor. There is no thought of
espionage in their minds. Supervision holds strictly to account the
ignorant but well-meaning and the willfully negligent, who need
special treatment, and most o f whom probably ought never to have
been given children in the first place.
CONCLUSION.

The inclusion o f placing out in institution programs has made
slow but steady headway. The heavy endowments with which some
orphanages are cursed, the “ absentee landlord ” methods o f trustees,
and a certain timidity on the part o f managers, these, combined with
direct opposition from superintendents and matrons, are some of
the forces which have tended to delay its introduction. It is im
portant to note that in spite o f such handicaps, however insignificant
and casual the beginnings and whatever the origin (a manager, a
progressive matron, a far-seeing trustee), wherever it has been given
a fair trial placing out has won its way and has either been accorded
a permanent position in the institutional scheme or superseded it
entirely. There are still institutions which maintain a restrictive
attitude to any system which goes by the name of placing out, though,
curiously enough, all of them are continually putting children into
families for indenture or otherwise returning them to the commu
nity. The general tendency, however, is toward placing out, and
illustrations are numerous.
One orphanage now provides a subsidy to mothers capable of
caring for their own children, thus preventing the children from
ever reaching the institution stage. Another institution has re
cently joined hands with a child-placing society, the former to
provide immediate shelter and observation facilities for problem
cases, the latter to find and supervise family homes for children
suitable for placement. In numerous instances children’s institu
tions have been entirely abandoned in favor o f child placing, the
buildings frequently being made available for homes for the aged,
for hospitals, or for kindred useful purposes. The United States
census for 1910, which furnishes the -most recent figures available
on the subject, lists 39,927 children—27 per cent of the 147,997
children then in charge of institutions— as being “ outside but under
care.” “ The responsibility o f an institution for the well-being of
a child committed to its guardianship does not cease with its place
ment in a family home, except in case of legal adoption. In all
other cases the institution is expected, and in some States is required,
to keep a careful watch of the conditions in the family where the
child is placed, with a view to change, should it seem desirable.” 2
8 U. S. Bureau o f Census : Benevolent institutions, 1910, pp. 26 and 31.

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SAFEGUARDING THE DEPENDENT CHILD’S PHYSICAL
AND MENTAL HEALTH .1
H ob a c e .

Jen k s,

M. D.,

D irec to r o f A sso cia ted M edical Clinic, Philadelphia.

The lot o f the dependent child at best is rather an unhappy one
compared with that, o f his more fortunate brothers and sisters.
Certainly erne o f the most important things that can be done for
him is to give him the best health possible under the circumstances.
The first step toward this goal is a complete and. thorough exami
nation o f the child as soon as he comes under the care o f the super
vising agency or society.
But even before this physical examination there is a. most im
portant step which must be taken by the social worker in charge o f
the child. She must have ready a social history of the child and his
family, which should be as complete as possible. In the exam
ination o f the dependent child, as in the examination o f any patient,
much depends on a thorough and careful history. A t the first
medical examination, therefore, there should always be submitted, an
accurate family history including information with regard to the
parents, the other children, and the previous medical history of the
child himself. The parents’ history should include especially in
formation regarding tuberculosis, syphilis, nervous disorders, men
tal diseases, and moral vagaries. Effort should also be made to
ascertain whether there has been exposure to any o f these diseases
from the grandparents or other relatives or from boarders in the
home. This point is especially important in regard to tuberculosis.
The cause o f death o f members of the immediate family should
also be specified. A history o f repeated miscarriages or stillbirths
should be noted, as suggestive o f syphilis. The ages of the other
children in the family should be recorded. Incidentally, this gives
information as to whether pregnancies have followed each other
too rapidly. It is often helpful to examine the other children in the
family, for,, as is well known, the stigma o f hereditary disease may
show in only one or two members o f a family.2 O f course, the
previous history o f the child should be given in detail, beginning
with the mother during pregnancy and parturition ; the condition o f
1 The observations contained in th is paper are founded largely on the work o f the
A ssociated M edical C linic o f Philadelphia.
2 Stoll, H. F., M. D . : “ T he clinical diagnosis o f heredosyphilis.”
Journal o f the
A m erican M edical A ssociation, Sept. 17, 1921, pp. 919-924.

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the child at birth, the feeding during infancy, illness, contagious and
infectious diseases, and the later diseases o f childhood as chorea,
rheumatism, tonsillitis, etc. In cases in which defective mentality
is apparent inquiry must also be made as to when the child talked,
walked, and first went to school, the history o f convulsions, etc.
These facts should, if possible, be known and recorded on the history
sheet when the child is sent to the physician.
THE GENERAL PHYSICAL EXAMINATION.

Plenty o f time should be allowed for the general physical exam
ination, especially for the first examination. The hurry and super
ficiality o f examinations given in the average large hospital dis
pensary is entirely out of place in this work. It is often well to
open the interview with the child by some casual remark as to his
interests in play or school, or the ever interesting subject o f what
he likes to eat. Inquiry should be made as to his grade in school.
The weight and height are recorded. Then, beginning at his scalp,
the child is examined from head to foot. He should be entirely un
dressed as the examination proceeds. In summer a small sheet and in
winter a small, easily washed blanket is placed about the shoulders.
The dryness o f the hair, the presence or absence of any disease of the
scalp— as ringworm or pediculosis capitis (head lice) is noted. As
a practical point, it should always be recorded in the history whether
or not nits are present, for occasionally foster parents (especially
if they do not like the child) will assert that he has been sent to
them with an unclean head. The nose should be examined for the
presence of any nasal discharge, obstruction, or deflected septum;
the mouth, for the condition of the teeth and gums, enlargement or
disease of the tonsils, general shape and condition o f the palate. The
neck is felt for the presence of enlarged lymph glands and for
examination o f the thyroid gland.
The chest, o f course, should be most carefully examined. Not only
should the lungs be examined for bronchitis or tuberculosis, but the
amount o f air entering should be roughly considered. It is astonish
ing how poorly many undernourished children breathe. The breath
sounds, even when the chest walls are thin, are sometimes scarcely
audible. These children may need deep breathing exercises fully as
much as extra milk. The heart must be studied with reference to
its size and efficiency, as much as for the detection of murmurs or
leakage at the valves.
The abdomen should be examined with the child lying down and
relaxed. Enlargement o f liver or spleen or the presence of umbilical
hernia should be noted.

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H 5

Boys should be examined for phimosis, undescended testicle and
hernia, older boys for varicocele. Girls should be examined especially
for the presence o f any vaginal discharge, and girls who are to be
admitted to institutions or to homes where there will be other girls
should have vaginal, or preferably cervical, smears made on the first
visit to the clinic. Both sexes should be examined for signs o f irrita
tion or inflammation o f the genital organs caused by masturbation.
Next the child’s posture is studied, the condition of the spine, shoul
ders, legs, ankles, arches o f the feet, and general bearing or carriage
being recorded.
The child is then dressed, and returns for tests o f eyesight and
hearing. In babies and young children the eardrums should be
examined with the otoscope. Eye and ear examinations in general
are not detailed, but if any abnormality is detected the. child should
be referred to a specialist for more thorough examination.
It is advisable, although it is not always practicable, to secure
a specimen o f urine at the first visit. It has been the practice at the
Associated Medical Clinic o f Philadelphia to have blood examina
tion (red and white cells and hemoglobin) if the child is 10 per
cent or more underweight or if he is noticeably pale.
The advisability o f performing the Wassermann test upon every
. child is an unsettled question. Many believe that every child should
be tested on his first visit. Others, noting that only about 2 per
cent o f children give a positive blood test, would restrict the test on
the younger children, as undoubtedly many young children are con
siderably frightened by it and their confidence may be difficult to
regain. Many o f these children have been so frightened by the abuse
and so subdued by the hardships to which they have been sub
jected, that it seems certainly unwise, and possibly unkind, to sub
ject them to a Wassermann test for syphilis—or even a Pirquet test
for tuberculosis infection—at the first visit as a necessary routine
measure. A t this clinic it has been done upon the following indica
tions :
(а) I f the child is to be referred to the department o f child study
for extensive psychiatric examination.
(б) I f the child shows clinical evidence of hereditary or acquired
syphilis.
( c ) I f the child shows suspicious signs o f hereditary or acquired
syphilis.
(d) With foundlings.
( e ) I f children are to be admitted to certain child-caring institu
tions which require this test as a preliminary to acceptance.
( /) I f the child has suspicious sex history or if his parents have
undoubtedly been sexually promiscuous, or when there is a his
tory o f miscarriages.

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Certainly there can be no question as to the advisability of Seliick
testing f or diphtheria at one o f the first visits, and children reacting
positively should be immunized with toxin-antitoxin before place
ment. Children not previously vaccinated should have this done,
providing that they are to be placed under competent care.
It is o f great advantage to the examining clinic to be closely
associated with a hospital. In that case the opinion o f consultants
can easily be secured and X -ray examinations made, and if a child
arrives at the clinic too ill to be sent to a foster home he can be at
once transferred to the hospital.
Preferably all girls, and certainly those over 12 years o f age,
should be examined by a woman physician. She should be a woman
skilled not only in gynecological examinations but also in the
psychology of girlhood. By her sympathetic questioning she may
be able to bring out important facts in a girl’s history, and also, her
advice may be o f inestimable help. This; will be dwelt upon later.
The written record o f this examination should be made in dupli
cate, one copy being kept in the office o f the physician or the exam
ining clinic and one sent at once to the agency referring the child. I f
possible, definite statements should be made as to the child’s condi
tion, and even more definite statements as to recommendations; for
the cure o f defects. Weight to height ratio (probably the most ser
viceable for clinic use at the present time, always excepting certain
children o f unusual size either from nationality or other eauses)
should be given as “ percentage of normal,” as well as in pounds
above or below the average. A definite time should be*noted for the
return o f the child for subsequent examination.
O f paramount importance at this first examination are the follow
ing factors: General appearance, carriage and alertness, general
state o f growth and nutrition, condition o f scalp, skin, and throat,
the presence or absence o f serious heart or lung disease,, postural
defects, and a rough estimate o f the mental caliber.
THE NEED FOR MENTAL EXAMINATIONS.

The definitely feeble-minded child can usually be recognized at
a glance. Unfortunately, all too many o f these pass through the care
o f agencies dealing with dependent children. But there are many
children whose mentality at the first visit impresses the examiner
only as “ peculiar.” It was probably to determine the exact mental
status o f such children that psychiatric clinics originally became
connected with clinics examining children.
Should all children coming under the care o f child-placing agencies
be given mental examination? Theoretically, yes, by all means. We
are only on the threshold o f understanding the psychology o f child
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hood and the mental problems o f adolescence. Practically, except
in the best-equipped agencies, it is impossible on account o f the cost
and time involved to examine as a routine. Psychometric examina
tions (measuring by set standards just how far the child’s mind has
developed) by the Binet and similar scales have a certain, but very
limited, value. They undoubtedly show how far the child has de
veloped (provided there is no language difficulty), but that is not
necessarily an indication that the child will continue to develop at the
same rate. They give no idea as to the all-important point o f the
child’s reaction to his environment. Examination by a well-trained
psychiatrist employing all the methods known to that science, study
ing a carefully worked out social history which gives the family
background of the child’s life (and this is even more important here
than for the medical examination), and interviewing the parents or
other relatives, will yield very interesting results and not only will
determine the mental age o f the child at the time of the examination
but will afford grounds for a very intelligent: opinion as to what
the child is best fitted for. Any child impressing the medical ex
aminer as dull or unusually backward in his school work, or a child
who can “ get along ” with nobody, or who has developed unfortunate
moral failings— as petty thieving, truancy, or sex indiscretions—
should certainly have the benefit o f mental examination by a compe
tent specialist, preceded, of course, by the physical examination. I t
is well worth while to give such a child this psychological examina
tion, even if he has to be sent to the nearest city for the purpose. One
has only to read the studies by Taft,3 Healy,4 and others to realize
what valuable insight into the child’s life and what information can
thus be secured. A whole new province o f pediatrics is revealed,
and to those who have never ventured in, a most interesting field is
opened.
A complete copy o f the physical findings should be submitted to
the psychiatrist previous to the child’s first visit, and conversely, a
complete report o f the child’s mental examination should be sent to
the examining physician for filing with the child’s record. The
main facts to be brought to the mental examiner’s attention are:
The state o f growth and nutrition (normal, above, or below) ; any
gross abnormality o f heart or lungs; the history of a long-continned illness; the evidence o f any marked abnormality o f any o f
the endocrine or ductless glands; the report o f a Wassermann blood
»T a ft, J e ssie : “ Some problems, in delinquency,” in Am erican S ociological Society, vol.
16. The Need fo r P sychological Interpretation in the Placing o f Dependent Children,
Publication o f the Children’s Bureau o f Philadelphia. “ M ental hygiene problems o f nor
mal adolescence,” in A nnals o f the A m erican Academ y o f P olitical and Social Science*
November, 1921.
* Healy, W illiam , M. D . : The Individual Delinquent, a. text-book o f diagnosis and prog
nosis fo r all concerned in understanding offenders, and Mental Conflicts and Misconduct»
Both published by Little, B row n and Co., Boston, 1915 and 1917.

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test for syphilis; any of the so-called stigmata o f degeneration
(these should be noted, but with much reserve—many high-arched
palates are seen in children with- perfectly normal mentality, and
many a good, honest, healthy boy has a peculiarly shaped h ea d );
and any marked over or under development o f the sex organs.5
The facts, often o f the most intimate nature, the self-revelations
and confessions, which are placed upon this record should be con
sidered sacred to the child and treated by all (physicians, nurses, and
social workers) with the professional secrecy with which a physician
keeps inviolate facts told him by his patient. Matters o f greatest
importance to the child are o f course the questions as to whether
feeble-mindedness is present, whether or not institutional care is to
be advised, and whether the child is being pushed too hard in school
or not fast enough, together with the salient points in the examina
tion shedding some light on his probable mental characteristics. Is
he observant, has he quick perception, is he impulsive, has he
reasoning power, is he forgetful, is he careless and absent-minded,
is he quick and dexterous with his fingers? These and many other
points o f vast importance for the child’s future can be clearly and
accurately brought out by the trained psychiatrist.
THE CARE OF THE CHILD IN THE FOSTER HOME.

The home.
From the moment when consideration is first given to placing a
child in a home until the child is definitely discharged from care,
the cooperation o f the medical and social workers must be o f the
closest. Neither must advance far without consulting the other.
Nowhere should the interplay o f medicine and social work be finer.
Children must not be thrown into the first home available and left
to survive as best they may. A ll the physical examinations in the
world on a sensitive, delicate little girl are thrown away, wasted,
i f that child is put into a home where the foster father is coarse,
or drunken, or brutal. Conversely, o f what use is it to place an
overgrown, immoral, noisy boy with a foster mother o f the delicate,
“ shut-in,” spineless type? These examples, o f course, are extreme,
but each move in the placing out o f delicate or problem children
must be thought out and studied with more than the care of the
chess player.
The number of children in each foster home must be restricted.
The essence o f the placing-out job is to have individual or almost
individual care o f the child. This is impossible i f too many are
crowded in any one home. W ith babies, one child to a family is
BHealy, W illiam , M. D., and Bronner, Augusta F . : Judge Baker Foundation Case Stud
ies. Boston.

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the ideal, two at the most, unless skilled help is available as in the
“ nursing homes” managed by one or more trained nurses. Even
here there should be the ratio o f only two, or at the most two and
one-half, children per trained adult. With older boys and girls
two, or at the most three, to a home should be the absolute limit.
We have advanced far from the time when children were com
mitted to the first institution available and left to the more or less
tender mercies o f the matron in charge. A few o f these have been
fine, noble women, but many— alas for the children—not so fine.
Let us in placing these children in foster homes secure for them
healthy, happy homes where the natural development o f childhood
may take place. Let us then not crowd children in the foster homes.
The ideal is one dependent child in a family, at most two. Usually
the health and often the character and happiness o f dependent chil
dren are below those o f more fortunate children, and they need all
the care and thought that the foster mother can bestow. Children
placed in the so-called work homes need the special oversight o f
visitor or nurse, and often of a physician, to see that they are not
compelled to work too hard and that they have sufficient sleep and
a reasonable period o f recreation.
It is very important to know the hygienic standards o f the home
into which a child is going. He must, o f course, have adequate air
space. He must have a bed to himself, and it is far preferable that
he have a room to himself. There should be running water in the
house and a toilet that is decently private.
The health and character o f the foster parents should be inquired
into as closely as possible. The ideal condition would theoretically
be the medical examination o f these foster parents, but at the present
time this is obviously impracticable. The family physician should
be consulted by the social worker, and it should be held no breach of
professional secrecy for him to state at least in general terms whether
the condition o f either foster parent is such as to endanger the child.
Much can be gleaned by the trained visitor through observation of
the household, but these inferences should not be too largely relied
on and should be checked up wherever possible by more accurate
data from the physician or hospital. It has several times happened
in the Associated Medical Clinic o f Philadelphia, that foster parents
who have known the social agencies and the clinic for some time have
voluntarily come to the clinic for examination, when they feared the
presence o f some serious disease, such as tuberculosis. Needless to
say, also, an accurate appraisal o f the character o f the foster parents
should be made, but this is essentially a social job.
The child must not be overworked and should have the oppor
tunity for an amount o f sleep suitable for his age. The foster
mother must see that the younger children have a daily evacuation

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o f the bowels at a regular time, that they are kept reasonably clean,
and that they have sufficient time for their meals. The practice o f
some foster parents, especially in the country, o f demanding a vast
amount o f physical work from these children in addition to their
school work can not be too severely condemned. It indicates lack o f
observation or carelessness on the part o f the social workers respon
sible for the care o f these children. A boy o f 12 must not get up at
4 or 4.30, clean the stable, water the stock, milk the cows, and then
get a hurried breakfast and go to school, and return in time for the
same stable chores in the afternoon.
It is difficult, o f course, to find a foster mother sufficiently in
terested to supervise the hours o f recreation o f the children. And
yet we should be content with nothing less. The burden o f this
should, however, lie equally on the visitor. She must explain to
the foster mother the reason for each step and must herself take the
time to see that the children’s play hours are properly used. Many
foster children are serious problem children, and it is imperative
that their hours of play be healthful ones. Especially is this true
when moral delinquencies are present. The foster mother must be
very clearly informed of the facts in such eases, in order that
she may be able to handle the situation with firmness and tact.
Children who are underweight, nervous, or anemic must have
their hours o f rest and play clearly outlined in writing.
The question o f food in the foster homes has been too much
neglected by both social worker and doctor. T o expect the foster
mother to have a knowledge o f dietetics is, o f course, unreasonable,
but some accurate knowledge of this subject should be required o f
all social case workers. They should be acquainted with the basic
facts o f nutrition and as much more, as they can absorb. Every
scrap o f information on this subect should be eagerly gathered
up and applied by the social worker. The great majority o f de
pendent children are undernourished. One o f our greatest efforts
must be to improve the nutrition.
The visitor must have access to figures showing the proper ratios
o f weight to height and age for boys and girls. The tables of Dr.
W . It. P. Emerson 6, those o f Dr. Thomas D. Wood,* and those pub
lished by the Federal Children’s Bureau,8 are all available. The
visitor must have an idea as to what a balanced diet means. H olt and
Fales9 have clearly, simply, and authoritatively shown that a
balanced diet for a child is divided approximately as follows: Fats,
8 Table o f Average W eight and H eight Measurements at Various Ages, etc. N utrition
Clinics fo r D elicate Children, 44 Dwight. St.. Boston.
i H eight and W eight Tables fo r B oys and Girls. C hild Health Organization, 1918.
8 W oodbury, R obert M o rse : Statures and W eights o f Children under S ir Years o f Age.
United States Children’ s Bureau Publication No* 87. W ashington, 1921.
» H olt, L. E., M. D., and Fales, H. L . : “ The food requirements o f children.” Am er
ican Journal o f Diseases o f Children, October, 1922, pp. 311—319.

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35 per cent; protein, 15 per cent; carbohydrates, 50 per cent. This,
in a nutshell, is the theory o f the balanced diet.
The visitor must know the great classes o f foodstuffs (proteids,
fats, and carbohydrates) and must know in what class the commonly available foods belong and what their nutritive value is in
relation to cost. She should have more than the popular smattering
of information in regard to the usefulness o f vitamines. And above
all she should realize how much actual fuel; expressed as food, is
really necessary to give healthy children proper growth, let alone to
bring up to normal the undernourished. The table appended is most
valuable, stressing as it does the actual caloric needs o f growing
school children, and one must not be unmindful o f the fact that the
boy from 14 to 18 years o f age needs even more food than the adult
man, and that the girl from 14 to 16 needs as many calories in her food
as the adult man and much more than the adult woman. The healthy
appetite o f the growing boy and girl must be respected, but should
be encouraged in the proper direction. These facts can not be too
emphatically stated. Child-caring agencies, and through them the
public, must realize that this food is an absolute necessity, not a
luxury, and must be willing to pay adequately for it. It simply
can not be provided at the present time (in this part o f the country,
at least) for the usual weekly payment o f $2.50 or $3 per child.
T o the writer’s mind such figures are simply an open confession that
the child is not receiving sufficient or, possibly, proper food.
T otal daily calories.

(Holt and Tales.1)
Boys.
Age.
(years).

Average
weight.
Kilos.

t . ..........
2...........
3...........
4...........
5...........
6...........
7...........
8...........
9...........
10........ .
11..........
1 2 .......
13..........
14..........
15..........
16..........
17..........
18..........
Adult...

9.5
12.2
14.5
16.4
18.2
20.0
21.8
24.0
26.4
29.1
31.4
34.2
33.0
42.5
48.2
54.5
57.5
59.8
68.0

Girls.

Calories.

Pounds.
22
27
32
36
40
44
48
53
58
64
69
75
84
94
106
120
127
132
150

Per
kilo.
100
93
88
84
. 82
80
80
80
80
80
80
80
80
80
80
75
69
62
48

Per
pound.
45
42
40
38
37
36
36
36
36
36
36
36
36
36
36
34
31
28
22

Total
daily
calories.

960
1,135
1,275
1,380
1,490
1,600
1,745
1,920
2,110
2,330
2,510
2,735
3,040
3,400
3,855
4,090
3,945
3,730
3,265

Average
weight.

Calories.

Kilos.

Pounds.

9.3
11.8
14.1
15.9
18.2
20.0
21.8
23.9
26.2
28.5
31.5
35.8
40.6
45.0
48.3
51.0
52.6
52.8
60.0

21
26
31
35
40
44
48
53
58
63
69
79
89
99
106
112
116
117
132

Per
kilo.

1Holt, L. E., M. D., and Fales, H, L.: “ The food requirements of children.”
Diseases of Children, January, 1921, p. 21.

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Per
pound.

101

94
87
82
78
76
76
76
76
77
80
80
79
74
67
62
58
56
44

Total
daily
calories.

940
1,110

1,230
1,300
1,41»
1.520

, »

1 66

1,815
1,990
2,195
2.520
2,864
3,210
3,330
3,235
3,160
3,060
2,950
2,640-

American Journal of

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN".

Most foster mothers tend to prepare a diet too starchy and too
liquid. Soups, unless prepared with plenty o f milk and such
vegetables as peas or beans, are temporarily filling but not very
nourishing. The child, while satisfied during the mealtime, soon
feels the pangs of hunger and naturally seeks to quiet these by
recourse to the nearest penny shop, where he will acquire probably
more calories (as carbohydrates) from candies than he did from
his bowl o f soup. The distended abdomen frequently found in
much-neglected children is often due to a diet high in starches with
too much poorly baked bread.
Probably with proper supervision of the diet and helpful sug
gestions from the visitor most foster children could have at least one
pint o f milk a day in place o f the tea or coffee so often given. The
foster mother should be persuaded to have the heaviest meal for the
preschool children in the middle o f the day. It is astonishing to
find out how infrequently this is done. The man o f the household
has to have his dinner at night and it is so much easier to give the
same to all. An understanding on this point should be secured
previous to the placement of young children. It is a very important
duty of the visitor to help the foster mother with the diet. She
must encourage her to persist with the child who does not like, or
will not take, milk. Often she can secure the same result by giving
milk soups or milk desserts such as rice pudding, or by using plenty
o f milk on cereals or potatoes, or by giving malted milk.
It takes an accurate and gifted judge o f human nature to decide
how often foster mothers should be visited. Some do better with
not too frequent visiting, being those individuals who do their
best work when fully trusted and who are sufficiently competent to
be trusted. Foster mothers of this class are few, and the character
o f each should be fully known before the experiment is tried. As
a rule it is far better to have a pretty close follow-up system, and
the foster mother will soon cease to regard it as interference. Babies
should be seen at least' every two weeks by nurse or social worker,
and those whose-feeding is difficult or who are delicate should be%
visited once a week. Preschool children should be visited once a
month. In the cases o f older children, the need, for revisitation of
the home will vary according to both the child and the home; but
the writer agrees thoroughly with Katharine P. Hewins. that “ as
a guide, but not as a rule, any child who has not been seen in his
foster home for two months is in danger o f being neglected.” 10
Visitors and nurses should be on a friendly footing with the foster
mothers. It has been very interesting in the experience of the Asso
ciated Medical Clinic o f Philadelphia to observe a foster mother’s
i® “ Supervision o f placed-out children.” Annals o f the American Academy o f P olitical
and Social Science, November, 1921, pp. 112—120.

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increasing cooperation with the doctors and nurses, and it is an im
portant function o f all concerned in this work to stimulate the foster
mothers to continually higher ideals in child care. Most o f them are
eager to learn. Sufficient interest must be shown by child-caring and
child-placing agencies to render this possible. Sufficient money
must be paid to the foster mother to insure adequate diet and ade
quate care for the children placed with her, and adequate compensa
tion must be guaranteed, especially for difficult feeding problems in
babies and the care of undernourished or problem children.
The child.
Among the various types of children placed with foster parents,
the baby probably presents the most difficult medical problem. Many
times the family situation which has precipitated him into foster
care has been so sudden that there is no time for gradual weaning.'
Possibly more difficult, however, is the baby o f a dissipated or eveli
dissolute mother, who has neglected her child so that chronic indi
gestion is present, and the child consequently much undernourished.
Many babies have been overfed or wrongly fed, or a child may be
referred by the court, the mother being sent to jail, so that nothing is
known of the previous feeding history. A ll of these problems and1
many more must be met by a clinic or a physician working with
child-placing agencies.
Dr. Maynard Ladd,11 of Boston, has clearly indicated the best
way of caring for these babies when good nursing and social service
are available. After the initial examination the report o f the clinic
is forwarded or telephoned to the child-placing agency. The home
for the baby should already have been tentatively decided upon so
thatj barring contraindication from the medical examination, the
baby can at once be taken to that home. No baby should leave the
clinic without a definite milk formula in writing. I f the foster
mother is new or if the home is in the country, several nursing bottles
and the materials, such as sugar or barley flour, for making the mix
tures should go with the baby. A nurse trained in a children’s or
babies hospital should assist any new foster mother in making the
formula and should show the need for cleanliness at every step in the
process. Milk mixtures should be as simple as possible. I f a child
is in such condition that he will need a complicated formula or un
usual articles o f diet requiring special care in preparation, he had
best be referred at once to the nearest children’s hospital.
The foster mother for a baby must be selected with the greatest
care. She is much more important than the physician. She must
n Ladd, Maynard, M. D . : “ M edical supervision o f the destitute child.”
M edical Journal, August 17, 1921, pp. 199-204.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

love the baby for himself, not merely for the money paid her. She
should herself be strong and healthy. She must be loyal to the clinic
and the examining physician and willing—preferably eager—to
learn and to absorb gradually the ideas o f the medical staff, and to
cooperate in every detail. She should be o f reasonably good mental
ity ; equipped with a mind fairly evenly balanced, so that she w ilt not
give way to fits o f anger; self-controlled and patient, so that she
will be willing to submit her opinions to those o f the medical staff ;
observant, that she may detect the early symptoms o f any illness; and
conscientious, so that when alone with the baby she will do as she
would if the nurse were watching her.
Most foster mothers are too impatient concerning the weight o f the
baby. To satisfy them he must gain by leaps and bounds. While
certainly most important, the weight is by no means the only guide,
and foster mothers must often be restrained from overfeeding.
Sufficient clothing must be provided by the agency so that babies
may be kept in the fresh air on clear winter days. There is still far
too great a tendency, at least in the cities, to keep the younger chil
dren huddled in hot, stuffy kitchens. W ith the increasing use o f
gas for cooking the danger of carbon monoxide poisoning is added
and social workers should bear this fact in mind in the preliminary
investigation o f homes. It is often advisable, sometimes necessary,
for the society to supply a baby coach or gocart to insure a proper
amount o f fresh air.
The foster mother must be told, if she does not know from experi
ence with other children, what are the ordinary signs of illness, but
she must also not assume too great responsibility interpreting these
signs. She must be clearly informed upon whom to call in the event
o f illness. She must know the necessity o f absolute cleanliness with
regard to every step o f bottle feeding. She should be supplied with
a good rectal thermometer and be taught how to read it. She must
be instructed to reduce or stop the baby’s feedings upon the first
sign o f intestinal disorder and to notify the nurse or doctor at once.
That it is perfectly possible to feed or care for a large number of
babies in foster homes from a central clinic has been clearly shown by
Doctor Ladd,12 o f Boston, and by the Associated Medical Clinic of
Philadelphia,18 and doubtless by others. Except in special homes, as
those under the care o f trained nurses with adequate help, it is never
advisable to place more than two babies in a home; and it is far better
policy to restrict the number to one. The policy o f the Associated
Medical Clinic has been as follow s:

12Idem.
18Jenks, Dr. H. H . : “ M edical care o f dependent children.”
September, 1923, pp. 799-802.

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TH E DEPENDENT C H IL D ’s PHYSICAL AND M ENTAL

TTEAT/TTT,

^25

The babies are visited every week or every two weeks by the nurse,
who carries with her a pair o f light scales. (Ill babies are visited as
often as necessary.) Once a week the nurse reports at the clinic for
what is called a “ baby conference.” This is believed to be a most
important part o f the baby work. A t this conference are present the
two clinic physicians and the supervisor o f case work in the placingout department o f the society. The nurse reports on the weight and
general condition o f the baby, the weight being recorded on a chart.
The condition o f the stools, vomiting (if any),appetite, sleep, amount
and formula o f feedings are recorded on a special sheet. Directions
as to changes (if any) in the feedings are given in writing to the
nurse.
O f course, if a baby is not doing well a report is made at once to
the clinic by the nurse and the child is visited within a very short
time by the assistant physician. Most o f the boarding homes have a
telephone, and the foster mother is directed to call the nurse imme
diately if the baby is at all indisposed. It has been found advisable
for the society to furnish beam balance scales in two o f the homes
where the more difficult cases are kept.
It has been a revelation to see how well babies may do under these
conditions. Many o f the babies are not seen in the clinic for months
at a time, and yet their weight increases normally and they seem
healthy in every way. The success o f such a plan as this depends on
the intelligence, accuracy, and training o f the nurse supervising the
foster home. W ith a careless or incompetent nurse it is doomed to
speedy failure. Another very important feature is the training and
cooperation o f the boarding mother.
No one will deny that, until recently at least, the preschool child
has been much neglected. This has been doubly true of the de
pendent preschool child. The diet o f a large proportion o f these
children has been much too loosely supervised. They have had to
conform to the customs o f the foster homes as to hours o f meals and
character o f food. Many have their heaviest meal or “ dinner”
at night. Probably entirely from ignorance or carelessness, they
will have an evening meal o f the proverbial “ stew ” and such a
heavy vegetable as cabbage. The necessary rest period, also, has
often been forgotten.
The teeth o f children of this age have been too much neglected
and the influence which diet may have on the condition o f the teeth
has been until lately an unexplored field. It is most important.
These children must be supplied with toothbrushes and powder, and
the foster mothers must see that they use them. “ No cavity is too
small to be disregarded, and the pediatrician should insist on the
immediate treatment o f caries at any age. It is only by taking care

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o f the teeth o f children o f preschool age that the teeth o f the school
children and adults will be safeguarded. Conditions existing during
the period from birth until the sixth year determine the future
condition o f the teeth. It is not generally recognized * * *
that the first years o f a child’s life are critical ones as far as structure
o f the permanent teeth are concerned.” 14
Unfortunately, even in many good foster homes, the economic
stress is such that by no means ideal conditions can be secured, but
for the preschool child certain fundamental dietary and hygienic
conditions should be required which might be stated rather dog
matically as follows:
The foster mother must be able and willing so to arrange her
time that the child may have suitably prepared meals and definite
times for play and rest. Each child should have from one to two
pints of milk a day. He should have a breakfast o f milk (or cocoa),
a well-cooked cereal, egg (at least twice a week), occasionally a piece
o f crisp bacon, bread (not fresh), and butter; a dinner at midday
o f a thick vegetable soup (pea, bean, spinach, carrot, celery, or po
tato) or chicken or rice broth, meat (carefully cut up) two or three
times a week, vegetables (for the younger children preferably
passed through a sieve), milk, bread and butter, and a simple des
sert. The evening meal should be more of a supper and should con
sist of milk, bread and butter, cooked cereal or milk toast, occa
sionally an egg, and cooked fruit, such as baked apple, apple sauce,
stewed prunes (sieved), and stewed peaches. There should be a rest
period either before or after the midday meal o f at least an hour,
and longer for undernourished or unusually active children. Plenty
o f good drinking water must be supplied between meals. The foster
mother must train the child to a daily evacuation of the bowels, pref
erably immediately after breakfast. He should be tucked in bed for
the night by 6 or 7 o’clock, not dragged off to the movies.
Where many children o f the preschool age are placed in one
locality, it is advisable to assign one worker to that group alone;
when a worker is engaged with older problem children she may
readily spend too much time on these, neglecting the younger group.
Children o f school age require an ample diet. It has been shown
on page 121 that these children require much more food than is
usually allowed them. These boys and girls should have, if pos
sible, a quart o f milk a day, or at least a pint. They will probably
require the heavier meal in the evening. Certainly the older ones
will. Owing to school hours many children have not the time to
return home for a midday meal. Foster mothers should put up a
good nutritious lunch for children who must eat at school. This is
14 Cohen, S. A., M. D . : “ Oral disorders in pediatries.”
o f Children, August, 1922, pp. 160-170.

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TH E DEPENDENT C H ILD ’S PHYSICAL AND M ENTAL H EALTH .

127

often preferable to a hurried trip and a meal eaten in haste in order
to be back in time for school.
Dependent children, unfortunately, do not always cease being
dependent children when they outgrow the grammar school, and
the problems o f adolescence do not lessen the difficulties in their
placement. For these older boys and girls especially the foster
mother should be a woman who has successfully brought up boys
and girls o f her own. It is an experience for the lack o f which all
the books in the world on how to bring up children can not cònipensate. She must know what the child is (at least as far as4t is
known) before she accepts him. She must be acquainted with his
problems. Above all, with a child o f this age she must not nag.
She must have a keen insight into boy and girl nature. She must
know the peculiarities o f boys and girls as they grow into maturity.
She must have ample patience and yet be firm. Fortunate is the boy
with a foster father who can set forth in a proper manner the great
facts of life as a growing boy should know them. It is hard enough
for any o f us to do this.
PROBLEM CHILDREN.

Almost all dependent children might come under this heading,
for practically all have their problems. But the term in this paper
is restricted to the three following groups: (a) The physical, (b )
the mental, (c) the social.
Under the physical, will be considered briefly only two groups;
in the first place, the greatly undernourished child. I f a child is
found to be greatly undernourished he should preferably be sent to a
good country home, out o f the dust and noise of the city, but near
enough to be able to return as frequently as desired. Health should
be placed above education, and until he starts to gain decidedly in
weight he should not attend school. The home should have a porch.
The child should be treated at the start very much as are the tuber
culous, spending almost the entire time in the fresh air—on the porch
in the day and with open windows at night. He should have ample
rest, with the hours definitely specified, all the well-cooked food that
can be taken without upsetting the digestion, milk (at least a quart
a day), and butter, eggs, cereals, and vegetables. This extra diet
must be compensated for by extra payment to the foster parent, and
the visitor must satisfy herself that the child really has what is
ordered.
We must not forget, as Emerson,15 Veeder,10 and others have shown,
that what many of these undernourished children need is not only
15 Emerson, W. R. P., M. D. : “ Malnourished child in the public school.” . Boston Medi
cal and Surgical Journal, June 24, 1920. Also “ W eight and height in relation to malnu
trition.” Archives o f Pediatrics, August, 1920.
18 Veeder, B. S., M. D. : “ R ôle o f fatigue in malnutrition o f children.” Journal o f the
American M edical Association, Sept. 3, 1921.

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extra food but more rest, both o f mind and body. F or a child with
no evidence o f chronic disease such as syphilis or tuberculosis, the
weight record may be a partial check upon the foster mother. It
is by no means conclusive but it should at least call for thought and
examination, if successive children lose, or fail to gain, in weight
in a certain home. W e should regard such a home with a question
ing eye and should investigate without delay the factors entering
into home hygiene, the food, the amount o f time out o f doors, the
night ventilation, the utilization of the milk ordered, the life of
the child in his hours o f recreation. The food may be ample, but
is it properly cooked or floating in grease? Is the child getting
candy, that great destroyer o f a child’s •appetite, between meals?
Does he have his afternoon rest and then sit with the grown-ups
for an evening movie? These are but a few o f the factors needing
investigation by the social worker— and then correction.
The child with enuresis affords a constant problem to child-placing
societies and foster mothers. Many of these children lead a really
miserable existence. Battered around from pillar to post, sent to
one boarding home after another, often refused by all but those of
the poorest class, continually scolded, derided, or punished, always
wet at night and often in the day time too, the skin chafed and irri
tated, usually quite ashamed o f themselves and discouraged, these
children constitute a pressing problem for the physician and the
social agent. Even to them the child is discouraging, but that is
no reason for not exhausting every effort to effect a cure. Two
factors stand out in the effort to cure the nocturnal bed-wetter.
One is the avoidance o f all fluid after 4 p. m., and the other the
awakening o f the child at stated intervals in the night. This de
mands a truly devoted foster mother. The urine, o f course, should
be repeatedly examined, thread worms eliminated if possible, the
presence of stone in the bladder or defect in the spine ascertained
as far as possible by X-ray. Certain drugs ordered by the physician
may be o f assistance. In persistent cases the bladder should be
examined by the cystoscope. Even i f no abnormality was found,
the passage o f the instrument (under an anesthetic for smaller
children) has been of benefit to a few o f the children coming to the
Philadelphia clinic. Every effort should be made to secure the
cooperation o f the child.
Much has been written during the last few years about the mental
problems o f childhood. They are certainly very real. Repeatedly
children are referred to physicians in the hope that a physical basis
may be found for their backwardness or peculiarities o f mind
or behavior. It has been a great disappointment to the parents or
child-caring agencies and to the clinics to find in the majority o f

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these children no curable physical defect to account for the behavior.
I f syphilis is present treatment is at once instituted, of course, and
considerable benefit may ensue. Occasionally the mere relief o f a
mental worry by analysis and explanation may be successful.17
There is still another group to which relief in varying degrees
may be brought, and that is the children with marked disturbance
o f the so-called endocrine system (the ductless glands). ' But in only
one o f this class are the results really brilliant—in those with the
thyroid secretion diminished, the cretins, or those with hypothy
roidism. It is well worth while, if it can be done carefully and
accurately, to have tests o f basal metabolism made on subnormal
children showing any signs o f glandular deficiency. In those show
ing symptoms o f pituitary disturbance an X -ray examination o f the
skull and a test for sugar tolerance, by means o f blood sugar esti
mation, are helpful. A ll o f this work is technical and must be done
by one trained in it, and with the greatest care j otherwise the results
are valueless.
The clinic has been able to help a few o f the greatly overfat
children by means of glandular therapy, controlled by these labora
tory examinations, and also occasionally to assist one o f the dwarf
children to add a few ceptimeters to his height. No extensive use
should be made o f glandular extracts unless the child can have from
time to time metabolism examinations and other tests and can be
under careful supervision. The drugs are capable o f far too much
harm unless carefully controlled and at best have been much over
rated as to the possibilities o f the cure o f abnormal children by
their use.
Only a word will be said in this paper in regard to the social
problems o f delinquent children. A ll those who are engaged in
work with dependent children must remember that the social prob
lem may have a physical basis. This latter should always be elimi
nated before the problem is assumed to be entirely a social one. A
child may be doing poorly in school from defective eyesight or
hearing or from many other causes. I f he is a difficult problem in
the home because he is always tired and cross, a physical examination
may disclose a chronic kidney condition with albumin or pus in the
urine. Such a child will have ample cause to be chronically tired
and unhappy. Other examples will doubtless suggest themselves
to all readers. Conditions not present in the child at his first ex
amination may develop while he is in a foster home, and a child
who at any time is not active and well and happy is entitled to, and
should have, a thorough physical examination and the necessary
treatment.
17 See citations in notes 4 and 5, pp. 117 , n s .

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REEXAMINATIONS,

As stated before, when a child is examined for the first time and
malnutrition or other defects are found a definite time for a return
visit should be stated on the record. Both the examining clinic and
the child-placing agency should keep a dated check list for these
reexaminations in order that there may be no slip-up. I f the child
has been placed in a country home too far away to return to the
original examining physician, he should be carefully examined by a
local physician and the findings sent in writing to the placing agency,
which should at once send a copy to the clinic. I f these findings
show that the child is not doing so well as was expected the country
doctor should be communicated with in regard to treatment, or if
necessary the child should be brought to the city. The Philadelphia
Associated Medical Clinic has come to believe from experience that
it is best to consider the child as actually under the medical care of
the society’s examining physician, even if the child is at a consider
able distance. Except in cases of extreme Urgency it is better to haWe
the child return to the city if any operative procedure becomes neces
sary, and to have a thorough examination and consultation with the
surgeon before reference to a hospital for operation.
As a general rule it is advisable to see any child who is 10 per
cent or more underweight within from two to four weeks— or sooner
if there is a suspicion o f pulmonary tuberculosis.
Any child at all underweight or noticeably anemic should be seen
by the physician every three months at least. Every child placed
in a foster home should be completely reexamined at least once a year
regardless of where he is. It is preferable that he return to the
examining clinic for this purpose, so that the same person may
examine and records may be more uniform. This reexamination
should be as thorough as the first examination.
When the time comes for a child to leave the foster home and be
discharged from the care o f the society he should again have a
complete physical examination by the clinic or examining physician.
This is necessary for various reasons, first, for the sake of the child
himself. It affords a means o f comparison o f the weight and gen
eral condition on admission and on discharge. I f the child lias not
been seen for some months changes may have occurred, new lenses
may be needed for one or both eyes, teeth may show caries or lack
o f alignment, or faulty posture may have developed, possibly from
a poor desk at school. Heart and lungs should always be carefully
examined lest any early symptoms of disease escape notice. The
condition o f skin and scalp should be noted. For the child’s sake
any defects found even at this final examination should not be left
unattended to, but definite arrangements should be made for him to

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liave competent medical attention, either by a physician or at a hos
pital. Especially is this true for children with chronic defects of
such far-reaching importance as chronic heart or lung disease, rheu
matism, nephritis, or congenital syphilis. The last-mentioned should
be treated until the blood Wassermann becomes persistently negative.
The written records o f the final examination are or should be of
value to the child-placing agency and should, of course, be filed with
the child’s history.
THE ADVISABILITY OF A CENTRAL EXAMINING CLINIC.

Most o f the facts in the previous sections of this paper have been
written from experience gained at the Associated Medical Clinic of
Philadelphia. This is a medical examining clinic supported by
agencies doing child-placing wort, and to a less degree by agencies
otherwise concerned in child welfare. The Philadelphia Children’s
Bureau, the Children’s A id Society o f Pennsylvania, the Seybert
Institution, and the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Children have been the main societies contributing to the
clinic’s support.
In addition to examining children from these societies, the clinic
examines, children from various other organizations and also a few
entire families from the Philadelphia Society for Organizing Charity.
Children are examined before placement in several institutions in
or near the city.
The advisability o f a central examining clinic for these children
can scarcely be questioned. It is difficult, if not impossible, in most
hospitals to secure the time o f the dispensary physician for thorough
and complete examination of children who are not ill. The time of
the physicians in these clinics is already overtaxed by the large num
ber of sick children needing careful examination and treatment.
Alao, it is most inadvisable to place these presumably healthy chil
dren in contact with children presumably ill. Again, it is a great
waste o f the foster mother’s time to wait in a clinic for a long time
even before her turn for examination will come ; and finally the rotat
ing service in the hospital means that upon subsequent visits the chil
dren will probably be examined by different doctors who may pre
scribe entirely different treatment, or, in the case o f a baby, different
feeding.
In a clinic organized and conducted for the sole purpose of ex
amining dependent children, many of these difficulties can be over
come. The clinic starts at 9 o clock, when the children from neigh
boring districts can easily be brought in by caretakers or social
workers, and continues until all the children are examined. There
are no set hours, although the examinations are usually completed

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by 12 or 1 o’clock. The physicians remain the same from month to
month, so that they know the previous condition o f each child, his
social history, and his problems. Children are examined in the order
in which they arrive at the clinic unless there is some special emer
gency, in which case a child may be examined at once. Each child
is given ample time for his examination, and there is not the hurry to
finish the clinic that there usually is in large hospital clinics.
The organization of such a clinic is o f course capable o f wide
variations. The staff should include first, a physician in charge o f
the clinic who has had considerable experience in pediatrics, espe
cially in infant feeding. There must be an assistant physician, who
should be on a full-time salary basis. Either the physician in charge
or his assistant should be a woman, well trained not only in medicine
but in gynecology, and if possible in the psychology of girlhood,
and'with a personality attractive to girls. She should have entire
charge o f the examination o f girls and mothers. Her afternoon
time should be given to the examination o f children who may be
ill in foster homes. She should be provided with an automobile, as
most foster homes are far from the center o f the city and considerable
distances must be traversed. During the morning clinic hours a nurse
or' a well-trained assistant must be present to assist the doctors,
sterilize instruments, and see that children are carefully weighed and
measured and that the children and their histories are ready in the
proper order. The number of trained nurses should vary with the
number o f babies under care and the distances to the foster homes.
The nurse should be a graduate o f a hospital where she will have
had a good course in infant feeding, examination of sick children
(especially infants), and competent instruction in child-welfare
work. She must have an absorbing interest in and enthusiasm for
baby-welfare work and must be able to arouse this same feeling in
the foster mother. The nurse visiting in the homes and reporting
to the clinic and the societies is the connecting link between all three
and the child, and it is she who will secure the cooperation o f the
foster mother.
A stenographer who is capable of taking accurate medical dic
tation is, o f course, necessary. It is advisable in a large clinic to
have a half-time worker to take care of filing records, notifying the
various agencies o f the return dates o f children, making appoint
ments for the dentist, supervising the children, and seeing that chil
dren who have been examined are returned safely to the proper
agencies.
I f the volume o f work is sufficiently large the dentist should pref
erably be on full time, or he may be on half time with a half or
full-time dental hygienist. Both o f these should be selected with

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a view to their fondness for and ability to get along with children
as well as their technical skill.
It is advisable also to have an oculist on a salary basis. The
volume o f eye work in such a clinic is large. The work must be care
fully done and carefully followed up afterwards. Many children
can not attend an afternoon eye clinic, and the number o f children
referred for eye examination on some days would overwhelm an
ordinary clinic. Moreover, the societies must be furnished with
written reports o f the eye condition and what treatment will be
necessary—reports difficult to secure from the average hospital clinic.
Finally, workers in charge o f these central clinics must not waste
time waiting their turn in a large hospital dispensary.
The Associated Medical Clinic o f Philadelphia is fortunate in
being granted unlimited laboratory service. The physician in
charge o f this work is connected with various hospitals as pathologist
and serologist and is on a part-time salary basis at the clinic. He
makes all examinations o f blood, urine, sputum, milk, etc., Wassermann tests, metabolism tests, vaginal smears, diphtheria cultures,
etc., and renders reports in writing.
The clinic also has the advantage o f a consulting pediatrist and
a consulting dermatologist and o f an X -ray technician who is the
technician for the Children’s Hospital o f Philadelphia. The clinic
is advantageously placed in a building on the Children’s Hospital
grounds, and use may be made o f any o f the hospital clinics. Chil
dren under 12 years o f age who are too sick for placement in foster
homes are usually admitted at once to the Children’s Hospital for
bed care. This close association with a hospital is very beneficial
to the children.
SUMMARY.

The contents o f this paper may be very briefly summarized as
follow s:
The lot o f the dependent child at best is an unfortunate one, and
it should be our duty and our privilege to make his life as healthy
and as happy as possible.
Every dependent child who is to be placed in a boarding home
should have a thorough physical and, if possible, mental examina
tion before placement, and at certain definitely stated intervals
thereafter.
Defects found in the physical condition must be remedied as
promptly as possible.
Due attention must be paid by child-caring agencies to the physi
cal findings and to recommendations in regard to securing the
proper boarding home for the child.

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Supervision o f the diet, rest and play periods, and the general
hygiene o f the boarding home should be carried out by the visitor
from the child-placing agency.
Adequate payment must be made for the child’s proper care.
With proper nursing supervision babies may safely be cared for
in foster homes.
Children with unusual physical, mental, or social handicaps should
have these findings and the necessary treatment clearly explained to
caretakers before the children’s acceptance.
Written records of all the social, physical, and mental facts con
cerning the child should be made in duplicate, one copy to be kept
by the child-placing agency and one by the examining physician
or clinic.
Examinations of dependent children from all child-caring or
child-placing agencies should be made preferably in one central
examining clinic, exclusively for the study o f these children and
their problems.
There must be the: closest relationship and cooperation between
the child-caring agency, the clinic, and the foster home. Each one
needs the others, and all must work together for the benefit o f the
child.

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THE RELATION BETWEEN SOCIAL WORK WITH
FAMILIES AND CHILD-CARING WORK.
R ev . J o h n O ’ G rady , P h . D .,
Secretary, National Conference of Catholic Charities and Editor,
Catholic Charities Review .

ATTITUDE OF CHILDREN’S AGENCIES AND THE PUBLIC
TOWARD FAMILY CASE WORK.

In their zeal for the welfare o f children, children’s agencies and in
stitutions have many times overlooked the obligations o f parents.
They have assumed that they were in a position to provide higher
standards o f care for children than poor homes could offer. They
have been very well aware that when children were referred to them
for care there was invariably something wrong in the home—that a
situation had arisen in the home which could not be adjusted by any
outside agency. Many children’s agencies adopted a fatalistic atti
tude toward home problems. They felt that if parents could not
solve their own problems no outsider could help very materially.
Hence children’s agencies were glad to gather up the children o f poor
homes and anxious to rescue them from the vicious influences o f their,
home environment.
These earlier attitudes and policies o f the children’s agencies were
very largely a reflex o f the conditions in which they found them
selves. It is only within recent years that the possibilities of case
work for the preservation o f family life have been appreciated. In
most rural communities and in many small cities there are as yet no
family agencies; in many large cities the work of family agencies is
poorly organized; in cities with long-established and well-organized
family agencies the work o f these agencies does not reach all groups
in the community. In view o f the actual status o f work for families
the failure o f children’s agencies to take a family case-work point of
view is not surprising.
It must be recognized that work for children is still more highly
and more generally appreciated by the general public than work
for families. The orphan or the child o f the broken home makes
a powerful appeal to the sympathy and generosity o f the average
person. This is undoubtedly due to the old and well-established
traditions o f work for children. Therefore children’s institutions are
as a rule in much better financial condition and have a much larger
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and more interested clientele than family agencies. Thousands o f
persons in every large city in the United States are bound to child
caring institutions by the sacred ties o f family and religion. Large
numbers o f families have been associated with these institutions for
generations. The members o f these families look upon it as a sacred
obligation to contribute to their cherished institutions during life
and to remember them in their wills.
A large number o f the child-caring homes in the United States
were established primarily for the preservation of the religious faith
o f the children. For the founders o f these institutions it was not a
question o f institutional as against home care for the child. It was
rather a question as to whether the child should be cared for in an
institution o f his own faith or in an institution of a different religious
faith. In the past many institutions have had to accept without
question children who if investigation were made would have been
turned over to institutions o f a different religious faith. Parents
who were anxious to relieve themselves of the obligation of caring
for their children seem to have mastered the art o f playing off one
institution against another. In the daily round o f social-work
experience are still found parents who are ready to practice the
same tactics and institutions which are ready and willing to co
operate with them.
CITY-WIDE FAMILY AGENCIES AND CHILDREN’S WORK.

Child-caring homes operating on a religious basis will naturally
be unwilling to deny admission to children until they are assured
that the religious faith o f the children can be cared for just as effec
tively elsewhere. They will be opposed to surrendering the control
of their intake to agencies in whose religious work they do not have
confidence. This is. a serious difficulty in the way of having city
wide family agencies take charge of the intake o f all children’s homes.
But the difficulty is by no means universal. The writer knows
o f at least one city in which a community-wide case-work agency
has entered into an agreement with all the children’s homes o f
the community in regard to their intake problems. A ll applications
for the admission of children to homes are referred to the city-wide
agency, which in this instance happens to be a children’s agency.
I f on investigation it is found that the family can be rehabilitated
and the children cared for in their own home, the case is turned over
to a family agency. I f the children are removed from the home the
agency does not lose all contact with the family, but endeavors to
establish friendly relations with the parents so that they may be
ready at as early a date as possible to receive their children back into
their own homes. I f this policy o f turning over the intake of all

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children s agencies and institutions to one city-wide case-work
agency has been successful in one city it should also be successful in
every city in which all the important religious groups can unite on
one case-work agency. In cities where religious charities are
not well developed and where there is no hope of their being de
veloped in the near future, the city-wide agency offers the only prac
ticable means o f applying the principles o f case work to the work
o f child-caring homes.
The city-wide agency which endeavors to deal with child-caring
homes must proceed with the greatest circumspection. It must not
attempt to dictate policies to the institutions. It must be satisfied
with presenting the facts in each case to the institutional authorities,
with such suggestions or plans as it may have to offer, and must per
mit them to draw their own conclusions. It must have a sympathetic
appreciation o f the ideals and traditions o f the institutions if it
would influence their work; if it is cynical and unappreciative it
will never win the necessary confidence. The children’s institution,
like the family, is essentially a case-work problem.
INTAKE OF CHILDREN’S HOMES AND FAMILY CASE-WORK
PROBLEMS.

The intake problem of children’s homes is essentially one o f family
case work. No normal parent is anxious to separate himself from
his children. When a parent wants to turn over the care of his
children to a child-caring home or agency there is generally a need
for some adjustment in that parent’s life. It may be that the parent
does not have a proper appreciation o f his obligations toward his
children. Families in which the father and mother go out to work
and place the children in institutions and day nurseries need the
advice and assistance o f a family agency, and also need to have their
moral obligations interpreted to them by their church. I f the
father’s income is insufficient an effort can be made to secure a better
position for him. I f the mother has not mastered the a rt'of house
hold management she can be assisted very materially by a visiting
housekeeper or a sympathetic and persevering friendly visitor. The
problem of insufficient family income is always a serious one for the
family agency : but it is by no means so serious as the problem o f the
mother who has no training or taste for household management and
who wants to enjoy the same freedom and the same pleasures after
marriage as before.
It is a well-known fact that the presence o f children in the home
tends to exercise a steadying influence over the parents. Differences
o f opinion and clashes of temperament which might otherwise lead
to the complete disruption o f the family are frequently endured for
the sake o f the children. It is most important that family quarrels

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should not be made the occasion for surrendering the children to un
agency. Some months ago the writer was called upon to deal with
a case in which the mother, as à result o f a quarrel with the father,
endeavored to place her six children in child-caring homes. The
children’s homes to which she applied immediately turned the case
over to a family agency. The investigation made by the agency'
showed that the man was dissatisfied with his wife because she in
sisted on going out to work. The wife stated that it was necessary
for her to work in order to buy shoes and clothing for herself and the
children. She stated that the husband turned over to her only about
half o f his weekly income and gambled with the other half. After
a long and hard struggle the father and mother were reconciled and
their difficulties composed. The mother agreed to give up her posi
tion and the father consented to turn over a larger share of his
income for the maintenance o f the home.
DISTINCTIVE FUNCTIONS OF FAMILY AGENCIES AND CHILDWELFARE AGENCIES.

From the foregoing discussion it is evident that the intake prob
lem of the child-caring institution or agency is primarily a family
problem, to be cared for by a family agency. But should the family
agency lose all contact with family and child after the latter has
been turned over to a children’s agency? Here it will be necessary
to make a distinction between children’s institutions that employ
full-time, trained case workers and institutions that do not. I f the
children’s institution does not employ full-time workers it is neces
sary for the family agency to keep in touch with both the child and
the family. The family agency should never lose sight o f the possi
bility o f having the children returned to their own homes or to the
homes o f relatives and should also see to it that the family fulfills
its contract with the institution in regard to payment for the
children. ,
In its case work for children’s institutions the family agency will
be called upon to deal with foundlings and also with a number of
children who can never be returned to their own homes. The ques
tion will therefore arise as to whether the family agency should
undertake the work o f placing these children in foster homes. The
writer believes that it would be a desirable policy for the family
agency to take care o f the child-placing work until such time as the
institution is prepared to undertake its own child placing in an
organized way.
t A children’s agency or institution which is employing a trained
case-working personnel should assume full responsibility for; all
case work directly affecting the children under its care. W ith the

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proper safeguards it should have all the authority necessary to plan
intelligently for the welfare o f the child. Whether or not it should
have complete jurisdiction over the child committed by the court is
a moot point. Social workers, generally speaking, are inclined to
the view that the court should exercise continuing jurisdiction over
children committed to private agencies, but in regard to children
committed to public agencies there is a marked difference of opinion.
The writer does not see any good reason for distinguishing between
public and private agencies in this matter, particularly when the
latter are operating under public supervision. The really important
point is that any child-caring agency, whether public or private,
should not return the child to his own home without reckoning with
the experience o f agencies that have previously dealt with the family.
Where the work of children’s institutions has been closely inter
related with that o f city-wide family agencies, or where it has been
made an integral part of a unit system o f social work under religious
auspices, there is a question in regard to the advisability of having
the institutions undertake case work on their own behalf. Insti
tutions which are already engaged in case work will naturally want
to continue it and should in general be encouraged to do so. It
would be desirable, however, to have them confine themselves to cer
tain specific types of work, such as the foster-home placement o f
children, and, possibly, the aftercare of children discharged to their
own homes. Since the latter type of work is primarily the work
of a family agency it should be retained by the institution only in
exceptional circumstances, when the family agency is unable to
render satisfactory service.
There is every reason for believing that comparatively little work
is being done for families whose children have been taken over by
children’s agencies. It is too often assumed that conditions in these
families will somehow or other right themselves after the children
have been removed. Family agencies no longer feel any responsi
bility toward them and the children’s agencies are satisfied with a
periodical reinvestigation. It should be very evident that a periodi
cal reinvestigation will not remedy the conditions which necessi
tated the removal of the children. Constructive family work is the
only means o f remedying these conditions. The family agency
should, therefore, continue its work with families from which the
children have been removed. It should spare no pains to change
the family situation so that the children may some day be re
turned to their own homes. There is no parent, with the exception
o f the low-grade mental defective, whose attitude and habits o f life
may not be expected to change so that he will provide the proper
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care for his own children, and there is always the possibility o f
finding a relative willing to provide a home for the children.
When children are returned to their own homes their care should
become a part o f the work o f the family agency. It will not be
necessary for the children’s agency to continue its supervision except
in cases in which its legal guardianship is continued.
In an increasing number o f rural communities which have no
family agencies, well-organized children’s societies are being formed.
There are a number o f state-wide public and private children’s so
cieties, and a number o f States have county child-welfare boards.
These state-wide children’s societies and county child-welfare boards
must o f necessity undertake family work as well as child-welfare
work. Their family work is, in fact, o f much greater importance
than their work specifically for children. The standard by which
their efficiency is measured is not the number o f children they place
but the number o f families they rehabilitate. One o f the wholesome
signs o f the times in rural work is that it is beginning to be thought
o f in terms o f the family rather than o f the individual child, and
that boards o f public welfare are being substituted for child-welfare
boards.
NEED OF COORDINATION IN THE WORK OF FAMILY-WELFARE
AND CHILD-WELFARE AGENCIES.

A great part o f the social work for children in the United States
has developed without regard to the work of family agencies or the
principles of family case work. This has been due in part to the
lack of family organizations and to the fact that many o f the chil
dren’s societies and institutions did not have confidence in existing
family societies. Every social worker now feels the need o f bridg
ing this gulf between family and children’s organizations. The
social worker realizes that so long as children’s agencies accept large
numbers o f children without any effort at family rehabilitation
social work will remain very incomplete and imperfect. Those who
have thought much about the problem feel that they can find a solu
tion for it in a unified system o f social ease work under which no
child will be separated from his own home until all the possibilities
o f family case work have been exhausted. This would mean, o f
course, that children’s agencies would be excluded from the field
of family work, that they would no longer accept children directly
from their families, and that the work of children’s and family
agencies would be more closely coordinated than at the present time.
This coordination o f children’s and family work is by no means
an easy task, nor can it be secured by any rule-of-thumb methods.
Children’s agencies and institutions have their own policies and tra
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ditions. They are genuinely interested in both the material and the
religious welfare o f the child. Many o f the institutions date from
the time when the reception o f the child in an institution was essen
tial for the preservation of his religious faith. Those who know
something o f the social work o f the present time recognize that a
great change has taken place in this regard. Social workers as a
whole are now genuinely respectful o f religious beliefs and make
every effort to conserve them.
How is the work o f family and children’s agencies to be coordi
nated so as to insure constructive family work before children are
removed from their own homes and after they are returned to their
homes? This question has already been answered in part. In cities
with one city-wide family agency it should be possible to institute a
close working relationship between the family society and the vari
ous children’s agencies and institutions. It should be possible to get
the various children’s groups to see the need o f referring all their
applications to the family society. The writer believes that while
this plan is the only one that is immediately feasible in a large num
ber o f cities it is by no means an ideal plan. He believes that in
the long run much greater progress will result if the different re
ligious groups undertake their own case work, provided they are
willing to adopt standard case-work methods and to work coop
eratively with the other agencies of the community.
It is assumed, o f course, that the different groups will confine their
work to their own group members. It would be a very poor policy
for any group which represents merely a section o f the community
to undertake a community-wide work.
For the religious institution o f any denomination the religious wel
fare o f the child is paramount. Such an institution will not be
willing to turn a child over to any agency until it is assured that his
religious faith will be properly safeguarded and developed. There
fore the religious institution has far greater confidence in the work of
an agency o f the same faith than in a city-wide agency. For this
reason the family agency operating on a religious basis is the best
means and in most large cities the only means o f developing the
proper correlation between the large volume o f work done by de
nominational child-caring institutions and organized family-welfare
work.
While the denominational family agency is the best means of ap
plying case-work principles to children’s institutions o f the same
religious faith, it must be remembered that in many cities there is
little hope o f organizing denominational family agencies. Many re
ligious denominations feel that the community-wide agency can
satisfy all their needs; and no religious agency recognizes the need

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or has the necessary equipment for the organization o f familywelfare work on the same extensive basis as its children’s work. Over
a large section o f the field, therefore, dependence must be placed oh
city-wide, county, or State agencies. This means that the nonsec
tarian agency must develop a close working cooperation with de
nominational child-caring institutions. It means that the commun
ity-wide agency must convince the superintendents and boards of
directors o f the institutions that it is prepared to care properly for
the religious welfare o f children referred to it by the institutions.
- Many social workers feel that the efforts of the different religious
groups to establish their own case-working agencies will develop
endless confusion and antagonism among the different religious
groups themselves. But it must be remembered that the religious
organizations are already engaged in social work. A t the present
time they look upon social work among their own members as one
o f their essential functions. The larger religious groups in the
United States have never surrendered to community-wide agencies
their right to engage in constructive service for their own members.
In all probability, more than 60 per cent of all the work for chil
dren needing special care in the United States is done by the Protes
tant, Catholic, and Jewish groups. What the Catholic Church has in
mind in the organization o f case-work agencies is the coordina
tion, development, and standardization o f the various charitable ac
tivities in which it has been engaged from the beginning. The writer
does not have any first-hand knowledge of the work o f the other re
ligious groups but assumes that the same is true of them.
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN CATHOLIC
UNITED STATES.

CHILD CARE IN THE

There are four ways through which the Catholic Church in the
United States has endeavored to apply case-work principles to the
work o f its child-caring homes. In a few places the church has en
tered into a working agreement with city-wide agencies. Beginning
about 1890, a number o f Catholic institutions employed special agents
to assist them in the reception and discharge o f children. The im
portant functions of these agents were the protection of the interests
o f Catholic children in the criminal courts and the supervision of
children discharged from institutions. Some Catholic dioceses with
a large institutional population employed one worker who was sup
posed to attend to all court cases involving children and to supervise
all children discharged from institutions.
About 1895 a number o f leaders in Catholic charity work began to
realize that the problems o f intake and discharge could not be solved
by the individual institutions. They felt the need o f organizing the
Catholic children’s work in every city in the United States according

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to a unit plan. Hence they advocated the establishment o f central
Catholic child-caring agencies with trained personnel which should
be clearing houses for all the children’s institutions, have general
supervision over the intake and discharge o f children, and also accept
children directly for placement in family homes. The ideas of these
pioneers in Catholic case work for children in the United States did
not take hold very rapidly. A t that time Catholic organizations in
the different cities were isolated one from the other. There was no
literature o f Catholic charities and no Catholic charities conférence.
Between 1895 and 1912 beginnings were made in the organization o f
six central Catholic child-caring agencies in six cities in the United
States. W ith the organization o f the National Conference o f Cath
olic Charities in 1910 it became evident that Catholic children’s work
could not be dealt with as an isolated unit but must be made a part of
a complete and coordinated system which would include familywelfare work, health work, protective care, and recreation. The pro
ponents o f this unit plan o f organization were well aware that its
application to the work o f Catholic charities in the different cities
in the United States would necessarily be a rather slow process. It
meant the bringing together in one organization o f a multitude of
institutions and organizations which for years had regarded them
selves as completely autonomous and self-sufficient. It involved some
very important changes in the methods and policies o f the church in
dealing with the poor and the handicapped. Prior to that time the
church had depended on its parish organization to care for the poor
in their own homes. The new plan for the organization o f Catholic
charities called for city-wide family-welfare societies with full-time
trained personnel which would improve and supplement the work of
the different parish units. It proposed a rather complete coordina
tion and standardization o f the work o f Catholic children’s institu
tions and a close correlation of the work o f these institutions with
Catholic work for families, and it also provided for the standardiza
tion and development o f Catholic hospital dispensaries and socialservice departments and Catholic protective and recreational work.
It could not be expected that this unit plan o f organization
would be adopted by the Catholic charities in every city in the
United States in the short period o f 13 years. The extent to which
the plan has been adopted, however, is encouraging. In at least 25
cities the various Catholic charitable institutions and organizations
have been brought together under the direction o f a central “ bureau
o f Catholic charities.” These bureaus are in reality central case
work agencies with special departments devoted to family welfare,
child welfare, health, and protective care.
The writer has referred to the movement in the Catholic Church
for the organization o f bureaus o f Catholic charities, or bureaus

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o f social service, as they are sometimes known, in order to emphasize
their significance in the field of child welfare. Their most important
contribution has been their influence on Catholic child-caring institu
tions. One o f the first tasks which most o f the bureaus set before
themselves was the regulation o f the intake and discharge o f the
child-caring institutions. They have also brought the institution
superintendents together for the purpose o f discussing and formulat
ing common standards.
In connection with Catholic children’s work in the United States
there is another movement to which reference should be made in
this paper. In 1920 the various Catholic sisterhoods engaged in
child-welfare work in the United States formed a national organiza
tion for the purpose o f exchanging opinions in regard to their work
and developing their own literature and standards. This organiza
tion has already held three- annual meetings and has recently pub
lished a set o f standards under the title, “ A program for Catholic
child-caring homes.” The annual meetings o f the Catholic sister
hoods and their program for child care are bound to exercise a
profound influence on Catholic child-welfare work in the United
States. They will give Catholic institutions an opportunity o f
profiting by the best experience in child care. Heretofore those in
charge o f Catholic child-caring institutions have been loath to write
or talk about their work. This traditional attitude, is now fast
disappearing. The sisterhoods as a whole are showing a great will
ingness to discuss their work and to study and profit by the experi
ence o f other agencies and institutions.
As a result o f the work of the recently organized bureaus of
Catholic charities and the National Conference o f Catholic Sister
hoods, Catholic children’s homes are coming to think o f the child
in terms o f the fam ily; they are coming to recognize that effective
work for children presupposes good family-welfare work and are
therefore willing to make themselves a part o f a unified system
of social case work which assumes as one o f its fundamental postulates
that no child should be removed from his own home until every effort
toward preserving the family unit has been made and which assumes
further that efforts toward family rehabilitation should be continued
after the child has been turned over to the institution with the hope
of returning him to his own family at as early a date as possible.
CONSTRUCTIVE FAMILY SERVICE THE BEST MEANS OF INFLU
ENCING CHILDREN’S AGENCIES.

No matter what method o f correlating family with children’s work
is adopted, its success will depend on the service rendered by the
family agency* Many children’s workers are genuinely skeptical as

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to the claims o f family agencies. They feel that the actual results
secured by family agencies bear no proportion to their claims. This
attitude is common among institutional workers and is by no means
confined to them. It can not be changed simply by pointing out that
much o f the work which the children’s workers are doing at the
present time belongs to family agencies or simply by developing
new agencies or developing a higher type of cooperation between
existing agencies. The work o f the family agency will continue to be
judged by deeds and not by plans and programs. It will be looked
on as an experiment the value of which remains to be demonstrated.
The agencies will not make much progress with the children’s institions simply by stating that under ordinary circumstances the child
is better off in his own home than in an institution. The Workers in
the institution feel that the child receives fairly good care under
their direction. They know that there is something wrong with his
home. The family case worker must show the workers in the institu
tion that he is capable of righting whatever may be wrong in the
home so that the child can be properly cared for there.
The application o f case-work principles to the intake of children’s
agencies and institutions is, therefore, a real challenge to the family
case worker; and it is not a challenge that can be met merely by
pensioning mothers with dependent children or by pouring out relief
in any form. It must be met by changing the attitude and habits
of life o f large numbers o f parents, and if the family worker is to
change the attitude and habits o f life o f parents he must be prepared
to interpret for them the meaning and purposes o f life; he must hold
up before them proper standards o f behavior and he must be able
to explain the motives for observing these standards. Every time he
changes the attitude o f the careless and shiftless parent toward his
family responsibilities, every time he gets a nagging wife or a brutal
husband to adopt a more kindly and sympathetic attitude, every time
he induces a gambler to change his manner o f life and turn his earn
ings over to his family, every time he gets quarrelsome parents to
solve their difference for the sake o f their children, every time he
induces one or both parents to give up vicious sex relations, he is
extending the sphere o f family work and narrowing the sphere of
children’s work.
NEW ATTITUDE TOWARD THE PRESERVATION OF FAMILY LIFE.

Institutional care has been the traditional method o f providing
for children deprived o f the support o f one o f their parents by death,
desertion, or permanent disablement. When the father died or de
serted while his children were in their minority the mother usually

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felt that her only course was to place the children in institutions and
go out to work. Within recent years it has come to be recognized
that the loss o f one parent should not necessarily mean the break-up
o f the family. Family agencies have accepted as a part o f their
responsibility the care o f families deprived o f one of the parents.
The enactment o f mothers’ pension legislation by the various States
has relieved family agencies o f a large part of this burden. Mothers’
pension legislation has also reached a large number o f families who
could not be reached by the ordinary family agencies. A survey of
the population of children’s agencies and institutions would show,
however, that family case-work agencies and mothers’ pension legis
lation are not reaching all the cases that should be reached. Such
a survey would undoubtedly show that large numbers o f children
are being cared for by children’s agencies who with the application
of proper case-work methods might be taken care o f in their own
homes.
With the morally delinquent parent social workers tend to give
up hope prematurely. Such parents should be given every oppor
tunity for reformation before their children are removed. Social
workers should beware o f the Pharisaical attitude. They should be
slow to condemn the careless and delinquent parent even after he has
fallen seventy times seven. They should model their actions after
those o f Christ, whose great heart went out in sympathy and com
passion even to the greatest wrongdoers.
Even in the best families there is sometimes found the proverbial
“ black sheep,” a boy or a girl—most frequently a boy—o f whose
training the parents have made a complete failure. When the
parents o f such a child appeal to a social agency it is usually for the
purpose o f securing institutional care for the child. In four years’
experience with cases o f this type the writer has found that it is
usually a better plan to give the boy another chance o f making good
in his own home. The cooperation o f an outside agency with proper
understanding and sympathy as a rule has a good effect on the boy.
At least it has the effect of giving the parents a better understanding
o f the child. A ll educators, as well as all social workers, recognize
that no agency can take the place o f the parents in the training of
the child. The best institution and the best foster home are after
all only makeshifts. No person can give the child the same whole
hearted sympathy, can develop that same self-sacrificing love for
the child as his own parent; and the child must have sympathy and
love if he is to develop these same virtues in his own life—these
virtues which are the basis o f family life and o f the highest ideals
and noblest institutions o f the race.

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TYPES OF CHILDREN TO BE CARED FOR BY CHILDREN’S
AGENCIES.

No matter what social arrangements may be devised to protect
families from the economic hazards due to the premature death o f
the breadwinner or to industrial accidents, sickness, or unemploy
ment, it will still be necessary that some children be taken care of
by others than their own kith and kin. The attack on breaking up
the home for economic reasons is meeting with considerable success,
and one is fully justified in looking forward to the day when parents
will not longer be compelled by the stress o f poverty to turn their
children over to others. But even after the economic factors in
broken homes have been eliminated or at least greatly minimized
there will remain the moral factors in home destruction. It will still
be necessary to deal with the parent who has not acquired the virtues
o f self-sacrifice and o f self-effacement necessary for family life and
the parent who is anxious to be rid o f his children in order that
lie may be freed from the cares and the obligations o f parenthood.
It is the duty o f the church and o f social work to do everything pos
sible to prevent such shirking o f parental responsibilities. But no
matter what social or religious influence may be brought to bear on
parents there will be some who by reason o f mental or moral defects
will be unable or unwilling to provide reasonably adequate care
for their children. W ith the low-grade mental defectives no head
way can be made. They should be segregated in farm colonies and
not permitted to bring children into the world. When they do have
children there is nothing to do except to take the children from them.
CONCLUSION.

The fundamental purpose o f this paper was to consider ways and
means o f making the separation o f children from their own homes
increasingly difficult by a more intelligent and systematic coopera
tion between children’s and family agencies. The writer has en
deavored as far as possible to take situations as he found them
and to discuss the various drifts and tendencies that are pointing
the way toward a solution o f the problem. Two important methods
of developing a closer alignment between children’s and family
agencies have been treated at some length: First, the possibility of
a close working agreement between children’s agencies and institu
tions and city-wide family agencies under which the latter will
assume complete charge o f the intake o f the children’s agencies and
institutions and also o f all children discharged to their own homes;
second, the unit plan o f organizing social work under religious
auspices as illustrated by the bureaus o f Catholic charities. It has
not been assumed, however, that the work o f family agencies can

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by either o f these programs be made to parallel the whole field of
children’s work. Many children’s institutions will in all probability
follow the same lines o f development as children’s aid societies.
They will want to undertake their own case work. While this
would by no means be an ideal social policy, it would at least insure
the application o f social case-work methods to institutional work;
and when the children’s institutions apply case-work methods there
is every reason for believing that they will develop wholesome, co
operative relationships with the family and other agencies o f their
communities.

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COOPERATION BETW EEN THE CHILDREN’S AGENCY
AND OTHER COMMUNITY RESOURCES.
C. V. W i l l i a m s ,
Superintendent, Illinois Children’s Home and Aid Society.

Child neglect had been widely tolerated in one o f the great indus
trial States. Children were born and allowed to grow up amid
vicious influences. Many o f them suffered great physical neglect.
There were a few children’s homes caring for a relatively small group
o f children, but this service was very limited. Nearly every alms
house in the State was used as a shelter for some neglected and de
pendent children; others were sent to county jails.
A small group o f persons organized a state-wide program for the
placing o f dependent children in family homes. They developed
strong local advisory committees in many sections o f the State. They
removed from most o f the almshouses the children who were not
mentally defective, provided wholesome home life for large numbers
o f children who had been living in unfit homes, and also carried on
extensive educational propaganda in behalf of the State’s neglected
children. Then, after several years o f this service, the State woke
up and began to recognize its responsibility for the care o f these
children.
A t this time a most surprising thing happened. Another small
group o f citizens genuinely concerned for the welfare o f the neglected
and homeless children o f the State, believing that the voluntary
organization had outlived its usefulness and that the State should
henceforth undertake to care for such children, sought legislation by
which the State would take this work entirely out of the hands o f
private organizations.
The result was a bitter fight which lasted for several years. A
large group o f persons who had given their service and their money
for the development o f a work which was already demonstrating its
effectiveness, demanded its conservation. Another influential group,
with just as great zeal, insisted that the care o f neglected children
demanded service o f such character and permanency as could not be
achieved by private organizations.
Each group was in error, each lacked perspective. The tragedy
o f the situatiol. lay in the fact that the penalty for the misunderstand
ing, and for the lack o f cooperation—then as now—was borne by the
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ice that was given by the private agency was pathetically inadequate
and at times crude. Its standards of service had not been well de
veloped. The financial limitations of the organization permitted the
care o f only a small group o f neglected children, leaving the great
State problem unsolved. The group which demanded State care
for dependent children and the abolition o f much private initiative
was as greatly in error. It failed to appreciate the unlimited pos
sibilities o f service through the development and utilization of ma
chinery already brought into being by the private agencies, and the
value o f conserving their initiative for further work. And so while
these two groups opposed each other and succeeded to a large degree
in blocking each other’s plans, little children suffered.
Certain conditions existing in the field of child caring seem to
demand an examination and explanation of thé motives or the in
telligence o f the individuals responsible for movements in this field.
Though not always manifested as in the above incident there appears
in the conduct o f some agencies a greatly distorted idea as to the
character and the volume o f service they should render, and a greater
interest in the perpetuation o f the organization than in the solution
of the community problems pertaining to children. The struggle
by an organization for its maintenance as a separate entity is fre
quently out o f proportion to the efforts it puts forth to provide the
best possible service for its children— a service that can not be ren
dered adequately without the closest possible cooperation with every
other social force in the community.
COOPERATION AS A SOLUTION OF CHILD-WELFARE PROBLEMS.

The cooperation o f existing agencies would solve the child-welfare
problems of many communities. The development o f child-caring
agencies throughout the country has been rapid, and in every State
a vast amount o f service is available to children in need, but the
ramifications o f this work suggest enormous and undeveloped coop
erative possibilities.
Some States have succeeded in developing public departments for
child caring which not only maintain a high degree of service but set
standards that are followed by other organizations. In many States
the conditions are reversed, and it is left to the voluntary organiza
tions not only to develop methods and set standards but also to carry
the great burden o f providing for the State’s dependent children.
There are public and private home-finding agencies occupying the
same territory, caring for the same types of children, and at times
competing with each other. There are State, county, and municipal
institutions for the care o f dependent and delinquent children.
There are institutions for the care o f handicapped children—the
blind, the deaf, the crippled, and the feeble-minded. There are

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detention homes, receiving homes, orphanages, shelters, and day
nurseries. There are protective and children’s aid organizations
with state-wide activities, and in addition to these and many others
there are numerous public and private State and national organiza
tions designed to render highly specialized service to needy children.
And yet in no State has the full coordination o f these agencies func
tioning in behalf o f children been accomplished.
The types o f service now available through these agencies are so
varied and the volume is so enormous that in many communities
the child-welfare problems could be practically and economically
solved through their concerted action. The establishment o f addi
tional agencies would not be necessary.
It is fitting that the social workers of the country should honestly
face these facts. The terms u coordination ” and u cooperation ” are
used with complacency in our State and national conferences; yet
the surprising and pathetic fact is that with a few outstanding
exceptions child-caring agencies have not yet learned how to coop
erate, and the greatest general criticism that can be made concern
ing social organizations is their failure to render reciprocal service
to each other.
REASONS FOR FAILURE TO COOPERATE.

Some o f the reasons why social agencies do not cooperate are :
(a) Executives lack information; (b) competition o f agencies to
secure money from the same territory frequently prevents friendly
relations; (c) some agencies are satisfied with their work and con
sider any interruption o f present plans o f organization and adminis
tration an intrusion.
(a)
The technique of social service for children has had tardy
development. The courses o f training offered have been available
to but a small proportion of the men and women in the country who
are actually engaged in children’s service ; consequently only a com
paratively small percentage of these persons, including many execu
tives, have had any special training. In hundreds o f institutions
splendid men and women, technically untrained, are rendering a
heroic and a faithful service to their charges. Some o f them never
attend a State or a National conference, and do not inform them
selves concerning other community resources. Their entire time
is given up to what seems to be the immediate problem—the care
of their children. Because of their lack o f specialized training many
o f thèse overworked and underpaid persons will never be able to
appreciate properly the inadequacy of their work, and in consequence
o f this absence o f information children are sadly negelcted. This
is especially tragic because some o f these devoted workers are prac
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ticing great self-denial in their effort to serve the children. How
long shall the sacrifice o f helpless children, due to the ignorance of
well-meaning but uninformed persons, continue?
(&) Possibly a more obvious cause for lack o f cooperation among
child-caring agencies is the struggle for financial assistance. In
the effort to attract the attention o f possible givers, the agency must,
at times, advertise itself to the exclusion of other organizations. In
the economic struggle a sense o f values is lost and the competition o f
kindred child-caring agencies to secure money from the community
leads to unfriendliness or even actual hostility. The average annual
report o f a child-caring agency would hardly invite the friendly
cooperation o f kindred organizations in the same locality. The ex
perience o f a number of community “ financial federations ” has
demonstrated the ease with which the functional activities o f child
caring agencies may be coordinated when the competition to secure
financial aid is removed.
( c)
Other causes are more subtle and intangible but quite as
vicious as those already cited. There are agencies—-both public and
private—that are steeped in complacency. They will not cooperate
with other organizations because they are self-sufficient and quite
satisfied with their work. They maintain the standards o f a gen
eration ago. The rules and regulations o f some o f these agencies
are “ sacred institutions;” they are not altered to meet progressive
social ideals, and in their application the changing needs o f the
children are given only secondary consideration.
WASTEFULNESS OF INDIVIDUALISTIC EFFORT.

Consequences o f lack o f cooperation are: (a) Duplication o f e f
fort; (b) lack of service for certain needy types; (c) low standards
o f service; and (d) inadequate and incomplete service to the children.
. ( a) The lack o f cooperation on the part o f child-caring agencies
is costly both in effort and in money. New agencies are created for
the care of children which duplicate work already accomplished, and
their maintenance becomes a needless burden. L ofty motives some
times accompany lack o f information. Persons who spend vast sums
o f money for buildings to house alleged dependent children without
engaging in a suitable inquiry to find out why the children should
be thus cared for, may be not only committing a needless extra
vagance but doing an injury to the community. The erection of an
orphanage or the creation o f a new agency is not the one answer to
the big problem o f child welfare.
A group o f persons connected with a certain state-wide organiza
tion, desiring to engage in some form o f social service, decided to
establish a “ children’s home,” and were able to secure funds suffi
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cient to buy a building for this purpose. They were without infor
mation as to the need for this particular kind o f institution, but
following the example o f many other groups adopted their program
and then went out to find the children whom their program would
fit. The children whom they selected could have been better cared
for through existing agencies. This incident is mentioned to show
the manner in which needless agencies are foisted upon the com
munity.
Lack o f cooperation is not confined to private agencies. In one
o f the large States, which has much social legislation, numerous de
partments o f the State had been given duties of inspection. Though
they dealt with the same institutions their work was not at all co
ordinated. Agents from the board of health, the department of
charities, the fire marshal’s department, the bureau of uniform ac
counting, the building-inspection department, and sundry other de
partments o f the State, might travel to the same institution on the
same day. The duplication o f travel expenses alone was enormous,
and there was repeated overlapping o f service. One of the ridiculous
features o f the situation was the failure o f the departments to co
ordinate their findings, which in some cases were contradictory and
brought the inspection service into contempt. For example, a child
caring institution which operated with impossible standards and was
criticized by the charities board was commended and favorably re
ferred to by the accounting bureau, because of its low per capita cost.
In the same State a strong department o f public instruction
dictated the standards for the public educational institutions
throughout the State but exercised no authority over the education
o f children in the State child-caring institutions; and in some of
these institutions mediocre or inferior educational standards pre
vailed.
Through cooperation the social forces o f the community could,
without doubt, meet existing needs. A knowledge of existing re
sources would result in the abolition of the foolish, shameful, and ex
travagant duplication of effort, and there would be substituted a
development o f activities which would be o f actual constructive ser
vice to needy children.
(b)
The practice o f establishing additional agencies for the care
o f children without a knowledge of actual needs not only results in
frequent duplication and consequent extravagance but— of even
greater importance—leaves large groups of children without care.
Either there is no plan o f treatment for these children, who are not
eligible for care by the existing agencies, or such agencies are with
out sufficient resources. It often happens that institutions can not
function in behalf o f really needy children because they are filled
with children some o f whom have been needlessly removed from their

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homes. In numerous communities with abundant facilities for the
care o f normal needy children no provision whatever has been made
for certain types o f difficult but misunderstood children, who because
o f that lack are sent to penal or custodial institutions. For example,
not many communities make provision for the care and education of
children suffering from syphilis and gonorrhea, though in every
State there are such children in dire need o f attention.
One o f the first advantages o f a cooperative movement would be
the development o f a program taking into consideration the needs of
every child and not’ confined to activities in behalf o f special groups.
(<?) The self-satisfied, individualistic child-caring agency which
does not cooperate with other organizations generally maintains low
standards of service. It may be unconscious of this fact, but the
most casual study of such agencies throughout the country reveals
primitive customs and practices that are generally due to ignorance
growing out o f their isolation from other agencies. No child-caring
organization “ can live unto itself.” The things that happen to chil
dren in the care of these agencies do not make pleasant reading.
Some juvenile-court judges prefer to confine their wards for pro
longed custodial care in detention homes which lack facilities for
separating the dependent from the delinquent children, rather than
accept the service of standardized agencies which would seek family
homes for these children. Many children who should not have been
removed from their own homes are kept at great expense for many
years and then returned to the same environment from which they
came. Other children are placed by agencies in unfit foster homes
where they are subjected to harmful influences ; some o f them are
practically abandoned by the organizations that assumed their guar
dianship. In many institutions unfortunate mothers, at the time
neither physically nor mentally in a condition to know their own
minds, are persuaded to surrender their children for adoption. This
cruel practice—robbing mothers of their children in the name of
charity—-still needs to be abolished in many localities. In some chil
dren’s institutions the children are physically neglected; they are
crowded together in cheerless rooms ; they are subjected to that in
vention of the devil— a silence regime that crushes out their indi
viduality. Their wistful eyes tell the story o f their great hunger
for the individual care which they will not receive.
( d)
Lack of cooperation is further costly to the child because no
one agency in a community is equipped to meet all his needs and
practically every specialized welfare activity, directly or indirectly,
affects child life. The agency that is satisfied with its exclusive
service o f detention or foster-home care, and neglects to avail itself
o f resources o f service through other kindred organizations is not
meeting fully its obligations.

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In some o f the most highly specialized services there is danger
that the agency will lose its perspective. The agency may succeed
admirably in providing a superior foster home for a child, but if it
has failed to see the needs o f that child in the light of the needs of
his entire family it may rob him o f his birthright. For it is some
times better that brothers and sisters be left together under supervi
sion in their own home, even though that home be inferior, than
that the fragments of a broken family be scattered in many excellent
institutions.
The problems o f the neglected child are much broader than those
involved in his immediate care. What facts concerning his family
are sought? What is known of his parents, his brothers and sisters,
and his other relatives? What are the peculiar environmental con
ditions that have brought him to the attention of the agency ? What
has been done, or will be done, to correct the conditions which have
been responsible for the family breakdown ?
Children’s agencies have almost universally failed to take the
family o f the neglected child seriously. Case investigations have
been made; they have revealed causes and results, and physical and
mental conditions that are of value in planning for the child. But
the conditions responsible for the vermin, the neglect* the immorality,
and the obviously unfit home life have not always been remedied. It
may be rather interesting for the agency to tell the story o f the rescue
of the poor children from the “ impossible ’’ parents. In their great
zeal to serve neglected children they have lost sight o f the spiritual
values which demand the conservation, if possible, of the child’s
home. This fatal blunder has affected the lives o f thousands of chil
dren. No physical condition which may later be brought into their
lives will quite satisfy the infinite longing they have for association
with their own kin; and many o f them will ask in vain for informa
tion concerning the scattered members o f their family.
No agency can successfully treat the child under its care without
knowing his family background and the conditions that have de
stroyed his home or rendered it unfit. No agency in the country is
sufficiently well equipped to meet adequately all the needs o f all the
children whom it serves. And no agency can function with maxi
mum success without an understanding of, and a cooperation with,
the forces affecting the health and happiness and general welfare
o f the children of the community. An appreciation o f this fact
places upon children’s agencies everywhere the imperative obligation
to enlist the service and secure the assistance o f as many other
organizations and as many individuals as possible. Children’s
agencies may be able to exist without this cooperation, but the result
is costly. It is costly to the groups especially concerned, and to the
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children who, in this way, are deprived o f the most constructive
service. The children always pay the bill.
SOME METHODS OF COOPERATION.

It is the purpose o f this discussion to consider fundamental prin
ciples and some of the methods adopted by agencies that seek to do
their full duty by their charges. Methods which have met with
success in one community may fail elsewhere. The question as to
how child-caring agencies of any State may be welded into a real
unit still offers a challenge to the social architect. Though little is
known o f any form o f coordination which organizes the community
forces so as to secure the most thorough service, attempts to federate
agencies having a common purpose have been made and have met
with substantial success. Councils of social agencies, or similar
organizations, are effecting group movements in welfare activities.
In some communities agencies are now getting a vision of the service
that should be available to every child. W ith the growing recog
nition o f its own limitations, an agency eagerly seeks the assistance
o f others.
Cooperation in various cities.
In one o f the large cities there were a large number o f children’s
institutions with standards o f the ordinary variety. Each carried
on its own program in most cases with little concern for community
needs. The executives o f some of these agencies hardly knew one an
other. A series o f conferences to bring them together was arranged
at different institutions. These conferences were well attended by
persons connected with the children’s organizations, who in this way
began to get acquainted with one another. This acquaintance de
veloped into good fellowship and confidence, and soon the group
began to plan for the care of children whom none of them had been
able to reach. Then followed a survey o f the child-caring activities
o f the entire city— a study which, though directed by experts, was
participated in by the agencies themselves. This revealed much
waste and numerous misdirected activities. The wards of one large
institution, with few exceptions, were found to be needlessly de
tained, having parents or relatives able to care for them. These
children were removed, and the institution became available for the
reception and study of difficult children who previously had not been
reached. For the first time this institution was placed in a position
to render its greatest.service not only to the coordinating agencies
but also to the children o f the city who were most in need of it.
In another large city six well-equipped and highly standardized
private children’s agencies were engaged in the same general type of
work. Many years ago these agencies prevented duplication o f effort

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through their reference to a confidential exchange. In order to give
better service to the community, they later agreed among themselves
as to the geographical district for which each o f them would assume
a major responsibility, and furthermore developed phases o f in
tensive service made possible by the existence o f so many agencies.
Obviously this refinement o f specialized service, as well as the dis
trict to be occupied by each agency, could not be generally known to
applicants for aid. To meet this situation each of the six agencies
agreed that when approached with a request for relief for a child
it would take the responsibility o f locating the case with the proper
organization. Through this close cooperation service of high quality
has been developed and duplications o f effort have been reduced to a
minimum.
An old, well-established, and influential children’s home had for
many years been placing children in foster families. The investiga
tions by the institution had been casual. Beyond written indorse
ments, which could be secured by any person, little was known o f the
fitness o f many o f the homes. The visitation o f the placed-out chil
dren was delegated to the haphazard volunteer service of board mem
bers. Some o f the children were visited, others were not. Several
o f the directors were led to examine into the history and development
o f foster-home placements and the dangers incident to them. They
suddenly awakened to the fact that they had practically ignored one
o f their greatest responsibilities, and that in consequence o f their
failure adequately to supervise their wards in foster homes, some of
the children had been neglected. They did not possess the resources
for the development o f a comprehensive home-finding and placingout program. Instead o f going to the expense o f building up ma
chinery for this purpose within their own institution, they accepted
the services o f a state-wide home-finding agency. This organiza
tion employed trained workers who were experienced in developing
foster homes and in determining their fitness to receive children, and
who knew something o f the technique of adjusting children to adapt
able homes and o f exercising supervision over these children after
placement. Through an arrangement by which this society assumed
the responsibility for placement and supervision high-grade service
was secured and economies were effected. It is much more satisfac
tory for a properly standardized state-wide agency, employing work
ers who are trained in this type o f service and having the entire
State as a field for home finding, to assume such an additional task
than for the small agency to set up makeshift machinery to accom
plish, at a great cost, a lesser result.
In still another city there are a large number of children’s organi
zations. The enormous resources o f these agencies are not generally
known, with the result that a limited number o f them have been

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carrying most o f the burden. These agencies are now forming
a joint application bureau, which will be maintained in a separate
office by the participating organizations. It will inform itself con
cerning all the community’s resources for service to needy children
and will classify cases and distribute them to the appropriate
agencies for care. In its investigations the bureau will seek pri
marily to establish the need and to ascertain to what agency the
case should be sent. The development o f the plan for the full treat
ment o f the case will be left to the agency. Any person may refer
to this bureau any child in trouble. This will save many a poor
parent from being sent from one agency to another without finding
help. The development of this plan not merely will secure a more
systematic service in behalf o f children in need, but will permit
the obtaining of specific information concerning groups o f children
for whom no resources are available. As a further aid to coop
erative service one of the large children’s institutions associated with
the bureau will operate as a receiving home, giving emergency and
short-time care to children pending their acceptance by other agencies.
The child-caring agencies of several of the large cities have been
able to effect functional combination. Through joint application
bureaus, joint purchasing, and joint home-finding and medical serv
ices a much improved and increased volume of service has been
secured, with a commensurate reduction of administrative costs. In
many communities, in order to facilitate further cooperative move
ments, different social agencies are taking offices in the same building.
The subcommittee on dependent children of the National Confer
ence of Social W ork outlines as follows a tentative program for
child-caring agencies located in the same city :
Following an establishment of an accurate understanding between the
agencies of work plans, the council should turn its attention to the “ funda
mentals and elements in case work,” which will include:
(a ) Social investigation of problems or cases.
(b ) A case diagnostician.
(c) The reference of cases or problems by one agency to another.
(<Z) Interagency case conferences, when more than one agency is interested.
( e ) Uniformity and standards of records and their making.
( f ) Working out and understanding by all agencies the specific character
of case treatment necessary to be followed by certain individual or kindred
groups of agencies.
{g) An arrangement to administer cooperatively, and it may be centrally,
such service as may be common to all agencies, or to agencies in kindred groups.
In this arrangement may be worked out plans such as represented by children’s
bureaus in joint investigation of cases for care, decision as to their ‘ final
disposition, medical examination, etc .; central registration schemes, central pur
chasing o f supplies for institutions, joint bureaus o f volunteer service are sug
gestions of common activities vital to many agencies.

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Cooperation through State agencies.
In one community a state-wide home-finding agency took an
active part in organizing a local children’s Service bureau. The
State agency had been “ covering” this city and had rendered some
valuable aid in behalf o f children who needed temporary care. It
was obvious that this service could not be commensurate with the
need. The State agency therefore helped to develop a local organi
zation, which had a much stronger financial appeal in the community
than the State society. This made possible the setting up o f special
machinery for the treatment o f local cases and the employment of
persons to devote their entire time to it. A ll the ordinary protective,
diagnostic, supervisory, and general aid service in behalf o f children
in their own homes is now under the direction o f the local bureau.
The State organization confines its service in this city to the care
of children who are removed by court order from their parents and
aie in need o f permanent or adoptive homes. The local organization
lacks the machinery for this type of service. The case investigations
concerning the children who need permanent care and the supervision
o f the State agency’s wards in foster homes in that community are
supplied by the local agent, who is compensated for her service by
the State agency. Thus the cooperation is made effective, and the
community receives a vast amount of service which the State agency
could not give.
,
One State department, in addition to its inspectionaT responsibil
ities, is required by statute to develop throughout the Commonwealth
a placing-out plan for dependent children. It has aroused compla
cent trustees and directors to a sense of the inadequacy o f their serv
ice by visiting their wards and then presenting to them specific facts.
Some o f these trustees and directors have been amazed to learn in
wj^iat pitiable condition some o f the children for whom they are
1 esponsible have been found.
This State department, recognizing the
financial limitations and the difficulties under which many institu
tions are operating, has made a practice o f offering its highly special
ized home-finding and supervisory service to such agencies as care
to accept it. Owing to this constructive cooperation the work for
children in some of the counties o f the State has been literally trans
formed. Children detained for years in institutions have been
given physical examinations and corrective treatment, have been
mentally studied, and have then been placed in carefully selected
homes under constructive supervision. Space has thus been released
in the institutions for the care o f other children.
Cooperation in rural communities.

The rural problem presents different aspects. The first problem
o f the city is to bring together and to cause to operate as an entity

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a large group o f children’s agencies. The rural problem is not less
complicated. It entails the bringing together o f all available socialwelfare activities, and the physical difficulties o f this task are not
readily overcome.
In many States the county is proving the logical unit for this
type o f service. In effecting an organization o f the community’s
resources the following groups should be considered: (a) The re
ligious; (b) the civic and fraternal; ( c ) the social and educational;
and ( d) the medical.
The governing board, to be democratic, must include representa
tives o f each o f these groups. The religious organizations should
everywhere be called upon to participate in social programs. The
greatest forces that can be found for accomplishing family recon
struction are too frequently ignored. In some localities superb serv
ice is being rendered by the civic and the fraternal organizations.
These organizations can readily be interested in the community
needs. The public schools and other educational activities will func
tion increasingly in the program o f the future for neglected children.
A ll the social-welfare agencies, both public and private, that operate
in a county should have a place in the county organization. The
medical resources of many rural communities have yet to be
socialized, but in order to protect the community health— a social
problem—the cooperation o f the medical profession is needed.
The outstanding need everywhere is for information—informa
tion concerning all the children in the community who are in dis
tress; and, o f even greater importance, information concerning the
needy families who have not yet reached the breaking point.
A survey o f all the available welfare forces o f the community
should be followed by their organization for the carrying out o f one
definite program in which the responsibilities of each unit wilLbe
clearly defined and the activities o f the entire group coordinated.
The organization o f these forces under suitable leadership would
establish a superb form o f service meeting the need of every mem
ber o f the community. W ith an organization like this, the children’s
agencies could render their service with a directness not heretofore
known, for one of the results growing out o f such organization would
be the rehabilitation o f homes and the saving o f parents to their
own children. In a community with such an organization homes
would not be needlessly destroyed.
RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED THROUGH COOPERATION.

Every community has unused resources. The needless admission
o f children to children’s homes and day nurseries could be prevented
through cooperation with case-working social agencies now exist
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ing in nearly every urban, and even in most rural, communities.
The hideous consequences o f placing children in unfit homes could
be avoided through the use o f proper agencies that specialize in
home finding. The physical treatment o f children who have remedi
able defects could generally be accomplished through the use of exist
ing medical organizations.
Only when the children’s agencies, actually cooperate, will there
be an approach to the meeting o f the communities’ real needs. Then
there will be emergency receiving-home service available for im
mediate use, Institutions will no longer be “ dumping grounds,”
but each will accept for care children whom it can best serve. Pro
vision will be made for neglected groups, such as the venereally in
fected and the psychopathic. Special vocational training will be
given to children who need it. Family-home care for children who
may properly be placed at board will be developed. The protective
agency will have cooperation in seeking to compel parents to protect
their own children, and the agency that places children in. family
homes for adoption will serve all the others.
The unmarried mother and her child will no longer be shunted
from one agency to another, but will be given such service as the
circumstances justify. The institutions that seek to give special
industrial and educational opportunities to children will not be im
peded in this work by a large feeble-minded population. Mothers
in maternity hospitals will not surrender their children to irrespon
sible guardians. Infants in need o f special pediatric service will
receive it. An understanding service will be rendered to children
physically or mentally sick, and the days will have come to an end
when delinquent, dependent, defective, and venereally infected chil
dren can be herded together in the same building, the treatment of
each class interfering with service to the others.
THE RELATION BETWEEN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE CHILD-CARING
AGENCIES.

In many States a public department, in addition to inspectional
and licensing powers, is required to carry on a general child-caring
program, accepting the guardianship o f children and providing for
their care in institutions or ^family homes. The wisdom o f extend
ing supervisory powers to an agency that engages in the same type
o f work in which it supervises others is questionable. In some States
the public child-caring departments do not maintain high standards
and need the assistance o f a constructive State supervisory body
as badly as the private organizations.
The attitude shown by State departments in their relation to
private agencies varies in different States. It may be sympathetic

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and helpful or it may be unduly critical. In some States the public
departments are developing broad, cooperative programs and seeking
to conserve the interest and the initiative o f the supervised agencies.
In others the State agencies tend toward an autocratic régime—
an attitude that does not encourage cooperation.
A certain State department charged with the supervision of
children placed in family homes visited the wards o f a private chil
dren’s home-finding agency. Following this visitation the superin
tendent o f the society made repeated but futile efforts to secure from
the department the report concerning this “ service.” -More than a
year later a public report was issued in which the State agent, after
exalting the ~7ork of his department, severely criticized the private
agency and told o f finding some o f its wards in undesirable homes.
I f the State agent had been really interested in the welfare of these
children, it would appear that he would have taken immediately the
logical steps to have the condition corrected, by reporting it to the
responsible guardian. State supervision of this nature is not hearten
ing to the supervised agency.
Public child-caring departments, like private agencies, may operate
with mediocre standards or may lead in developing high standards.
Some State departments o f the latter type have rendered a conspicu
ous service, in placing the State program o f child caring on a high
plane. The lines o f demarkation between the responsibility of the
State and that o f the voluntary agency in the care o f children are
not readily drawn and will vary in different States. It is gen
erally conceded that public funds may be sought for that which has
been demonstrated to.be practicable and economical, the field o f ex
perimentation being left to the private organization. There are ex
ceptions to this rule. The establishment within State departments
of research bureaus for the psychiatric study o f children is a striking
illustration o f the willingness of some legislatures to undertake new
and undeveloped work. The private agency can choose the work it
wants to do, but it will always render a limited service to a relatively
small group of children. It has a peculiar opportunity to explore
new fields. It can blaze trails, discover methods ; and when the
wisdom o f such service is established, it can seek to place upon the
public department the responsibility o f serving the much larger
group through the methods it has proved to be effective.
In one State where public service for children has been developed
on a large scale the State accepts for care all cases o f ordinary de
pendency and all types that require long-time custodial care. The
private agencies, on the other hand, are called upon to render in
tensified service o f a more costly nature to specialized groups of
children and to provide temporary care for children in whose cases
there are possibilities o f early rehabilitation.

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In another State the burden o f service is borne by a few private
agencies. The State department charged with the task o f child car
ing makes little or no provision for the care o f children who can not
be helped by the existing private agencies and much o f the work of
the department is a duplication o f service available elsewhere.
Departments charged with the responsibility o f developing a State
program for children should recognize that their great opportunity
lies in rendering constructive aid to all existing agencies, rather than
in the exercise o f the police power. Some o f the agencies now op
erating with low standards are capable o f great development, but
they should be given proper assistance. The private child-caring
organizations, whether they are working with high or with low stan
dards, represent forces that, properly organized, could insure the
welfare o f many children. The State can not afford to spoil the in
itiative o f these groups o f men and women who are giving both their
service and their money.
The State department, through its power to pass upon new incor
porations, can prevent the establishment o f needless duplicating or
ganizations, and with a knowledge o f needs it can direct new agencies
to the desired type o f service.
A State supervisory department should develop a staff personnel
trained in social case work and in institutional administration. They
should be able to diagnose and to treat in a constructive manner the
ills common to many children’s agencies. They should secure uni
formity in record keeping by passing upon or by preparing standard
forms and by assisting in their installation. They should be able to
make population studies, to develop home-finding propaganda, and
to assist the agencies in securing suitable supervision for placed-out
children. They should know how to assist the agencies in problems
affecting the physical, social, religious, educational, and cultural life
o f children.
Enormous resources are at the command o f the State department
which should be available to the agencies it supervises. Some State
departments are carrying on special educational work by calling dis
trict or regional conferences o f representatives of children’s organiza
tions. I f the geographical district is not large this affords an op
portunity to develop friendly contacts—a first step toward coopera
tion.
When child-caring agencies realize the terrible consequences of
the lack o f cooperation in welfare activities, the great multitude o f
unfortunate children who are not reached, and the inadequacy and
incompleteness o f the work that is accomplished for needy children
by the best organizations in the community, their individualistic ef
forts will give place to a cooperative program. Only then will the
rights o f neglected children be conserved.

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STATE SU PERVISIO N OF PLACING-OUT AGENCIES.
E

llen

C . P o t t e r , M . D .,

State Secretary of Welfare, Pennsylvania.

THE REASON FOR STATE SUPERVISION.

Long before organized government recognized that any responsi
bility devolved upon it for safeguarding the dependent child, men
and women as individuals and as religious and fraternal groups had
assumed the responsibility, and in many communities the child bereft
o f parental care was speedily and adequately provided for. Indi
viduals and associations, however, could not keep pace with a problem
which, if it had involved the normal child only, would have been diffi
cult, but which, involving the mentally and physically handicapped
child as well, became impossible for them to handle. Local govern
mental units were naturally called upon to take up the task, being im
pressed by the appeal of the individual helpless child. And to this
day there can not be found a director of the poor who will permit a
child to lack for bread. A ll too often, however, this is the beginning
and the end o f service.
It was inevitable that in its beginnings the work o f child-helping
should be based upon sentiment, upon religious motive, and upon
an abstract philanthropic impulse. It could not therefore be ex
pected that a comprehensive program to include all dependent chil
dren would be an early development, neither could it be expected
that constructive methods calculated to prevent dependency would
be evolved. As a result, the problem o f the dependent child became
too vast and too intricate to be handled by private philanthropy
or local government alone. Pressing with ever-increasing force
upon the State, it demanded attention and solution if the burdens
o f taxation incident to the care o f the dependent, the defective, the
delinquent, and the criminal were not to become overwhelming.
The modern movement in the field of public welfare indicates
that the time has arritqd when the State must assume not only its
share o f the burden o f the dependent child but a position o f leader
ship in the development o f comprehensive plans, policies, and
methods which shall include not alone custodial care for the de
pendent but prevention o f dependency as well—plans which shall
insure to all needy children the protection o f the State.
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State departments concerned with child care enter the field at
this time under a definite handicap. They are late in undertak
ing a task which to many persons has seemed their obvious but neg
lected duty for many years. They find already in the field private
and local governmental workers committed to a great variety o f
methods and to no method, and accustomed to absolute independ
ence of action in their own territory, with no thought as to the
result o f their actions upon the plans or actions o f others. The
State department also finds itself suspected o f political motives in
all its undertakings and its staff on trial.
Under such circumstances, is it desirable for the State to under
take the supervision o f placing-out agencies ? Is it possible for it
to do so without a miniature revolution? I f so, how can this be
accomplished ?
It is desirable that the State undertake such supervision. Only
so can there be an orderly development of an effective program on
a state-wide basis which will eliminate overlapping and cover the
entire field of child need with a minimum of expense. Only so can
minimum standards as to method be arrived at and maintained.
HOW SHALL STATE SUPERVISION BE UNDERTAKEN?

Staff.
There is no field of public service in which it is more necessary
that politics should be kept out than in the field o f public welfare,
if the activities o f such a department are to demand and hold the
respect and secure the cooperation o f the public.
Therefore, to avoid or to minimize friction and revolt on the part
of child-placing agencies already in the field, the only safety for a
State department lies in the appointment o f an absolutely non
political staff, the members of which are in truth trained workers
capable o f rendering a consultation service in the various problems
which are likely to arise in the work o f any agency. Not only is
training necessary, but the staff must possess personality, maturity,
and experience, if their supervision is to be accepted by the agencies
already in the field. There must be no sham about what the State
has to offer.
The child-placing agencies involved.
In looking over the field from the point of vantage of a State
department, one finds child placement in the hands o f a great variety
o f individuals and agencies—the directors o f the poor, the courts,
the private incorporated agency for child placement, the private
incorporated institution for child care, the unincorporated agency
and institution—these private incorporated and unincorporated
groups being further subdivided into religious, fraternal, and philan
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•

thropic sections. In addition, there is the large but as yet unknown
number o f placements made by physicians, nurses, hospitals, ma
ternity homes, and “ interested persons” o f all sorts; and last, but
by no means least, in a few instances the State itself serves through
one o f its divisions as a board o f children’s guardians, including
child placement as one o f its activities.
Added to these individuals, agencies, and institutions within the
borders o f a State, the State department is beset on every boundary
by irresponsible individuals and moire or less responsible agencies and
institutions which place dependent children over the State line and
all too often disappear without trace, leaving the helpless ohild a
charge upon an alien community.
How then is a State department to approach the problem o f locat
ing the agencies and individuals placing children ; o f standardizing
placement method and supervision ; o f eliminating undesirable place
ments; and o f insuring to all the dependent children of the State
adequate care ?
On the part o f a State department there should be frank recog
nition at the outset that there is much for it to learn from the agencies
and individuals already in the field. A ll knowledge is not suddenly
acquired by a State department through its mere creation. Methods
in use in a given locality frequently represent the accumulated ex
perience o f 50 years and more and are rooted in racial characteris
tics which can not be overlooked if work is to be successful. Policies
and methods which may appear technically correct in theory may
prove absolutely unworkable in a given community.
THE KEY TO SUCCESS— PARTNERSHIP AND UNDERSTANDING.

The key to a successful undertaking in this field of governmental
endeavor is to be found in a spirit o f partnership and mutual de
pendence between the public and private agencies ; between State,
county, and municipal governments; and between the State depart
ment and the county courts. The initial move toward such a part
nership must come from the State.
The* survey.
It follows that the first step to be undertaken by any State depart
ment created for purposes o f child care must be in the direction of
a careful survey o f the agencies and institutions already existing in
the State. The word “ survey ” has been seriously overworked in the
last few years and has fallen into disrepute, so that the word
“ study,” perhaps, may be substituted. This study should not aim to
secure “ impressions,” but rather should assemble and record facts
as they exist in relation to institutional and agency equipment,

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finance, staff, trustees, method, records, and—most important of all—
results as evidenced by the children in care and passed from care.
A t the end of such a study there should be on file at the central
State office an accurate record and as complete a “ picture ” as pos
sible o f every agency in the State purporting to help children. This
provides a point o f departure from which can be measured subse
quent progress. It will include children’s orphanages and homes,
child-placing agencies, juvenile courts and their probation service,
the work of the poor board as it relates to children, maternity homes
and hospitals, and juvenile correctional institutions.
In Pennsylvania it has been found an advantage to have, in addi
tion to the recorded facts, one analysis sheet devoted to incidental
“ impressions ” noted in the field as to certain important elements of
equipment and method. Are they “ very good,” “ good,” “ fair,”
poor,” or “ very poor ” Ì These same factors are also given a
numerical rating, based on 1,000 points—a system similar to that used
by thè Council on Medical Education of the American Medical Asso
ciation in its rating of medical colleges.1 Such a system makes it
possible to convey a fairly accurate idea o f the quality of work done,
and the substantiating facts are at the same time available.
This study o f agencies will require a number of months for its
completion and the individual contacts made by the staff members
during that period with superintendents, matrons, trustees, judges,
probation officers, and directors o f the poor will make for a friendly
understanding of the purposes o f the department. Incidentally the
personalities o f members o f the staff, if wisely chosen, will “ sell”
the department policies to what would otherwise be a skeptical public.
Education of trustees, superintendents, and the public.
It is not sufficient that the study of the individual institution or
agency should end with the mere recording of facts. Out o f it should
come a definite statement to the board o f trustees as to points of
excellence noted (if any), and specific suggestions as to needed im
provements in equipment, method, and staff, and even as to the policy
of the trustees themselves. By such a method the leaven o f a new
spirit in child care will be given an opportunity to begin its .work
long before the State is in a position to set up definite standards.
In addition, an exhaustive study o f this kind will bring to light, often
in the most unexpected quarters, unusually good bits o f work done in
this or that field, the example of which can be made immediately
available to all agencies doing similar work. Thus the State childhelping department becomes at once a clearing house for good
methods and standards o f work evolved by the private agencies
themselves and not dogmatically imposed by the State.
1 See forms of rating sheets, p. 185.

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It should be thoroughly understood throughout the study that
information as to defects found, even though they are glaring, is
to be considered confidential and made available only to those who
have an official right to it. Newspaper publicity is to be studiously
avoided, and the board of trustees o f each institution and agency
should be given every opportunity to make corrections within a
reasonable time.
During the period o f the survey a valuable opportunity is pre
sented for crystallizing public sentiment in favor o f improved
methods, higher standards, and State supervision in the field of child
care. The bulletins o f the department can be used to broadcast its
ideas and plans; the various clubs and other organizations for men
and women provide receptive audiences, before which the staff mem
bers may speak; the daily press is always a willing carrier o f news,
especially news involving the welfare of children; and the State
conventions o f many organizations provide a platform ip be coveted
by anyone with a program to promote public welfare. I f the general
public is converted to the need o f adequate standards of child care
it becomes a relatively simple problem to develop such standards in
institutions and agencies, whether public or private, since boards of
trustees as well as public officials are amenable to public opinion.
During the months of study o f institutions and agencies an oppor
tunity is presented for the education of superintendents and trustees
in regard to certain fundamentals o f child care—the diet and nutri
tion o f children, methods o f record keeping and the reasons for
keeping records, the social study o f the child and his environment
before the breaking up o f home ties, and so on. Possibly most im
portant o f all, is bringing home to the trustees themselves their great
opportunity not only to serve the individual child but to serve the
State, and making them aware that the work done by their agency or
institution is part o f a great whole and not a complete unit in itself.
Perhaps one o f the most disillusioning facts which a State official
faces is the bitter jealousy discovered to exist between certain private
agencies supposed to be working for the welfare o f children and not
for their own glory.
This educational work can be promoted by means o f the inter
county institute, held for a day on invitation of the State, which
brings together trustees and superintendents of jnstitutions and
agencies within a radius o f 50 to 100 miles. In Pennsylvania it has
been found desirable to arrange institutes at strategic points in re
lation to transportation facilities, dividing the State into districts
and bringing together representatives from agencies in several
counties. Admission to these institutes is by certificate issued by the
department o f public welfare, and so a premium is set upon atten
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dance; A luncheon, at reasonable cost, gives the needed hour for
social intercourse.
The program at the first series o f conferences strikes at funda
mentals : First, the social study o f the child and his environment in
order to conserve home ties, if possible, and to make certain what is
the most satisfactory plan for the chiM’s future; second, the duties
and opportunities o f trustees, with the spiritual values which attach
thereto; third, the vital importance o f adequate records, and the
contrast too often found between the financial and the social records
o f an agency. The speakers chosen are the best that the State or
country can provide and are persons constantly in touch with the
practical problems of administration in the child-caring field.
These institutes not only serve an educational purpose but are
actually the first step toward a program of standardization and
unification o f effort. The mere fact o f getting together, seeing the
faces o f one’s fellow-workers, and “ speaking one’s mind,” goes a long
way toward ironing out misunderstandings and removing prejudices.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF “ REASONABLE ” STANDARDS.

“ Powers are derived from the consent o f the governed.” The
power of the State to erect and enforce standards o f child care rests
upon the consent and cooperation o f the agencies and institutions
functioning in that field plus an educated general public sentiment.
It is, therefore, suitable that the agencies should share in the formu
lation o f such standards. More will be accomplished if the State
approaches the subject o f standardization with the assumption that
the standards shall be “ reasonable,” the minimum being such that
the child’s physical, mental, and spiritual welfare will be secured.
It is useless to evolve ideal paper standards, desirable as they may
be in every particular, if they are impossible o f realization except
by a few heavily endowed institutions or agencies. The reaction
from such a procedure defeats its purpose, which is to level up to
a reasonable height the whole field o f work in child care.
One does not class a family home as “ poor ” and seek to disrupt it
just because it lacks money and material equipment. It may be rich
in character and love and discipline, which no amount o f money
could buy. The establishment of minimum standards for child care
must be approached with the same sense of discrimination as to
values. It is not the things which furnish a home, but the parents,
that make the home worth while for the child. It is not the plant
and its equipment, but the staff, that makes an institution or agency
a constructive force in the life o f a child, in the community, or in
the State.
How far is it “ reasonable ” that the State should go in the enforce
ment o f standards o f child placement and supervision ?

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To one who contemplates the situation in a State in which there
has been no State supervision and standardization of child-caring
agencies for a hundred years and more, it is obvious that certain bed
rock principles must be established before permanence and progress;
in the work .can be assured.
In the first place no charter should be issued to any institution or
agency organized for the purpose of child care, whether in institu
tions, in family homes, or otherwise, without the consent and ap
proval of the State department of public welfare, children’s bureau,
or similar body, the approval being based upon the “ eight points o f
excellence ” enunciated in the laws o f Oregon : ?
a. The good character and intentions of the applicant.
b. The present and prospective need of the service intended by the proposed
organization.

The employment of capable trained or experienced workers.
d. Sufficient financial backing to insure effective work.

The probability of the permanence of the proposed organization or insti
tution.

f. That the methods used and the disposition made of the children served
will be in their best interests and in the interest of society.
g. W ise and legally drawn articles of incorporation, institutional charters,
and related by-laws.
h. That in the judgment of the said State authority the establishment of
such an organization is desirable and for the public welfare.

As a result o f the lack of any such check upon the establishment
o f institutions and agencies for child care in Pennsylvania, institu
tions for the care of the normal dependent child have been pro
vided in excess for the State as a whole but so badly distributed that
there is congestion o f institutions o f this sort in one or two looalities
and absolute dearth o f such provision in other localities, while pro
vision for the crippled and especially handicapped child remains
most inadequate. In many cases an isolated child-placement agency
is seeking to operate on a county basis with inadequate funds and no
trained supervision, while over the county line an excellent agency is
doing placement work with a competent staff, under trained super
vision, which could readily be extended to the advantage of both
agencies. Still farther afield will be found another child-placement
agency rendering what might be called a “ light cavalry service,”
making a foray into a county and departing with the cream of the
children for placement—and incidentally with generous contribu
tions—but leaving the day-after-day routine o f placement and super
vision and the study o f the problem child to another agency, to
which the field normally belongs.
• Oregon, Laws 1920 (Olson), sec, 9820,

72693°—26---- 12

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There are, also, numerous institutions and agencies in the State,
started in enthusiasm without counting the cost and now without
funds or with funds so meager that the children in care actually
suffer want or are without adequate supervision if placed in family
homes and lack all those things which go to build up healthy bodies,
minds, and spirits. Other institutions for children apparently pro
vide an easy living for individuals or even communities.
Frequently large sums o f money are tied up to no purpose because
the dead hand of the donor has placed so many hampering restric
tions about the proposed benefaction. Pennsylvania is most unfortu
nate in this particular, and in the interests o f the children and of
the State it is inevitable that the State itself should provide a
measure o f guidance to those intending to promote child care by
bequests. It is reasonable that this should be so.
In the second place, all institutions or agencies engaged in the
care o f children, whether in institutions or placed out in family
homes, should be required to secure an annual license or certificate
o f approval from the designated commission or bureau, the issuance
o f the certificate to be based upon the “ points o f excellence ” noted
above, with especial reference to the standards of work, and suitable
penalties should be imposed for continuance o f work without a
license or certificate.
Until laws governing these two essentials are on the statute books, a
State department is helpless to enforce standards. Such laws are
not needed for the control o f the high-class institution, but they
are essential i f the child is to be safeguarded in the institution or
agency which is operated with “ good intentions” but with lack of
knowledge and lack o f vision and often lack o f funds.
Certification should also apply to public officials doing childplacement work. In the State o f Pennsylvania, over 20,000 de
pendent children pass annually through the hands o f the poor boards
alone. By no means all these children are subjects for placement;
but many hundreds are in such need, and all are potential candidates
for such care and should be safeguarded by constructive family
case work and by proper methods o f child placement.
It is reasonable that such safeguards should be placed about the
granting o f charters and the annual granting of a license to operate,
and when the public and the agencies themselves are assured that
the commission or bureau which has the matter in hand is not § in
politics,” there can be no opposition. The license fee should be so
small as to impose no financial burden.

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STANDARDS

ORGANIZATION,
METHOD.

173

EQUIPMENT, AND

The sixth o f the eight points of excellence provides that the com'
mission or bureau must be satisfied “ that the methods used and the
disposition made o f the children served will be in their best interests
and in the interest of society.” It is at this point that the State,
county, municipal, and private agencies should come together with
a view to establishing those “ reasonable minimum standards ” upon
which State supervision is to be based, the conference being called
by the State authorities. The precise terms o f requirements in any
State must be worked out by those concerned. Granting a mutual
confidence in the good intentions and concurrent aims o f the State
and private agencies, there should be no difficulty in arriving at
minimum standards.
In the case o f the placing-out agency, the points on which agree
ment needs to be reached include:
A. Organization: Trustees, superintendent,
B. Temporary care o f children :
1. Receiving home.
2. Temporary boarding home.
C. Study of child :
1. Social study.
2. Physical examination.
3. Mental examination.
D. Foster home:
1. Standards.
2. Method of selection.
E. Supervision o f placed-out children as to
1. In free homes.
2. In boarding homes.
3. Other.
F. Records :
1. O f children.
2. O f homes.
3. Financial.
G. Reports:
X. Annual.
2. State.
H. Adoption.

staff.

health, education, morals.

A. Organization.—It would seem reasonable to reach an agree
ment, and to require as a minimum, that the board of trustees o f a
child-caring agency should be composed o f not less than five mem
bers; that it should be responsible for selecting the superintendent,
determining policies, and raising funds for the maintenance o f the
work; and that it should provide such committee support as the
superintendent may need to enable him (or her) to carry out the
policies agreed upon. I t is the writer’s personal belief that there

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is a distinct advantage, especially for a child-caring agency, in having
a board composed of both men and women. The “ father ” and
“ mother ” points o f view are both needed. An auxiliary o f women
with no vote on policy is not sufficient. It is premature, however, to
include such a provision at first in minimum requirements for agencies
already established.
The superintendent (or matron) should be qualified by training or
experience for the duties of the office and should sit upon the board
ex officio but should have no vote. He should not be responsible
for raising funds to pay his own salary. He should have authority
to engage the staff and employees, subject to the approval of the
board, to discharge any member of the staff and any employee, and
to initiate action for carrying out the purposes of the board.
The staff should be composed of experienced or trained workers;
they should not devote any part of their time to raising funds out
o f which their salaries are to be paid.
B. Temporary care of children.—I f temporary care is provided in a
receiving home, the home should fulfill the requirements laid down
for any institution for children as to general sanitation, general
hygiene, housekeeping, upkeep, etc., and should conform to the re
quirements of the building code o f the State or municipality. I f
temporary care is provided in a boarding home, this should conform
to the standards for foster homes.
G.
The study of the child.—Granting that in an emergency a child
may o f necessity be received for temporary care, it seems reasonable
to require that within one week a social investigation shall be initiated
with a view to determining the proper disposition to be made of the
case in the best interests o f the child, and that this study should
include, in addition to the father’s and mother’s history and cir
cumstances, those o f the grandparents, the uncles and aunts on both
sides o f the family, and the child’s own brothers and sisters. It
should be the primary aim o f the study to conserve family ties—
to do family case work, in other words. Such a study may be made
by a cooperating agency; by a representative whose services are
shared jointly by several agencies, if the intake o f each is small ; or
by a properly qualified volunteer worker, under competent direction.
A complete physical examination should be made within the first
week after the child is accepted by the agency, and a mental examina
tion within two months, if the child shows mental retardation or
behavioristic problems. Facilities are probably as yet too inadequate
throughout most States to make it possible to suggest as a minimum
standard the mental examination of every child committed to care.
Pennsylvania is making plans, through its bureau o f mental health
in the department o f public welfare, to establish mental-health
clinics within the reach o f all county agencies, so that in this State

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such a requirement will not be unreasonable at some time in the
not distant future.
I f the insane and feeble-minded are legitimate charges upon the
State government, then in self-defense a State must establish a
mental-health program which will include mental-health clihics,
located within reasonable distance of all the people o f the State,
for purposes of diagnosis and advisory treatment. Until a State
makes such provision it is not reasonable to require routine mental
examinations o f all children coming under care.
D. The foster home.—It is reasonable to require that foster homes
used by the agency, whether boarding or free, should conform to cer
tain minimum standards, and that their conformity should be ascer
tained through personal inspection by the agency staff and through
the statement of satisfactory references. These minimum require
ments should include suitable location (residential or farming rather
than industrial or commercial); restriction o f the number o f children
to be accommodated; conformity to the building and sanitary regula
tions o f the State or municipality ; other visible means of support
besides the board o f children, and exclusive of adult male boarders,
who should not be permitted to form part o f the household; diet suit
able to the growing child, inclusive o f at least one pint of milk daily
for each; separate beds and sufficient air space (45 square feet per
bed) with cross ventilation; proper medical supervision; education
in conformity with State requirements; religious education in con
formity with the faith o f the parent, when possible; proper clothing;
individual toilet articles, and training in their daily use; orderly
housekeeping in the home; and proper health supervision (the
agency holding itself responsible for cooperation with the foster
home in this matter).
Unless the home demonstrates those characteristics which will tend
to develop, by daily example, a spirit of kindliness, helpfulness, order
liness, and thrift in the child it can not be considered satisfactory.
It is worth repeating that no home should be accepted until it has
been visited by a staff representative and found to be satisfactory.
E. Standards of supervision.—Having agreed upon the minimum
standards to be required by the State o f all child-placing agencies,
relating to administration, temporary care, study o f the child, and
foster-home standards and selection, we come to the standards which
should obtain in the supervision o f the placed-out child. Upon this
phase o f the work depends the vindication of the theory that the child
placed in a family home has the best chance for normal development.
Shall the free home receive the same type o f supervision as the
boarding home? How often shall the homes be visited? What shall
be the nature o f the visit? These are questions which need consider
ation and to which a dogmatic answer can not be given. Granting,

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however, that the State’s only interest is the safety and well-being o f
the child and that the agency involved is equally concerned for the
child, and also because o f a desire to protect its own reputation, it
would seem reasonable to require at least one visit each month for
the first three months, followed by quarterly visits until the agent
is absolutely certain that the home and the child are adjusted to each
other and that the child’s personality and individuality are assured
a real opportunity for development. The free home should be visited
with the same frequency as the boarding home until the agent is
assured o f the adjustment o f the child to the family, after which the
interval between visits may be materially lengthened.
This is not the place to discuss the technique o f such visiting, f t
should be broad enough in its scope to include, not only the home
and the child, but the teacher, the pastor, and others in the com
munity who can throw side lights upon the situation. Needless to
say, the utmost tact is necessary.
The supervisory visits should continue until the child is adopted,
becomes o f age, or is returned to his parents or guardians.
What shall be the standard as to the number o f children in the
care of the individual agent? There can be no arbitrary standard,
so far as the State is concerned. Urban and rural conditions vary
widely. Transportation difficulties loom as a very large obstruction
to frequent visitation in the country, and there must be a great
degree o f elasticity in this particular in a State program. Pennsyl
vania has had a very happy experience in the supervision o f its
families under the care o f the Mothers’ Assistance Fund, Pennsyl
vania State Department o f Welfare, through unpaid county boards
o f trustees under skilled supervision. The scope o f the work o f a
children’s agent in the rural districts could be materially widened
by such an arrangement with an increase in the number of children
cared for and in the frequency o f visitation. For a city agent it
might be reasonable to set as a standard the figures adopted by Cali
fornia—not more than 50 children under 3 years of age and not more
than 100 above that age.
A record of the findings at each visit should be filed at the office
of the agency, and, as in the case of the State survey o f institutions
and agencies, these records should be of facts, not of the impressions
o f the agent. O f special importance to the visitor are the findings
which relate to the child himself. Is he happy, is he well, is he
properly housed, clothed, and fed, and is he showing the best char
acter development? Answers to these questions are the ultimate
test o f the agency’s work, and it is with this that the State is
concerned.
F.
Records.—As yet not all people appreciate the importance of
records. Many deem it sufficient that the work is done and the child

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cared for; or that the money is spent and receipted bills show it.
The State and the public at large have a right to accurate knowledge
as to what has been done, how it has been done, and what it has
cost. The child has a right to all the information which it is pos
sible to gather in regard to his past and also the right to a record of
his current development along all line«. It is part o f the obligation
which rests upon the State to bring to the realization of the trustees
and superintendents their duty in this matter.
It would seem reasonable to require that for every child there
should be filed at the agency or institution a special history, nor less
complete than that called for in the blank illustrated in schedule 2
(p. 186), which Pennsylvania supplies without charge to those who
will use it. To this should be added the preliminary physical ex
amination blank (schedule 3, p. 189), and a current record o f develop
ment inclusive o f any illness, accident, and operation should be kept
up. I f a mental examination has been possible its results should be
included in the record. In these days o f the ubiquitous kodak, it is
reasonable to require that a photograph be taken o f each child when
he first comes into care and every two years thereafter until dis
charge, these photographs to be part o f the history record.
The records o f homes, whether approved or disapproved, should
be kept on file available for ready reference, with reasons for and
against acceptance.
Financial records should be uniform for all agencies, or at least
capable o f analysis after a uniform method in order to show com
parable costs o f operation and actual income. The public and the
State have a right to this information in order to be guided prop
erly in their benefactions. Individuals and organizations purport
ing to render a public service are proper subjects for public scrutiny,
and any agency or individual doing an honest job welcomes it.
Financial and social records kept with a reasonable degree of
uniformity provide much material needed for research purposes and
a program o f economy, efficiency, and prevention of dependency may
prove to be a result o f such studies. In the present state of record
keeping in Pennsylvania (and, no doubt, in other States), it is im
possible to arrive at accurate and comparable per capita costs, and
except in a very limited group o f agencies no social studies could
be undertaken.
G.
Reports.—It is reasonable to require that each agency shall pub
lish annually a concise report covering finances and the intake and
outgo o f children, together with data on supervisory visits. Such
a report may be amplified as the finances and the publicity policy
o f the organization may dictate, but an extensive report should not
be required.

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The report to the State is discussed under the general heading
o f State supervision.
H.
Adoption.—No agency should give consent for the adoption
o f any o f its wards until the child has been satisfactorily adjusted
and under supervision in one home for at least six months. Such
a provision places a check upon hasty and possibly unwise adoption
proceedings and is a “ reasonable ” requirement for the sake o f both
the child and the family.
The law should provide that upon the filing of a petition for
adoption, by consent o f an agency, o f parents, or o f a guardian, the
court shall notify the State bureau o f children (or similar agency),
whose duty it shall be to investigate the conditions and submit a re
port to the court, with recommendations, within a specified time.
The requirement o f six months o f residence in the home should be
waived by the court only when good cause is shown.
HOW SHALL THE STATE APPLY THESE STANDARDS?

Private and semipublic agencies.
The minimum reasonable standards having been agreed upon, the
State should proceed to issue the annual license, or certificate o f
approval, to those agencies which already conform to those stand
ards, as evidenced by the study made by the State agents. Such
institutions as fail to conform to the minimum requirements should
be notified as to their defects and a definite recommendation should
be made as to possible steps to be taken to reach the required stand
ard, the services o f a member of the staff o f the State bureau being
placed at the disposal o f the agency to assist it. I f at the expiration
o f the probationary period sufficient progress has not been made, the
right to care for children should be withdrawn, or a penalty should
be imposed by law for continuing to function without a license or
certificate.
Annually thereafter, agencies should be visited by the State bureau
representatives; records should be checked up, and a certain number
o f home placements investigated, as a method o f sampling the
agency’s work.
The agency should render to the State. bureau, on blanks fur
nished by the State, a monthly report o f all placements and replace
ments o f children, and a live index o f all children placed out in
the State should be kept at the central office.
Annually, on forms supplied by the State, each agency should
fender financial and social reports o f its activities. Such blank
forms should be as simple as possible, but should call for the neces
sary data from which to compile a summary o f the activities of the
entire State and on which to base social studies looking to the

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prevention o f dependency, etc. Reports should be required whether
or not the agency receives financial assistance from the State.
Annual regional institutes on various phases of child care will be
o f service in the development o f standards and o f methods o f work
and should be continued under the auspices o f the State. Educa
tional and general service bulletins should be issued from time
to time.
It is desirable that the visits o f the State representatives be not
limited to “ inspections.” I f the representatives can come in con
tact with the officers and staff o f an agency in the spirit o f friendly
consultants, rapid progress will be made in the development of in
creasingly high standards o f service.
The central State office should also serve as a clearing house for
information as between agencies and when necessary as the medium
for the transfer o f a child, unplaeeable in one region, to a more
promising territory.
Licensing of boarding homes.
It is perhaps necessary to enter further into the question of the
practicability o f State license for the individual boarding home. For
purposes o f discussion let us define the “ individual boarding home ”
as one in which not more than five children are received for p a y; and
a “ semi-institutional boarding home ” as one receiving more than five
children for pay.
It would seem undesirable for a State which has licensed agencies
to place children in family homes, and for one which has established
standards regarding the type of home and method o f selection, to
interfere through the licensing o f the individual boarding home.
The agency itself should stand or fall on its selection o f these homes.
On the other hand, the semi-institutional boarding home is in need of
very definite supervision by the State, as are all institutions caring
for children, and should be subject to license by the State, as is any
child-caring institution. I f desired, the sanitary provisions o f the
home might be subject to the inspection o f the local health authori
ties; but the social, economic, and moral conditions o f the home and
the type o f training it is equipped to give should be subject to the
scrutiny o f the State, and actual license (or certificate) to function
should be granted or withheld by the State, the licensee being subject
to penalty i f the conditions o f the license are disregarded.
Public agencies.
The vast majority o f dependent children pass through the hands
o f the poor boards (or the equivalent officers). In Pennsylvania in
one year more than 20,000 are subjects for “ outdoor relief,” and
many hundreds pass in and out o f the doors o f the poorhouse. It is
hot expedient that the State should take out o f the hands o f the local

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authorities their obvious moral and financial responsibilities; but in
justice to the child it is necessary that the State should be assured
that the type o f work done is up to standard and that reconstruction
of families and conservation o f the child—in an institution or in a
family home—should be the policy.
In these days when “ centralization of authority ” is the battle cry
which is raised in almost every State against the effort to bring
standards in any field up to a reasonable level, it is a very delicate
matter for the State to approach the minor governmental units on
such a subject. But the appeal o f the dependent child is strong.
Public opinion is very easily aroused for his protection, and the
economies which can be demonstrated, if the problem o f child de
pendency is handled correctly, make a further strong appeal to the
taxpayer.
\
A concrete example o f economy in one county o f Pennsylvania may
be cited. In a period o f four months a trained children’s worker re
duced from 50 to 20 the population o f a semi-institutional boarding
home which had been utilized by the directors of the poor as a home
for dependent children. This meant an annual saving to the direc
tors in board alone o f over $3,000, plus about $700 in school tuition,
not to mention the saving in clothing, doctors’ bills, and overhead ex
penses. This was accomplished with an expenditure o f $900 (plus
transportation), this being one-half the salary o f the worker selected
and supervised by the Children’s A id Society o f Pennsylvania.
"It is therefore reasonable that the State should require public
officials in the minor governmental units to make such provision for
administering their work for family or child welfare that it shall
conform to the minimum standards adopted by the State. Finan
cially, this is easily possible; the poor boards are empowered to
employ the number o f persons necessary to carry on their work
successfully. It is merely a question o f convincing them as to the
type o f individual required.
Shall the worker be trained or not, and shall she (or he), as a
prerequisite, be a native o f the county? The major consideration
should be given to the training. Nothing less than training by ex
perience under competent supervision should be accepted, and if a
suitable person can be found who is also a “ native son,” so much the
better, since this disarms local criticism.
In a sparsely settled district with few problems o f dependency, a
full-time worker may not be needed. Combination o f districts may
then be possible under one worker, or the public and the private
agency may cooperate, sharing expenses and work. When such a
combination is effected, i f it also includes supervision of the local
work by a staff supervisor o f the private agency there are numerous

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STATE SUPERVISION" OP PLACING-OUT AGENCIES.

181

and great advantages, not the least o f which is the wider field for
help in the placement of children and in solving their problems j
which can be done through the central office o f the private agency. ■
The stimulus which such supervision brings to »the local worker
insures a high standard o f service.
When such supervisory service through private accredited agencies ■
is lacking the conclusion is inevitable that is should be supplied by |
the State. We have accepted banking regulations and supervision,,
regulations in the insurance field, weights and measures, drug control,!
contagious-disease control, and quarantine—sometimes under protest,
always to the advantage o f all the people. Are the lives and hap
piness and future usefulness o f dependent children to be less care- j
fully watched over?
I f the poor board considers neither o f the proposed plans favorably !
(that is, employing its own trained worker or sharing in the employ
ment o f such a worker), there is still the alternative o f delegating all
its work for children to an accredited agency.
It would seem reasonable that the State should make the adoption
o f one o f these three plans, or an equivalent, a condition o f the grant
ing o f a license to engage in the work o f child care.
The same argument may be presented in connection with the
juvenile court and its probation officer doing child placement. Un
less the probation officer is qualified to undertake this delicate task,
the court should delegate it to an accredited agency or should
employ on full or part time the type o f officer that the State can
license. There is no reason why a juvenile probation officer should
not be employed in cooperation with other agencies.
Agencies outside the State.
Perhaps one o f the most baffling problems confronting a State
bureau is that involved in the placement o f children over the State
line by irresponsible organizations and individuals. The attempt to
control these placements, up to this time, has been for the most part
ineffectual.
It would appear that a solution may lie in this suggested pro
cedure :
1. No individual or agency should be permitted to bring or send
any dependent child into the State for the purpose o f placement in
an institution or family home without first obtaining a license so to do
from the public-welfare department, or similar body, o f the State in .
which it is desired to effect the placement.
2. This license should not be granted unless the application is
accompanied by legal evidence that the applicant is licensed (or
certified) to undertake child placement in the State from which the
child is to be brought.

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182

FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

3. A blanket bond should be furnished the State into which the
child is to be brought by the agency or individual, which would be
forfeited in case o f failure to remove a child who has become depend
ent or delinquent within a specified time limit.
4. A penalty should be imposed upon any native of the State
receiving a dependent child from an unlicensed source either within
or without the State.
5. State funds should be made available for the return to his legal
residence o f any child who may have become a public charge or
delinquent within a specified number o f years after placement from
outside the State.
These provisions should not be so construed as to make it im
possible for relatives of the first and second degree to make suitable
provision for children of their own blood.
I f the checks upon child placement and adoption as previously
indicated (namely, license to undertake the activity; penalty for
engaging in it without license; penalty for receiving a child from
unlicensed source) seem to. leave a loophole for irresponsible place
ments, an additional legal precaution might be added, as in the laws
of Oregon, which specifically forbids “ private individuals, including
midwives, physicians, nurses, hospital officials, and all officers o f un
authorized institutions ” to engage in child-placing work and exacts
a penalty for their so doing.
SUMMARY.

1. It is desirable that there should be State supervision o f placingout agencies (agencies to be interpreted as individuals and organiza
tions) .
2. Such supervision should include both public and private
agencies.
3. Supervision should be based upon minimum standards o f ex
cellence agreed upon in conference between the State bureau and
representatives o f the private agencies and the minor governmental
units engaged in child care.
4. The State should utilize every available educational channel to
create on the part of all the agencies concerned a desire for and
acquiescence in the highest minimum standards obtainable.
5. The power to license (or certificate) all agencies and individuals
engaged in child placing should be vested in the State, and penalties
should be imposed by law upon those engaging in placement without
license and upon those receiving a child from unlicensed sources.
6. No charters permitting agencies or institutions to engage in
child care should be granted without the approval o f the State

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STATE SUPERVISION OP PLACING-OUT AGENCIES.

183

bureau, that approval being based upon certain enumerated points
o f excellence.
7. A ll petitions for adoption should be referred by the court to
the State bureau for investigation and report with recommendations
before final action is taken.
8. State departments concerned with public welfare should be
kept absolutely free from the taint o f political control, and the staff
o f the bureau of children should be composed o f individuals with
personality, training, experience, and maturity, capable o f render
ing constructive service to any agency in need and in an emergency
to any child in distress.
Only on such a foundation can a successful structure o f State
supervision of child-caring agencies be erected.
FORMS USED BY THE PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF
WELFARE.

The child’s record and physical-record schedules used by the
Pennsylvania Department o f Welfare, which are printed here,
are self-explanatory, but some explanation of the system o f numeri
cal rating used in the agency schedule (Schedule 1) may be de
sirable. It will be noted that the numerical value placed upon the
trustees and superintendent is small, though the success or failure
o f the institution or agency is dependent upon the character and
ability o f these individuals. It is desired to minimize, by not weight
ing this factor, the personal reaction o f the State representative to
the individual superintendent or the trustees. A very favorable
personal impression might be made by an individual who was so
poor an administrator that the work o f the agency would be much
below par. Moreover the superintendent and trustees are rated not
only on their own numerical count but over and over again on the
various factors which go to make up the technique o f administration.
The rating “ very g ood ” (V. G.) on the first schedule would
count as 25 on the numerical basis for factors not weighted (trustees,
supervision o f staff, adoption proceedings, e tc.); “ good ” ( G ) , as 20;
“ fa ir ” ( F .) , as 15; “ poor ” (P .), as 10; and “ very poor ” (Y. P .),
as 5. For “ records ” and other items for which the total number of
points obtainable is 50, any o f the above ratings would be multiplied
by 2; for “ selection o f homes ” and “ supervision,” by 5; for “ place
ment methods,” by 4. Thus a rating o f “ fair ” in selection o f homes
would be 75 (15 multiplied by 5 ); a rating o f “ poor ” in discrimina
tion in intake would be 30 (10 multiplied by 3).

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184

FOSTER-HOME GARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,
S C H E D U L E 1.— A G E N C Y S C H E D U L E .
I m p r e s s io n s

the

V . G.

Administration :
Trustees______ ______ ____
Superintendent and staff__
Finances and bookkeeping. _
Records__________________
Agency technique:
Discrimination in intake___
Supervision of staff ______
Distribution of work_____
Investigation of cases—
Family history________
Personal— Social______
Physical__
Mental ____
Temporary care in institu
tion_____________________
Temporary care in detention
hom e_______________ ___
Supervision in own home__
Other provisions. ________
Foster-home care:
Selection of homes________
Placement methods_______
Supervision_______________
Other matters_____________
Adoption proceedings ____
Working homes— indenture.
Community service:
Relations with other agen
cies_____________________
Influence in community___

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gency

hole.

P .t

V . P.

Remarks.

185

STATE SUPERVISION OP PLACING-OUT AGENCIES.
SC H ED U LE 1.— A G E N C Y SC H ED U LE— Continued.
N u m e r ic a l E

v a l u a t io n

gency,

Sco red

N A M E O F A G E N C Y .....................................

Scale

1, 000.

DATE.

Administration__________ ____________;__________ ____ Points 125
Trustees_____________________________________________ 25
Superintendent and staff________

Finances and bookkeeping__ _________________________
Records___________

25
50

Agency technique................................ ............_........... . . . Points, 400
Discrimination in intake_________________________
75
Supervision of staff_______________________
Distribution of w ork..__ _____________;______________
Investigation of cases (175)—-

Family history.____________ , ________ ___________

Personal— Social. ____________________

Physical_____ _________________________ 50
Mental_______ ___ _________________ ___ 50
Temporary care in institution_____________________

25
Temporary care in detention home____________________
Supervision in own home.. . . ________________________ 25
Other provisions_________________ ._____________j______

Foster-home care.............. ..............................................Points, 425
Selection of homes________ ___________________________ 125
Placement methods__________________________________ 100
Supervision____ ___________
I 25
Other matters_________________________________________

25
25

Adoption proceedings._______________________
W orking homes— indenture _ _ ;______ _______ _________

Community service................... ..........................................Points,
Relation to other agencies. __________________
Influence in community______________________

Grade.

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50
25

186

FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,
S C H E D U L E 2.— C H IL D 'S R E C O R D .
(Use separate sheet for each child.)

Name of child___________________________ ¡---_____________
Sex_
Date admitted. ___------------------------------------Color______ ______
Date of birth___________ ______ ____________ Place of birth.----City______ ______________ _

County _ _ _ — ----- — - —

State. _.

Religion __________________________ Legitimate _ _ _ _ _ ..................................

Surrendered _____ ___________

Address at time of admission-------

Legal settlement______________ _— :_____
ofiBcer
ÎCourt
Director of poor!
IRelative

School district.___
(Address.)

(Name.)

(Title.)

REASON FOR COMMITMENT.
[Put X before number in proper column.]

Because neglected.

Because dependent.
1. Both
dead.

1. Lacking physical
and medical care.

parents

2. Mother dead.

—

3. Father dead.

2. Morally neglected.

4. Parents living;
unable to sup
port.

3. Ill treated.

Because incorrigible.
1. Declared by court
not to he amena
ble to control of
parents or guard
ians.

Father of child.
Ful
Country of birth (if in U. S. .
Las
. .
Rei
(1) Time in U. S. A. (2) Tim
Cit:
Occ
Weekly wage or other incom<
Em
Ph psical condition (disease o
Me

If dead—date and cause of de

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1. Convicted in court
for violation of a
State law or a local
ordinance.

4. I l l e g a l l y em
p l o y e d . Ex
hibited.

5. Abandoned.

Date and place of mania

Because delinquent.

(1)...........

(2)..........

Mother of child.

1)...........

(2)..........

STATE SUPERVISION OF PLACING-OUT AGENCIES,

187

SCH EDULE 2 — C H IL D ’ S RECORD— Continued.
OTHER RELATIVES, INCLUDING BROTHERS, SISTERS, STEPFATHER, STEPMOTHER, ETC.

Name.

Address.

Relation
ship to
child.

Age.

Occupation or
school grade.
•

Physical or mental
defect.

CHILD’S RECORD AT FIRST ADMISSION TO INSTITUTION.

Family conditions which necessitate commitment of child? W hat kind of
help is asked? W hat kind of home and family does child come from? I f
mother is unmarried what court action against father has been taken?

Investigation of home conditions and recommendation for admission was
made by :
How was investigation made, by personal visits, letters, or telephone?

W hat other institutions or agencies have been interested in child or its
fam ily? Give dates of previous care by other institutions.

Physical health and habits of .child?

Education, mental ability, and school grade of child?

Personality, characteristics, interests, and behavior of child?

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188

FOSTER-HOME CARE FOB DEFENDENT CHILDREN
SCH EDULE 2.— C H ILD 'S R E C O R D — Continued.
RECORD OF ADMISSIONS. AND DISCHARGES,
Second.

First.

Third.

PLACEMENTS AND REPLACEMENTS IN FREE, BOARDING, WORKING, OR INDENTURE
HOMES OR OTHER INSTITUTIONS.Placed with.

Address.

Date
placed.

Rate of
Date
removed. board.

Reason removed.

RECORD OF SUPERVISION.
Date.

Give facts about child’s mental and physical development or changes
in circumstance.

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Visitor.

STATE SUPERVISION" OF PLACING-OUT AGENCIES.

189

SC H ED U LE S.— P H Y S IC A L RECORD.
Date of examination
Name of
child.

Date
birth.

Sex.

Family history (cause of death).

Nationality.

Date
Date dis
admitted. charged

* * * * or meotal
\ berculosis, syphilis, alcoholism

Father
Mather
Children
CHILD'S PHYSICAL HISTORY".
Birth: Term........ mo. Delivery: Spontaneous. Operative. Condition: Normal. Abnormal.
Feeding:: Breast until........ mo. Bottle until..........mo. ¿Cross out words not applying.)
PREVIOUS ILLNESS. (Check (x) those applying and state accident or operation.)
Accidents

Erysipelas

Operation

Scarlet fever

Inf. paralysis

Tonsillitis

Chicken pox

Malaria

Pneumonia

Chorea

Mumps

Rheumatism

Typhoid

Convulsions

Measles

Rickets

Whooping cough

Diphtheria

Meningitis

Smallpox

Wassermanu...................--

Vaccinations
and tests

Schick.......... —

Vac. smallpox................ .............

I Tuberculosis

----!----“—

Immunization typhoid

Date. Von Pirquet. . . .

Other

PHYSICAL EXAMINATION..
Scalp

Neck

Eyes, right
Left
Ears, right.

Urination

Lungs

Nose

Heart

Mouth

Murmurs

Lips
Teeth.

Bladder

Thyroid
Chest

left

No. Upper Lower

Cavities. “
Irregular

“

Hutchinson’s

Tongue

Inguinal glands
Skin
Orthopedic condition
Shoulders

Blood pressure

Spine

Abdomen
Liver

Hips
Extremities
Anatomical stigmata

Spleen

Right tonsil

Kidneys

Left tonsil

Stomach

Speech
Date................

Genitals

Rate

Gall bladder

Throat

Genito urinary

Cervical glands

Nervous disorders

Intestines
Height...............

Weight................ (10% below average or 7% above needs attention)

In making physical examination child should be stripped to the waist, Height should be measured
with shoes off. Weight may be taken with Child in regular indoor clothing.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEFENDENT CHILDREN

190

SC H ED U LE R.— P H Y S IC A L R EC O RD — Continued.
CONTINUOUS HEIGHT AND WEIGHT RECORD.

Date.

Age.

Height.

Per cent
or
Weight. above
below
average.

1 -

Date.

Age.

Height.

Per cent
or
Weight. above
below
average.

•

HEIGHT AND WEIGHT TABLE FOR BOYS.
5
yrs.

6
yrs.

7
yrs.

35
39........
40........ ' 37
4 1 ......
39
41
42........
43
43........
44........
47
46........
48
47........
48........
4 9 ......
50...... .
51.. ...
52......
53........
54 ..

36
38
40
42
44
46
47
49
51
53
55

37
39
41
43
45
46
48
50
52
54
58
58
60
62

Height,
inches.

8
yrs.

10
yrs.

44
46
47.
48
49
51
50.
53
52
55
55
57
58
60
59
61
62
64
63
66 • 67
70
69
73
77

56
57
58
59
60
61
62
6 3 .......
64
65
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76

9
yrs.

54
56
58
60
63
65
68
71
74
78
81
84
87
91

11
yrs.

57
59
61
64
67
69
72
75
79
82
85
88
92
95
100
105

12
yrs.

62
65
68
70
•73
76
80
83
86
89
93
97
102
107
113

13
yrs.

71
74
77
81
84
87
90
94
99
104
109
115
120
125
130
134
138

14
yrs.

78
82
85
88
92
97
102
106
111
117
122
126
131
135
139
142
147
152
157
162

15
yrs.

86
90
94
99
104
109
114
118
123
127
132
136
140
144
149
154
159
164
169
174

17
yrs.

18
yrs.

91
96
97
101 102
106 108
111 113
115 117
119 Ü120
124 125
128 129
133 134
137 138
141 142
145 146
150 151
155 156
160 161
165 166
170 171
175 176

110
116
119
122
126
130
135
139
143
147
152
157
162
167
172
177

16
yrs.

Prepared by Dr. Thomas D. Wood.
ABOUT WHAT A BOY SHOULD GAIN EACH MONTH.

Age.
5 to 8.......................................... 6 oz.

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Age.
12 to 16..................... ............

16 oz.
8 oz.

STATE SUPERVISION OF PLACING-OUT AGENCIES;

191

SCH ED U LE 3.— P H Y S IC A L RECORD— Continued.
HEIGHT AND WEIGHT TABLE FOR GIRLS.
Height,
inches.

5
yrs.

yrs.

7
yrs.

yrs.

9
yrs.

yrs.

39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
55.
56.
57.
58.
59.
60.
61..
62.
63..
64..
65..

yrs.

56
58
60
63
66
68

71
74
7882
86

90
94
99
104
109

66 . .

67..
68..

69..
70..
71..
72..

yrs.

13
yrs.

61
64
67
69
72
75
79
83
87
91
95

70
73
76
80
84

101

106
III
115
117
119

93
97
102

107
112

117
119

121

124
126
129

15
yrs.

14
yrs.

77
81
85
89
94
99
104
109
113
118

90
95

100

106
111

115
119

122

120

124
127
130
133
136
140
145

122

126
128
131
134
138

16
yrs.

91
96
102

108
113
117
120

123
126
128
132
135
138
142
147

17
yrs.

18
yrs.

98
104
109
114
118

111

124
127
129
133
136
139
143
148

125
128
130
134
137
140
144
149

121

103
115
119

122

Prepared by Dr. Thomas D. Wood.
ABOUT WHAT A GIRL SHOULD GAIN EACH MONTH.

Age.
5 to 8......................................... 6 oz.
8 to 11..................... ................... 8 oz.
11 to 14......................................... 12 oz.

Age.
14 to 16.......................................... 8 oz.
16 to 18....................................
4 oz.

Weights and measures should be taken without shoes and in only the usual indoor clothes.
Child Health Organization of America.
Courtesy of the Child Health Organization of America. Copyright 1918, by Child Health Organization
N o t e .— For children under five years see Statures and Weights of Children under Six Years of Age bv
Robert Morse Woodbury, Federal Children’s Bureau, Publication No. 87.
b y
Date.

Subsequent examination.

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Treatment.

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PSYCHOCLINICAL GUIDANCE IN CHILD ADOPTION.
A rnold G esell .

D irec tor o f Y a le PsycTwelm ic, Y ale U n iversity, N e w H a ven , Conn.

P A R T L — T H E A D O P T IO N O F IN F A N T S .

The general problem.

The problem of child adoption continues to assert its great social
importance. Approximately a quarter o f a million children de
prived o f parental care are at this moment under guardianship of
public and private child-caring agencies in the United States.
There is a constant turnover which greatly augments these figures.
Pennsylvania, through some 200 child-caring agencies, annually
cares for 25,000 children; Massachusetts, with about 75 agencies,
cares for some 15,000 children; New York, with about 200 agencies,
cares for 40,000 children. Each year, for the country as a whole
probably over 50,000 infants are bom out o f wedlock. Although
large numbers of these children are not available for adoption,
because o f the existence o f family ties which should be preserved or
for other reasons, yet in planning for the future o f many of them
the possibility of adoption is an important factor to be considered.
Safeguarding adoptions in every possible way is seen to be an urgent
social need.
Moreover, large numbers of men and women who have been denied
the privilege o f parenthood give serious thought to the possibility
o f adoption but are deterred by a vague fear o f risks involved. To
such would-be foster parents careful clinical investigation and guid
ance will serve as a stimulus and a protection. Policies o f pains
taking clinical control will therefore increase the number o f avail
able foster homes and multiply the instances o f fortunate child
adoption with its incalculable benefits and rewards.
In the interests o f parents and child alike, purely impulsive adop
tion should be discouraged and the whole procedure should be sur
rounded with clinical and supervisory safeguards. In all cases o f
adoption there should be an exhaustive inquiry into the health con
dition and developmental potentialities o f the child. A thorough
physical examination is essential, but no less desirable is a psycho
logical estimate which will define in a general way capacity and
developmental outlook. A probationary period o f a full year, with
follow-up examinations, may be utilized to correct this estimate, as
well as to test the compatibility o f the child and his foster parents.
193

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194

FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

It will still be necessary, however, even .when clinical procedures
have become more accurate, to utilize every possible additional safe
guard, including sometimes the temporary boarding home where
the child can be observed, trained, and prepared for placement. But
methods o f clinical control may be made to reenforce all other pre
cautionary and investigatory procedures. Even the probation
period loses some o f its value if it is not preceded and followed by
clinical examinations. Such examinations furnish deterrent, con
firmatory, or directing information. If, therefore, clinical control
is judiciously exercised in relation to other methods of control, it
must inevitably increase the yield of happy adoptions.
Infancy is in many respects an ideal period for adoption. There
is, however, no basis for the belief that native mental inferiority in
a child can be overcome by early adoption, The reverse is true,
even in superior homes. The present report will emphasize partic
ularly the importance o f psychoclinical safeguards in the adoption
o f infants.
The Yale Psychoclinic makes mental examinations o f dependent
children referred to it by the State bureau of child welfare and by
private child-placing agencies. Its official mental-examination re
port form dealing with dependent children calls for answers to the
following questions:
(a) What is the child’s intelligence ? Superior ? Normal ? Dull
normal ? Inferior ? F eeble-minded ?
(b) Educational outlook: Could the child probably complete
grammar school? High school? College? Or should he (she)
have special class work? Vocational training?
(c) Does the child show any evidence o f epilepsy, or is there any
history of convulsions?
( d) Would the child be likely to do wTell if placed in a family
home ? I f so, would you recommend an ordinary home or a superior
home ?
These questions are exacting enough, even in relation to county
home commitment or temporary family-home placement. The ques
tions become very searching when made prior to adoption and doubly
difficult when the dependent child is a mere infant.
To what extent can these questions be answered? Fortunately,
it is not necessary to answer them categorically and altogether with
out qualification and interpretation. There are, of course, no diag
nostic methods which permit precise prediction. The intelligence
quotient must be used with great caution because it may easily lead
one astray. The difficulties of prediction become greater, too, the
younger the child and the more detailed the specifications o f the
adoptive parents. These difficulties can not and should not be

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evaded, but a carefully considered clinical judgment o f mental sta
tus, taking into account as many factors as possible, will make the
work of child placement more discriminating and prevent gross
error.
How foster children turn out.

Significant in this connection are the results o f an inquiry made
by the New York State Charities Aid Association into the after
careers o f 910 children placed in foster homes, who are now 18 to
40 years o f age.1 Reference will be made particularly to those
findings which relate to the problem o f child adoption.
The findings of this study indicate that “ the adopted subjects
prove to be, for the most part, a capable group w h o manage their
affairs sensibly and honorably” . O f the 910 children studied, 269
were legally adopted. O f the adopted group, 145 were found
lings and 45 more came from families about whom very little was
known or recorded. The fact that 222 (82.5 per cent) of the adopted
children were taken by their adoptive parents when less than 5
years o f age doubtless conferred upon these children an environ
mental advantage. O f 235 (88 per cent) o f the total adopted group
whose present situation and ability were ascertained, 207 were found
Mcapable; ” that is, they are “ proving capable of looking after them
selves, o f supporting themselves and their families if they are mar
ried, and o f maintaining decent standards o f living and morality.”
The remaining 28 subjects (12 per cent of the group) were classified
as incapable, and of these 14 were rated as harmless. This means that
in this particular series of adoptions made in New York from 1898 to
1922, every ninth case was disappointing or short o f standard expec
tation. One hesitates to call even these cases “ failures,” because the
human factors in the situation frequently triumph and bring about
an adjustment. But the fact remains that ideally there should not be
a “ miscarriage” o f 12 per cent. Every good adoption home must
be considered so valuable a social asset that maximum use will be
made o f it.
There are 217 foundlings in the New York study group. The
present ability o f the foundlings to “ manage themselves and their'
affairs with ordinary prudence ” was ascertained in 180 instances.
“ O f these, 154 were capable o f managing their personal and social
lives without coming into conflict with accepted standards o f ethics,
were not a burden in any way upon society, but were for the most
part sharing its work and its obligations. Twenty-six were in
capable.” 2 Again the picture “ on the whole ” is favorable; but it
1How Foster Children Turn O u t ; a study by the State Charities A id Association, under
the direction o f Sophie van Senden Theis. Publication No. 165, S. C. A. A. New York.
1924. 239 pp.
»Ib id., p. 1-55.

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means that every seventh foundling may prove to be a disappoint
ment to his foster parents. Must not the risks of such disappoint
ment be reduced ? *
These figures emphasize the need for clinical control of early
adoptions. For although the “ general ” results were good there was
a significant minority of cases in which the outcome was not reason
ably satisfactory. The report itself, while recognizing the inter
acting complexity o f the varied factors involved in adoption, grants
the possibility o f reducing the number of misfits by better facilities
for preplacement diagnosis, treatment, and observation. In a task
so complicated, we may be certain that there would have been an
appreciably larger number of misfits in the period from 1898 to
1922 if the foster homes had not been selected and supervised with
great care.
The same general conclusion is reached when the results are
studied from the standpoint o f the mental status of the child’s
parents. In 155 instances the investigation showed serious mental
limitations in one or both parents. The general level of develop
ment of this foster group and their capacity for acquiring formal
education were definitely below that o f children with more promis
ing background. T o be sure, it was found “ that more than twothirds of those who had what seemed to be a most unpromising of
all possible starts are rated as capable.” But again there is a siz
able minority whose lower potentiality might perhaps have been
discovered through discriminating clinical preplacement investiga
tion.
One of the most suggestive general findings and impressions which
have emerged from the New York study relates to the significance of
the age of the child at the time of placement or adoption. “ The
children less than five years of age when placed with foster families
showed a good development in every way in a larger proportion
than those who were placed when five years or more.” 3 This con
clusion strengthens the argument that the preschool period of child
development is fundamentally the most determining. In this period
o f swift growth and of ceaseless adaptation the personality make-up
o f the child is in constant process of formation. The child can not
be made over entirely even at this early age, but he responds more
profoundly to the influence o f home life than he will later.
Psychoclinical diagnosis in infancy.
From the standpoint o f child adoption, therefore, the situation
involves a paradox which contains an element of hazard as well as
o f promise. Infancy is the best time for adoption, but in the nature
•Ibid., p. 163.

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o f things it is also the time when developmental prediction is most
difficult. Can the hazard be reduced ?
It can, if the development of infancy is essentially law ful; because
all lawful phenomena, even the most complex, are theoretically
within the scope o f scientific formulation and forecast.- It will be
a long time before astronomical accuracy is attained in this field,
because a child’s orbit is not so simple as that o f the sun and the
moon. But that it is necessary to remain indefinitely in the dark
would not be admitted even by those students who have gained the
most knowledge o f the intricacy o f living things.
Infancy is the period o f most rapid growth in the whole life cycle,
except, o f course, the intrauterine period of which it is but an exten
sion. This very fact simplifies, more than it encumbers, the task
o f developmental diagnosis. The infant to be sure is very immature,
which tends to make him inscrutable; but, on the other hand, he
matures at an extremely rapid rate, and this tide of maturation
brings him more repeatedly and more cogently within the purview
o f systematic observation.
The changes which the infant undergoes from the age of 4 months
to 6 months, from 6 to 9 months, from 9 to 12 months occupy chron
ologically a short span o f time; but from the standpoint o f develop
mental economy they may be equivalent to the progress which in
later childhood it will take him a whole decade to accomplish. It is
assumed, moreover, that the infant is father of the child, just as the
child is father o f the man; and that the characteristics o f the infant
during the heyday o f growth have some coherent relation to the
characteristics which will emerge in later life. The rate and limits
o f his growth may also be foreshadowed by the manner and the full
ness in which he makes the first stage o f his developmental journey,
say from 4 months to 12, or 18, or 24 months.
In principle, these considerations have a bearing on the question
whether in time the adoption o f infants may be brought under more
adequate clinical control. The greater speed of growth has very
practical diagnostic implications. It means that a probationary year
prior to adoption may be made to yield more evidence in infancy
than at any later period. In the first year o f life four periodic
developmental examinations may readily be made to determine the
increments o f mental growth, whereas a few years would be neces
sary to observe as many comparable increments in later childhood.
The older a child is the longer it takes to make a definite developmen
tal advance; and so it follows that the diagnostic values o f a pro
bationary year tend to vary inversely with the age o f the child.
To a limited extent the Yale Psychoclinic has had an opportunity
to test the application o f this principle in actual clinical examina
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tions of infants and young children. For several years the clinic
has been attempting to determine behavior norms of infancy and to
define diagnostic procedures which will permit objective estimates
of developmental status in early life. Briefly the investigation
has been conducted as follow s:
Ten levels o f development covering the preschool period from birth
to the sixth year were studied. As the embryologist cuts his speci
mens by serial sections to determine the lines of growth, so has the
clinic taken a series of cross-sectional views of individual capacity
and behavior at 10 ascending levels—1, 4, 6, 9, 12, and 18 months,
and 2, 3, 4, and 5 years.. The total investigation embraced some
500 normal children—50 at eatii level. These children were examined
at the psychoclinic, at inf ant-welfare and health centers, and in their
homes. The children were precisely at age.
The method of approach throughout the investigation was of an
observational, clinical, naturalistic type. Appropriate test situations
were’ devised to bring out characteristic capacity and behavior at each
age level. The psychological examination of the subject was supple
mented by an analytic interview with the parent. The purpose o f the
whole inquiry was to formulate concrete behavior items both charac
teristic and distinctive o f the various age groups.
These behavior items are objective and recordable. They relate
to motor control, language, adaptive (or intelligent) behavior, and
personal and social behavior. The whole array of items, over 150 in
number, has been codified into a set of 10 developmental schedules, 1
for each age level studied.
By means of these schedules it is possible to make a somewdiat de
tailed descriptive and analytic record of the developmental status
of a child in terms o f capacity and behavior. Purely numerical for
mulations are avoided. A premium is placed upon descriptive, inter
pretive diagnosis, and the importance of a unifying comparative
approach is emphasized.
In Part I I of this report several case studies are assembled to illus
trate the clinical aspects of child adoption with special reference to
infancy. The reader, however, must not be left with any misconcep
tions concerning the automatic precision o f the diagnostic pro
cedures above outlined. They do not operate automatically at all;
their final usefulness hinges upon trained clinical judgment. The
normative developmental schedules, however, furnish an objective
basis for the construction o f a considered estimate and for a compar
ative evaluation of successive examinations. In this sense they favor
verifiable as opposed to intuitive appraisal.
. ,
Finally it must be remembered that all diagnosis deals with
probabilities and not with absolute prophecy. It is here the aim to

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reduce the likelihood o f error in such important situations as plac
ing a child in a foster home. .I n simplified instances there is a
positive diagnostic probability of nearly 100 per cent and a corre
sponding certitude o f prediction. Below this 100 per cent standard
o f certainty there is a diminishing gradation o f probability; but
here as elsewhere scientific method will steadily increase foresight
and make child-placing efforts less erroneous.
There is occasional danger that the demand for prediction will
be pushed too far by child-placement agencies. It is also true that
certain foster parents are unreasonably detailed and exacting in
their specifications for their desired adoptee. Such parents should
know that adoption must retain some elements of faith, adventure,
and sacrifice.
But neither the faith nor the adventure should be blind. The
instinctive and rational safeguards o f marital mating are not
present. Clinical safeguards must be supplied. When a child is
given and taken in adoption the probate law decrees that he shall
be u as though born in wedlock.” And adoption, like wedlock,
should not be lightly entered upon.
P A R T II.— C H IL D -A D O P T IO N

C A S E IL L U S T R A T IO N S .

The clinical aspects of child adoption can be discussed most briefly
and concretely by means o f a few illustrative cases. These cases,
nine in number, were selected because they are instructive and in a
sense typical; they are by no means unusual. They have not been
invented4 but have arisen in natural course. They are repre
sentative o f those situations in which the importance of clinical
Control asserts itself most clearly; but it must be remembered that
so-called exceptional cases can be discovered only by incorporating
clinical safeguards as a regular procedure in all instances of adoption.
The cases which seem “ perfectly all right ” in the eyes o f all the
well-minded adults concerned may be just the cases which need
careful investigation and clinical appraisal. Perhaps the first case
presented below will illustrate this point.
A B lin d A doption — Child A

( age 6, 9, 12, 2h m o n th s).

This child was first examined as a mere infant, at the. age of 6 months.
She wras a foundling and was seen at a child-welfare station. Although she
was poorly nourished, her general appearance was relatively normal. She
smiled, cooed, followed moving objects with her eyes, gave transient regard
to a dangling ring. But she did not reach for the dangling rin g ; nor could
any object entice her to reach. Her developmental status was estimated to
be at the three-month level. A diagnosis of mental deficiency was made, and
the agency then supervising the child was notified.
* Inconsequential disguise has been introduced into the case reports to prevent any
possibility of identification.

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Parenthetically it should he stated that from the standpoint o f developmental diagnosis a retardation of 3 months at the age of 6 months is of serious import.
A t the age of, say, 3 years this degree of retardation, if measurable, would be
quite negligible. Here it denoted nothing less than feeble-mindedness. The
subnormality of nutrition did not cause the retardation: time could not over
come nor circumvent it. Indeed, by the agg of 2 years the actual developmental
retardation increased to 12 months. This, however, was but a lawful length
ening of the shadow, not a deterioration- A t the age of 2 the child “ looked”
more defective; but she was in reality the same child who had been seen at
6 months.
When 9 months old A was reexamined. She approximated the four-month
level of development. Nothing would induce her to reach even now. The
dangling ring was attended to with more fixed and prolonged gaze, but there
was no other reaction toward it. The diagnosis was confirmed.
At the age of 12 months A was again examined. Now the behavior picture
changes. She goes out with avidity to every object in her reach. She grasps
the dangling rin g ; she seizes a piece of writing paper and crumbles it with
lusty vigor. She is now in good nutritional trim ; she looks attractive; she
bears no obvious badge of defect anywhere; and she is so reactive to the
play material given to her that she makes an excellent impression. The
baby is physically well developed; she evidently has a good disposition; she
is alert. Surely she is adoptable! In a sense she is a fine baby— but only in
tbe sense or in the equivalence of a 6-month baby. However, she is 12 months
o ld ; she is still mentally deficient.
It was at this time that this child was placed under the supervision of a
second agency; and it was necessary to make a rather emphatic report con
cerning her developmental outlook because the plans were to have her adopted.
A t 18 months she was reexamined. Her developmental level consistently
approximated nine months. The shadow is still lengthening. A t 24 months
she was examined once more. Her developmental level was clearly 12 months.
She behaved very much like a normative 12-month-old baby. The diagnosis
of mental deficiency was now confirmed beyond dispute.
And the moral? W ell, just before the last examination she went out of
the hands of the X Y Z agency, and she was adopted very soon by a very
excellent and most affectionate foster mother, who does not know what she
has done.
A n A ttra ctive In fa n t, ~tmt Subnorm al— Child B (a g e 26 m o n th s).

This child was not seen before the age of 2 years. She was born out of wed
lock. Concerning tlie mother there was only the brief annal, “ she is un
truthful and peculiar.” The child was boarded in a high-grade family home
where the foster mother became deeply attached to her and made plans for
her adoption and education.
Postponement of adoption has been urged, because the child just now
seems much brighter and “ more acceptable ” than she really is. She is in
the “ cute ” stage o f development which conceals her limitations.
In physical appearance she is attractive; in demeanor she is smiling, re
sponsive, playful. She waves “ bye-bye ” very genially and plays gleefully
with a hall. She is just, the kind o f child who would smite the heart of
questing adoptive parents. I f they yielded to the impulse of affection on first
sight, they would then and there resolve to take her into their own home, give
her every educational advantage, and rear her as a charming, refined daughter.

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These parents would not be entirely disappointed, because the child is not
definitely mentally deficient and her personality make-up is relatively favor
able
However, the examination proved that she approximates the 18-month
level much more consistently than the 2-year level, and the general quality of
her attention was far from satisfactory. On the basis o f all the clinical evi
dence it is extremely doubtful that she will ever be able to complete a highschool education. She may have some difficulty in completing the grammar
grades. In 10 fleeting years at least the educational limitations of this child
will be more palpably revealed; and there may be genuine pangs of regret.
The economic status and educational purpose of the parents are an important
factor in this particular adoptive situation. I f at the outset the parents are
not ready to relinquish their educational expectations, another child should be
sought. Some parents, are quite content with a favorable, likable personality
irrespective of grammar-school success. Clinical safeguards and a probationary period will help to define the issues in advance and protect the interests of
both child and parents.
C otteye E d u ca bility— Child G

{a y e 6 y e a r s ) .

This case again illustrates the problem of educational specifications. A wellto-do but childless couple, after perhaps too many years of delay, decided to
take a child into their home and give this child a good college education,
ih e ir preference was a girl, aged 6 months.
College educability is an extremely difficult thing to predict. It depends
npon personality as well as intelligence factors, and it may hinge on a motiva
tion which has been built up by years o f direct and indirect suggestion in the
home.
However, some children are much more likely to possess this degree of
capacity than others. W e were fortunate in discovering a convincingly promisng hoy, aged 6 years, alert, spontaneous, o f superior mentality, o f excellent
personality and also o f superior inheritance. Here the “ chances ” of collegi
ate capacity were unusually favorable.
The adoptive parents met this ehild and were eager to take him on trial.
They relinquished their desire for a younger child in preference for this greater
educational certainty.
D efectw e but Aidoytcd— Ghtld

/) {a ye 12 yea^Ts).

It is possible in certain instances that adoption o f a mentally deficient child
may be consented to. A girl who was examined at the age of 12 years was
very attractive in appearance and made an impression of normality but proved
to have a mental age of 8 years and a school ability of less than fourth grade
It was necessary to classify her as a high-grade mental defective. The social
agency in charge^ o f this ease asked the clinic whether or not this girl was
sufficiently promising to ju stify consent to adoption. The reply was as
fo llow s:
“ My impression after a long conversation with the mother is that adop
tion m ay be quite legitimate inasmuch as your agency has urged and accom-*
pushed considerable delay before approving such adoption and is in position to
place all the hazards of such a step before the adoptive parents. You have
rendered a service in bringing about the delay, and it m ay even be possible to
prolong this delay until D is 18 years o f age.
However, we can see no
p o u n d on which an issue can be made under all circumstances. Mrs. _______
is apparently ready to take all risks that would go with the step. A n y other
type of solution would not satisfy either Mr. or Mrs. ----------- ; and if their im
pulse for adoption is as sincere as it seems to be and if they will consent to do
all in their power to prevent marriage, the wise course m ay be to allow adop-

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tion. You are justified, however, in view of Our reply, in making it clear
that we have very grave and well-founded doubts whether this child can ever
assume and meet thè complex responsibility of making a home of her own.”
N orm al hut In com pa tible— Child E

( age 7 y e a r s ).

This was a normal, wholesome youngster found for a very promising foster
home. The foster parents were leading people in their community. Although
childless, they had done well by several boarding children. And yet this
home failed suprisingly and somewhat tragically, for reasons which neither
the mental examiner nor the home-placement visitor could have foreseen.
The placement visitor summed up the case as follows :
“ For several months E delighted her foster parents. In six months, how
ever, we received a request for immediate removal. The foster father, who
dearly loved the little daughter, had tried for several months to cope with a
situation which was growing so serious that he finally realized he had to give
up the child or allow his home to be broken up. His wife became furiously
jealous of his affection for the child and considered that she was coming
between them. E has never been able to see why she had to leave this very
happy farm home— still talks of it wistfully— and I do not see how we could
have anticipated this outcome and prevented her heartbreak.”
E xa gg era ted A ffection — Child F

( age 14 y e a r s ).

The foster mother in this case lost two children in early infancy, both of
them dying before the age of 1. Last year she passed her menopause. About
eight years ago she adopted a boy in whom she is thoroughly wrapped up.
Indeed, her fondness is so exaggerated that she has lost her sense of propor
tion with respect to his behavior. He is an average, well-behaved boy, but
she worries about him. This exaggerated fondness is remotely compensatory
for her grief over the two lost babies and for her worries over financial con
ditions. For the sake of the boy as well as the mother, the attitude between
them must be normalized. Here is a mental-hygiene problem in the making,
which reveals the importance of a wholesome relation between the foster
parent and the child.
H a s ty A d option and A n tagon ism — Child G ( age J) y e a r s ).

This case presents an interesting contrast. Here again is a kind foster
mother, one who impulsively adopted a child of a niece but after one week pro
foundly regretted this adoption, which had been promptly legalized by probate
papers. Although the mother had been acquainted with this child by fre
quently seeing G play with other children in the yard, the child did not re
spond to the test of home life and proved to be mentally inferior. The mother
has now developed a great antagonism toward the child, which weighs
heavily upon them both. The situation is as serious as incompatibility be
tw e e n husband and wife, and annulment of adoption presents problems com
parable to those of divorce.
This case illustrates again the folly of ill-considered adoption. The mental
examination showed that this girl at the age of 4 years had a high-grade
mental defect. This defect was concealed to ordinary observation, because G
was only a little child; and did she not play around much like the other
children? Yes, but she was and is feeble-minded, and this diagnosis should
have been made before rather than after the decree of adoption. Moreover,
a probationary period of only six months would have had a very tempering
effect upon the impulse to adopt.

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Hoes this ease also illustrate the great value of annulment provisions to
adoption laws? Not very conclusively. Such annulment proceedings should
he very sparingly used. Almost complete reliance should be placed on pre
adoption clinical safeguards and upon a scrupulous utilization of the pro
bationary period.
The Minnesota statute provides that the court may annul adoption and
commit the child to State guardianship if within five years after adoption the
child develops feeble-mindedness, epilepsy, insanity, or venereal infection as
a result of unrecognized conditions existing prior to the adoption. The in
stances in which feeble-mindedness would so develop are very rare. One oc
casionally hears of “ potentially feeble-minded ” children, but the term is of
doubtful value and of extremely limited application.
The purpose of the preplacement investigation, clinical examination, and
probationary test is to uncover all conditions which exist prior to adoption.
Placement cgn not be raised to the n th degree through adoption if annulment
is made as easy as marital divorce.
P reca u tion a ry P roba tion — Child I I ( age 8 y e a r s ).

This child was referred to the clinic by the State bureau of child welfare with
the question* “ Is she overplaced or underplaced?” W ith a brother born out of
wedlock, she did not have an unclouded family background; she had also
spent an interval in a neglectful, dirty home. Her present foster parents had
' taken her into the home on trial. It proved to be a case of mutual love and com
patibility on first sight. In 24 hours the parents decided that she must stay.
The bureau, however, was able to prolong the probationary period to 16
months.
.'The clinical examination showed that the girl had a well-developed average
mentality, that she was alert, responsive, amiable, and apparently very
favorably constituted from a personality standpoint. Fortunately, too, she is
neither underplaced nor overplaced. She is an excellent adaptive prospect in
her present foster home.
There are no striking features about this case, and yet it proves a very simple
point which sometimes is forgotten. Nothing was lost by the period of pro
bation. “ Love at first sig h t” was well founded here; in other adoption in
stances it may prove very untrustworthy. Incidentally, something was gained
by the period of probation. The slight fear that they might not be permitted
to adopt had if anything a wholesome, sobering effect upon the attitude of the
foster parents toward the whole adoption situation.
B a d B ackground but A dopta ble—-C M ld J ( age 20 m o n th s).

It is not the function of preplacement clinical examination solely to dis
cover the deterrents and to define the hazards of adoption, but to emphasize
positive, promising constructive possibilities. A great deal is heard about poor
family background in child-placement work. Social workers speak in a vague,
foreboding way about the bad background of this and that child. W hat does
the background mean ? Alcoholism, abuse, shiftlessness, poverty, neglect, in
sanity, mental deficiency, illegitimacy, and the like. Often it is gratuitously as
sumed that in some way or other this background is in the inherent constitution
of the child.
This does not always follow. To be sure, long residence in an incompetent
home may warp a child and leave a deposit which is part and parcel of his
acquired personality. On the other hand, a child may have a feeble-minded
mother and still be a relatively safe placement or even adoption prospect.
This .morning J, a girl of 20 months, was brought to the clinic. Her
mother is so mentally deficient that she (the mother) is about to be committed
72693°— 26------14

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to a State institution. Her husband does not know the difference between a
one-dollar and a five-dollar bill and is thought by the neighbors to be more
defective than his wife. The actual paternity of the child is unknown, be
cause the mother has been promiscuous in her sexual relations. It is not
known whether the maternal mental defect is definitely transmissible or of a
secondary, acquired character. W hen the child is estimated on her own
merits it is necessary to consider her fully normal in her present developmental
status. Her personality traits are not only normal but positively favorable.
In spite, of her forbidding background, she is entitled to more than an in
different or temporizing placement. She is entitled to a good placement, and
she is a safer adoption prospect than many a child with an “ excellent back
ground.”
C O N C L U S IO N .

The foregoing cases cover some of the more important psychologi
cal problems which arise out o f the complicated task of child adop
tion. They demonstrate that this task can not be intrusted altogether
to good will or to intuitive impulse, or even to unaided common
sense. There are too many opportunities for error and miscarriage,
The combined critical judgment o f the social investigator, the court,
the physician, and the mental examiner should enter into the regula- m
tion of adoption.
The greatest universal safeguard is a period of probation, but this
can not be wisely used unless supplemented by clinical determinations
of health conditions and development outlook. Mental examinations
are particularly necessary to forestall serious errors o f selection by
over-sanguine foster parents. These examinations are also necessary
to reduce the number of replacements or uprootings which still
figure too frequently in the lives of dependent children.
Adoption is at once a social expedient and a social asset. Like
education, it must be adapted to each individual situation if it is to
realize the best results. Purely from the standpoint o f social
economy, if for no other reason, this asset should be constructively
conserved. Optimum placement consists in the avoidance of underplacement, overplacement, and misplacement and results in the great
est mutual good for child and foster parent.
Clinical control o f child adoption should be closely related to all
precautionary and investigatory procedures. It should reenforce
and direct rather than displace other methods o f control.
Systematic psychoclinical examinations not only will reduce the
wastes o f error and miscarriage but will serve to reveal children o f
normal and superior endowment beneath the concealment of neglect,
o f poverty, or o f poor repute.
Clinical safeguards can not solve all the problems of child adoption,
but they can steadily improve its methods and make them both more
scientific and humane. Most o f all in the appealing but undefined
period o f infancy do we need a clearer light for faith.

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A PPE N D IX A.— CONCLUSIONS OF THE “ W H ITE HOUSE
CONFERENCE ON DEPENDENT CHILDREN.” 1
S P E C IA L M E S S A G E B Y T H E P R E S ID E N T O F T H E U N IT E D S T A T E S .
T o the S enate and H o u se o f R e p re se n ta tiv es :
On January 2 5 -2 6 , 1909, there assem bled in this city, on m y invitation, a
conference on the care o f dependent children. T o th is conference there cam e
from nearly every State in the U nion men and women actively engaged in the
care o f dependent children, and they represented a ll the leading religious
bodies.
T h e subject considered is one o f high importance to the w ell-being o f the
N ation. T h e Census B ureau reported in 1904 that there were in orphanages
and children’s homes about 93,000 dependent children. There are probably
50,000 more (th e precise num ber never having been ascertained) in private
hom es, either on board or in adopted homes provided by the generosity o f
foster parents. In addition to these there were 25,000 children in institutions
for ju ven ile delinquents.
E ach o f these children represents either a potential addition to the produc
tive capacity and the enlightened citizenship o f the N ation, or, i f allow ed to
suffer from neglect, a potential addition to th e destructive forces o f the
com m unity. T h e ranks o f crim inals and other enemies o f society are recruited
in an altogether undue proportion from children bereft o f their n atural homes
and le ft w ithout sufficient care.
T h e interests o f the nation are involved in the w elfare o f this arm y o f
children no less than in our great m aterial affairs.
N otw ithstanding a w ide diversity o f view s and methods represented in the
conference and notw ithstanding the varyin g legislative enactm ents and policies
o f the States from which the m em bers came, the- conference, a t the close o f
its sessions, unanim ously adopted a series o f declarations expressing the con
clusions which they h ad reached. T hese constitute a wise, constructive, and
progressive program o f child-caring work. I f given fu ll effect by the proper
agencies, existin g m ethods and practices in alm ost every com m unity would be
profoundly and advantageously modified.
M ore significant, even than the contents o f the declarations is the fa c t that
they were adopted w ithout dissenting vote and w ith every dem onstration
o f hearty approval on th e part o f all present. T h ey constitute a standard
o f accepted opinion by which each com m unity should m easure the adequacy
o f its existin g m ethods and to which each com m unity should seek to conform
its legislation and its practice.
T h e keynote o f the conference w as expressed in these w o r d s:
“ H om e life is the highest and finest product o f civilization. Children should
not be deprived o f it except fo r urgent and com pelling reasons.”
Surely poverty alone should not disrupt the home. Parents o f good character
suffering from tem porary m isfortune and above all, deserving m others fa irly
w ell able to work but deprived o f the support o f th e norm al breadw inner
should be given such aid as m ay be necessary to enable them to m aintain
suitable homes fo r the rearing o f their children. T h e widow ed or deserted
mother, i f a good wom an, w illin g to w ork and to do her best, should ordinarily
be helped in such fash ion as w ill enable her to bring up her children herself
in their natu ral home. Children from unfit hom es and children who have no
homes, who m ust be cared fo r by charitable agencies, should, so fa r as prac
ticable, be cared fo r in fam ilies.
I transm it herew ith fo r your inform ation a copy o f the conclusions reached
by the conference, o f which the follow in g is a b rief sum m ary :
1. H o m e care.— Children o f w orthy parents or deserving m others should, as
a rule, be kept w ith their parents at home.
2. P reven tive w ork .— T h e effort should be m ade to eradicate causes o f de
pendency, such as disease and accident, and to substitute compensation and
insurance fo r relief.

1From the Proceedings of the Conference on the Care of Dependent Children, held at
"Washington, D. C., Jan. 25-26, 1909. Sixtieth Congress, second session, Senate Document
No. 721, pp. 8-14. Government Printing Office, Washington, 1909.
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3. H o m e finding.— Homeless and neglected children, if normal, should be
eared for in families* when practicable
4. C ottage sy ste m . — Institutions should be on the cottage plan with small
units, as far as possible.
5. In corporation . — Agencies caring for dependent children should be incor
porated, on approval o f a suitable State board.
6. State inspection.— The State should inspect the work of all agencies
which care for dependent children.
7. In spection o f educational w o r k — Educational work of institutions and
agencies caring for dependent children should be supervised by State educational
authorities.
8. F a c ts and records. — Complete histories of dependent children and their
parents, based upon personal investigation and supervision, should be recorded
for guidance of child-caring agencies.
9. P h ysica l care.— Every needy child should receive the best medical and
surgical attention and be instructed in health and hygiene.
10. Cooperation,— Local child-caring agencies should cooperate and establish
Joint bureaus of information.
11. U ndesirable legislation.— Prohibitive legislation against transfer of de
pendent children between States should be repealed.
12. P erm anent organization.— A permanent organization for work along the
lines o f these resolutions is desirable.
13. F ed eral children’s bureau.— Establishment o f a Federal children’s bureau
is desirable, and enactment o f pending bill is earnestly recommended.
14. Suggests special message to Congress favoring Federal children’s bureau
and other legislation applying above principles to District o f Columbia and
other Federal territory.
W hile it is recognized that these conclusions can be given their fullest effect
only by the action of the several States or communities concerned, or of their
charitable ageneies, the conference requested me, in section 14 of the conclu
sions, to send to you a message recommending Federal action.
There are pending in both Houses of Congress bills for the establishment
of a children’s bureau, i. e., Senate bill No. 8323 and House bill No. 24148.
These provide for a children’s bureau in the Department of the Interior, which
“ shall investigate and report upon all matters pertaining to the welfare of
children and child life, and shall especially investigate the questions o f infant
mortality, the birth rate, physical degeneracy, orphanage, juvenile delin
quency and juvenile courts, desertion and illegitimacy, dangerous occupations,
accidents and diseases of children of the working classes, employment, legisla
tion affecting children in the several States and Territories, and such other
facts as have a bearing upon the health, efficiency, character, and training of
children.”
One of the needs felt most acutely by the conference was that o f accurate
information concerning these questions relating to childhood. The National
Government not only has the unquestioned right of research in such vital
matters but is the only ageney which can effectively eonduet such general
inquiries as are needed for the benefit of all our citizens. In accordance with
the unanimous request of the conference, I therefore most heartily urge your
favorable action on these measures.
It is not only discreditable to us as a people that there is now no recognized
and authoritative source of information upon these subjects relating to child
life, but in the absence of such information as should be supplied by the
Federal Government many abuses hare gone unchecked; for public sentiment,
with its great corrective power, can only be aroused by full knowledge of the
facts. In addition to such information as the Census Bureau and other exist
ing ageneies of the Federal Government already provide, there remains much
to be ascertained through lines of research not now authorized by law ; and
there should be correlation and dissemination o f the knowledge obtained with
out any duplication of effort or interference with what is already being done.
There are few things more vital to the welfare of the Nation than accurate
and dependable knowledge of the best methods of dealing with children, especi
ally with those who are in one way or another handicapped by misfortune;
and in the absence o f such knowledge each community is left to work out its
own problem without being able to learn of and profit by the success or failure
of other communities along the same lines of endeavor. The bills for the
establishment of the children’s bureau are advocated not only by this con
ference but by a large number of national organizations that are disinter-

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APPENDIXES.

209

estedly working for the welfare of children, and also by philanthropic, educa
tional, and religious bodies in all parts of the country.
I further urge that such legislation be enacted as may be necessary in
order to bring the laws and practices in regard to the care o f dependent chil
dren in all Federal territory into harmony with the other conclusions reached
by the conference.
*

I herewith transmit a copy of the full text of the proceedings.
T
T

h it e

ou se,

heodore

oosevelt.

F eb ru a ry 15, 1909.

L E T T E R TO T H E P R E S ID E N T O F T H E U N IT E D S T A T E S , E M B O D Y
IN G T H E C O N C L U S IO N S O F T H E C O N F E R E N C E O N T H E C A R E
O F D E P E N D E N T C H IL D R E N H E L D B Y IN V I T A T I O N O F T H E
P R E S ID E N T IN W A S H IN G T O N , D . C „ J A N U A R Y 25 and 26, 1909.
H

on.

heodore

oosevelt,

P residen t o f the U nited S tates.
S i r : Having been invited by you to participate in a conference on the care
of dependent children, held at Washington, D. C., January 25-26, 1909, and
having considered at the sessions of such conference the various phases of the
subject as stated in the memorandum accompanying your letter of invitation,
and such others as have been brought before us by the executive committee, we
desire to express the very great satisfaction felt by each member o f this con
ference in the deep interest you have taken in the well-being of dependent
children. The proper care of destitute children has indeed an important bearing
upon the welfare of the Nation. W e now know so little about them as not even
to know their number, but we know that there are in institutions about 93,000
and that many additional thousands are in foster or boarding homes. As a
step, therefore, in the conservation of the productive capacity of the people and
the preservation of high standards of citizenship, and also because each of
these children is entitled to receive humane treatment, adequate care, and
proper education, your action in calling this conference and your participation
in its opening and closing sessions will have, we believe, a profound effect upon
the well-being of many thousands of children, and upon the Nation as a whole.
Concerning the particular objects to which you call attention in the invitation
to this conference, and the additional subjects brought before us by the execu
tive committee, our conclusions are as follow s:

Hom e care.
1. Home life is the highest and finest product o f civilization. It is the great
molding force o f mind and of character. Children should not be deprived o f it
except for urgent and compelling reasons. Children of parents of worthy
character suffering from temporary misfortune, and children of reasonably
efficient and deserving mothers who are without the support of the normal
breadwinner should, as a rule, be kept with their parents, such aid being given
as may be necessary to maintain suitable homes for the rearing of the children.
This aid should be given by such methods and from such sources as may be
determined by the general relief policy o f each community, preferably in the
form o f private charity rather than of public relief. Except in unusual cir
cumstances the home should not be broken up for reasons of poverty, but only
for considerations of inefficiency and immorality.
Preventive work.
2. The most important and valuable philanthropic work is not the curative
but the preventive; to check dependency by a thorough study of its causes and
by effectively remedying or eradicating them should be the constant aim of
society. Along these lines we urge upon all friends of children the promotion
of effective measures, including legislation to prevent blindness; to check
tuberculosis and other diseases in dwellings and work places; and injuries in
hazardous occupations; to secure compensation or insurance so as to provide
a family income in case of sickness, accident, death, or invalidism of the
breadwinner; to promote child-labor reforms, and, generally, to improve the
conditions surrounding child life. To secure these ends we urge efficient co
operation with all other agencies for social betterment.

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Home finding.
3. A s to the children who for sufficient reasons must be removed from their
own homes, or who have no homes, it is desirable that if normal in mind and
body and not requiring special training, they should be cured for in families
whenever practicable. The carefully selected foster home is for the normal
child the best substitute for the natural home. ' Such homes should be. selected
by a most careful process of investigation, carried on by skilled agents through
personal investigation and with due regard to the religious faith of the child.
After children are placed in homes; adequate visitation, with careful considera
tion of the physical, mental, moral, and spiritual training and development of
each child on the part of the responsible home-finding agency, is essential.
It is recognized that for many children foster homes without payment for
board are not practicable immediately after the children become dependent, and
that for children requiring temporary care only, the free home is not available.
For the temporary, or more or less permanent, care of such children different
methods are in use, notably the plan o f placing them in families, paying fo r
their board, and the plan of institutional care. Contact with family life is
preferable for these children, as well as for other normal children. It is
necessary, however, that a large number of carefully selected boarding homes
be found if these children are to be cared for in families. The extent to which
such families can be found should be ascertained by careful inquiry and
experiment in each locality. Unless and until such homes are found the use
of institutions is necessary.

Cottage system.
4. S© far as it may be found necessary temporarily or permanently to care for
certain classes of children in institutions, these institutions should be con
ducted on the cottage plan, in order that routine and impersonal care may not.
unduly suppress individuality and initiative. The cottage unit should not be
larger than will permit effective personal relations between the adult caretaker
or caretakers of each cottage and each child therein. Twenty-five is suggested
as a desirable cottage unit, subject to revision in the light of further experience
in the management of cottage institutions. The cottage plan is probably some
what more expensive, both in construction and in maintenace, than the con
gregate system. It is so, however, only because it secures for the children a
larger degree of association with adults and a nearer approach to the conditions
o f family life, which are required for the proper molding of childhood. These
results more than justify the increased outlay and are truly economical.
Child-caring agencies, whether supported by public or private funds, should
by all legitimate means press for adequate financial support. Inferior methods
should never be accepted by reason of lack of funds without continuing
protest. Cheap care of children is ultimately enormously expensive and is
unworthy of a strong community. Existing congregate institutions should so
classify their inmates and segregate them into groups as to secure as many of
the benefits of the cottage system as possible and should look forward to
the adoption of the cottage type when new buildings are constructed.
The sending of children of any age or class to almshouses is an unqualified
evil and should be forbidden everywhere by law, with suitable penalty for
its violation.
Incorporation.
5. To engage in the work of caring for needy children is to assume a most
serious responsibility and should, therefore, be permitted only to those who are
definitely organized for the purpose, who are of suitable character, and possess,
or have reasonable assurance of securing, the funds needed for their support
The only practicable plan of securing this end is to require the approval, by a
State board of charities or other body exercising similar powers, of the in
corporation of all child-caring agencies, including the approval of any amend
ments of the charter of a benevolent corporation, if it is to include child-caring
w ork; and by forbidding other than duly incorporated agencies to engage in
the care of needy children.

State inspection.
6. The proper training of destitute children being essential to the well-being
of the State, it is a sound public policy that tlje State, through its duly au
thorized representative, should inspect the work of all agencies which care for
dependent children; whether by. institutional or by home-finding methods
and whether supported by public or private funds. Such inspection should be

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made by trained agents, should be thorough, and the results thereof should
be reported to the responsible authorities of the institution or agency, concerned.
The information so secured should be confidential, not to be disclosed except
by .competent authority.

Inspection of educational work.
7. Destitute children at best labor under many disadvantages and are deprived in greater or less degree of the assistance and guidance which parentsafford their .own children. If is important, therefore, that such children
be given an education which will fit them for self-support and for the duties of
citizenship, and the State should provide therefor. In' order that this educa
tion may be equal to that afforded by the schools attended by the other children
of the community, it is desirable that the education of children in orphan
asylums and other similar institutions or placed in families should be under
the supervision of the educational authorities of the State.

Facts and records.
8. The proper care of a child in the custody of a child-caring agency, as
well as the wise decision as to the period of his retention and ultimate dis
position to he made of him, involve a knowledge of the character and circum
stances of his parents, or surviving parent, and near relatives, both before and
at the time the child becomes dependent, and subsequently. One unfortunate
feature o f child-caring work hitherto is the scanty information available as to
the actual careers of children who have been reared under the care of chari
table agencies. This applies both to institutions, which too frequently lose sight
of the children soon after they leave their doors, and home-finding agencies,
which too frequently have failed to exercise supervision adequate to enable
them to judge of the real results of their work. It is extremely desirable" that,
taking all precautions to prevent injury or embarrassment to those who have
been the subjects of charitable care, the agencies which have been responsible
for the care of children should know to what station in life they attain and
what sort of citizens they become. Only in this manner can they form a cor
rect judgment of the results af their efforts.
W e believe, thereforè, that every child-caring agency should—(a) Secure full information concerning the character and circumstances
of the parents and near relatives of each child in whose behalf application is
made, through personal investigation by its own representative, unless ade
quate information is supplied by some other reliable agency.
(b) Inform itself by personal investigation at least once each year of the
circumstances of the parents of children in its charge, unless the parents have
been legally deprived of guardianship, and unless this information is supplied
by some other responsible agency.
(c) Exercise supervision over children under their care until such children
are legally adopted, are returned to their parents, attain their majority, or
are clearly beyond the need of further supervision.
(d) Make a permanent record of all information thus, secured.

Physical care.
9. The physical condition of children who become the subjects of charitable
care has received inadequate consideration. Each child received into the
care of such an agency should be carefully examined by a competent physician
especially for the purpose of ascertaining whether such peculiarities, if any’
as the child presents may be due to any defect of the sense organs or to
other physical defect. Both institutions qnd placing-out agencies should take
every precaution to secure proper medical and surgical care of their children
and should see that suitable instruction is given them in matters of health
and hygiene.

Cooperation.
10. Great benefit can be derived from a close cooperation between the
various child-caring agencies, institutional and otherwise, in each locality.
It is especially desirable that harmonious relations be established in regard
to the ■classes of children to be received by each agency, the relations of
such agencies to the parents of children received, and the subsequent over
sight of children passing from the custody o f child-caring agencies. The
establishment of a joint bureau of investigation and information by all the
child-caring. ageneies of each locality is highly commended, in the absence
of any other suitable central agency through which they may cooperate.

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Undesirable legislation.

11 W e greatly deprecate the tendency o f legislation in some States to place
unnecessary obstacles in the way of placing children in f ^ 1
^ y J 1^ esf 11J
such States by agencies whose headquarters are elsewhere, in view of the fact
that we favor the care of destitute children, normal in mind and body, m
ia w f r S
^ W
â e4 X Pr i " Î c h
State to protect M l from vicious, disease*
or defective children from other States by the enactment of reasonable pro
tective legislation; but experience proves that the reception of ^ a t t h y
children is not only an act of philanthropy, but also secures a valuable incre
ment to the population of the community and an ultimate increase of its
WfPhe1*people of the more prosperous and less congested districts owe a debt
of hospitality to the older communities from which many of the“ ^a™e- . . . . .
W e earnestly protest, therefore, against such legislation as is prohibitive
in form or in effect, and urge that where it exists it be repealed.

Permanent organization.
12. The care of dependent children is a subject about which nearly^ every
session of the legislature of every State in the Union concerns itself ; it is a
work in which State and local authorities in many States are engaged, and m
which private agencies are active in every State. Important decisions are
being made constantly by associations, institutions, and
affecting auestions o f policy, the type of buildings to be constructed, the estabfishment of an adequate system of investigating homes and y1Siting children
placed in homes, and scores of important matters a c t i n g
ïïî^ îd g e
needy children. Each of these decisions should be made with fuli knowledge
of the experience of other States and agencies, and of the trend of opinion
amon0- those most actively engaged in the care of children, and able to speak
?rom wideExperience and careful observation. One effective means of secur
ing this result would be the establishment of a permanent or^n ization to
undertake in this field, work comparable to that carried on by the National
Playground Association, the National Association for the Study and Preven
tion of Tuberculosis, the National Child Labor Committee, and ^ J e r similar
organizations in their respective fields. It is our judgment that the establish
ment of such a permanent voluntary organization, under auspices which would
insure a careful consideration of all points of view, broad-mmdedness, and.
tolerance, would be desirable and helpful, if reasonably assured o f adequate
financial support.

Federal children’s bureau.

_ . „

a hill i<* nending in Congress for the establishment of a Federal child P M 'A i r e a u
and « S e m in a te Information affecting the welfare o f :
children. In our Judgment the establishment o f such a bureau is desirable,
and we earnestly recommend the enactment of the pending measure.

SUu mi Z ' nrpooding suggestions may be almost completely summarized in
this— that the particular condition and needs of each destitute child should be
carefuliy studied and that he should receive that care and treatment which
his indM dual needs require, and which should be as nearly as possible like
thp life of the other children of the community.
15 W e respectfully recommend that you send to Congress a message urging
favorable S o n upon the bill for a Federal children’s bureau and .the enactS
“ such legislation as will bring the laws and the public administration
S the District of Columbia and other Federal territory Into harmony with the
p r i n c t p f i S conclusious herein state«, and we M t e r^ o m m m d that j o u
tPonomiHAfi to the lïSveriior of each State ot tue union, a copy oi.
the proceedings of this conference for the information of the State board of
charities or other body exercising similar powers.
Yours very respectfully,
H astings H. H ast ,
E dm ond J. B u tleb,
J u l ia n W . M a c k ,
H omes F o lks,
J a m e s E. W e s t ,

C o m m ittee on resolutions.

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APPEN D IX B.— RESOLUTIONS ON STANDARDS RELAT
ING TO * CHILDREN IN NEED OF SPECIAL CARE.” 1
1. General statement.
The conclusions of the White House Conference of 1909 on the Care of De
pendent Children are reaffirmed in all essentials. They have been guides for
communities and States in reshaping their plans for children in need of
special care. They are recommended for consideration to all communities whose
standards do not as yet conform to them, so that they may be translated into
practice in the various States.
The fundamental rights of childhood are normal home life, opportunities for
education, recreation, vocational preparation for life, and moral, religious, and
physical development in harmony with American ideals and the educational and
spiritual agencies by which these rights of the child are normally safeguarded.
Upon the state devolves the ultimate responsibility for children who are in
need o f special care by reason o f unfortunate home conditions, physical or
mental handicap, or delinquency. Particular legislation is required to insure
for such children the nearest possible approach to normal development.
2. Adequate income.
Home life, which is, in the words o f the conclusions of the White House Con
ference, “ the highest and finest product o f civilization,” can not be provided
except upon the basis of an adequate income for each family.

3. Assistance to mothers.
The poliey of assistance to mothers who are competent to care for their own
children is now well established. It is generally recognized that the amount
provided should be sufficient to enable the mother to maintain her children
suitably in her own home, without resorting to such outside employment as will
necessitate leaving her children without proper care and oversight; but in
mahy States the allowances are still entirely inadequate to secure this result
under present living costs. The amount required can be determined only by
eareful and competent case study, which must be renewed from time to time to
meet changing conditions.

4. State supervision.
A State board of charities or a similar supervisory body should be responsible
for the regular inspection and licensing of every institution, agency, or associa
tion, incorporated or otherwise, which receives or cares for mothers with
children or children who suffer from physical or mental handicaps, or who are
delinquent, dependent, or without suitable parental care, and should have
authority to revoke such licenses for cause and to prescribe forms o f registra
tion and report. This State agency should maintain such supervision and
visitation o f children in institutions and children plaeed in family homes as
will insure their proper care, training, and protection. The incorporation of
private organizations caring for children should- be required, and should be
subject to the approval of the State board of charities or similar body. State
supervision should be conceived and exercised in harmony with democratic
ideals which invite and encourage the service of efficient, altruistic forces of
society in the common welfare.
5. Removal of children from their homes.
Unless unusual conditions exist, the child’s welfare is best promoted by
keeping him in his own home. No child should be permanently removed from
his home unless it is impossible so to reconstruct family conditions or build
i From the Minimum Standards for Child Welfare Adopted by the Washington and
Regional Conferences on Child Welfare, 1919 (Conference Series No. 2„ TJ. S. Children’s
Bureau Publication No. 62, Washington, 1920), which gives complete text of standards
on all subjects considered at the conferences.
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and supplement family resources as to make the home safe for the child, or
so to supervise the child as to make his continuance in the home safe for the
community. In case of removal, separation should not continue beyond the
period of reconstruction.

6. Home care.
The aim of all provision for children who must be removed from their own
homes should be to secure for each child home life as nearly normal as
possible, to safeguard his health, and to insure for him the fundamental rights
o f childhood. To a much larger degree than at present, family homes may be
used to advantage in the care of such children.

7. Principles governing child placing.
Before a child is placed in other than a temporary foster home, adequate
consideration should, be given to his health, mentality, character, and family
history and circumstances. Arrangements should be made for correcting
remediable physical defects and disease. Complete records of the child are
necessary to a proper understanding of his heredity and personality, and of his
development and progress while under the care of the agency.
Particular consideration should be given to children who are difficult to
place and who require provision adapted to their peculiar needs.
Careful and wise investigation of foster homes is prerequisite to the placing
of children. Adequate standards should be required of the foster families as
to character, intelligence, experience, training, ability, income, environment,
sympathetic attitude, and their ability to give the child proper moral and
spiritual training. When practicable children should be placed in families of
the same religious faith as the parents or the last surviving parent.
A complete record should be kept of each foster home, giving the ififormation on which approval was based. The records should show the agency’s
contacts with the family from time to time indicating the care given: the
child intrusted to it. In this way special abilities in the families will be de
veloped and conserved for children.
,
Supervision of children placed in foster homes should include adequate visits
by properly qualified and well-trained visitors, who should exercise watchful
ness over the child’s health, education, and moral and spiritual development.
Periodic physical examinations should be made. Supervision of children in
boarding homes should also involve the careful training of the foster parents
in their task. Supervision should not be made a substitute for the responsi
bilities which properly rest with the foster family.
, The transfer of the legal guardianship of a child should not be permitted,
save with, the, consent of a properly designated State department or a court of
proper jurisdiction.
In all cases involving the legal adoption o f children, the court should make
a full inquiry into all the facts through its own visitor or through some other
unbiased agency before awarding the child’s custody.

8. Children in institutions.
The stay of children in institutions for dependents should be as b rief, as
possible. The condition of all children, in such institutions should be carefully
studied at frequent intervals, in order to determine whether they should be
restored to their own homes, placed in foster homes, or, transferred to institu
tions better suited to their needs. W hile they do remain in institutions, their
condition should approximate as nearly as possible that of normal family life
as to health, recreation, schooling! and spiritual, aesthetic, civic, and vocational
training.

9. Care of children born out of wedlock.
The child born out of wedlock constitutes a very serious problem, and for
this reason special safeguards should be provided.
Save for unusual reasons both parents should be held responsible for the
child during his minority, and especially should the responsibility of the
father be emphasized.
Care of the child by his mother is highly desirable, particularly during the
nursing months.
No parent of a child born out of wedlock should be permitted to surrender
the child outside his own family, save with the consent of a properly designated
State department or a court of proper jurisdiction.

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2 15

Each State should make suitable provision of a humane character for estab
lishing paternity and guaranteeing to children born out of wedlock the fights
naturally belonging to children born in wedlock. The fathers of sueh children
should be under the same financial responsibilities and the same legal liabili
ties toward their children as other fathers. The administration of the courts
with reference to such cases should be so regulated as not only to protect the
legal rights of the mother and child, but also to avoid unnecessarv miblicitv
and humiliation.
J
The treatment of the unmarried mother and her child should include the
best medical supervision, and should be so directed as to afford the widest
opportunity for wholesome, normal life.'

10. Care of physically defective children.
Special care and educational opportunities for deaf, blind, and crippled chil
dren should be provided in the public educational system, local or State.

11. Mental hygiene and care of mentally defective children.
The value of the first seven years of childhood from the point of health
education, and morals and formative habits can not be overestimated. Through
out childhood attention should be given to the mental hygiene of the child— the
care of the instincts, emotions, and general personality, and of environmental
conditions. Special attention should be given to the heed for training teachers
and social workers in mental-hygiene principles.
Each State should assume the responsibility for thorough study of the school
and general population for the purpose of securing data concerning the extent
of the feeble-mindedness and subnormality.
Adequate provision should be made for such mentally defective children as
require institutional care. Special schools or classes with qualified teachers
and adequate equipment should be provided by educational authorities for such
defective children as may be properly cared for outside of institutions. The
State should provide for the supervision and aftercare o f feeble-minded persons
at large in the community, especially those paroled from institutions. Cus
todial care in institutions for feeble-minded children should not be resorted
to until after due consideration of the possibility o f adjustment within the
community.

12. Juvenile courts.
Every locality should have available a court organization providing for
separate hearings of children’s cases; a special method of detention for children,
entirely apart from adult offenders; adequate investigation for every case;
provision for supervision or probation by trained officers, such officers in girls’
cases to be women; and a system for recording and filing social as well as legal
information.
In dealing with children the procedure should be under Chancery jurisdiction
and juvenile records should not stand as criminal records against the children’
Whenever possible such administrative duties as child placing and relief
Should not be required of the juvenile court, but should be administered by
agencies organized for that purpose.
Thorough case study should invariably be made. Provision for mental and
physical examinations should be available.
The juvenile victims of sex offenses are without adequate protection against
unnecessary publicity and further corruption in our courts. To safeguard
them the jurisdiction of the juvenile court should be extended to deal with
adult sex offenders against children, and all safeguards of that court be ac
corded to their victims; or if these cases are dealt with in other courts, the
facts revealed in the juvenile court should be made available, and special
precautions should be taken for the protection of the children, as here sug
gested.

13. Rural social work.
Work for children needing special care has been neglected in rural parts of
the country. Social conditions in rural communities are often as acute as in
urban communities. The principles of child care, as enumerated above, are
applicable to rural needs. Agencies foy rural service should be encouraged, and
should be adapted to the peculiar needs of rural communities. The county is
usually the best administrative unit.

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. 4
14. Scientific information.
There is urgent need of a more adequate body of scientific literature dealing
with principles and practice in the- children’s field of social work, and the
meeting o f this need is a responsibility resting on those so engaged. Careful
interpretation and analysis o f methods and results o f care and the publishing
of these findings must precede the correcting of many present evils in practice.
Boards o f directors, trustees, and managers should particularly consider par
ticipation in the preparation of such a body of facts and experience as being
a vital part of the work of their staff members.

*
*
*
Child-welfare legislation.

The child-welfare legislation of every State requires careful reconsideration
as a whole at reasonable intervals, in order that necessary revision and co
ordination may be made and that new provisions may be incorporated in har
mony with the best experience of the day. In States where children’s laws
have not had careful revision as a whole within recent years, a child-welfare
committee or commission should be created for this purpose. Laws enacted by
the several *States should be in line with national ideals and uniform so far as
desirable in view of diverse conditions in the several States.
Child-welfare legislation should be framed by those who are thoroughly
familiar with the conditions and needs of children and with administrative
difficulties. It should be drafted by a competent lawyer in such form as to
accomplish the end desired by child-welfare experts and at the same time be
consistent with existing laws;

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APPEN D IX C.— SELECTIONS FROM OFFICIAL AND OTHER
REPORTS.

UNITED STATES.1
[National Conference o f Charities and Correction: Proceedings, 1875, pp. 78-79.]
CONFERENCE OF C H A R IT IE S H ELD I N CON NECTION W I T H T H E GENERAL M EE TIN G OF
T H E A M E R IC A N SO CIA L SCIEN CE A S SO C IA T IO N , M A Y , 1 8 7 5 .

Resolutions presented by William Pryor Letehworth, Tice president,
New York State Board of Charities, during a general discussion on methods
of care for dependent children, and unanimously adopted by the conference,
May 13, 1875.
R eso lved , That this conference recommend that the various State boards
of charities use their influence to bring about such legislation in their respec
tive States as shall cause dependent children to be removed from county
poorhouses, city almshouses, and common jails, and from all association with
adult paupers and criminals and placed in families, asylums, reformatories,
or other appropriate institutions.
,.
.
.
R e so lv e d , That this conference also recommend that a systematic plan of
visitation of dependent children that have been placed in families be adopted
under legal sanction; and that officials having supervision over such children
cause periodical reports to be made of them, by guardians, o f their physical
condition, moral training, educational advantages, and general well-being, and
by thus manifesting a sympathy in their welfare strengthen self-respect and
awaken a stronger pride of character in this unfortunate class.

[National Conference of Charities and Correction : Proceedings, 1877, pp. 78-79.]
CONFERENCE OF C H A R IT IE S H ELD IN CON NECTION W I T H T H E GENERAL M E E TIN G OF
T H E A M E R IC A N SO CIA L SC IEN CE A S SO C IA T IO N , SEPTEM BER, 1 8 7 7 .

Extract from a debate following the report of the committee on dependChildren in Institutions in New York
ent and delinquent children on
State.”
#
*
*
*
*
*
*
T heodore R oosevelt , Vice-President, New York State Charities Aid Associa

tion • * * * The institution children are not desirable. They are not able
to take care of themselves so well as those children brought up in contact with
the world
Children should be brought up in the position they are in
tended to fill in life. * * * Children educated in an institution are more
likelv to fall hack into the dependent classes than children brought up outside
in families, not because they are not pure on leaving the institution but because
they have not been accustomed to taking care of themselves. I understand
that in some counties of the State the dependent children are all placed in
families. I think more stress ought to be laid on the matter. Benevolent
ladies think that during early years children should be guarded from tempta
tion and that this is best accomplished by keeping them in an institution.
The fact is, that they are less able to bear temptation when brought up in an
institution
In the event of dependent children being supported by the State,
a law should be passed limiting the time when the State should provide for
such children in an institution. They should be transferred to families as
fast as possible.
R ev . J. H. B radford , representing the State Primary School of Massachusetts;
report of statement: Mr. Bradford did not know how it was possible to curse
children more than by institutionizing them. H e thought such a proceeding was
i The chronological arrangement of the selections from sources serves, in a measure, t©
indicate the development of foster-home care.

217

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a very great erime. In his opinion, a child brought up in an institution, and kept
there year after year, would not become self-supporting. * * * He spoke of
the danger of taking children from the street directly into families without
previous preparation and advocated the institution as being, in many cases, a
preparation for family life, urging at the same time that the stay in the insti
tution should be as short as possible.
[National Conference of Charities and Correction: Proceedings, 1879, pp. 170-178.]
, Extract from a paper by Clara T. Leonard, of Springfield, Mass., through
whose activities in connection with The Hampden. County Children’s Aid
Society the passage of a law was secured in 1879 prohibiting the mainte
nance of children over four years of age in city almshouses, and the experi
ment of boarding out the children from the Springfield almshouse was
undertaken.

Family Homes for Pauper and Dependent Children.
It is not necessary, in a paper of this kind, to enter into a long preliminary
dissertation upon dependent children— their increasing number, their condition
in almshouses or in private asylums. * * * The exigencies of the time
demand some new method of dealing with dependent children, which shall be
more effectual in training them to be good citizens than any that we have
hitherto practiced. There is a growing conviction among philanthropists that
asylums and institutions of all kinds for the reception of children should be
only temporary places for their detention, so far as is possible. Children can not
be well reared in masses. The gradual acquirement of practical knowledge and
of manual dexterity, so essential to future usefulness, is hardly possible where
the number of children in a house is largely disproportioned to that of adults.
In an ordinarily well-regulated family, there is such a diversity of sex, age, and
ability that the younger and less capable are educated by the more experienced,
imitate them, and are influenced by them, unconsciously and continually. The
affections, and the moral nature also, are cultivated in family life and are
suppressed and blighted in institution life. In every way the child has great
advantages in an average family over children trained in large masses. In
comparing results we find the smaller the institution and the more it is directed
by individual and voluntary oversight the better is its work. Large public
institutions under official superintendence usually,, if not invariably, turn out
paupers and criminals by the hundred. Many of these children might have been
made good citizens under a more natural form of life. Their failure is not so
much from inherited defects as from the fact that moral stamina has been
destroyed by a machine life, which creates a spirit of dependence and stultifies
the affections and moral qualities.
$

It is the earnest desire of many good men and women to see the wards of
the State removed, before they are permanently disqualified, from the evils of
institution life into respectable family homes. To do this at an early age
must be chiefly by paying a small sum for board; and to secure proper care
there must be, as we have said, frequent and judicious visitation, both official
and voluntary. If the State primary school at Monson could be a mere depot
for the temporary reception of children, there need never be more than from
BO to 100 inmates at any time, instead of 500 as at present. I believe that it
might be, within six months, reduced to the lower number by voluntary and
official work combined. The younger - children should be placed out first.
* * *
The general sentiment of the more educated portion of the community is
against the aggregation of children in large numbers for , a long time in
institutions and is in favor of family homes under careful restrictions. Many
judicious philanthropists also favor the placing out in families of juvenile
delinquents of a certain class. I believe that a good number of the latter
would improve in an orderly family and find the best training and reformation
there. Juvenile delinquents come for the most part from wretched and illgoverned homes. Their aggregation in large numbers only increases their
evil propensities. They need dispersion even more than merely dependent
children do.
To sum up:
1. Institution life, both public and private,. should be recognized only as a
temporary makeshift or stepping-stone to a family life.

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APPENDIXES.

219

2. The younger the child when it enters the family, the more hopeful will
be its future in life. The longer the child remains in the institution, the
greater will be the prospect that it will be a public burden always.
- 3. In order to bring dependent children at an early age into family life,
it will be necessary to pay a small sum for their maintenance for a time
in many cases.
4.
To prevent the neglect or abuse of children by mercenary or unprincipled
persons, who take them only for gain, careful supervision and visitation are
indispensable.
*

8. A small sum may be paid for board; but families who will take children
without payment should always be carefully sought. The payment should
cease as early as practicable, and the spirit of gain in the whole matter should
be carefully guarded against.
9. Religious toleration and concession must be practiced, in order to make
the work adequate to the needs of the time.

[National Conference o f Charities and C orrection : Proceedings, 1898, pp. 166-169.]
E xtracts from the report o f the comm ittee on neglected and dependent
children on “ The Care o f D estitute and Neglected Children," by Thom as M.
Mulry, chairman.

The last conference of charities and correction held in New York City was
probably the most representative, as it certainly was the most fruitful, in
results upon the subject of child saving. W hile those taking part in the dis
cussions held positive views, there was a spirit of toleration; and the inter
change of ideas and the moderate expression of views proved that the dif
ferences of opinion were not so great as had been at first imagined. The
preponderance of opinion seemed to be in favor of placing the children in
good homes, where such could be found and the circumstances warranted such
action being taken.
The good work accomplished by the institutions in the past was fully recog
nized, as well as the fact that the institution has an important place to fill
in the future on the disciplinary and educational lines and the care o f those
children who are prevented by circumstances from being placed in homes. It
was said that many children are kept longer than necessary in the institu
tion because, having no relatives, there were no persons to claim them ; and
such children, it was thought, might well be placed in good homes, provided
the families were of the same religious faith as the child. The earlier they
are placed in such families, the better it is for the child, as the motive which
induces one to take a child of tender years is apt to be more disinterested
than when they are old enough to be utilized as help.
*

Finding Homes for Children.
The finding of family homes for children has been taken up enthusiastically
and with excellent success in many localities. In New York State the
Catholic Home Bureau has been recently organized and incorporated. Its
object is to place dependent Catholic children in homes. On its board of
management are gentlemen connected actively with the different Catholic
charitable societies and institutions. The various institutions have shown
their interest in the new organization by placing in its possession the names
and conditions of the children who are fit subjects for placing in family homes.
The cordial support received from them and from the public generally proves
the opportuneness of this movement and the material help it will be in solving
the problem of how best to care for dependent children.
This assistance and encouragement is by no means confined to Catholics.
On the contrary, the help extended and suggestions given by the various
societies associated in the same kind of work have been most valuable in
advancing the new bureau.
One drawback to the placing-out system in the past was the disregard in
frequent cases of the religious belief of those placed, which resulted in chil7 2 69 3°— 26-------15

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dresn being sent to homes of a different religion from that in which they were
baptized.
This naturally presented the unanimous support so essential to the per
manent success ¡of .every movement, but the difficulty has been overcome in
most instances by providing that children be placed in homes of their own
religious faith.
The placing-out system needs the most careful supervision ; and those inter
ested in the work realize how prone to selfishness people are and that many
wish the children only for the work they can obtain from them. There is gen
erally a demand for boys and girls from 12 to Id years of age. The main
difficulty is to find homes for children from 7 to 11 years of age, and in large
communities it will he found difficult to secure desirable homes for all depend
ent children. This does not, however, mean "that any effort should be spared to
place as many children as possible in good homes; and this committee is
strongly in favor of renewed activity in this direction. It is the opinion of
some interested in the work that the payment o f board in families would
facilitate securing good homes for all children to be placed out.
All workers agree that the home Is the natural place to properly develop
the child. None doubt that there is a growing tendency on the part of many
of the poor to shirk the responsibility of the parents, and to transfer to others
the duty which is strictly their own, to hand their children to the public care.
*
$
*
$
*
♦
*

Preservation of the Home.
Tour committee is emphatically of the opinion th at the ounce o f .prevention
Is better than the pound of cure, and it strongly urges upon all charitable
people the absolute necessity o f preserving the to m e wherever possible.
Do not be in a hurry to send the children to an Institution until you are
convinced of the hopelessness of preserving the home. Remember that when
the home is broken up, even temporarily, it is uo easy task to bring it together
again and that a few dollars of private charity, a friendly visit, ¡a kind word,
and a helping hand will lift up the courage of the deserving poor; ¡and this
Is half the battle, because discouragement begets carelessness.
Our work should not be done fitfully but should he continuous, and not
cease until a ll danger of falling ;back into original conditions is effectually
removed.
Tt is often through -mistaken kindness that, homes are broken up ¡and chil
dren scattered, f t is a s had for1 the parent ¡as fo r the child.
*

Mjt

1fi

There ¡are homes In abundance throughout our cities, our towns, our farming
sections, for every orphan child, If the people will but open -their hearts and
brighten their homes by studying in what way they may best Show their love
for their less fortunate fellow-beings.

{Second National Conference o f Jewish Charities in th e United ¡State®, 1902, pp. 107—121.1
E xtract from the report o f the committee on dependent children, by
Lee K. Frank el, «hair-man.

Tour committee on dependent children has deemed it wise to devote its
jreport to the present conference to the consideration -of the question of caring
for dependent Jewish children through other than institutional means. * * *
In order that the ¡report should he representative ¡and, if possible, authoritative,
It was deemed inadvisable to make it voice the opinions of any or ,all of the
committee, but rather that it should express the views of the Jewish community
at large, and in particular that it should ¡reflect the unprejudiced and impar
tial conclusions of those who are engaged in child-saving -work. To this end,
it was decided to make a study o f the subject from a historical standpoint
and to obtain, where possible, information that might permit of subsequent
deductions and generalizations.
.[As a basis o f study ¡a questionnaire was submitted to Jewish orphan asylums
and children’s institutions and to Jewish benevolent and relief societies through
out the United States, and from the replies received thh committee framed
its report.]

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Conclusions.
•

Tour committee does not deem it essential for the proper treatment o f the
subject to introduce any lengthy discussion o f the relative merits of the institu
tion and the private home in the care of the dependent child. Both systems
have their ardent supporters and detractors, while the results that have been
obtained from either could be used to demonstrate Its superiority or inferiority
to the other. It is begging the question to cite the example of the girl who
has been made the common drudge of the family in which she was placed or
to speak in unflattering terms of the boy who has become “ institutionalized ”
and bears the institution brand. Like individuals, both institutions and private
homes may run the gamut of virtues and vices, may be either models or awful
examples. It will suffice to say that the home is a natural product, the
institution an artificial one, and that, a ll other things being equal, the former
Is to be preferred to the latter. From the standpoint of the conference the
important question to consider is the feasibility and advisability of finding
proper homes in which Jewish children can be cared for, and not whether the
institution is superior to the home or the reverse.
It can not be gainsaid that the problem presents great difficulties, O f the
1,000,000 Jews in the United States the large majority are residents in cities.
Probably nearly 50 per cent reside in the city of New York, and no one knowing
the conditions o f overcrowding and congestion that exist there would advocate
any extensive effort being made to find homes in which children could either
he adopted or boarded. Again, homes in the country among agriculturalists
and farmers are equally impossible, owing to the exceedingly limited number
of Jews who are engaged in such industries. On the other hand, the question
from the Jewish standpoint is very much simplified by reason of the fact that
of the 3,572 children at present in institutions, only 309, less than 10 per cent,
are full orphans. It may be assumed that 50 per cent of these are above 8
years of age, and even the strongest adherents of the placing-out system do not
advocate placing children over the age of 8 years in private homes, since in
rare instances only are they able to overcome earlier tendencies and teachings
and to adapt themselves to those intimate relationships which should exist
between foster parent and the foster child and which are so necessary to a
trne home. On the above assumption there are probably between 159 and 200
children a t present in institutions throughout the United States who have no
natural guardians or parental ties and with whom it might be wise to make
the experiment of having them boarded out or placed in free homes. In the
face of evidence to the contrary, your committee is o f the opinion that sueh
an experiment is worthy of a trial. * * *
W hile your committee has but few figures upon which to base an opinion,
it is nevertheless o f the impression that the placing of many children could
be obviated, if the earnings of the surviving parent could be supplemented
sufficiently to keep the family intact. This is particularly true in the cases
where the surviving parent is the mother. It is Immediately after her
bereavement that the poor widow in her anguish and uncertainty turns to
the institution as her only refuge, whereas if she could be properly cared for
until the first sharp grief has passed away she would gradually come to a
realization o f her responsibilities and be willing to assume them If assured
of necessary support. There is no doubt that the breaking up o f many
families could have been prevented if the mother had been subsidized and
had been able to give her children the necessaries of life. I f greater coopera
tion could be effected between the institution and the benevolent societies
most admirable results would follow. A thorough boarding-out system should
first of all consider the possibility of placing children with their own parents,
the natural guardians, who have relinquished their proprietary rights through
causes that can, in many cases, be readily overcome.

Regarding children in institutions who have both parents living, your
committee deem it inadvisable to attempt either placing out or boarding out.
The efforts of Jewish institutions with sueh children have always been and
should always be directed toward restoring the fam ily to Its normal condition
at the first opportunity. I f this can be enhanced by any system o f subsidy or
pension it is worthy of encouragement.

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LNew York Conference o f Charities and C orrection: Proceedings, 1915, pp. 27 7-28 6.]
Extracts "from the report o f the special comm ittee of the New York State
Conference o f Charities and C orrection on “ Standards o f Placing Out,
Supervision, and A ftercare o f Dependent C h ild ren /’ hy Hom er Folks, chair
man and Ludwig B. Bernstein, Samuel Ludlow, Charles H. Johnson, Rich
ard W. W allace, Jacob Basheim, W illiam J. Doherty, Florence A. Grannis,
J. L Reilly, R. R. Reeder, Cecil W iener, Brother Barnabas, C. Loring Brace,
Mary S. Haviland, and M. J. Fitzpatrick.

Standards of Placing Out.
9. W hat must we require of the children in the way o f :
(a )
H ea lth .— A placing-out society should be fully informed by a compe
tent physician concerning the physical condition of each child who is to be
placed. No child suffering from an infectious or contagious disease, which
would endanger others, should be placed. Children suffering from a physi
cal defect, who are not a menace to the community, may be placed in
specially chosen homes.
(ft) M en ta lity .— No child should be deprived of an opportunity for family
life merely because of the fact that he is peculiar, backward, retarded in
school, or mentally slower than the ordinary child o f his age. I f his mental
deficiency, however, results in such conduct as to be an actual danger to
himself or to others under the usual conditions o f family life, he should
either be placed in a family home selected for its ability to afford special
supervision or in a custodial institution. Border-line and doubtful cases of
mental ability should be placed in boarding homes rather than free homes,
and under special supervision, pending determination of their mental status.
Children pronounced by competent authorities to be definitely feeble-minded
should be placed in suitable institutions. In the absence of adequate insti
tutional provision, boarding in carefully selected families may be the next
best alternative.
(c) Character and disposition .— No child should be deprived o f a trial in a
family home because of an undesirable disposition or unfortunate habits,
unless such disposition and habits constitute a source of actual danger to
himself or. to others in the community, which can not be overcome by home
life under ordinary conditions. A child whose conduct may be an actual
danger to others under the ordinary conditions of family life should either
be placed in a family home selected for its ability to afford special super
vision or in a reformatory institution. Border-line and doubtful cases should
be under special supervision both by the family and by the placing-out
agency, pending determination of the necessity of commitment.
(d) H er e d ity .— A child both of whose parents are obviously feeble-minded
or have been pronounced feeble-minded by competent authorities should not
be placed in a free home for adoption but may be boarded in a family
under careful supervision until the mental capacity o f the child is clearly
established. A child, one or both of whose parents are epileptic, insane, of
weak or degenerate stock, or of doubtful mentality, or who are reputed
to be feeble-minded, should hot be placed in a free home for adoption unless
the foster parents are fully informed as to the child’s history and are able
to understand the responsibility they are assuming. I f such a child has
reached an age at which his mental, moral, and physical status can be rea
sonably determined, he should be dealt with on the basis of his individual
capacity and not on the basis of his heredity.

Standards of Supervision.
1.

W hat should supervision include in the nature o f :

P erson al v isits hy responsible trained agents. H o w o f t e n ?— Personal
visits by responsible trained agents should be made as a rule at least twice
a year. In cases where there is discontent on either side, or doubt as to the
desirability of the home, they should be made as often as necessary.
(b )
Correspondence w ith th e fo ste r parents or the ch ild ?— Friendly and,
in some cases, instructive correspondence should be carried on with the foster
parents. I f the child is placed in a home when from 6 to 12 years of age,
(d )

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APPENDIXES,

223

friendly correspondence may be useful. In the case of a child placed when
12 years of age or older, correspondence with the child should always be
maintained.
(c) C orrespondence w ith school teach ers? — Correspondence with school
teachers of children of school age is desirable, unless in exceptionally good
homes where families prefer not to have the teacher know that the child is
not their own. The school report should give a record of the child’s formal
school progress, his attendance, and general position in the community.
(d ) V isits b y or correspondence w ith local volu n teers? — Visits by or cor
respondence with local volunteers is helpful in special cases, but under ordi
nary circumstances it is best not to emphasize the fact that the child is not
in its natural home.
2. W hat should be the character o f a visit of supervision?
Before visiting a child, the agent should review the child’s history, and also
the original investigation of the home, noting any points suggesting further
inquiry. When a child is visited, the agent should observe carefully the con
dition of the child, his health, his clothing, his attitude toward the foster
parents, whether or not the child is happy, the amount of work he does, his
progress in education, where and with whom he sleeps, his opportunities for
play and possibilities for social life. The agent should also note the condition
of the home, particularly as to cleanliness, order, comfort, the foster parents’
attitude toward the child, their method of discipline, their plans for the child’s
future. Any changes in the home or home life should be noted. Agents
should be instructed not only to gather information, but to give constructive
advice to the family and child. Any child over eight years of age when
placed should be interviewed alone. I f any question arises as to the home or
the child, some responsible person in the community familiar with conditions
in the home should be interviewed.
3. How long should such responsible supervision continue in regard to :
(a ) Children w h o are n ot legally adopted? — Supervision should continue
until the children reach the age of 21, unless by reason of the exceptionally
satisfactory character of. a home and exceptionally close relation between
foster parents and the child it becomes evident at an earlier date that further
supervision can serve no useful purpose. The form and purpose of super
vision gradually changes as the child grows older, involving more and more,
as time passes, of friendly advice and counsel to the child in regard to matters
of education and occupation. I f the supervision is skillfully done, it gradually
passes over from control to friendly counsel, as it does between parent and
child.
When a child has been in a home for a period of five years or more, and
conditions of the home and the development of the child have been satisfactory,
an annual visit may be sufficient, or in a few cases in which conditions are
similar to legal adoption, the supervision may consist of correspondence only.
Supervision in case of older children should always include a consideration
of the training of the child in regard to earning and spending money. I f
the child was placed in the home when 10 or 12 years of age, some compensa
tion for his labor may reasonably be suggested to the foster parents after he
reaches the age of 16 or 17, provided he is not attending school. Due allowance
should be made for the period of time the child has been in the home and
the amount of expenditure the foster parents have necessarily incurred in
his behalf. As to children placed out when less than 12 years of age, the
wisdom of the foster parent granting a small allowance of spending money
to be used by the child in his discretion, with friendly advice, may well be
suggested.
(b ) Children w h o are legally adopted? — Responsible supervision, of course,
stops when, legal adoption takes place. It is desirable, however, that placingout agencies should, when practicable and when it can be done without
danger of disturbing the relations between the child and the foster parents
or the community, secure information from time to time as to the subsequent
careers of children who are legally adopted, both for the practical reason of
being able to answer criticisms as to what finally becomes of such children
and for the scientific reason o f being able to form an increasingly wise judg
ment, as time passes, as to the operations of heredity and environment.
Placing-out agencies should therefore be careful to place on record all infor
mation which comes to them in - the ordinary course of events concerning
children who have been legally adopted and also, in so far as it is practicable
for them to do so, with the consent and approval of the foster parents, to

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keep Informed by correspondence with the foster parents or others, as to the
welfare o f the child unto it reaches majority, or even subsequently. Nat
urally, very great care must be taken to see that this is not done in such a
way as to cause embarrassment either to the child or the foster parents.
4. Standards o f adoption.
(a )
H o w long a tim e should elapse a fte r placing out b efore an application
fo r legal adoption w ill be con sid ered? Should a n y exception to this standard
period be p erm itted ? — A t least a year should ¡elapse before consent for legal

adoption be considered. Some agencies require two years. In special cir
cumstances, such as a change of residence or in matters o f inheritance, con
sent may be given sooner if the fam ily is unquestionably a good one.
(&) W h a t children, if any, should n ot be legally adopted? — It is wise to
delay permission for legal adoption o f children in whose fam ily stock, on one
or both sides, there is clear evidence of mental defect. However, i f the foster
parents, having been fully informed o f the child’s history and being suffi
ciently intelligent to realize the responsibility they are assuming, still desire
to adopt the child and are willing that the placing-out agency should keep
in sufficiently dose touch with the child to be able to suggest and assist in
securing custodial care for the child should mental deficiency develop, con
sent for adoption may be given. Special effort should be made in such cases
to keep informed as to the welfare o f the child during minority.
(c)
W h a t standards should be required as to fam ilies to w hich consent fo r
legal adoption w ill be g iv e n ? — The standards required as to families to which

consent for legal adoption should be given are not materially different from
those which should be required in ease o f the original placing out. Consid
eration of permission for adoption should, however, include careful inquiry
as to whether subsequent events have fully confirmed the judgment which
approved the home originally. Consent for adoption m ay appropriately be
delayed or withheld if there is lack of sufficient intelligence or income in the
family to give reasonable assurance o f the maintenance ©f high standards
o f training and education without supervision from the placing-out agency.

Standards o f Aftercare.
It is assumed that after definite, formal supervision is finished there will be,
In some cases at least, an opportunity, and in others, perhaps, a necessity for
aftercare. How far should this be carried out by a society which has placed
out children in families in the following respects:
(a ) In seeking in form ation as to th e su bseq u en t progress o f children w h o
h a v e been legally adopted.— -By consent of foster parents, supervision after

adoption is desirable for both scientific and practical purposes, as iu this way
complete records o f the child’s development can be kept, and a study of these
helps In making it possible to revise present methods of work in dealing with
children who are placed and those who are to be selected for placing.
(b ) I f th is should be done at all, h ow should it be done, how o ften , and until
th e child reaches w h a t a ge? — It should fee done fey correspondence and, when

convenient, fey friendly personal visits, but care should be taken that the fact of
the adoption is not disclosed or emphasized. Such visits every second year are
sufficient until the child is of age and self-supporting or married. I f after
adoption is completed there is a radical change in the family life, such as the
death of one of the foster parents, or if the child has developed iu any way
abnormally, regular supervision should be maintained.

(c) I n the case o f children w ho have not been legally adopted, but w h o are
esp ecia lly prom ising in so m e line., how fa r should th e so c ie ty g o in, securing
opportunities fo r special education, training, or care in th ose lin es? — A s much
as possible should be done in securing opportunities for special training for
promising children, even after formal supervision has stopped.
(d ) I n the case o f children no longer under definite, form al supervision but
w h o h ave developed w ea kn esses or tendencies to go w ron g, how fa r should
frien d ly in terest and in form al su pervision continue , and to w h a t a g e? — In the

case of children who have developed subnormal or abnormal tendencies formal
supervision should, if possible, continue until the child has been committed to
some special institution, placed iu the care of some responsible organization, or
until some private individual assumes the responsibility or permanent Interest.

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[National Children’ s Home and Welfare Association: Proceedings of the Annual
Conference, 1919, pp. 11—21.]
Extracts from “ Standards of Child-Placing and Supervision, a Committee
Report,” presented to the annual conference of the National Children’s
Home and Welfare Association, by Wilfred S. Reynolds* chairman, A. H.
Stoneman, and Mrs. F. B. L. Bailey.
The Children’s Home Society movement started ont to apply home life, which
is in the words of the W hite House Conference “ the highest and finest product
of civilization ” to every child who was found deprived of it. In its enthusiasm
the movement may have sought home life in the foster home rather than the
slower process of developing and safeguarding home life for the child’s own
fam ily or those of its relatives. But it must be remembered that many of
these societies were pioneers in their given communities and States. They
were compelled to proceed unguided in the more extended methods of child
welfare.
A vision, however, of more constructive social work, taking into its purview
not only an isolated child but rather the child as a member of its family, of a,
widening circle of relations and friends, an element in a neighborhood, school,
church, and finally its relationship and its rights in the governmental unit o f
city, county, and State— this vision has become clearer and brighter until to-day
any movement in child welfare can not excuse itself if it has failed to see the
light and the way. No longer can a child-placing agency maintain a position
as rival to the institution but must find with the institution its complementary
position; it is folly for a child-placing agency to think its service is in no way
related to the service of agencies dealing with families in distress, but rather
seek counsel, and many times assistance of such agencies in making it possible
for the child to remain in its own fa m ily; it is most unwise for the child-plac
ing agency to maintain a critical and aloof attitude toward the particular court
organization and operation with which it may have contact, but better assume,
the position of offering to act as an arm of the court to serve in an administra
tive capacity in the care of children whose problems may be the court’s consider
ation ; and finally it is safe to point out that the most serviceable child-placing
agency is that agency which finds its proper place among the other social-work
agencies and does its details o f work in light of the most improved case-work
methods. These observations the committee makes, in view of their bearing
upon standards which are later presented.

Standards in Agency's Earliest Contact with Child.
The foundations for the most successful child placing reach into the society’s
policies in its earliest contacts with its cases. The success with which a child
may meet in the foster-home arrangements may depend very largely upon the
consideration given the case at the time the agency was asked to make a plan.
Standards to be applied in the process of determining upon the acceptance o f
cases are very important. In this regard the first task is for the society to
determine upon the types of cases for which it is equipped to render service.
An adequate inquiry into the social status involves:
1. Investigation of parents and other children of the family, ascer
taining facts pertaining to personal history, marital life, phys
ical and mental health, conduct, habits, character, education,
industry, income, financial stability, etc.
2. Investigation of maternal and paternal grandparents, aunts and
uncles, covering largely the same items of concern as in cases
of the parents, with especial regard to ability and fitness to
assist in child’s care or in a plan therefor.
8. Investigation of all secondary family resources, such as distant
relatives, friends, or acquaintances, for the purpose of obtain
ing resources o f care.
4. Investigation of and consultation with community resources,
such as the school, church, clubs, legal agencies, public and
private family-relief agencies, etc.
& The social status of children born out of wedlock should be de
termined by the application of the same standards of investiga
tion as that o f children born of legal parents, although the
manner and method of approach and inquiry may necessarily
Change according to the demands o f the case.

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An adequate inquiry into the -personal status of the ehild involves:
1. The physical and mental health of the child. To determine this
all children should have thorough physical examination by a
medical person especially qualified to make the kind of exam
ination so necessary in these cases. A ll infants and children
whose parental or social history is such as to indicate specific
physical trouble should have the Wassermann test; likewise
blood tests for tuberculosis should be given.
2. All children over six years of age, whose conduct or whose
parental and social history indicates possible mental defects
should be given a psychological examination.
3. In cases of children of school age, there should be an under
standing inquiry as to the child’s conduct at home, in school,
and in the neighborhood, his school experience and record,
and the experience of persons who have had a definite con
tact with the child.

Choosing Method of Care.
It will be readily observed that in an adequate scheme for the selection of
cases applying to a society, the type or method of care to be applied to an
accepted case in many instances will be quite clearly indicated. Moreover, it
is equally apparent that the child-placing society proposing to serve its com
munity adequately must provide more avenues of treatment than the per
manent free foster home. A s our societies have endeavored to meet this
need of adjustment and have adapted their programs to the various types of
children in various degrees of distress, there has been a modification of child
placing. From the rigid policy of the use of the free foster home for adoption
only, there have been developed by some of the societies all of the follow ing:
1. Use of an institutional receiving station for the intensive treat
ment of children before placement in families.
2. Use of the foster boarding home for temporary or more length
ened period of care.
3. Use of the free foster home for adoption and for a long period
without adoption.
4. Use of institutional treatment and training for cases not re
sponding to home care.
5. Rendering assistance to parents enabling them, under the
society’s supervision, to retain and care for their children.
The importance of the proper application of the foregoing avenues of care
and disposition of cases, and the value of accurately determining the child’s
social and personal status through good case-work methods, as pointed out
previously in this report, now become evident.
Time forbids the discussion of the various types of children and the partic
ular phase or combination of phases of the foregoing avenues of care to be
applied; but since this discussion is to develop standards of child placing,
it is important to point out the classes of children for whom foster-home care
seems best suited.

Free and Boarding Foster-Home Care.
The term “ free foster home ” means a fam ily home in which a dependent or
neglected child lives as a member of the family, without compensation to the
family for his care.
, .
. .
The free foster home always has some inherent desire for receiving the
child, which, if legitimate, is important at this point in its bearing ^upon the
general tvpe •of children to be placed in such homes. These legitimate de
sires may be to satisfy the natural longing of disappointed parenthood; it
may be to supply companionship, or it may be to provide reasonable service
to the family in return for which the child receives all the necessary elements
of life, comfort, and happiness. Children to be suitable for placement in free
foster homes, therefore, must, have no relationships with their parental sources
that will disturb the foster arrangement, and they must be physically and
mentally normal or capable of reasonably rapid progress toward a normal
condition; and if apparently normal physically and mentally, there ^ should
be nothing in their parental or social history that would strongly indicate
a later development or appearance of serious abnormality.

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227

The term “ foster boarding home” means a fam ily home in which a dependent
neglected child lives and for whose care the fam ily receives compensation.
The boarding home should be used for the care of—
1. A ll infants pending decision as to probable physical and mental
conditions and development, as rapidly as this plan can be
developed, except where adequate facilities are provided in
receiving institutions.
2. All infants with physical defects and those whose histories indi
cate mental abnormalities.
3. Physically and mentally defective children whose conditions are
not so acute as to demand hospital or institutional treatment.
4. Children of temporarily broken families whose rehabilitation
is probable in reasonable time.
6 Older children whose conduct indicates mental or moral difficul
ties but not so acute as to demand institutional care.

S'election of the Foster Family.
•

. It is impossible to set out in detail all the items of information that the
visitor should seek, and recommend their application in every foster-home
investigation, but it is possible to designate essential elements of personal
and family life and their presence in their proper respective relationships
in a given family that should constitute the basis for the approval of the
family to receive a child. These elements of family life may be designated
as follows :
1. Income or financial support and stability.— It is impossible to indicate
a family budget or income that would be applicable in all parts of the country,
but the family income should be sufficient to keep the fam ily in comfort,
provide for education, recreation, and all family exigencies without requiring
earning efforts on the part of the wife, child or children under 18 years of
age, except in agriculture or domestic pursuits of the family, and in addition,
there should be assurance of reasonable savings in form of bank accounts,
real estate, stock, etc.
2. Health, physical and mental.— The exact state of physical and mental
health of the members of each prospective foster family should be known,,
and no family should be accepted as a foster family whose members, or any
o f them are suffering with disease or defects that to any degree would
contribute to the detriment of a child living in the family.
3. Education.— No definite amount of formal education should be required
further than that the man and wife should have equivalent of at least eighth
grade in public schools. The adult members of the family must show a con
vincingly favorable attitude toward formal educational training and in some
manner agree to provide for and encourage school attendance in accordance
with the society’s requirements for the particular child assigned to the
family.
4. Moral and ethical standards.— Honesty and uprightness in business and
all social relationships must be assured on the part of the family group. A
definite indication that the same elements will be instilled in the child must
be evident. Any convincing indication that the child’s moral, spiritual, and
patriotic development will be hampered or not stimulated should constitute
cause for rejecting the home.
5. Temperamental qualities.— Personal peculiarities of a temperamental
character should be observed and followed up to the point of evaluation ; those
o f a neurotic type are likely to have a definite bearing upon the adult’s relation
to a child. Families in which a member, espécially man or wife, possesses
neurotic peculiarities which may be exaggerated by the care of a child should
be withheld from use as foster homes.
6. Housekeeping and home making.— On this point one must be influenced
not so much by what the family has in the way of household equipment as how
they use it and what is made of it. The general appearance of the house and
premises should indicate cleanliness and a reasonable degree of thrift, order,
and comfort. The house must present adequate arrangements for living and
sleeping, so that a child will be provided with his necessary demands as a
member o f the household.

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7.
P u rpose o r desire o f th e fo ste r fa m ily .— The purpose stimulating a family
to assume the care of a foreign child must he legitim ate; that is to say, what
ever may be the underlying motive, the foster family must he capable and
ready to give a child all its necessary requirements for life, growth, and satis
factory development. Such capability on the part of foster parents is not in
consistent with the desire to have an older boy or girl in the family to perform
light tasks and function with a degree of value to the household ; nor is it
inconsistent with the ambition of a foster mother to earn for some special
reason by receiving compensation for her care of a child at board. These
foster parents may be just the folks to be most helpful to their foster children.

Supervision.
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Granting a favorable beginning, there are two qualifications that are primary
In supervision: (1) The visitor must be qualified for her task, and (2) her
volume of work as to number of families and size of territory must admit of
Intensive observation and service in terms of each child.
The qualified visitor, after familiarizing herself with all that has gone be
fore as to child and family, must be able to sense the degree in which the
foster home is meeting the fundamental needs o f its child, and likewise she
must be able to measure the degree to which the child responds to the family’s
offering.
„
,
„ „
A standard for the volume o f work per visitor in terms of number of families
and size of territory is difficult to establish for universal application. Each
society must work this out according to conditions throughout the various sec
tions constituting their fields o f activity. A s a general statement it is sug
gested that, depending upon problems involved, the number of families under
supervision’ should be such as to enable the visitor to establish a real acquaint
anceship with her families and reach them on the average once in each quar
ter__ w hich in practice means that cases in permanent care and well established
in the family may be visited once in 12 m onths; temporary boarding cases,
many demanding special attention, once in two weeks or a m onth; wage-earn
ing and restless older children, from one month to two months; and so on
through the various degrees of special demands for supervision.
Some societies have found that in sections containing families with children
presenting a rather even distribution of problems, one visitor is able to care
for from 50 to 60 fam ilies; in other sections, particularly the more rural, in
which are families caring for children presenting less difficulty, one visitor may
care for from 50 to 100 fam ilies; in certain instances where a visitor is special
izing on wholly problem cases, such as a group o f wage-earning or special
training arrangement cases o f older boys and girls, one visitor can be responsi
ble for about 25 or 30 children.
Further than the character o f suggestions regarding standards o f super
vision which are here offered, it is possible only to point out that the constant
standard by which a society must measure the supervision of its children is
that at any given time the responsible direction of the society’s service is con
fident that the children in foster families are receiving their just and reason
able demands and are responding in a satisfactory degree to the families’ efforts.
In concluding the discussion of this phase o f the report, it may be helpful to
enumerate a few points by which the societies may “ check up ” their schemes
e f supervision:
^
,
,
1. Each child-placing organization should establish a department
of supervision of children in foster homes and assign to that
department a qualified personnel.
Tlie supervision department should recognize the various types
o f problems presented and endeavor to understandingly meet
them. * * *
8 Visits of supervision should be not less frequent than each 12
months and as frequent as the given case may require. A
visit very soon, after placement is essential.
4. A memorandum o f such information gathered from time to time
as may add to or change that already on file.
& Frequent consultation between visitor and director o f super
vision regarding cases.

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APPENDIXES,

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6. Occasional conferences o f visitors for discussion o f specific cases,
review of standards and requirements, and for exchange o f
experiences, suggestions, and questions are very necessary.
7. Correspondence with the society on the part of the family should
be encouraged, and on the part of the child in cases of older
children having been placed after 10 years of age.
8. Reports from school teachers should be systematically arranged
for.
9. Adoption should not be consummated under six months after
child is placed in the family and should be immediately pre
ceded by a visit by the society’s visitor.

GREAT BRITAIN.
[Royal Commission on the Poor Daws and Relief in Distress: Report presented to both
Houses of Parliament by eommand of His Majesty. Parliamentary Paper Cd. 4499,
pp. 183-185 and 619-620. London, 1909.]
Extracts from the Report of the Royal Commission, Part IT, Chapter 8,
“ Historical Development and Present Condition of the Various Branches of
the Poor Law : The Children,” on the boarding-out systems under the local
government board.

Boarding Out.
378. Many difficulties in dealing with children are avoided where guardians
are able and willing to adopt the system of “ boarding out.” In this case the
expense is comparatively small and involves no capital outlay ; when the system
is well managed a real home life is secured for the children, and they enter
into industrial life upon the same terms as the children of the independent
working class. On the other hand, it is more difficult to be certain that they
meet with kindly treatm ent; and they share in none of the special advantages
enjoyed in poor-law schools. Moreover, under the present regulations of the
local government board, the class which ean be dealt with in this way includes
only children between the ages of two and ten, and upon whom there will be no
rival claims to those of the foster-parent, i. e., the orphans and deserted.
379. In England a sharp distinction is made between “ boarding out within
the union ” and “ hoarding out without the union.” The first system has been
of long standing under the form of outrelief. The first order regulating it was
that of the local government hoard, September 10, 1877, entitled “ Outrelief
within tJnions to Orphans and Deserted children.” * * *
Boarding out without the union w as first sanctioned by the poor-law board
in 1870, by an order under which “ Committees o f ladies and gentlemen, o f no
less than three in number, all voluntary and unpaid, were authorized to re
ceive and place out in their neighborhood children chargeable to unions other
than those in which the places where the children were boarded out were
situated.” The order contained rules as to the visitation of the children by
the committees, as to the character of the homes in which they were to be
placed, and the number o f children allowed in each home, etc.
380. In 1885 an Inspector was appointed to visit and report upon the com
mittees, the children, and their homes. Two more inspectors have been ap
pointed since, and a very complete system of inspection has been elaborated
by them. It is this inspection, with the greater security which it affords to
the children, which constitutes the main difference between hoarding out with
in and without the union. W ithin the union committees are optional and
there is no inspection by the local government board; without the union both
committees and inspectors are compulsory.
381. Our investigators have examined carefully the working of both sys
tems and are of the opinion that boarding out within the union is liable to
be very unsatisfactory owing to lack of proper supervision. * * *
384.
Our investigators report much more favorably upon boarding out with
out the union, as carried on under committees and inspectors:
"T a k e n as a whole the supervision of the boarding-out com
mittees visited in the course o f this inquiry was wonderfully good
and contrasted very favorably with supervision by guardians and
relieving officers.”

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. £Lg£Ul l •

“ Boarding out, especially in country districts, is certainly the
best method of dealing with the small minority of pauper children
eligible and suitable for boarding out, and especially for girls. I
have never myself seen children from any sort of poor-law home or
institution making friends or playing with their schoolmates on
terms of equality, though I was told they did so at Ponteland.
Boarded-out children, on the other hand, can be just the ordinary
children of the place, sharing in all its life.
“ Boarding out, when properly supervised and with an active
and wise boarding-out committee, is, I believe, the ideal system
for both boys and girls, but especially for girls. Suitable homes,
however, are not easy to find.”
385. Our medical investigator, Doctor Me Vail, reports to the same effect:
** I am strongly of opinion that as far as possible the rearing
of pauper children should be done in the country, not in the tow n;
and the holding of that opinion is partly why I prefer boarding
out to scattered homes.”
^

¡|(

:•<

jJc

386. Notwithstanding the advantages of boarding out, it is but little adopted
In England. The number of children boarded out without the union has dimin
ished during the last 10 years, touching the lowest point three or four years
ago, and on 1st January, 1908, stood at 1,876. The number of those'within
the union, on the other hand, was slowly rising until the year 1907, when there
was a slight decline, and on 1st January, 1908, the number stood at 6,689.
A s compared with the 46,251 orphans and children “ relieved without parents.”
these numbers are very small and contrast sharply with those in Scotland,
where 92 per cent of the orphan, deserted, and “ separated ” children were
boarded out on 15th May, 1907. The reason for the difference is not very
clear. The chief inspector, Miss Mason, sa y s: “ The supply of committees and
homes is still quite unequal to the demand, and there is still need for fresh
ones in places where none exist at present.” In Scotland there seems to be
little difficulty in finding suitable homes. The difference is sometimes attrib
uted to the different characteristics of the two nations. Sometimes, again, it
is said that there is too much inspection in England and that it is resented
by foster parents. * * *
,
. .
389. W e can not say that it is proved that the existing system of supervision
adds appreciably to the difficulty of finding suitable homes in England, and
whilst strongly advocating the extension of boarding out as far as possible
we do not recommend any relaxation in the care exercised. The present
supervision within the union we consider to be as a rule quite inadequate.
390. In our opinion it would be right that in all cases the fullest inquiry
should be made into the character of the foster parents and the suitability
of the home, before rather than after the children are handed over. I f this
were systematically done it would greatly lighten the subsequent task of
supervision and not improbably tend to produce a better class o f foster parents
than can be found at present. W e are o f the opinion that the principle fol
lowed in the orders which regulate boarding out, whereby it is laid down that
no person is eligible as a foster parent who does not profess the same religious
belief as is indicated on the creed register of the child, should be applicable
in cases in which persons receive poor-law children for adoption.

Extracts from the report of the Royal Commission, Part IX : “ Review of
Existing Conditions and Proposed Changes: The Children," on the relative
places of the existing systems of caring for poor-law children.
82. W e may briefly summarize our opinion upon the different systems of
dealing with poor-law children now in force.
83. First o f all, we are strongly of the opinion that effective steps should
be taken to secure that the maintenance of children in the workhouse be no
longer recognized as a legitimate way of dealing with them. W e put this
in the forefront of our recommendations.
84. As to the other systems in force, viz : District schools grouped cottage
homes, scattered homes, boarding out, we consider that each system has its
merits and its drawbacks and that more depends upon ' the administrators
than upon the system.

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231

85. The district schools, established first in 1844, give an excellent education,
and those trained therein do well in after life.' W e do not indorse the whole*
sale condemnation of these institutions by the committee on the care of poorlaw children in 1896. All large schools have inherent evils connected with
the aggregation of children of various ages, and the district schools are not
free from such defects. W e would not, however, in any case, recommend the
multiplication of large institutional schools, as we think there are other methods
of education and training, particularly for girls, which are more adaptable
and produce better results.
86. Grouped cottage homes, introduced in 1867, give an excellent education
and training, but there are grave objections to their elaborate construction
and equipment and the growing cost of maintenance in them.
87. The scattered homes, which have the great advantage of involving very
little capital expenditure and of securing a kind of home life particularly
valuable for girls, have been increasingly adopted by other unions since they
were, started in Sheffield. Such homes, when closely supervised and under
competent foster mothers, promise good results.
88. Boarding out is another method of training children which might and
should be greatly extended. Here the expense is comparatively small and
involves no capital outlay whatever, and where the system is well managed
a real home life is secured for the children, and they enter upon industrial
life on the same terms as the children of the independent working classes.
In Scotland it is the general system for the upbringing of poor-law children
and there it works exceedingly w ell; but a most careful and constant super
vision over all such children is indispensable, and where such a system of
inspection can not be had, boarding out ought not be attempted. So far as
our evidence and special investigations go, the system of boarding out within
the union has been liable to be very unsatisfactory owing to lack of proper
supervision.
W e have recommended that the work of supervision of boarding out within
the union by the public-assistance committee should be placed in the hands of
competent women officers and that special care should be taken when the
boarding out is with relatives.
J*®’ ^ e. Griffis also that in all cases there should be systematic records
of the after life of children leaving the care of the public-assistance author-

[Royal Commission on the Poor Laws and Relief in Distress: Appendix, Volume I A —
Appendices to minutes of evidence. Parliamentary Paper Cd. 4626, p. 398J
Extracts from the statement of evidence handed in by Miss M. EL Mason
senior inspector of boarding out, local government board. [Inspector of
boarding out for 21 years ; for 13 years inspector of the whole of boarding
out beyond the union in England and Wales.]
*

•.

Practical Results of Boarding Out,

For many years past I have repeated that boarding out is either the best
oi the worst of systems. The English system of boarding out beyond the
union is the best. Its organization and administration are so complete and
satisfactory that I could not offer any further suggestions for its perfection
and only hope that it may not be disturbed in any way. * * *
The advantages of the boarding-out system are :
(a ) It is the cheapest. * * * There are no building estab
lishments nor staff expenses.
There are besides, only the
salaries and traveling expenses of three official inspectors.
,(b) A natural life teaches the children how to mix with the
world and take care of themselves. They learn the value of
money by errands to the shops, and so on. And though ordi
nary cottage life does not train girls for domestic service in
larger houses, they learn the ordinary domestic cottage life
against the time when they become wives of laborers or
workingmen.
(c ) As to boys, the boarding-out system is to some extent ft
means of bringing laborers back to the land. * * *

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POSTER-HOME CABE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,
(d ) In a certain
really attacked
and sometimes
or do more for
4

proportion of cases the foster parents become
to the children, who thus gain a real home
fathers and mothers who could scarcely care
them if they were really their own.

(e ) But the greatest advantage of the boarding-out system is
one possessed by no other, in that the child has a foothold in
the world and friends, or at least acquaintances and a place
to return to between situations or on a holiday when in serv
ice. In this respect all poor-law and most voluntary institu
tions are alike. None o f them can receive the children hack
in after life as to a real home. In this respect the cottage
home or “ scattered home,” however small and however home
like ft Is made to appear, has not the smallest advantage over
the largest “ barrack” school. But it is almost the universal
rule that boarded-out children thus return in after life to
their foster parents, and this is equally true whether the
home be good or bad, for the child knows no other.* * *
T h e fact that a child thus returns is not proof of the satis
factory character of such a home, but it is proof o f the ad
vantages of the boarding-out system generally; and what
ever the motives of the foster parents the child still has a
home of some kind. But it shows the extreme importance of
placing children only in homes where the influence that is
to last through life shall be good, moral, and wholesome.
( f ) And one of the principal advantages of the system is that
committees, whatever their shortcomings in other respects, as
a rule take the utmost trouble in finding situations for the
children and looking after them when out in the world.
m
*
*
*
*
*
*
The boarding-out system, properly administered, is undoubtedly best for
those children for whom it is suitable; but they are limited in number. E x
perience has shown that it is not advisable to board out children under 2, as
a ru le; but i f in any special eases it is advisable to do so, the local govern
ment board would always consider the exception. Experience has also shown
that it is not desirable to board out children over 10, except in order to keep
brothers and sisters together, as older children are taken and regarded as
servants and drudges.
*

It is therefore not only quite unfair but quite beside the point to compare
the results of the boarding-out system with those of any other; for the board
ing-out system takes only picked and selected cases, whereas the poor-law
schools, etc., are obliged to deal with all, temporary and permanent, including
the rejected and returned from boarding out.

fRoyal Commission on the Poor Laws and Relief in Distress: The condition of children

who are in receipt of various forms of poor-law relief in certain, parishes in. Scotland.
C. T. Parsons, assisted by Mary Longman and Marion Phillips. Appendix, Volume
XXIII. Parliamentary Paper Cd. 5075, pp. 53, 54, 102. London, 19%.]
. Extracts from the “ Report on the Inquiry into the Condition of Children
Boarded out in, Scotland.”

Date and Scope of Inquiry.
The number of children boarded out by Scottish parishes was 6 ,6 1 7 on May
15th, 1906. One thousand and nine hundred and three of these, or nearly 29
per cent, were boarded with relations and the remaining 4 ,7 1 4 were with
strangers. The returns do not show how many were boarded within the area
of their own parish and how many outside of it, hut broadly speaking, all
those boarded with relations and a few o f those with strangers belong to the
former class, while the great majority of those with strangers belong to the
latter. There will, therefore, be less than 4 ,7 0 0 children boarded out in
parishes other than the one which is responsible for them, and over 1,9 0 0
Within such parishes. It may further be said that the former children, un-

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APPENDIXES.

less in exceptional cases, are placed in rural parishes, while the latter are most
numerous in the large centers of population.
In a large burghal parish such as Glasgow, the policies followed in boarding
out children within and without the parish are entirely different. The aim of
the authorities is to place the children in their care, whether orphaned, de
serted, or separated from their parents, in the healthy surroundings of the
country, in homes deliberately selected for them. The children in the city are
called exceptional cases and they are not examples, as the officials put It, of
“ real boarding out.” In these cases the parish has not sought for the
guardians o f the children, but the guardians have sought the help of the parish.
The children have been left destitute, and fam ily affection or pride has made
their relations desire to keep them in their homes and not let them go com
pletely under the control o f the parish in Hie poorhouse or in a stranger’s
home, and application has been made to the parish to have help in clothes
and money. * ■* *
The questions to be considered before paying for the -child to be kept with
a relation or friend are whether the home is a good one in which the money
paid for the child will be used for the child and where he w ill be kept clean,
tidy, and well clothed, and be well trained and healthy. The inducements
to leave the child with relations are those of preserving family ties, keeping
the child in a home which appeals to him as a natnral resting place and o f
not taking him from those who feel that their Interests and his are inter
dependent, and finally the very great difficulty, and often cruelty, of parting
children from grandparents or others where there is a strong personal a t
tachment. For this reason children are sometimes boarded out in homes not
altogether desirable. Indeed the children are often better off so, for the re
lations would not give them up and the parish pay and supervision in some
parishes undoubtedly keeps the child in better circumstances than he would
otherwise enjoy. The guardian enters into the usual boarding-out agreement
with the poor-law authority and thus control is kept over the child’s well
being.

Children Boarded Out in Landward Parishes.
*

A ll the children, except the one special case already described belong to
one o f these classes [orphans, deserted, separated]. That is to say, -the par
ish has taken the responsibility for their upbringing in place of the parents
who have either died, deserted the children, or shown themselves unfit to
have the care of them, and by deliberately selecting the homes in which they
are to be placed, it has accepted the responsibility more fully and definitely
than it does in the case of children who are boarded out with their own re
lations.
The homes are found in various ways. Sometimes the inspector o f a
burghal parish applies to the inspector of a landward parish for the names
of suitable guardians, and the latter broaches the subject to any people whom
he considers likely to make good foster parents. Sometimes the intending
foster parent asks to be supplied with children. In Lanark, however, there
are special conditions. It contains a considerable Roman Catholic popula
tion, and cliildren of that creed have for many years been boarded in the}
district. The priests try to find as many suitable homes as they can, and
their parishioners are glad to oblige them. B y now the rearing of parish
children has become almost an industry.

General Summary and Conclusions.
*

The number of dull children is very high in the institutions. This is un
doubtedly in part due to the fact that many feeble-minded children are kept
la these institutions, owing to the difficulty of boarding them o u t; but it is

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234

also due, .to a certain extent, to the deadening effect of institutional life, the
tendency of which is to deprive children o f initiative and of individuality.
I t will be noticed from the teachers' reports that these institution children
do not do so badly in sehool, but they present a decidedly higher degree o f
shyness and lack o f adaptability than is the case of children living outside.

I formed the opinion that the hoarding-out system was in most cases far
better for the child than bringing it up in institutions. The poorhouse is a
most undesirable environment for a child to grow up in, and it is impossible
to condemn too strongly those eases in which the child lives and attends
school within the poorhouse and never mixes with children outside. Quite
apart from the unnatural conditions under which the child grows up and its
lack of knowledge of the world, the staffing of the institutional schools is
usually so small that the child must suffer considerably in its ordinary edu
cation. Receiving homes should be provided for children whom it is not de
sirable for any reason to board out or who are not likely to be long charge
able. These receiving homes should be quite separate from the poorhouse,
and the children in them should attend the local schools.
[Home-Department Committee on Child Adoption : Report presented to Parliament by
command of His Majesty, 9 February, 1921. Parliamentary Paper Cmd. 1254, pp.
4-5.]
Extracts from Part I : “ Question of Legal Provision for Adoption in This
Country,” o f the report of the committee appointed to consider the desir
ability o f making legal provision for the adoption of children in England,
and, if so, what form such provision should take.
9. * * * The committee are clearly of the opinion that legal provision
should be made for the adoption of children in this country. W e are further
of the opinion that the question is now urgent.
10. Although differences on many points of detail are manifest, there is con
currence amongst the witnesses who have experience in social work that the
number of persons desiring to bring up some Child or children, who would be
treated in law and generally regarded as occupying the position of natural
and lawful children, has very much increased. No doubt this is due to various
causes, of which the loss that many families have sustained in the war is one.
There is also reason for thinking that the interest in child life and child wel
fare is growing both in this and many other countries. W hile some o f the wit
nesses having great experience in dealing with children regard with appre
hension the possible results of a widespread system of adoption without careful
safeguards, all agree that some system of regular legal adoption is desirable.
11. There is no doubt that in any event adoption, whether legally recognized
or not, will take place under agreements entered into sometimes unwisely
and without due premeditation, though such agreements may not be legally
binding. It is generally recognized that in the interests of both the adopting
parent and the child, adoption should be regulated by law and definite legal
effect given to it. The experience of other countries similar to our own, to
which allusion has been made, points in the same direction; and the evidence
which we have heard shows that as regards children for whom their natural
parents provide no proper home, it is as a rule very much better to place
them in some other home as members of a family under the care of a suitable
and responsible person, between whom and the children a tie of affection is
likely to be established, than that the children should be gathered together in
an institution with a number of others.
Cases of clearly marked serious
physical or moral defects are generally best provided for in institutions, but
family life should be the normal condition.
12. Experience has shown that in the case of many children who are placed
under the care of foster parents a tie of real affection grows up between the
child and the foster parents with whom it is left. This experience of social
workers is borne out in a remarkable way by statistics furnished to us by
Doctor Menzies, one of the medical advisers of the London County Council,
which show that in the case of a large percentage o f the children who have
been thus placed, the foster parents desire to retain the care of the children,
in spite of the trouble and expense to themselves, from genuine love of them
and interest in their welfare. * * *

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14. Most o f those who have practical experience o f the subject regard it
as o f the utmost importance that the tie between the natural parent and the
child should not be broken except for some strong reason to secure the welfare'
of the child, but the next best thing to the care of the natural parent is
that of the adopting or foster parent who takes personal interest in the
child and brings it up in normal family life. In all cases no doubt the wel
fare o f the child is the question of paramount importance; but it is right
also to recognize that i f the natural desire o f many persons who have no
children of their own to have the care and bringing up o f some child could
have legitimate satisfaction, that too is a proper object to aim at. Such a
desire is often one of the strongest feelings of human nature and is in itself
the best guaranty for the welfare of the adopted child.
15. Incidentally, it is worth mentioning that the cost of bringing up and
suitably maintaining a child at home may be very much less than the sum
required for its maintenance in an institution. * * * O f course in differ
ent institutions the relative cost of maintenance may vary considerably; but
we have no doubt that to bring up children in an institution is both more
costly and, except in the case of certain special classes, not so good for the
child as residence in a family.

IRELAND.
[Vice-Regal Conuoi^ion on Poor-Law Reform in Ireland; Report presented to botli
Homses of Parliament by command of His Majesty, Parliamentary Paper Cd. 3202,
pp. 4o—47. lyOb.J
’
.Extract from Chapter X I I I : “ Children Between Infancy and Maximum
Limit Age, on boarding out as a method of care for children under the
poor law m Ireland.
185. As regards children to be supported out o f the poor rate, we have
received evidence almost universally in favor of empowering the local poor
authority to board out all children above the age of infancy, or even during
infancy in special cases. These expressions of opinion rather startle those who
have been accustomed all their lives to see children supported in large institu
tions, and we confess that we scrutinized such evidence very closely and con
sidered it most carefully. But we have come to the conclusion that practically
all rate-supported children can be boarded out with advantage to the children
themselves, to the community at large, to the persons who would receive such
children, and to the rate payers. A t first we thought it might be necessary to
keep an institution here and there for delicate children, but we believe, after
full consideration, that such a provision would be unnecessary. Ordinary chil
dren when ill are looked after at home or else sent to a hospital, and there does
not appear to be any reason why children maintained under the poor law
should^ be treated differently. There will, however, be rare cases o f children
who for one reason or another (for instance, grown-up children on first appli
cation for relief) can not be boarded out immediately, and we suggest that any
such cases be paid for at industrial or certified schools pending boarding
out. * * *
.
193. W e did not arrive a t a decision in favor of boarding out until we made
inquiries as to the various kinds of cottage homes and scattered homes that
exist in England. The management there seems to be most kindly, but the
system is so expensive that it would be quite beyond our resources in Ireland.
Apart from expense, however, we prefer boarding out to any institution, either
large or sm all; and we regard these so-called homes not really as homes, but
as small institutions— though, no doubt, a great improvement on a “ barrack ”
school. No place is a home which is under the control of an external authority
and where the question o f ways and means has not to be considered, owing to
the fact that a certain or uncertain amount of money is received weekly or
periodically and determines the rate of expenditure, thus giving the inmates of
the home some knowledge of living according to their means. * * *
194. It is o f the greatest importance that boarded-out children should be
placed at a very early age with their foster parents, as they in this way grow
up almost as members o f the family, and the attachment between the children
and foster parents is much strengthened. Some unfavorable instances of the
boarding-out system mentioned to us were of children who were boarded out at
an advanced age— at, say, 12 years old.
72693°— 26------ 16

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AUSTRALIA.
["New South Wales State Children Relief Board: Report of the president tor the year
•ended April ®, 101/6, pp. 14—12; 1917, pp. 14 and 16.]
Extract from the report of the president, Alfred William Green, to r the
year ended April 5, 1916, relative to the results of an inquiry into the
operation o f ¡the system -of boai'ding out '■
“ State children” in New 'South
Wales.
Considerable prominence ¡has been given o f late by the press to cases of
alleged ill-treatment or neglect of State children. T h e large majority o f these
were found, upon inquiry, to be quite baseless. * * * It would be foolish
advocacy of any system to contend that it was flawless. ¡Every system has
its defects, and the boarding-out system is no exception. The contention is,
however, that boarding out, as a system for the bringing up of neglected and
dependent children, has fewer defects than any other system established
for a similar purpose. Wherever it has been tried under reasonable condi
tions it has proved successful. Its outstanding merit is that any abuse of
it is readily detectable— it is practiced in the light of day ; the community
as a whole is competent to inspect and criticise it from individual instances;
it is not possible for neglect to occur at any time to any large number of
children, nor can neglect or ill-treatment occur in any individual instance for
any length of time without the whole community conniving at it. The school
teacher, the clergy, the police, the neighbors all unite in cooperation with a
natural system. Local visitors and salaried inspectors supply specific details.
The experience of this State in securing the happiest results from boarding
out corresponds to that elsewhere, and at the Congress of Workers among
Dependent Children, held at Adelaide, South Australia, in May, 1909, dele
gates from the six States of the Commonwealth united In passing the follow
ing resolutions (amongst other) .:
“ That this congress heartily approves o f the system o f providing
for the children in the care of the State by boarding them out
in selected homes.
•< That, ia the opinion of this congress, the boarding out of children
with their mothers, being either widows or deserted wives, should
be carried ¡out.
« That, in the opinion of this congress, steps should be taken to
provide in all the States of the Commonwealth a system of pro
bation for delinquent children.
« That the supervision of sueh children should be entrusted to
some special authority rather than the courts.”
There is no doubt, then, as to the consensus o f expert opinion on the value
o f boarding out. Suggestions made that this system should be replaced by a
system of State boarding schools must therefore be regarded as due to general
ignorance o f the whole question, as well as total disregard as to the results
achieved in New ¡South Wales. The agitation in this connection, too, has
had some justification and has been productive o f certain good. It has ac
centuated the fact that boarding out for its best results is dependent upon
the quality o f inspection, and upon the variety o f selection of homes, as well
as attention to the fact that hoarding out in certain instances should be
preceded by suitable training.
____ __
Extract from the reoort o f the president, Alfred William Green, tor the
year ended April 5, 1920, on boarding ©ut under the State Children Relief
Act.

The State Children Belief Aet—Children under Control.
T h is enactment provides that the children may be boarded out with strangers
or relatives until they are 14 years of age, or they may be adopted up to the
time they are 8 years of age (with the parents’ concurrence) ; after 14 years
of age they may be apprenticed, discharged, or dealt with in any other way1
the board may determine. The board, subject to the direction of the minister,
is the authority for dealing with all matters relating to boarding out. Pay
ments made for the maintenance of State wards are in accordance with the
rates stipulated. Special cases of sick or invalid children are specifically
considered by the board, which has power to determine necessary rates of

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APPENDIXES,

payment. The sanction o f the minister can continue the payments after the
age o f 14 is reached. The general rates now (1920) paid, are 10s. per week
for Children up to 14 years of age.
The total number of children placed out under the State Children Relief
Act is now 15,776 (or 2,938 more than were under control during the preceding
12 months). O f the children under control, 4,979 were placed out apart
from their mothers and 10,797 with their mothers. The increase in the number
in the former section since last year was 898, and in the latter section 2,542.

Inspection,
*

The children under departmental supervision are visited periodically by the
salaried officers of the board and by honorary visitors. In the metropolitan
area, State children are visited quarterly by the salaried staff ; children
hoarded with their own mothers are similarly visited, unless in special instances
where circumstances warrant more frequent visitation. * * * In regard
to country visitation, all children are visited quarterly as far as practicable
by salaried officers of the department, whose visits are supplemented by the
honorary officers visiting each month in the metropolitan area and quarterly
in the country. Honorary officers do not visit all children— the lady visitors
visit boarded-out children only, and the honorary probation officers visit children
on probation only. Lady visitors are appointed by the State Children Relief
Board in conformity with the State children relief act, and honorary probation
officers by His Excellency the Governor, on recommendation of the minister
of education. * * * The responsibility of the welfare and treatment of
infants rests mainly with the female inspectors o f the department, who are
charged with the special supervision of the conditions of infant life. It is
the duty o f these officers to instruct custodians and mothers, where necessary,
in the dieting and general treatment of infants, arranging for the medical in
spection of children periodically at one or other of the children’s hospitals,
at a clinic, or by private practitioner.

CANADA.
[Neglected

and Dependent Children of Ontario : First report of work
Children’s Protection Act, 1898, p. 20. Toronto, 1894.1

under the

Extract from the first report o f J. J. Kelso, Superintendent of the
Department of Neglected and Dependent Children of Ontario.

Children’s Visiting Committees. *
One of the most important features of the act [Children’s Protection Act of
1893] is the provision made for the appointment of a children’s visiting com
mittee in each electoral district. The act expressly states that all children
coming under the guardianship o f the Children’s Aid Society are to be placed in
family homes, and this is in accordance with the prevailing opinion and ex
perience o f leading workers in other countries on behalf of dependent children.
In Australia the foster-home system is officially recognized in all the colonies as
the only satisfactory solution o f the problem, and on this continent Massachu
setts, Michigan, and other States are in the vanguard of this great reform.
Common sense teaches that to have children mingle with the world, take part
in the daily strife, and face the problem of true living early is the only way to
develop sterling, self-reliant men and women, and it is important to note, from
an economical standpoint, that the substitution o f the foster home for the in
stitution has had the effect o f checking immensely the throwing by parents on
the State the maintenance of their children. Numerous authorities might be
quoted showing the advantages of family training over institutional life, were
this the place to do so. Having adopted this as the most desirable plan, it was
necessary to provide machinery for ascertaining suitable homes and for main
taining some degree o f oversight when children are placed out. In Australia
the appointment of committees of ladies and gentlemen, interested in this eause
and desirous o f aiding in the alleviation o f the misfortunes o f the children,
proved very effective, and this plan has been incorporated in the Ontario law.
When fully organized it is easy to see what a powerful network agency these

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committees may become for the placing of the homeless children of the Province
in homes where they will be willingly received and lovingly surrounded with
good and helpful influences. * * * The children’s visiting committee is the
most natural, effective, and at the same time economical plan of performing such
work, since it enlists the active sympathy and cooperation of people in all
parts of the Province, and in a cause that justly claims the sympathy and aid
of the whole community. * * *
[Neglected and Dependent Children of Ontario: Annual report, 1907, pp. 106—108.]
Extract from a paper read by J. J. Kelso at the annual meeting of the.
American Humane Association, held in Boston, November 12—14, 1907.

Supervision of Children.
In Ontario, when the children’s protection act was passed in 1893, it was
recognized that if home-finding work was to be extensively adopted, subsequent
supervision of the children placed out would be essential to success. Therefore
our system provides that all children’s aid societies should be branches of one
organization having its center in a government office known as the Department
of Neglected and Dependent Children. There are at the present time 60 of
these societies covering the different districts of the Province, and each year
about 300 children ape placed in foster homes in a territory over 500 by 800
miles in extent. Whenever a child goes to a foster home through one o f these
societies the full particulars are at once reported to the central office on a form
provided for the purpose. The child then passes under the supervision of the
government office, and I, as a general superintendent, assume its future care.
Its name is entered both in a supervision book and on a card index, the latter
for division into towns, cities, and counties, so as to facilitate visiting, and
from that time on every reasonable effort is made to insure its proper treatment.
This plan has been in operation over 14 years and there are about 4,000 children
on the books. In addition, two or three of the orphanages report the children
placed out by them and they are entered and visited, though this is not com
pulsory. The local society or institution is expected to' keep up a friendly in
terest in the child, and this can be done without any clashing with the central
scheme o f visitation. Some societies are faithful in remembering the children
once under their immediate care, others inquire about them occasionally, while
some organizations are content to leave it all to the central office. The great
importance of having all placed-out children promptly reported and recorded has
been demonstrated over and over again. The smaller societies pass out of
existence, there are frequent changes of secretaries or managers, and if the
children were not 6n record they would in many cases be completely forgotten
and lost sight of. State supervision provides for continuity and permanency,
and whether the local society exists or not the children are looked after, helped,
encouraged, and protected until there is no doubt that they are of age.
The children recorded in the central office are visited once each year, some
twice, some several times, according to the special need. Typewritten reports
o f these visits are furnished without expense to the society holding the
guardianship. A very mild supervision is exercised over those children who
are adopted in infancy and who have become fully incorporated as members of
the family. W e have many cases on our books where after the first visit
an entry is made “ Very little supervision necessary,” although we do not
entirely give up oversight of any child, owing to the fact already stated that
home conditions are liable to change at any time and do as a matter of fact
change. Those who require special attention are the boys and girls taken
at '8, 10, and 12 years of age, where the consideration of work is likely to
enter. Great care is needed to see that they receive a fair amount of schooling
and are not overworked.
W ith a system such as ours there is always some one available to be sent
on short notice to visit a child, no matter how great the distance, and once
all the circumstances of each child are fully understood this preparation for
instant action prevents neglect and carelessness. This point is worth em
phasizing. W e keep four persons constantly on the road, three gentlemen
and a lady, and in addition there are six other persons who have the over
sight of certain districts. Catholic children are visited by a Catholic in
spector, and this is a wise and reasonable rule to follow. W e have also
at least 15 or 20 persons who can be called in for special visiting or re-

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239

APPENDIXES,

porting on children in their district, and through these various agencies we
believe we are looking fairly well after the young people whose names are
on our books. W e do not take names off our records. Often a friendly visit
is paid to young women long after they have married and settled in life.
W e are then better able to judge the results of our work and the visits are
appreciated and welcomed. * * * It is almost impossible for a small so
ciety or institution to follow up its children in later years, owing to the ex
pense and the time involved; it seems an absolute necessity that this work
should be done by some parent society or government agency.

[Report of superintendent of neglected and dependent -children of the Province ot
Saskatchewan, 1917, p. 9.]

Foster Homes—Not Institutions.
The greatest work in this department and the essential note in the work
carried on under the children’s protection act, not only in this Province but
all over Canada, is the placing of children i n ' foster homes. Our work is
absolutely opposed to keeping children for any length of time in institutions,
although we sometimes find it difficult to make people realize this fact. E x
perience shows that institutional children to a very great degree lose the
spirit of self-reliance and independence, and therefore when they are re
leased, instead of making useful citizens are quite unable to make for them
selves. The aim is to place every child in a foster home, unless they are
mentally or physically unfit, or perhaps for some reason they are being
kept in shelters to be returned in due time to their parents.
FRANCE.
[La Revue Philanthropique, vol. 38 (1917), pp. 368-369.]
Translation of an abstract from the Circular of the Minister of the Inte
rior of July 15, 1904, commenting on the law of June 27, 1904, relative to
assistance of dependent children.
The traditional rules observed, in the bringing up of dependent children
are boarding in families and boarding in the country. This system is ra
tional and is sanctioned by experience. It will produce excellent results
when the rates of pay for boarding are everywhere sufficiently high, and
when the number, salary, and ability of inspectors shall everywhere assure
a proper choice of foster parents and efficient supervision.
The natural way for a child to be brought up is in a family, and there can
be no satisfactory substitute. I f he has no family of his own the best thing
that can b e . do n e. is to give him the chance to establish himself in an
adopted family. Even if he finds little affection on the part of the foster
parents, he will have a place at their house about which he will sa y : “A t
home. ” Later he will share the labors of those whose studies and play he
has shared before; he will belong to a community— the “ enlarged family.”
H e will have a place to which he will be attached; he will be bound to the
social group by the thousand bonds which are tied so strongly in the first
years of life ; lye will be as little different as possible from his fellow citi
zens.

[Deuxième Congrès International de la Protection de l’Enfance, Bruxelles, 1921.
II, pp. 145-146.]

Tome

Extract from the report by Henry Rollet to the International Conference

on Child Welfare on general child-welfare measures in France.

Measures for the Protection o f War Orphans.
-*

A d m in istra tive — The national office of the wards o f the nation in Paris,

under the Minister of Public Instruction, directs ami coordinates-the work of
the departmental offices and maintains control of the entire system.

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The departmental offices under the direction of the prefects. distribute the
subsidies appropriated for the maintenance o f needy wards, place them in
foster homes when necessary, and see to the enforcement of child-welfare and
school-attendance laws which apply to the eases in which they are concerned.
They also supervise the societies or institutions caring for the nation’s wards.
W ith the departmental offices are connected the cantonal offices, the members
of which come in direct contact with the children. These are men and women
interested in children— members o f the teaching profession, of philanthropic
societies, or private citizens. The cantonal sections see to it that the largest
possible number o f children are benefited by the la w ; they ascertain the needs
o f the children and put them in touch with the departmental offices.
Guardianship — For cases in which the guardian is a member of the family
or was appointed by the deceased parent, the law provides an “ advisory
guardian.” The justice o f the peace who is chairman o f the family Council
must offer the aid of the advisory guardian to the regular guardians when the
latter are relatives of the minor or if they were appointed under a will. This
advisory guardian, without interfering with the exercise of parental authority,
must see whether laws on school attendance are observed and whether the
subsidies are used for a good purpose, and must propose any measures that may
be good for the child.
Placing ou t .— Children who can not be brought up in their own families are
placed by the departmental office in orphanages or institutional schools or in
private families. The deeree of July 3, 1918, specifies very carefully the con
ditions required for the taking of wards o f the nation. The moral life and the
health o f the wards aré supervised very closely, also the location and hygienic
condition of the quarters in which the children live.
Quarterly physical examinations are required for children under 16 years
old. The results of each examination are noted on a health card, which is
considered confidential and is sent to the departmental office. Decisions as to
placing of wards whose cases are considered unusual because of the presence
of physical or moral defects are made by the prefect or Minister of Public
Instruction, with the consent of the guardian.
Even in case the child is placed out, the parents or guardians preserve their
entire authority over their children or wards.
They may always claim them
back from the departmental office, and in any case their will is respected,
particularly in matters of religious education.

BELGIUM.
IDeuxiéme Coagrés International de la Protection de PEnfanee, Bruxelles, 1921,
I, pp. 617-618.1

Tome

Translation of a selection from the report presented by Judge Joseph
Diercxsens (o f the juvenile court) on the principles and methods o f the
National Bureau for War Orphans (L ’CEuvre Nationale des Orphelins de la
Guerre) o f Belgium.
The fundamental idea of the National Bureau of W a r Orphans is that
orphans should be aided in the place of their residence, because the bureau is
convinced that the maintenance of children in the family and social environ
ment in which they were born is essential to their economic and moral well
being.
It is because the bureau has sought to carry out this conception that it
has energetically opposed the emigration of its w ards; an emigration which
would constitute a national misfortune as well as an obstacle to the normal
development of the children concerned.
The child removed from his natural environment is not only deprived of
the opportunity of making a career and living a life appropriate to his station
but undergoes deep mental suffering because of being unable to see his kindred,
the faces that he knew, and the companions who loved h im ; often he does
not even hear his mother tongue.
For this reason the bureau has assisted the child at his mother’s home,
whenever possible. It is near the mother that the child is surrounded by the
deepest affection and it is there that he can develop in the best way and find
the greatest opportunities for happiness. The maintenance of the child in his
own family is, then, the first concern of the bureau, and fortunately in the
great majority of cases it has been possible to follow this principle o f bringing
up children in a natural way.

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APPENDIXES.

I f the mother is dead it is necessary to try to give a fam ily to the orphan
by placing him with his grandparents or near relatives with whom he will be
surrounded by sincere affection.
But in exceptional cases in which bringing up in a fam ily is not possible,
it is necessary to accept the cruel necessity of entrusting the orphan to an
educational or charitable institution and to leave to the directors of the institu
tion the task of assuring his economic existence and moral development. In
cases of necessity the bureau has resorted to this method o f bringing up. Un
doubtedly there are in Belgium numerous well-managed sectarian or nonsec
tarian orphanages with directors whose devotion to their work is above all
praise, to which the fates of some children may be entrusted without fear.
But the administrative council, following in this matter the principles estab
lished by all of the international child-welfare congresses and those stated by
the illustrious initiator of this great social-service agency in Belgium, the late
Minister LeJeune, maintained that the institution is not the ideal method of
bringing up children; particularly as regards the children o f the poor, this
method entails the great danger of failing to provide a training which would
fit the child for the life he will have to lead la te r; it cuts him off from contact
with his fellows, it does not prepare him sufficiently for the struggle for
existence, and the child finds himself later thrown into life without having
learned all its dangers and pitfalls.
Statistics show that the executive committee of the bureau has always been
guided by the principles just described. Thus, of 18,240 orphans who were in
the bureau’s care on September 30, 1920, 650 ( 3.57 per cent) were placed in
foster homes; 422 (2.25 per cent) in orphanages or charitable institutions;
and 94.18 per cent were aided in their own homes and were enjoying fam ily
life.

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A PPEN D IX D.— LIST OF REFERENCES ON FOSTER-HOME
CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN IN TH E UNITED
STATES AND FOREIGN COUNTRIES.
C o m p il e d

auba

o od .

G E N E R A L SO U R C E S .
Th e Encyclopedia Americana: A library of universal knowledge. The Ency
clopedia Americana Corporation, New York and Chicago, 1918.
Dependent Children: The placing-out system, by Hastings H. Hart. Yol.
6, pp. 473-477.
The Encyclopaedia Britannica: A dictionary of arts, sciences, literature, and
general information. Eleventh edition. Cambridge, England : A t the Uni
versity Press; New York, 1910.
1
Boarding-out system [in England]. Yol. 4>, p. 95.
Poor Law : Boarding out children under the English Poor Law. Vol. 22,
p. 76.
United States: Placing out dependent children. New Vol. 32, p. 874.
The Catholic Encyclopedia: An international work of reference on the consti
tution, doctrine, discipline, and history of the Catholic Church. The Ency
clopedia Press (In c.), New York, 1914.
Orphans and Orphanages : “ Boarding-out ” and “ placing-out ” systems, by
Charles F. McKenna. Vol. 11, pp. 322-325.
The Jewish Encyclopedia: A descriptive record of the history, religion, litera
ture, and customs of the Jewish people from the earliest times to the present
day. Funk & W agnalls Co., New York and London, 1916.
Charity and Charitable Institutions: Boarding Out, by Lee K. Frankel.
Vol. 3, pp. 673-674.
The New Encyclopedia o f Social Reform. W illiam D. P. Bliss, editor in chief.
Funk & Wagnalls Co., New York and London, 1908.
Child Helping : The placing-out system', p. 169.
The New International Encyclopedia. Second edition. Dodd, Mead & Co.,
New York, 1914.
Dependent Children: Foster-home care in Europe and America. Vol. 6,
pp. 691-692.
D avenport-H ill, Florence: Children of the State. Edited by Fanny Fowke.
The Macmillan Co., London and New York, 1899.
A study of methods of care for “ State children,” with especial reference to the
development o f the systems of boarding out in comparison with other methods of care
undertaken in Great Britain and other countries. Boarding out in Ireland and Scot
land : History, methods, results, pp. 141-174. Boarding out in England : Origin of
the system ; early experiments by poor-law guardians ; standards, pp. 175—214. Plac
ing-out systems in the United States, pp. 215-231. Development ef the boàrding-out
system in Australia and New Zealand, pp. 232—272. Systems of boarding out in
Prance, Germany, Russia, Italy, Switzerland, Netherlands, and Austria, pp. 273-304.
Great Britain: Royal Commission on the Poor Laws and Relief in Distress.
Appendix Vol. X X X I I I : Foreign and Colonial Systems of Poor Relief. Par
liamentary Paper Cd. 5441. W ym an & Sons (L td .), London, 1910.
General summary : Relief of orphan and deserted children, in various countries, pp.
29-34. France: Origin and development of French system of boarding out ; boarding
out “ pupilles de l’assistance” ; ages of children, selection of foster parents, rates,
apprenticeship, pp. 54-58. Extracts from laws and official circulars relative to foster
care c f children, pp. 273-275. Belgium : Boarding out ; supervision by “ comités de
patronage,” pp. 87-88. Germ any: Boarding out orphans; guardianship; neglected
children, pp. 101—103 ; laws and official circulars relative to foster care, pp. 305—309 ;
Berlin: Boarding-out system, p. 118. Denmark: Boarding-out system, pp. 138, 146.
N orw a y: Boarding out destitute children, p. 151, Australasia: Boarding-out system
in New Zealand, pp. 159-160 ; New South Wales, pp. 164-166. The appendixes (I-X Y ),
include the answers received from representatives of the various Governments in re
ply to questions submitted to them by the Royal Commission on methods of care for
dependent children, and extracts from laws, official circulars, reports, été,, relating
to systems of care, pp. 211-445.
242

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APPENDIXES.

Hi n i r örter*)uch der Staatswissenschaften.

iyio.

243

Verlag von Gustav Fischer, Jena,

Haltekinder (Placed-Out Children) : An account of the situation in Gergan y^ France, Great Britain, and Denmark, by E. Loening. Voi. 5, pp.
Institutional and family care for dependent children in Germany.
pp. 827-828.
Supervision over placed-out illegitimate children. Voi. 8, p. 41.

Voi. 5.

Henderson, Charles R.: Modern Methods of Charity; an account of the sys
tems of relief, public and private, of the principal countries having modern
methods. The Macmillan Co., New York, 1904.
f S r : r^ n y : Child-Pacing system, pp. 61-63. A ustria: Guardianship and foster care
Door law,
Faw” pp,
nnnd207-210.
2 0 7 U9 ?n ngsv «?7 H 2 - ™5’ , E n9 l? nd: The boarding-out system under the
poor
Scotland: The boarding-out system, pp. 264-266.
Ireland:
« h ^ b0£ r(Fns‘£ ut ®yst,em’ pP- 283-284. Australasia: Boarding-out systems of New
South Wales, New Zealand, and South Australia, pp. 312-314. Canada: Child placing
by chddren s aid societies (Ontario), pp. 328-330. N orw ay: Boarding out dependent
children, pp. 360-361. Denmark: Child placing, p. 375. United States • Boardins-nnt
and placing-out systems, pp. 479—482. France: Boarding out morally, imperilled children, p. 546. Ita ly : hosier care of foundlings, pp. 594-596. Bibliography, pp. 690-702.

Keller, Dr. Arthur, und Klumker, Professor Chr. J.: Säuglingsfürsorge und
Kinderschutz in den europäischen Staaten. J. Springer, Berlin, 1912. :
Discussion of laws and regulations in regard to child placing in European counDenmark: Rules for the care of children placed out in private homes under law
of March, 1895, pp. 896-897. France: Supervision of children placed in institutions
Private families by the authority of thè State, as prescribed by laws of July 24
188%» April 11, 1908, and decrees of April 12, 1907, and June 13, 1910, pp 890-892
N orw ay: Placed-out children, pp. 579-581, 1072. Sweden: Care of children placed out
by poor-relief authorities or by private individuals or organizations, pp. 763-765 • law
of „une 6, 1902 p. 1198. A ustria: Placing out children receiving poor relief in varions
Provinces, pp, 597-602. H ungary: Placing out and supervision of abandoFort Fnii3
dren, pp. 1531-632. G erm any: Orders regulating supervision of placed-out childrerlin
Prussia, jfp. 1210-1211; Bavaria, pp. 1226-1227; Saxony, pp. 122 ^1229
F r ia n d Supervmmn of placed-out children by health departments o f Helsingfors and V i K '
8 Ò1 - 8 Ó2 hunts!erland: Regulation of child placing in cantons of Zurich and Bâsel/pp.

Lallemand, Léon: Histoire de la Charité. 4 tomes. Picard et Fils, Paris, 1912.
Brief comparison of care of orphans in asylums and in private families Vol V
£ ai't 2, Pp. 79-80. Placing of abandoned infants in private families i“
r a f districts
« P’ acticed in the mam European countries in the 18th century, Voi 4 Part 2 nn
80-82. Placing out infants in France, pp. 89-109.
’
’ •
•’•pp*
---------- . Histoire des Enfants Abandonnés et Délaissés ; étude sur la protection
de l’enfance aux diverses époques de la civilisation. Alphonse Picard Paris
1885.
’
I*

Reicher, Dr. Heinrich: Die Fürsorge für die verwahrloste Jugend

Buch
druckerei der Manzschen k. u. k. Hof-Verlags- und Universitäts-Buchhand
lung in Wien, 1904, 1906, 1908, 1909.

Part 1 . ( 1 ) German E m pire: Family versus institutional care of neglected chil
dren in Baden ; law expresses preference for family care, pp. 64-68
(2) KnalnndProvisions of child placing' of the English law of 1897 on the protection of chUrbW
pp. 187-189. (3) France, Belgium, and Switzerland: Placing out of dependten^chiì:
dren in France by the public charity authorities, pp. 48-50. Part 3 Familv nlacini
I n d ’E n gland?1VoL* 1, ^ * 2 9 9 - 3 0 5 .
the larSer German States, Switzerland, B & l f f i

Deuxième Congrès International de la Protection de l’Enfance, Bruxelles
1921. Proceedings. 3 tomes. Imprimerie de l’Office de Publicité, Bruxelles!
Tome I : Rapports sur les questions mises à l’ordre du jour du Congrès.
Fourth section : Orphans of the war. Three reports, by Joseph Diercxsens
(pp. 614-623), Eloise Fivet (pp. 624-638), U. Gombault (pp. 639-649) include
discussions of the fundamental principles of care laid down by “ l’Œuvre Na
tionale ües Orphelins de la Guerre,’’ an agency for the relief of war orphans in
Belgium ; Maintenance of the child in the family and social relationships to
which it was born; opposition to emigration; provision o f a foster home if it is
impossible or unwise to keep the child with its own mother or a . near relative •
institutional care when it is impossible to provide for the child in any other way!
Tome II : Rapports sur l’Ensemble des Mesures Prises pour la Protection
de l’Enfance.
The reports presented by delegates from the following countries include brief
discussions or notes on the systems of foster-home c a rl ; Belgium : Plac ng out
war orphans pp 29-30. Denm ark: Child placing in families, pp. 53, 6 8 . France1 refection of orphans and neglected children, pp. 120-121; protection and niacins
q 4^ 146J N orw a y: Supervision of placed-out children, ppf
233-234. Rumania : Society for the Protection o f War Orphans in Rumania pp
295-304. Sw eden: Protection of orphans, pp. 327-333. Switzerland: Children

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

Deuxièm e Congrès International de la Protection de l’Enfance— Continued.
1921. Proceedings — Continued.
Tome II : Rapports, etc.— Continued.
placed In families, pp. 365-366. Czechoslovakia: Protection for orphans and
neglected children, pp. 383-389.
Great Britain: Care for war orphans, pp.
430-431. Poland: Protection of orphans in general and of war orphans in par
ticular, pp. 501—514.
Tome I I I : Compte-Rendu Sténographié des Séances.
General discussion of methods of caring for war orphans. Emphasis is laid
on the importance of maintaining the child with its mother if possible, or in
a foster home rather than in an orphan asylum, pp. 561-578.
International Congress o f Charities, Correction, and Philanthropy (Congrès
Internationa] d’Assistance), Paris, 1889: Proceedings. G. Rongier et Cie.,
Éditeurs. Paris, 1889.
Rollet, H. : Rapport— Des modes de placement des enfants qui sont à la
charge des administrations publiques et des moyens pris ou à prendre
pour assurer leur mise en valeur physique, intellectuelle, et morale,
pp. 132-187.
History o f placing “ assisted children ” in family homes in France, pp. 137-162 ;
description of system of placing neglected children, pp. 162-177 ; brief review
of family-home caçe in European countries, pp. 184-185 ; recommendations
emphasizing the importance of family care, p. 187.
---------- , Chicago, 1893: Separate Report o f the Proceedings of the Second
Section: The Care of Dependent, Neglected, and W ayward Children. Johns
Hopkins Press, Baltimore, 1894.
Balch, Emily Greene: Public provision for children in France, ppT“49-57.
Statement of the organization and administration of the French system of
supervised foster-home care for “ assisted children ” and for “ morally abandoned
children,” and of the method of supervision of homes in which children are
placed at board by their parents.
Folks, H om er: Family life for dependent and wayward children. Part I :
Dependent children, pp. 69-80. Part II : Wayward children, pp. 112-117.
Assuming a consensus of opinion in favor of the family plan, the author out
lines methods by which it may be secured for the greatest proportion of dependent
children and for delinquent children whose waywardness has been caused by
the lack of normal home life, and the means by which the plan may be made
safe and efficient.
Randall. C. D. : Importation of dependent children from other States,
pp. 24r-27.
Gives the theory of the Michigan law regulating child placing in Michigan
by agencies outside the State.
Spence, Catherine H. : Care of children in Australia, pp. 27—33.
A brief account of the inception and growth of the boarding-out system as a
State policy in Australia, New Zealand, and Tasmania, noting such especial
features as supervision by voluntary committees of ladies, official inspection,
uniform subsidies, refunds from parents, and education requirements.
Public care of children in Australia (appendix to the above report),
pp. 37-46.
Includes a statement of the work of the State Children’s Council of South
Australia and extracts from papers presented by workers experienced in the
care of dependent children in different parts of Australia at the first and second
Australasian Conferences on Charity held at Melbourne, 1890 and 1891.
W hite, Francis H . : The placing-out system in the light of its results,
pp. 81-89.
Gives conclusions founded upon an investigation into the ^after lives of 690
children, placed in Kansas by the New York Children s Aid Society.
Discussion on the placing-out system as practiced in the several States of
the United States and in France, by representatives of public and
private agencies, pp. 90-99.
Congrès International de la Protection de l’Enfance, Paris, 1883. Com pteR en du des Travaux. 2 tomes.
G. Pedone-Lauriel, Paris, 1884.
Tomé I : Documents Préliminaires et Travaux de l’Assemblée Générale.
Roussel, Théophile: L ’enfance matériellement et moralement abandon
née (orphelins, enfants abandonnés, enfants de familles indignes),
pp. 75-102.
An examination of the problem of the care of children in France, based
upon statistical reports of numbers and classes of children provided for in
Institutions^ by boarding out,, and by subsidy in the child’s own, home.

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APPENDIXES,

245

Congrès International de la Protection de l’Enfance—Continued.
C om pte-R en du des T ra va u x — Continued.

Tome II : Travaux Préparatoires et Annêxes.
Enfance abandonnée: Assistance de l’enfant hors du domicile de ses
parents, pp. 71-88.
Reviews tbe debate on foster-home versus institutional care raised in the
essays which were submitted in the prize competition announced in 1779 b v !
the Society of Arts and Trades of Hamburg and gives a brief survey of
systems of foster care in the United States, Denmark, Switzerland. Austria^
Hungary, Sweden, and Germany, and of “ temporary homes ” in Germany and
Sweden.

Third International Congress fer the Welfare and Protection of Children,
London, 1902 : R ep ort o f the Proceedings. Edited for the executive com
mittee of the Congress by Sir William Chance. P. S. King & Son, London,
1902.
Bessiêre, Georges: T)u placement familial des enfants délinquents ou
vicieux, pp. 227-228.
While admitting tbe advantages o f family life in the training of children
with vicious tendencies, the author points out its dangers and urges study of
the child, caution i* the selection of the home, and wise supervision under the
direction of the State.
Discussion by members of tbe Congress on the boarding-out system as
compared with tbe institutional systems of England; methods of in
spection; supervision by local committees; training; necessity for sup
plementing boarding-out, pp. 229-235.
Mason, Miss M. H. : The boarding-out system, pp. 218-225.
The author presents her conclusions as to the advantages and perils o f
boarding out, based upon her experience of 17 years as Local Government Board
Inspector of boarding ou t; notes the distinction made in England between the
existing systems of boarding out “ within the union ” and “ without the union ” ;
and outlines standards for the selection of foster parents, homes, and children,
and for supervision.
Roy, Ferdinand: Protection away from family surroundings, pp. 225-227.
Notes the established custom of hoarding out dependent children in country
homes by the Assistance Publique in France, and describes work of Protestant
societies boarding out “ •morally imperilled ” children in rural Protestant families.
Publications of the International Association for the Promotion of Child
W elfare. General Secretary’s Office, Brussels.
In tern a tiona l R ecord o f C h ild -W elfa re W o rk .
No. 2 (December, 1921).
Silbernagel-Caloyanni, Dr. A lfred: Two noteworthy child-welfare
organizations at Zurich, pp. 77-86.
Includes notes on the work of P ro- Juventute in boarding out sick and
needy children, p. 85.
The work of the different sections o f the International Congress for
the Promotion of Child Welfare, July, 1921, pp. 106-112.
Summary of the recommendations of the congress relative to methods of
care for war orphans, pp. 111—112.
No. 3 ( January-February, 1922).
Kahn, Paul ; The moral protection of childhood In France, d p
157-163.
Boarding out and supervision of children in moral danger.
No. 5 (May-June, 1922).
Decourt, Germaine: How mothers, children, and adolescents are
helped in France, pp. 342-349.
Includes a description of the work of “ Œuvre Grancher ” in boarding
out children from tuberculous families.
General Mannerheim’s League fo r- Child W elfare (Finland), pp.
350-358.
Notes the organization o f a system o f “ foster parents ” to whom the
care of orphans or neglected children may be confided.
International notes [References, including notes on provisions for
foster-home care].
National Association for the Relief of W ar Orphans (Belgium ),
pp. 389-390.
A* Danish Child W elfare Bill, pp. 393-394.
D raft scheme of a law to deal with child welfare (issued by
International Public Health Bureau), pp. 399-400.

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Publications of the International Association for the Protection of Child
Welfare—Continued.
International R ecord o f C h ild -W elfa re WorTc— Continued.

No. 8 (October, 1922).
International notes.
Child emigration to Australia, p. 680.
Juvenile emigration from Great Britain, pp. 680-681.
No. 10 (December 31, 1922).
International notes.
,
“ Orphan’s N e st” (P oland), pp. 860-861.
Ita ly : Commission for the Protection of Deserted and Helpless
Children, pp. 857-858.
No. 11 (January 31, 1923).
Institutions and societies for the protection of ill-treated and morally
abandoned children in Romanic Switzerland (Prepared by the
Seminary for the Protection of Childhood at the School of Social
Studies for Women,. Geneva), pp. 1-8.
Includes notes on child placing in several cantons in Switzerland.
International notes.
•
Child-welfare legislation in Germany, pp. 42-43.
The activity of the municipal child-welfare bureau at Innsbruck,
pp. 34-35.
No. 13 (March 31, 1923).
Zimmern, M m e.: Regulated infant-rearing centers, pp. 197-202.
Outlines the essential features of a recently developed system of regulated
- foster-home care for' infants.
No. 15 (M ay 31, 1923).
International notes:
Child welfare in Lyons [France], ip . 464.
Legalizing adoption of children [England], pp. 475-476.
Supplement to the In ternational R ecord o f C h ild -W elfa re W o r k : Section
dealing with legislation.
Publishes the texts of the laws of different countries in the general field of
child welfare. Legislation governing child placing and supervision js included
in the laws of various countries.

SYSTEMS OF FOSTER-HOME CARE IN THE UNITED STATES.
GENERAL REFERENCES.

History of Child Saving in the United States: Report of the committee on the
history of child-saving work. Twentieth National Conference of Charities
and Correction, Chicago, June, 1893. Geo. H. Ellis, Boston, 1893.
Brace, Charles. Loring: The Children’s Aid Society of New Y o rk ; its
history, plans, and results, pp. 1-34.
Early activities of the society; the theory and practice of placing out destitute
children in rural communities in the West, pp. 23-26.
Folks, Homer : Child-saving work in Pennsylvania, pp. 138-153.
Societies' for placing ou t: Methods of placement, expense, supervision, pp.
145-148.
. . .
Hathaway, S. J . : Children’s Homes in Ohio, pp. 131-137.
Child placing by the County Children’s Homes, pp. 133-134.
Letchworth, W illiam Pryor: The history of child-saving work in the State
of New York, pp. 154-203.
The placing-out movement: Early work of the Children’s Aid Society, pp.
171-172; the “ Children’s L a w ” (1875) providing for placing out, pp. 180-184;
child adoption, pp. 184-185.
Merrill, G. A .: State public schools for dependent and neglected children,

pp. 204-226.

Theory o f child placing underlying the establishment of the Michigan State
Public School ; methods and results, tabular summary, pp. 204-214; Minnesota
State School— child-placing work, with tabular summary; pp. 214-222 ; Wisconsin
State School— child placing, tabular summary, pp. 223—224.
Minton, Sophie E. : Family life versus institution life, pp. 37-53.
Reviews the endorsement of the family system of care for dependent children
in Great. Britain, France, Germany, Australia, and the United States and presents
the relative merits of family and institutional care.

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APPENDIXES;

247

History of Child Saving in the United States— Continued.
Richardson, Mrs. Anne B . : The Massachusetts system o f caring for State
minor wards, pp. 54—67.
The Massachusetts policy of boarding out dependent children., pp. 64-67.
Smith, Virginia T . : The history of child-saving work in Connecticut, pp.
116-130.
Child placing by county temporary homes, pp. 122—126.
W h at Dependent Children N eed ; as stated by men and women who daily
live and learn with them. Edited by C. V. Williams. Child-Welfare League
of America, Bulletin No. 7 (June, 1922), 130 East Twenty-second Street, New
York.
Report of the committee, by C. V. Williams, chairman, pp. 3-4.
W hat every child ought to have, by Elsa Ueland, pp. 5-8.
Definitions, by Hastings H. Hart, pp. 9-12.
Standards of acceptance of responsibility for care of children by agencies
and institutions: Knowledge of child’s family, by Jessica P. Peixotto, pp.
1 2 -1 3 ; Knowledge of child’s body, by Lilburn Merrill, M. D., pp. 1 4 -1 5 ;
Knowledge of child’s mind, by Jessie Taft, pp. 1 5 -1 7 ; Alternative plans of
care, by Ruth Taylor, pp. 18-20.
Standards of care of children supplementary to that of parents or in place
of parents: In the child’s own home, by Ruth Berolzheimer, pp. 2 0 -2 4 ;
In the foster home, by John P. Sanderson, pp. 24-28.
Public responsibility for care as related to private agencies: Historical
background in law, by Sophonisba P. Breckinridge, pp. 3 7 -3 9 ; Practical
relations of State to private agencies, by W illiam Hodson, pp. 39-40.
Development of efficient care in the community as a whole, by W . S. Rey
nolds, pp. 45—18.
Children’s Bureau, U . S. Department of Labor: Child Care and Child Welfare,
♦ Outlines for Study, prepared in cooperation with the Federal Board for
Vocational Education.
Separate No. 1 : The Hygiene of Maternity and Childhood. Publication No.
90. Washington, 1921.
Separate No. 2 : Child Mentality and Management. Publication No. 91.
Washington, 1923.
Separate No. 3 : Play and Recreation. Publication No. 92. Washington,
1923.
Separate No. 4 : Child Labor. Publication No. 93. Third edition. W ash
ington, 1924.
Separate No. 5 : Children in Need of Special Care. Publication No. 94.
Washington, 1921.
— ------ : County Organization for Child Care and Protection. Publication No.
107. Washington, 1922.
A report on the development of county organizations for dependent, defective, and
delinquent children in various States. Special reports on the methods of organiza
tion and the work undertaken by county units in Minnesota, North Carolina. Cali
fornia, New Jersey, and New York include discussions of methods of child placing
and supervision.
S ee also Reports of Studies and Investigations, pp. 2 5 0 -2 5 3 , and Material on

Placing-Out Laws, pp. 253-258.
Bogen, Boris D .: Jewish Philanthropy; an exposition of the principles and
methods of Jewish social service in the United States. The Macmillan Co.,
New York, 1917.
The placing-out system, pp. 160-164 ; methods o f child care, pp. 167-169.
Brace, Charles Loring: The Best Method of Disposing of Our Pauper and
Vagrant Children. Wynkoop, Hallenbeck & Thomas, printers, New York,
1859.
Early emigration policy of the New York Children’s Aid Society.
Chapin, Henry Dwight, M .D .: Heredity and Child Culture. E. P. Dutton &
Co., New York, 1922.
Development of the systems of boarding out infants in the United •States, pp.
168-180; the Speedwell system c f regulating and systematizing boarding out, pp,
180-193; the adoption of children, pp. 194-208.
Devine, Edward T .: Social Work. The Macmillan Co., New York, 1922,
Children: Protection and placing out, pp. 115-123,

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

Devine, Edward T .: The Principles of Relief.

The Macmillan Co., New York,
1904.
Dependent children: Advantages and limitations of institutional and placing-out
systems of care, pp. 107—126.
Folks, H om er: The Care of Destitute, Neglected, and Delinquent Children.
The Macmillan Co., New York, 1911.
A history of the evolution of the care for dependent children in the United States,
with an analysis and evaluation of the different systems of care. Development of
placing-out system: Early methods of indenturing and apprenticing destitute children,
pp 8 22 39—42, 64—65 ; early policies of boarding out infants, pp. 20—21, 22—23, 6 3 ;
children’s aid societies and child placing, pp. 6 6 -7 1 ; removal of children from alms
houses— boarding out and placing out in the different States, pp. 7 2-81; the State
school and placing out, pp. 82-102; placing out from county children’ s homes, pp.
103-114; the boarding-out and placing-out systems, pp. 150-166. List of references
at head of each chapter.
Gillin, John Lewis: Poverty and Dependency, Their Relief and Prevention.
The Century Co., New York, 1921.
Present systems of care for dependent children: In almshouses, in county and city
children’s homes; supported as public charges in private institutions; in free foster
homes; in boarding homes. Evaluation of the different systems. Standards of care,
pp. 344-353. Bibliographical footnotes.
Hart, Hastings H.: Preventive Treatment of Neglected Children. Charities
Publication Committee, New York, 1910.
Children’s aid societies and children’s home societies, pp. 145-193. Family home
care: The evolution of the child-placing movement; operation of the placing-out system j standards for selection of homes and supervision of children, pp. 215 248.
Henderson, Charles R.: Introduction to the Study of the Dependent, Defec
tive and Delinquent Classes, and of Their Social Treatment. Second edition,
enlarged and rewritten. D. C. Heath & Co., Boston, 1901.
Boarding out and placing out children, pp. 112-116.
Kelso, Robert W .: The History of Public Poor Relief in Massachusetts, 16201920. Houghton, Mifflin Co., Boston and New York, 1922.
♦
Child care and the child-placing systems in Massachusetts: Historical review of
the development o f the boarding-out system from 1636-1920, pp. 165-188.
Lloyd-Jones, Jenkin: Not Institutions but Homes. Published by All Souls
Church, Chicago, 1893.
A plea for the extension of noninstitutional care for children.
Loeb, Sophie Irene: Everyman’s Child. The Century Co., New York, 1920.
Boarded-out children, pp. 218-245.
Mangold, George B.: Problems of Child W elfare. The Macmillan Co., New
York, 1914.
Problems and principles of child saving, pp. 434-438. Private child-saying agencies,
rm 449—461. Public child-saving agencies: Methods and results of placing out under
the State school system; boarding-out and placing-out systems——the New Jersey system,
the Massachusetts plan; city systems, the county homes system, pp. 474-475. Bibli
ography, pp. 508—511.
_______; Child Problems. The Macmillan Co., New York, 1914.
Material presented is practically the same as that in the preceding reference.

Preliminary Report of the Joint Committees Appointed by Organizations
Placing Children in Boarding Homes. Published by the Babies’ W elfare
Federation, 505 Pearl Street,- New York, 1921.
Standardization of home and board: suggestions for home finding; central registra
tion bureau.
Ralph Georgia G.: Elements of Record Keeping for Child-Helping Organiza
tions. Russell Sage Foundation, Survey Associates (In c.), New York, 1915.
A study of the systematic use of records as indispensable in safeguarding the welfare
o f children in tbe care of institutions and societies, with illustrations of record forms
and filing systems.
Slingerland, William H.: Child Placing in Fam ilies; a manual for students
and social workers. Russell Sage Foundation, New York, 1919.
A study of the practical working conditions necessary for effective child placing,
intended for use as a handbook for those engaged in the child-placing and allied fields.
Part 1— Historical and general basis— includes a brief historical review of the development of modern agencies for child placing ; a definition of tk s p ^ s e n t#systems; types
o f agencies; classes of children. Part 2— The technique of child placing— deals with
the reception of children; receiving homes and their functions; selection _oi homes,
selection and placement of children; adequate supervision. Part 3—^-¡special classes,
arguments, and forecasts— discusses children of uniqarried parents, juvenile war de
pendents, arguments for child placing. _ Part 4 — Twentieth-century terminology, ex
tracts from laws and supreme court decisions; bibliography.

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APPENDIXES.

Slingerlasd, WilHam H .i A Child-Welfare Symposium.

Edited by William H.
Slingerland, Supplement to Child-Welfare W ork in Pennsylvania. Depart
ment of Child Helping, Russell Sage Foundation, New York, 1915.
Burr, Iva EL; The problem of dependent colored children, pp. 37-42.
Puncheon, Mrs. E. A . : Advantages and limitations of placing-out work, pp.
92-94.
Solehberger, Edwin D .; The standardization of placing-out work, pp. 95-97.
Wharton, Brom ley: The care of dependent children in Pennsylvania, pp.
47-50.

Stewart, William Rhinelander; The Philanthrophic W ork of Josephine Shaw
Lowell. The Macmillan Co., New York, 1911.
Extract from Mrs. Lowell’s report to the State board .of charities (1889.) on the
waste of institutional care 'for dependent children, pp. 276—283.

The Development of Catholic Charitable Work in the Archdiocese of New
York since May, 1920. Issued by Catholic Charities, April, 1922.
Child-caring agencies placing out children, p. 53.

Warner, A m os G .: American -Charities.

Revised by Mary Roberts Coolidge.
Third edition. Thomas Y. Crowell Co., New York, 1919.
Dependent children : Systems o f ca re; institutions versus family homes, pp. 248—284.
-CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS.
C H IL D -W E L F A R E CONFERENCES.

Conference on the Care of Dependent Children, held in Washington, D. C.,
January 25, 26, 1909; Proceedings. Senate Document No. 721. Government
Printing Office, Washington, 1909.
The conference popularly known as the “ White House Conference,” called by
President Roosevelt to consider the care o f dependent children as a national problem.
Its membership, was made up of men and women from nearly every State in the
tteion actively engaged in the care of dependent children, and they represented all
the leading religions bodies. The addresses an child placing: “ The" evolution of the
child-placing movement,” by Hastings H. Hart, and “ The home versus the institu
tion,” by Rabbi Emil G. Hirsch, wore followed by brief discussions pf the theory and
problems o f child placing by leaders in the child-earing field, and recommendations
endorsing foster-home care were embodied in the conclusions.

Children’s Bureau, U. S, Department of Labor; Standards o f Child W elfare;
"

a report of the Children’s Bureau conferences, May and June, 1919. Pub
lication No. 60. Washington, 1919.
Separate No. 4. Children in Need &£ Special Care and Standardization of
Child-Welfare Laws.
Arnold, Victor P. : W hat constitutes sufficient grounds for the removal
of a child from his home, pp. 345-350.
Butler, Edmond J. : Standards of child placing and supervision, pp,
353-360.
Curry, H. Ida : Child-caring work in rural communities, pp. 363-367.
Hart, Hastings H. ; The conclusions o f the W hite House Conference—ten years after, pp. 339-344.
Kelso, Robert W . : The responsibility of the State, pp. 307-312.
W illiam s, C. V. : State supervision of agencies and institutions, pp.
313-318.
Minimum standards for the protection of children in need of special
care, pp. 440-444.

-----------: Minimum Standards for Child W elfare Adopted by the Washington
. and Regional Conferences on Child Welfare, 1919.
Publication No. 62.
Washington, 1920.
Resolutions on standards relating to children in need o f special care. Principles
governing child placing, pp. 12—13.
—--------: Standards of Legal Protection for Children Born Out of W edlock;
a report of regional conferences held under the auspices of the U. S Chil
dren’s Bureau and the Inter-City Conference on Illegitimacy. Publication
No. 77. Washington, 1921.
The discussions and resolutions of the conference Include recommendations relative
le standards -of care for children surrendered to child-placing agencies.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

Annual Conference of the Children’s Hom e and W elfare Association: P ro
ceedings, 1919.
Dysart, Dr. J. P. : Thirty years of child placing, pp. 2-10.
History o f the development of the National Children’s Home and Welfare
Association.
Reynolds, Wilfred S. : Standards of child placing and supervision, a com
mittee report, pp. 11-21.
Report covers : Standards in agency's earliest contact with child ; choosing
methods of care free and boarding foster-home care ; selection of the foster
family ; selection o f the child for the family ; supervision.
Conference on the Education of Backward, Truant, Delinquent, and Depend
ent Children: P roceedings, 1914.
Crouse, Meigs V. : The dependent child placed out, pp. 43-47.
Sessions, F. J. : The dependent child in the institution, pp. 31-39.
The two papers form the basis of a general discussion of the relative places
and merits of institutional and foster-home care for dependent children, with
especial reference to difficult or backward children.
Child Conference for Research and W elfare (Clark U n iversity): Proceedings,
1909.
G. E. Stechert & Co., New York.
Hart, Hastings H . : The care of the dependent child in the family, pp.
144-152.
Presents significant features of the White House Conference ; the note
worthy agreement of representatives of many types of Child-caring agencies
and institutions on foster-home care. Traces development of the system in the
United States, noting variation in methods of the several States.
American Association for the Study and Prevention o f Infant M ortality:
Transactions.
î
1914. Chapin, Henry D. : Are institutions for infants necessary? pp.
126-132.
Discussion o f infant mortality rates for institutional infants, with
statistics from English and American asylums ; advantages of boarding out.
Gerstenberger, H. J., M. D. : The methods or the systems employed
in caring for institutional infants abroad— more especially in
Germany and Austria-Hungary, pp. 139-150.
Typical systems of foster care for infants in Europe.
Knox, J. H. Mason, Jr. : The care of institutional infants outside
of institutions, pp. 133-138.
Experience of various agencies in boarding out infants.
1915. Hess, Alfred F. : Institutions as foster mothers for infants, pp.
255-265.
Discussion : Foster-home versus institutional care for infants, pp.
265-278.
N A T IO N A L

CONFEBENCES.

Joint Annual Meeting of the National Children’s H om e and W elfare A sso
ciation and the Child W elfare League of A m erica: Proceedings, 1923.
Brewer, Rev. E. J. : Utilization of local resources by field workers in rural
communities, pp. 14-16.
Reviews the possibilities of cooperation on the part of the child-placing agency
with local médical, legal, and religious resources.
Brown, Rev. F. R. : The field worker, pp. 16-19.
Holland, Mary E. : Investigation and reception work for children, pp. 6-10.
A discussion of the different phases of case study essential to efficient child
placing.
Megée, M arth a: Supervision and care of placed-out children, pp. 10-14.
Technique of reception, investigation, physical and mental examinations, home
finding, supervision, and record keeping.
Stoneman, A. H. : The relation between public and private child-caring
activities— from the standpoint of a private child-caring agency, pp. 19-22.
Workum, Ruth I. : The relation between public and private child-caring
activities— from the standpoint of a children’s protective society, pp.
22-24.

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251

National Conference of Social Work [prior to 1917, National Conference of
Charities and Correction] : Proceedings.
1875. Carpenter, Mary : W hat shall be done for the neglected and criminal
children of the United States? pp. 66-76. Discussion, pp. 78-79.
Statement of the grave condition of neglected children in the United
States in 1875; mingling of children and adult paupers in almshouses;
application of English boarding-out system to American conditions.
Resolutions presented by William Pryor L'tcbworth, recommending
legislative provision in the several States ,for the: placing of dependent
children in family homes and the standardization of visiting agencies,
were unanimously adopted by the conference.
,

1876. Brace, Charles Loring
vagrant children, pp.
Theory and practice
children in families in

: The “ placing-out ” plan for homeless and
135-144. Discussion, pp. 145-150.
of the New York Children’s Aid Society in placing
rural communities of the West,

1877. Letch worth, W illiam Pryor : Report of the Committee on Dependent
and Delinquent Children, pp. 60-74.
Review of methods of provision for dependent and delinquent children
in New York State ; number in institutions ; work toward removal from
almshouses.
Discussions on institutional care : Legal limitations of time chil
dren should be kept in institution, placing out in fam ily homes,,
standardized visitation recommended, pp. 74-80, 95-99.
1879. Leonard, Clara T. : Family homes for pauper and dependent chil
dren, pp. 170-176.
1880. Richardson, Anna B. ; Massachusetts plan of placing and visiting
children, pp. 186-200.
Methods of the visiting agency of State Board of Charities of Massachu
setts in securing good family homes under efficient supervision ; rules for
hoarding out children.
1881. Lesley, Susan I. : Foundlihgs and deserted children, pp. 282-286.
Advocates placing children in family homes rather than in institutions.
Putnam, Elizabeth C. : The work o f the auxiliary visitors appointed
to assist the department o f the Massachusetts State Board in
charge of the visitation of placed-out children, pp. 287-301.
Review of systems of visitation of placed-out children employed bv
various agencies in England and in the United States, pp. 293-296.
1884. Foster, John M. : Ten years of child-saving work in Michigan
pp. 132-142.
Methods and results of the work of the State school, during its first ten
years, in placing children in family homes and supervising them.
Hart, Hastings H. : Placing out children in the West, pp. 143-150.
A candid estimate of the system of placing out children in the west with
statistics on. work done in seven counties in Minnesota.
Putnam, Elizabeth C. : Volunteer visiting of State wards in con
nection with official work, pp. 123-131.
Describes the inauguration of the system of volunteer visitors bv the'
Massachusetts State Board of Health, Lunacy, and Charity ; notes on the
employment of volunteer visitors in Scotland, Ireland, England and
Australia.
1885. Alden, Lyman P. : The shady side of the placing-out system nn
201-210..
’
A thoughtful exposition of the abuses of the placing-out system based
on the writer’s experience as superintendent of the Michigan State School
A plea for differentiation of classes and scrupulous care in placing and
supervision.
1888. Dana, Rev. M. McG. : Care and disposal of dependent children ; re
port of the committee on children, pp. 236-241.
Includes a brief survey of the placing-out system in comparison with
other methods of care.
Randgll,. C. ,D. : Michigan— The child ; the State, pp. 262-271.
The Michigan system of child care is compared with -;the systems o f
New York, Ohio, and California from the Standpoints of 'econdmy and
efficiency.
1889. Shurtleiï, H. S. : State care of destitute infants ; the Massachusetts
system, pp. 1-4.
1890. Hathaway, S. J. : Children’s homes in Ohio, pp. 208-213.
The Ohio system of child placing and supervision.
72693°— 26------ 17

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F O S T E R -H O M E

C A R E F O R D E P E N D E N T C H IL D R E N ,

National Conference of Social Work— C ontinued.
1890. Putnam, Elizabeth C. : Dependent children in this country and abroad, pp. 190-202.
An account of tlie work done for children in reform schools and similar
institutions, and by boarding out in France, England, and New South
Wales ; objections to boarding out stated and answered.
1886. Letchworth, W illiam Pryor : Children of the State, pp. 138-157.
The English and Scotch plans of boarding out children, pp. 145-146.
Richardson, Anne B. : Supplementary work for dependent and
delinquent children in Massachusetts, pp. 131-138.
Smith, Virginia T. : Preventive work among children ; report of the
committee on children, pp. 124-131.
Presents results of an inquiry into the provision made by the various
States for the care of dependent children, showing that the great majority
of simply dependent children were (in 1886) still in poorhouses with
adult paupers or returned to former surroundings. Advocates the boardingout system.
1887. Smith, Virginia T. : Economy of the State in the care of dependent
and neglected children, pp. 238-242.
Considers the advantages of the county temporary home as a step in
child placing in Connecticut.
1891. Finley, John H. : The child problem in cities, pp. 124-135.
Problem of the dependent child in the city ; its solution through placing
out children in rural districts; example of Ireland, Scotland, and certain
cities in Germany, pp. 133-135.
Folks, Homer : The care of delinquent children, pp. 136-144.
Presents results of an experiment of the Children’s Aid Society of
Pennsylvania in placing out delinquent children under 14 years of age in
carefully selected foster homes in thè country.
1892. Folks. Homer : The child and the family, pp.' 419-423.
Work of the Pennsylvania Children’s Aid Society in providing familyhome care for defective and delinquent children through its boarding-out
system ; methods of investigation ; standards of care.
Gregg, F. M. : Placing out children, pp. 415-419.
Theories and methods of the Children’s Home Society of Chicago.
1893. Randall, G. D. : Report of the committee on child-saving work, pp.
131-139. ( S ee also General References, pp. 234-235, ‘'H isto ry of
Child Saving in the United States,” for full report of the Commit
tee on the History of Child-Saving W ork.)
1894. Folks, Homer : The removal of children from almshouses, pp.

119-132, n

History of the movement to exclude children from almshouses; other
methodb .H.,^re-—private asylums, county homes, State systems of institu
tion and placing out, boarding-out system.

Lewis, Herbert W . : Terms on which children should be placed in
families, pp. 140-146.
Outlines terms for child placing for (1) adoption, (2) indenture, (3)
probation, (4) boarding out.
Merrill, Galen A .: State care for dependent children; the advan
tages and disadvantages of such a system, pp. 146-148.
Pemberton. Miss C. H. : The boarding system for neglected children,
pp. 137-139.
Boarding-out methods of. the Children’s Aid Society of Pennsylvania.

...

„

1896. Folks, Homer : State supervision of child-caring agencies, pp.
209-212.
Emphasizes necessity for State supervision of official and private childplacing agencies.
Ring. Thomas R. : Catholic child-helping agencies in the United
States ; the motive, the methods, and the results, pp. 326-341.
1897. Letchworth, William Pryor : Dependent children in the family home,
pp. 94-105.
, ti , , , j .
comparison, of the methods of the various Stolte:, systems- of care for
dependent children.
•■■ •

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National Conference of Social Work— Continued.
1898. Matthews, Byron C .: The duty of* the State to dependent children,
pp. 367-374.
adwm tagifofSboarding1aut!ifC ° Ver the institution for children; especial
Mulry, Thomas M .; The home or the institution, pp. 362-366.
^ i elL ta£ es ,issue with the extremists on the placing-out or board
ing out side in the long debate in the national conference on family-home
care versus institutions^ for dependent children. - Points out the necessity
for institutional care for certain classes of children, the difficulties of
boaiding out children in large cities; the problems of securing religions
instruction and. of safeguarding the rights of children in family homes.
1899. Hall, Edward A .: Destitute and neglected children; the relations
between their care and education in the home and in the institution
pp. 177-188.
child-helping methods on both the placing-out and the instiiuxioH plan.
Hebberd, Robert W . : Placing out chldren ; dangers of careless
methods, pp. 171-177.
Points out the source of reproach for the system o f placing out in the
different and careless methods of those State officials whose main obiect
is economy. Discusses some of the problems of placing o u t: Boarding home
or institution for temporary care before permanent placement • placement
m county versus village or city homes; conserving the religious faith of
parents.
Mulry, T. M .: The care of destitute and neglected children; report
o f the committee on children, pp. 166-170.
Notes the greater spirit of accord in the conference of 1898 with reference
to the relative places of foster-home and institutional care for dependent
cm Iorn i; gives an impartial presentation of the various' methods of care;
emphasizes the necessity for the preservation of the child's own home when
ever possible.
1900. Gardner, W . T . : Home placing, pp. 237-242.
Merrill, Galen A . ; Some recpn-t developments in child saving, nn
226-230.
Montgomery,. J. B . : The State public-school idea at its best, pp.
231—236.
1901. Butler, Amos W . : Saving the children; report of the committee on
children, pp. 204-213.
Survey of the progress in the methods of care for dependent and neglected
children during the last, century and statement of conditions in America in
1901 ; review of conflict between advocates of the institutional and placingout systems; summary of phases of care for State wards. Tables and
references showing status of child-saving work, especially so far as. sup
ported at public expense in the different States, pp. 214-216.
Byers, Joseph P . : The county homes of Ohio, pp. 236-238.
Douglass, John W . : The Board of Children’s Guardians, District of
Columbia, pp. 239-244.
Ellison, F. E . : Child saving under State supervision without a State
school, pp. 230-233.
Henderson, Charles R .: Neglected children in. neglected communities
pp. 219-224.
’
Randall, C. D . ; Child-saving wdrk under State supervision w th a
State school, pp. 224-229.
Woollen, E van s: The Indiana Board of Children’s Guardians act
pp. 234-236.
1902. Randall, C. D . : Progress of State cafe for dependent children in the
United States, pp. 243-249.
Discussion: Methods of investigation employed in New Jersey Illi
nois, Massachusetts, District of Columbia, Indiana, arid Kentucky
pp. 418-422.
• ■.
1903. Hart, Hastings H . : ’ Cotrirnori sense and cooperation in child saving
pp. 180-187.
V ^ h i i >.;1:
v:
Review of the ejKi.ohs' in. the <ffiild-savin'g. movement Jin the United
States: Slow growth, 1848-1898; rapid development, 1898—1903: end of
: controversy over institution versus family ¿are; 1899 ;■'new* development ■
«•«ting -.from'' the enactment of juvenile-court .laws affecting dependent
,
steps , toward securing evident coordina'Hon of all legitimate child-saving agencies.
’

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National Conference of Social Work— Continued.
1904. Fairbank, Margaret E . ; Visitation of children placed in families,
pp. 324-327.
Jacobs, B ertha: The work of one State, pp. 317-320.
Kinkead, T. L . : State supervision of dependent children, pp.
342-349.
1906. Hart, Hastings, H . : Report of the committee on children, pp. 87-97.
Principles. upon which there is substantial •agreement among those
engaged■in child-caring work with regard to child placing; evolution of
principles.
Pear, William H . ; The full measure of responsibility, pp. 96-106.
The social obligation assumed by workers in the child-caring field;
essential principles to be observed in fulfilling the obligation; practical
suggestions.
1907. Durand, George H arrison: The study of the child from the stand
point of the home-finding agency, pp. 256-264.
Historical sketch of the organization and growth of the National
Children’s Home Society.
Evans, Mrs. Glendower: W hat do you know of children after they
leave your home or institution?, pp. 274-278.
The author stresses the need for better methods of aftercare of chil
dren by institution and placing-out agencies.
1909. Hart, Hastings H . : Unity of child-helping work, pp. 42-45.
Outlines the processes of coordination among child-helping agencies.
Johnson, Alexander: Child-placing; comparative . survey of the
several States o f the United States. Report of the committee on
reports from States, pp. 501-505.
Reports by States on methods of child placing, boarding out, and super
vision.
1910. Evans, Mrs. J. H . : Child placing by volunteers, pp. 131-134.
Record of the volunteer work of the Children’s Aid Society of Western
Pennsylvania.
Solenberger, Edwin D . ; Records of child-placing agencies, pp.
123-131.
Definite instructions in record making, including suggestions for &
record system containing data of value to students of social problems.
1911. Brackett, Jeffrey R . : Tendencies in the care of destitute and neglected
children in Massachusetts, pp. 93-98.
Reports from States : Child placing and children’s homes, pp. 446-447.
1913. Barnabas, Rev. B r o th e r R e p o r t pf the. committee, pq ghildren, pp.
276-287.
The’ function of the institution in a-general scheme of care* for dependent
children.
1914. Reynolds, Wilfred S . : Standards of placing out in free family homes,
pp. 183-189.
Reasons for periods of development and reaction to be noted in the his
tory of placing children in free family homes.
Solenberger, Edwin D . : Standards o f efficiency in boarding out chil
dren, pp. 178-183.
1915. Carstens, C. C .: A community plan in child-helping work ; report o f
the committee on children, pp. 92-106.
Care for dependent, neglected, and delinquent children: Placing out, pp.
97-101.
1916. Chalfant, Charles L . : Child-placing societies and the public schools,
pp. 566-568.
.
, ,/
<4
- „
States the problem of the dependent child in public-school classes and
suggests the development of a receiving-home school as the solution.
1917. Brown, John A .: The Indiana child-welfare plan, pp. 326-329.
Development of child placing in Indiana.
Kingsbury, John A . : Municipa’ welfare work as exemplified in New
York’s treatment of dependent children, pp. 371-379.
Includes a review of the activities of the children’s home bureau in child
placing, pp. 374-376.

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National Conference of Social Work— Continued.
1918. Thurston, Henry W . : A plan for the continuity o f activity for the
division on children of the national conference ; report of the com
mittee on children, pp. 47-56.
Brief review of the child-welfare situation, 1873-1893, from committee
report of 1893; summary of the contributions o f the nineteenth century
to the child-welfare movement.
1919. Taft, Jessie; Relation of personality study to child placing, pp. 63-67.
Placing out the difficult child : Tbo nrobi cm of expense ; what can be
done without a psychiatrist ; methods of personality study : objectives.
1920. Bidgood, Lee: The juvenile court and the dependent child, pp. 109lii.

Arguments for the cooperation of the juvenile court with child-placing
agencies.
Ricks, Judge James H oge: The place of the juvenile court in the care
of the dependent child, pp. 104-107.
The function of the juvenile court in guardianship and adoption proceed
ings and in insisting upon standardized foster-home care.
W illiam s, C. Y. : Principles to be employed by child-caring organiza
tions in first contact with cases ; a summary of thè report of the
subcommittee on dependent children, pp. 99-104.
Standards for agencies placing children in family homes, pp. 101-103.
1921. Reynolds, W ilfred S. : Admission to child-caring institutions and so
cieties of neglected and dependent children, pp. 93-95.
♦
1922. Theis, Sophie Van Senden: Minimum qualifications of a good child
placing agency, pp. 121-124.
Discussion of the necessity of understanding both children and foster
parents, of applying this knowledge for the benefit of both, and_ of em
bodying the results of this knowledge into methods and general principles.

National Conference of Catholic Charities: Proceedings.
1910. Doherty, W illiam J. : Placing out of children, pp. 292-300.
States the sanctions for the placing of children in foster homes as a
Catholic policy ; traces development of the system by Catholic agencies ;
methods and standards worked out by the Catholic Home Bureau for De
pendent Children of New York.
Fee, James E .: Massachusetts system of boarding out children, pp.
300-305.
Significant features of the Massachusetts plan of boarding out infants,
and dependent, neglected, and delinquent children.
Discussion: Problems confronting agencies undertaking systems of
boarding out or placing in free homes in different sections of the
United States owing to varying Social conditions, educational re
quirements, and child-labor laws, pp. 309-333.
1912. Doherty, William J. : Selection of children for the foster home, pp.
264-272.
Analysis of elements entering into the question of what children should
be selected for placement and what children are proper subjects for insti
tutional care : Parental or family ties ; physical or mental defects; charac
ter and training.
1916. Tinney, M a ry: An interpretation of 3,000 placements by the New
York Catholic Home Bureau, pp. 181-191.
Analyzes the impediments to general placing out found in family ties,
in the age of the child, and in physical and mental defects, and formu
lates standards of investigation and supervision from a review of actual
placements.
1920. Butler, Edmond J. : Standards of child placing and supervision,
pp. 92-98.
1921. Kroha, Rev. Joseph: Report of the Committee on Children ; intro
duction to général discussion on home finding in its restricted
sense of methods employed to discover suitable family homes—
boarding bornés, free hémès, working hbmes, pp. 75-79.
Butler, Edmond J. : Suggestions from the experience of the Catholic
Home Bureau in finding free homes for approximately 5,000
children during a period of 23 years, pp. 79-80.
Doherty, Rev. John: Family homes versus orphan asylums, pp.
80-81.

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National Conference of Catholic Charities— Continued.
1921. Judge, Rev. M. J . : Methods of Diocesan Bureau o f Social Service.
Hartford, Conn., in- finding homes and in supervising Catholic
children placed out by Catholic agencies and by the State Board
of Charities, pp. 81-83.
Nagle, Anne Sindell: Methods of securing foster homes employed
by the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Baltimore, pp. 83-84.
Wagner, Rev. Marcellus: Plan for supervision of Catholic children
in boarding homes by workers representing the Catholic Charities
in the Boarding-Home Bureau of the Council of Social Agencies
in Cincinnati, pp. 85-86.
1922. McEntegart, Rev. Bryan J . : Religious standards for family homes
of children under public care, pp. 152-157.

National Conference of Jewish Charities: Proceedings.
1902. Mitchell, M a x : Boarding out Jewish children in Massachusetts, pp.
122-125.
S ee also Reports of Studies and Investigations, p. 251, articles by
Lee K. Frankel.
1906. Bernstein, Ludwig B . : The problem of boarding and placing out
Jewish dependent children, pp. 75-89.
The theoretical aspect of the problem of boarding out and placing
out Jewish dependent children; practical results achieved by the New
York Bureau of Boarding and Placing Out Jewish Dependent Children;
presentation of typical cases.
'

1918.1 Berolzheimer, R u th : The dependent child.
Methods of care adapted to different types, of dependency— care o f
fatherless children with thfeir own mnthjers 1 ^orphans ih foster homes;
placing out temporarily dependent children.
W yle, Arm and: The small child-caring institution.
Value of small institutions in caring for children unfitted for foster
home care.
Discussion: Problems of foster-home care.
ST A T E CONFERENCES.

California State Conference of Charities and Corrections: Proceedings.
1906. Brown, Julius A. : Care of dependent children ; statistical comparison,
pp. 92-93.
Comparison of the cost of the institutional method of care for children
in California with that of the placing-out systems of Michigan, Minnesota,
Wisconsin, and Indiana.
1911. Lillie, Emma W . : Home placing for dependent children, pp. 77-80.
Outlines the aims and methods in child placing of the California Native
Sons and Native Daughters Central Committee on Homeless Children.
Slingerland, W . H . : Child dependency and home placing for dependent
children, pp. 90-94.
Review of the child-placing situation in California and the possibilities
for the development of placing-out work through existing agencies.
1915. Brusie, Mary E. : Child placing, pp. 51-56.
Describes the methods of home finding and supervision employed by
the Society of Native Sons and Native Daughters of California.
1916. Felton, Katharine : The place of the boarding-home system in child
caring work, pp. 80-82.
Relative value of foster-home and institutional care for children of
different types and ages.

Connecticut State Conference of Charities and Corrections: P roceedings .
1910.
Hart, Hastings H. : The use of the family home for the care of neglected
children, pp. 81-87.
Tendencies in the development of the various placing-out systems in the United
States.
1 Supplement to Jewish Charities, July, 1918.

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Illinois State Conference of Charities and Correction: Proceedings, 1915.
Published in Institution Quarterly, Yol. 7 (June, 1916).
Healy, Dr. W illiam : Types of children as predeterminable for placement,
pp. 173-175.
The elements entering into the mental, physical, and social diagnosis of the
young child, the older dependent child, and the delinquent child in its selection
for family-home care.

Iowa Conference of State Institutions: Proceedings, January, 1923.
Published in Iowa Bulletin of State Institutions, Vol. X X V (January, 1923).
Reed, R alph : Child placing, pp. 63-67.
Presents the conditions of child placing in Iowa, indicating the need for trained
social workers in each county, for revision of the adoption laws, and for a study
of child-placing methods and institutions.

Iowa State Conference of Charities and Correction: Proceedings.
1903. Slingerland, W . H . : Homes for dependent children in families, pp.
222-229.
Principles underlying the development of the National Children’s HomeFinding Society; review of methods and results in Iowa.
1917. Slingerland, W . H . : Supervision of placed-out children, pp. 75-77.
Standards for adequate supervision; typical systems of supervision in
the United States.

Kansas Conference of Charities and Corrections: Proceedings, 1916.
Hosford, George L ew is: Cooperation in placing homeless children in homes,
pp. 53-59.
Evolution of home finding; cooperation : Offices of the juvenile court, of State
boards, and of private agencies in the field of child placing.

Maryland Conference of Charities and Correction: Proceedings, 1909.
Carstens, C. C .: The responsibility of placing children in private families,
pp. 166-172.
Nature of the obligation which the child-helping agency assumes for the
community in the selection of family homes for dependent children, especially
those who are neglected, wayward, or defective.

Minnesota State Conference of Charities and Correction: Proceedings, 1915.
Published in a special edition of the Quarterly Bulletin o f the State Board
of Control, September 1, 1916.
Merrill, Galen A . : Aftercare of children placed in homes from the State
Public School, pp. 82-85.
Statement of the essential features of the Minnesota State School system
of receiving, training, and placing out and supervising children.
- - - - - - - - - - - : Proceedings, 1916.

Published in a special edition of the Quarterly
Bulletin of the State Board of Control, September 8, 1917.
Davis, Otto W . : Standards of child placement, pp. 131-137.
Standards for free and boarding homes.

Missouri State Conference of Social Welfare.
Robertson, Harriet M .: Report on the Work of the Children’s Bureau,
January 1 to November 1, 1922. (Typewritten.)
Reviews the work of the Missouri Children’ s Bureau in receiving and plac
ing out children since its organization as a department.

New York State Conference of Charities and Correction: Proceedings.
1901. Levy, S. D . : Placing out children, pp. 305-325.
The author points out the perils of the boarding-out and placingout system indicated in reports of child-placing societies in England and
in New York State. Advocates an institutional system together with
limited boarding out under persistent and vigilant inspection.
1906. Folks, H om er: Placing children in fam ilies; report of the committee
on the care of children, pp. 66-t67.
Notes disposition among workers in the child-caring field to effect
an adjustment of family and institutional ca re; advocates conservative
development of placing-out work, with refinement of methods, together
with development of modern institutions.
1909. Levy, S. D . : Scope and limitations of the boarding-out method of tak
ing eare of dependent and orphan children, pp. 125-143.
Experience of Hebrew Sheltering Guardian Society in boarding out
1,000 children, compared with their institutional work.

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C A R E F O R D E P E N D E N T C H IL D R E N .

New York State Conference of Charities and Correction— Continued.
1911. Bernstein, Ludwig B. : Report of the committee on children, pp.
220-223.
Report includes an outline of a policy with regard to foster-home and
institutional care for children available for either type.
Discussion: Foster-home versus institutional care for infants, pp.
226-227.
1912. TJiurston, Henry W . : The institution and the family, pp. 57-66.
Necessity for thorough understanding of the background of the child
before undertaking institutional or foster-home care, »
Discussion: Methods followed in Massachusetts, Indiana, and New
York in investigating the child’s background before placing out,
pp. 66-75.
1913. Lattimore, Florence L. : W hat we know about 10,000 placed-out
children in New York State, pp. 51-70.
The author points out the impossibility of giving a social accounting
of the system of child placing in terms of child progress because of the
meagerness and statistical character of records of child-placing agencies,
and the need for a new conception of the annual report, and for a central
organization for compiling, correlating, interpreting, and publishing facts.
1914. Theis, Sophie Van Senden : Recent developments in the placing out
of children, pp. 59-67.
An analysis of the developments in technique of child placing due to
récent studies in child psychology.
1915. Folks. H om er: Report of special committee on standards of placing
out, supervision, and aftercare of dependent children, pp. 274-289.
Statement of standards for child placing by placing-out societies and
Institutions formulated as a result of the comparison of methods and
experiences of the Catholic Home Bureau for Dependent Children of New
York and the State Children’s Aid Association.
1916. Arnold, C. W . H. : An adequate system of care for destitute, néglected,
and delinquent children in a community, pp. 109-122.
1917.

' Thurston, Henry W . : The placing out and boarding out of dependent
children, pp. 234r-244.
Fundamental principles in successful work for the individual child.
Emphasizes the need of a unit for care under one management or in close
cooperation, including institutional care, boarding put, and placing out in
free homes.
Discussion: Differentiation of terms “ boarding o u t” and “ placing
out ” and the varying requirements of each system, pp. 244-253.
1919. Brace, C. Loring : The placing of dependent and neglected children
over 16 years of age, pp. 247-253.
Gives the experience of the Children’s Aid Society of New York City
in placing out older boys after a period of training in its farm school.
1920. Discussion : Placing out and adoption of children, by Edmond J.
Butler, H. Ida Curry, Mary A. Steer, pp. 102-105.
1921. Theis, Sophie Van Senden : Adoption and guardianship in New York
State; with discussion, pp. 162-180.
Discussion of the inadequacy of the adoption, laws in New York, with
concrete cases or resulting injury to children.
Brettle, Katharine L. : Needed legislation in reference to placing out
and boarding out, pp. 179-190.
Cites cases illustrating the difficulties resulting from the lack of defini
tion of terms and the general confusion of laws relating to child placing.
‘Warner, Charles H . : Suggested changes in our adoption law s; with
discussion, pp. 191-199.
Presents cases arising under adoption laws showing imperative need for
revision of legislation relative to investigation, trial period, and appear
ance before the court of all parties to adoption.

Ohio Welfare Conference (formerly Ohio State Conference of Charities and
Corrections): Proceedings, 1913. Published in the Ohio B ulletin o f Chari
ties and Correction, April, 1914.

Longman, R. A. : Visitation and visiting agents, pp. 71-74.
Qualifications of a successful visiting agent of à child-placing agency.

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Ohio W elfare Comerence (form erly Ohio State Conference of Charities and
Corrections): Proceedings, 1014. Published in the Ohio Bulletin of Chari
ties and Correction, January, 1015.
••
Hagerty, J. E . : Typical systems for the care of dependent children in the
United Stales, pp. 184-137.
i
Systems of child placing in Michigan, New Jersey. Massachusetts, and Indiana.
-- - - - - - - - - - - : Proceedings, 1018. Published in the Ohio Bulletin of Charities and
Correction, February, 1917.
Reynolds, W . S . : Essentials in placing children in foster homes, pp. 13-18.
Williams, C. V . : Child-placing conditions in Ohio, pp. 18-23.
- - ------ : Proceedings, 1919. Published in the Ohio Bulletin of Charities and
Corrections, July, 1920.
Williams, C. V .: A qualified visitor and how to obtain one, pp. 61-65.
- - - - - - - - - - - - : Proceedings. 1922. Published in the Ohio Bulletin of Charities and
Corrections, December. 1922.
Lewis, Carrol H . : The placing-out society, pp. 151-152.

Pennsylvania Conference of Charities and Correction: Proceedings, 1912.
Witherbee, Frank D . : Care o f normal dependent children in Pennsylvania;
report of the committee on children, pp. 79-90.
Work o f home-finding societies ; essential requirements, pp. 86-90.

Virginia Conference of Charities and Correction: Proceedings, 1917.
Walker, T. C .: Child helping in Virginia, pp. 46-68.
Describes the results of work in placing out colored children in Virginia.
C IT Y CONFERENCES.

New York City Conference of Charities and Corrections: Proceedings.
1910. Lowenstein, Solomon: Report of the committee on children, pp. 37-42.
A discussion of the relative merits of the systems of foster-home and
institutional care, with especial reference to the situation in New York City.
1917.

Hess, Dr. Alfred F . : Institutional care versus boarding-out homes for
children under two years, pp. 216-219.
Discussion: Institutional and foster-home care, pp. 219-226.

1919. Goldwasser, I. E d w in : Some conflicting problems in child welfare,
pp. 132-138.
The problem of family home or institution; tests of the validity of
either method of care.
ARTICLES I N

PERIODICALS.

Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science (Philadelphia).
Conant. Richard K , : The Massachusetts Department o f Public Welfare.
Vol. 105 (January, 1923), pp. 119-121.
Includes a brief review of the child-placing work of the division of child
guardianship.
Curry, H. Id a : Child welfare in the rural field. Vol. 105 (January, 1923),
pp. 199-205.
Includes notes on child placing in New York counties.
Doran, Mar^v S . : Foster-home standards for socially handicapped children.
Vol. 98 (November, 1921), pp. 105-111.
Methods of securing standardized foster homes.
Goddard, Henry H . : A scientific program for child welfare.
Vol. 105
(January, 1923), pp. 256-266.
The author analyzes some of the fundamental differences in the nature, char
acter, and capacities Of children and points out that wise procedure in solving
problems of child welfare must be based upon thorough study of the individual
child.
Hewins, Katharine P . : Supervision of placed-out children (with special
reference to those who should ultimately be returned to their fam ilies).
Vol. 98 (November, 1921), pp. 112-120.
Standards for supervision of the child’s own home and of the child in the
foster home.

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Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science— Continued.
Kelsey, C a rl: The importation of dependent children. Vol. 18 ( September.
1901)• pp. 278-286.
j Laws of Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, and Pennsylvania relatmg to importation of dependent children ; discussion of policy States should adopt.
Murphy, J. Prentice : The foster care of dependent and neglected children.
Vol 77 (M ay, 1918), pp. 117-130.
A study in the application of the principles of social case work to the practical
problems of foster-home care.
Catholic Charities Review, The. [Published by National Conference o f Catho
lic Charities, New York City.]
Butler, Edmond J . : Standards of child placing and supervision. Vol. 4
(November, 1920), pp. 267-272.
Doherty, Rev. John: A study of a child-caring agency. Vol. 4 (June* 1920),
pp. 181-185.
System of boarding out and placing out of the Henry Watson Children’ s Aid
Society of Baltimore.
FrieS
°uis
' " Scattere(i homes ” for children. Vol. 5 (December, 1921),

332

...
hopes ” system in England. Extracts from pamphlet issued bv
State Children s Association of England (1915).
Articles, unsigned, and editorials.
The placing-out system in New York. Vol. 1 (April, 1917), pp. 118119.
The element of religion in child placing. Vol. 6 (M ay, 1922), p. 148.
Religious welfare of children in family homes. Vol. 6 (September
19 22 ) , p. 222.
The Catholic charities of the Archdiocese of New York. Vol. 7 (M ay
19 23 ) , pp. 176-177.
Catholic child-caring standards now ready. Vol. 7 (June, 1923), dd
206-207.
Century, The (New York ).
W illsie, Honoré: The adopted mother. Vol. 104, U. S. 82 (September
1922), pp. 654-668.
Child, The [Published by Children’s Charities (In c.), Chicago. Publication
discontinued.]
Arne, Rune E . : Should the juvenile court act as a child-placing agency in
matters of adoption? W hat should constitute an adequate placing-out
agency? Vol. 2 (September, 1913), pp. 20-22.
Dickinson. S. W . : Child placing and eugenics. Vol. 1 (February 1913)
pp. 20-23.
H all, Frank D . : How far can the protection of neglected and cruelly
treated children be combined in the placing-out agency? Vol. 2 (Sep
tember, 1913), pp. 7-9.
----- — : Obtaining family histories for child-saving organizations
Vol 1
(February, 1913), pp. 32-35.
Hart, Hastings H . : Standards of child placing. Vol. 1 (M ay, 1912) pp
22-24.
Hummer, Katherine: Child placing. Vol. 2 (September, 1913), pp. 26-28.
Quivey, E. P .: W hat is the part of wisdom as to the returning of wards
to kindred? Vol. 2 (March, 1913), pp. 14-19.
Reynolds, W . S . : Public supervision of child placing. Vol 1 (August
1912), pp. 52-54.
•
. *
Slingerland, W . H . : Some practical definitions in placing-out work. Vol. 1
(August, 1912), pp. 22-23.
Solenberger, Edwin D . : Boarding out children in Pennsylvania. Vol. 1
(April, 1912), pp. 25-27.
Family, The. [Published by the American Association for Organizing Family
Social Work, New York.]
Murphy, J. Prentice: A new deal for Rhode Island’s children.
Vol. 3
(March, 1922), pp. 3-6.
Progress in the development o f the system of foster-home care in connection
with the Rhode Island State Home and School.
Taft, Jessie: The placing of children who are difficult to adjust. Vol 4
(April,-1923),. pp. 39-46.
An analysis, from illustrative cases, of factors entering into behavior diffi
culties of children, in their relation to the problems of child placement.

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(prior to 1919, J ew ish C h a rities).
[Published bv the
National Conference of Jewish Social Service. New York City.]
Frankenstein, Lina H. : Some difficult problems of a child-piacing agency.
Vol. 9 (March, 1919), pp. 231-232.
Mandel, Jennie: Hunting homes. Vol. 4 (June, 1914), pp. 9-10.
Principles and methods of the Jewish Home-Finding Society of Chicago.

Jew ish Social Service

[Chicago.]
Chapin, Henry Dwight. M. D. : Are institutions for infants necessary?
Vol. 64 (January 2, 1915), pp. 1-3.
Discussion of the relative values of hospital and home care for sick infants
and of asylum and foster-home care for foundling or abandoned infants
SDeedwell method of systematizing the boarding out of infants.
’
P
M edical R ecord . [New York City.]
Chapin, Henry Dwight, M. D. : Problems of boarding out, with an at
tempted solution.
(Read before the Pediatric Section New York
J l ad® y of Medicine, March 11, 1920.)
Vol. 97 (April 24, 1920), pp.
Journal o f the A m erican M edical A ssociation .

In ten fm orta U tf ratesS]^ edWe11 Syetem of boardinS «ut as a method of lowering
^ ! n?.r 5 v Advantages of home over institutional care. (Read before
the Pediatric Section, New York Academy o f Medicine March 11 1920 1
Vol. 97 (April 24, 1920), pp. 692-693.
'
Advantages o f home care for well infants illustrated bv experience of
Gram ercy Nursery. New York City ; for sick infants, by that of health center of
Bowling Green Neighborhood Association, New York City.
center of
and Child [Published by The American Child Health Association
Washington, D. C.]
Taft, Jessie: Setting the solitary in families. Vol. 3 (April 1922) pp
155—166.
»
/»
•

M o th er

A study o f concrete cases in child placing, emphasizing the necessity for tho
chUd Cati° n ° f tbe principles of sound case work to the problems of the individual
N ew Y ork M edical Journal. [New York City.]

Chapin, Henry Dwight, M. D. : Systematized boarding out versus institutional care for infants and young children.
(Read before the Section
i ?£lat,r-;cs of the New York Academy of Medicine, May 10, 1917 )
Vol. 105 (June 2, 1917), pp. 1009-1011.
bofrd?ng-outiVcaretUdy ° f mortallty of lnfants under institutional and supervised
[Formerly Charities and Charities and the Com m ons. Survey
Associates (In c.), New York.]
f
Atkinson, Mary Irene: Ohio’s dependent children. Vol. 44 (July 17, 1920),

S u rv e y , The.

PP* 0 1 4 —D io .

("du des an account of methods of the children’s welfare <1enactment
S huse^°ard ° f State Charities in placing out children, with copies of schedules
Chapin, Henry Dwight, M. D. : The Speedwell plan of child saving in theory
and practice. Vol. 41 (October 26, 1918), pp. 85-91.
y
^^DeV?l0piI? ent 5of„ the unR system of intensive boarding out— methods • descrin
tion of units ; similar work by Œ u vre Grancher in France.
’ aescrlpGuibord, Alberta S., M. D. : The handicap of the dependent child. Vol 44
(August 16, 1920), pp. 614-616.
Influences which make for social inefliciency and delinquency in the dependent
child , value of supervised family care in combating them.
P
Hewins, Katharine P. : The child in the foster home.
1922), pp. 963-964.

Vol. 47 (March 18
' •
i« ,

stanch (li.odrichrhe CMld in Foster Home>” by Sophie Van. Senden Theis and ConKingsiey, Sherman C. : The substitution o f family care for institutional
care of children. Vol. 10 (April 18, 1903), pp. 387-392.
m,in?as0*ns ¿2?
substitution of family care for institutional care by the Boston
r
. S°,cJety> drawn from the experience of institutional manage
ment as reflected in the annual reports from 1833 to 1900

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Survey, The— Continued.
Lane, Winthrop D . : Mothered by the c ity ; an appraisal of the child-placing
work of the New York Children’s Home Bureau. Yol. 39 (January 19,
1918), pp. 435-439.
Description of a practical demonstration of what may be done In child-placing
work by a public agency.
Murphy, J. Prentice: Squandering childhood’s heritage of health. Vol. 49
(October 15, 1922), pp. 102-103.
Statement of the need for adequate medical service in diagnosing the needs and
planning for the social welfare of dependent children in institutions or foster
homes.
Puschner, Emma C .: Foundlings are keepings. Yol. 51 (December 15,
1923); pp. 330-331.'
Work of placing-out department of the St. Louis Board of Children’s Guardians
in caring ior abandoned babies.
Unsigned articles:
Án adopted mother speaks. Vol. 47 (March 18, 1922), pp. 962-963.
A boarding mother speaks. Vol. 49 (November 15, 1922), p. 241.
Sifting the orphans. Vol. 49 (February 15, 1923), pp. 638-639.
W o rld ’s W o rk , The. [Garden City, New York.]
Fearing, Alden: A home and a chance for life. Vol. 28 (June, 1914), pp.
192-197.
Review of the growth of the child-placing movement in the United States.
REPORTS OF STUDIES AND INVESTIGATIONS.

New York State Charities Aid Association, 105 East Twenty-Second Street,
New York City.
How Foster Children Turn O u t: A study by the State Charities Aid Asso
ciation. Made under the direction o f Sophie van Senden Theis. Publi
cation No. 165. 1924.
A study o f the social adjustments of 910 children who grew up in foster homes.
Emphasis is laid upon the family backgrounds, the value of the foster relation
ship, the response of the children to educational opportunities, their occupations,
standards o f conduct, and general place in the community life.
Children’s Bureau, United States Department of Labor, Washington.
Illegitimacy as a Child-Welfare Problem: P a rt, 1— A brief treatment of
the prevalence and significance of birth out of wedlock, the child’s
status, and the State’s responsibility for care and protection (with
bibliographical m aterial), by Emma O. Lundbérg and Katharine F.
Lenroot. Publication No. 56. 1920.
Care of children in institutions and family homes; public supervision and
care, pp. 49-56. Bibliography : Methods ef care, pp. 75-95.
Illegitimacy as a Child-Welfare Problem: Part 2— A study of the original
records in the city of Boston and in the State of Massachusetts, by
Emma O. Lundberg and Katharine F. Lenroot. Publication No. 75.
1921.
Historical development of the Massachusetts system of child placing, pp.
2 5 -3 0 : child placing by agencies studied, p. 54; measures of protection— placing
in foster homes, pp. 66-71 ; .children eared for by social agencies (Boston),,pp.
147-227; children under care of division of State minor wards, pp. 273-324 ;
adoption, pp. 333—339.
Illegitimacy as a Child-Welfare Problem: Part 3— Methods of care in
selected urban and rural commun'ties. Publication No. 128. 1924.
Includes discussions of methods of agency caré of children apart from
mothers, in boarding or free, homes, in Philadelphia, Milwaukee, New York City,
rural New York, and Minnesotá.
Children Deprived of Parental Care: A study of children taken under
care by Delaware agencies and institutions, by Ethel M. Springer.
Publication No. 81. 1921.
Report includes a study of the work of agencies placing children in private
homes, pp. 72—83.
Child Dependency in the District of Columbia: An interpretation of data
concerning dependent children Under care of public and private agencies,
by Emma O. Lundberg and Mary E. Milburn. (In press.)
Includes a study of child placing by the Board of Children’s Guardians of
the District of Columbia, covering the policy of the board in regard to place
ment ; comparative use of different types of placement; ’ types of family homes
used; policy with regard to adoption.

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National Child-Labor Committee, 105 East Twenty-second Street, New Y ork '
City.
Child W elfare in Alabam a: An inquiry by the National Child-Labor Com
mittee, under the auspices and with the cooperation of the University of
Alabama. Edward N. Clopper, Director. 1918.
Child-caring institutions and home finding, by Lee Bidgood, pp. 163-204.
Sco.pe of the study includes: Legal -phases of home finding, apprentice
ship, adoption, and placement; placement by individuals; institutional plac
ing-; the w ork.of the Alabama Children's Aid Society; lines of development;
recommendations for legislation.
Child W elfare in Kentucky: An inquiry by the National Child-Labor Com
mittee for the Kentucky Child-Labor Association and the State Board
of Health. Under the direction of Edward N. Clopper. 1919.
Adoption, p. 268 ; home-finding societies, pp. 319—321.
Child W elfare in North Carolina: An inquiry by the National Child-Labor
Committee for the North Carolina Conference of Social W ork. Under
the direction of W . H. Swift. 1918.
Child-caring institutions; home-finding societies, by Mary E. Barr, pp.
106-152.
Includes a survey of the home-finding situation in North Carolina, covering
the work of the North Carolina Children’s Home Society and of rescue homes
placing out children.
Child W elfare in Oklahom a: An inquiry by the National Child-Labor Com
mittee for the University of Oklahoma. Under the direction of Edward
Clopper. 1917.
Home finding, by Mabel Brown Ellis, pp, 194—207.
Inquiry includes: A study of child! placing by the State; by county
judges; by private agencies— home-finding societies, maternity homes, humane
societies, associated charities, orphanages; general summary and recom
mendations.
Child W elfare in Tennessee: An inquiry by the National Child-Labor Com
mittee for the Tennessee Child-Welfare Commission. Under the direction,
of Edward N. Clopper. Published by the State of Tennessee, Depart
ment of Public Instruction. Nashville, 1920.
Home finding, by Sara A. Brown, pp. 601-616.
Study of child placing by T.ennessee State Board of Administration— child
placing department; work of Tennessee Children’s Home Society; placing
by public and private institutions; individual and illegal placing; recom
mendations.
Rural Child W e lfa r e : An inquiry by the National Child-Labor Committee
based upon conditions in W est Virginia. Under the direction of Edward
N. Clopper. The Macmillan Co., New York, 1922.
Rural 'child depfehdericy, negltect; and delinquency, by Sara A. Brown,,
pp. 165^244;
Statement of findings relative to child placing, pp. 170-175; children in,
foster homes, pp. 1 7 7 -i9 0 ; children bound out and on contract, pp. 190-196 j
standards and conclusions, pp. 214—218.
The child and the State, by W . H . Swift, pp. 261-338.
Review of the law in respect to placing out dependent children, pp. 323—
326; suggested changes, pp. 330-331, 338.

National Conference of Jewish Social Service [formerly National Conference
of Jewish Charities], 114 Fifth Avenue, New York City.
Report of the committee on dependent children to the National Conference
of Jewish Charities, by Lee K. Frankel. Proceedings, 1902, pp. 107-121.
A report on the results of an inquiry into the possibilities of noninstitutional
care for Jewish dependent children from the experiences of 15 Jewish orphan
asylums in placing out children. This study is supplemented by a report presented,
to the National Conferefacfe qf Jewish Social Service, 1922, by Frances Taussig:
“ peveJ,og$iept£ of twenty years ip yhild care ” (Unpublished).
Placing out of Jewish children, by Lee K. Frankbl. Proceedings, ii)04, pp.
72-82.
A report on the results of an experimental study of the possibility of finding
foster homes for Jewish children, made by a joint committee of child-caring
agencies and institutions.

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F O S T E R -H O M E C A R E F O R D E P E N D E N T C H IL D R E N .

York School of Social Work, 105 East Twenty-second Street, New York
City.
The Selection of Foster Homes for Children ; principles and methods followed by the Boston Children’s Aid Society, with illustrative cases, by
S- P oran aQd Bertha C. Reynolds. Studies in Social Work, ChildWelfare Series Monograph No. 1, 1919.
t?® P robiems of investigating and selecting foster homes, with concrete
illustrative cases of approved and disapproved homes ; practical directions for
the keeping of well-analyzed records, witfi form s; underlying principles of home
finding applicable to the work of agencies engaged in placing out children.
The Child in the Foster Home. Part I, by Sophie van Senden Theis and
Constance Goodrich. Studies in Social Work, Child-Welfare Series Mono
graph No. 2. 1921.
.A nalysis, of the work of the child-placing agency of the New York Charities
homes^SOCiatl° n 1D tbC placement and supervision of Children in free family
Russell Sage Foundation, 130 East Twenty-second Street, New York City.
Pittsburgh as a Foster Mother : A concrete community study of child'-carin°methods, by Florence L. Lattimore, Published by the Department of
Child Helping, Russell Sage Foundation.
[1914]
Plaœd-out children ; The child-placing situation in the Pittsburgh district
pp. 4-6 ; child placing from institutions, pp. 77-81.
Dependent, Delinquent, and Defective Children in Delaware by C Spencer
Richardson. Department of Child Helping, Russell Sage Foundation,
1918.
’
. Çfport of a study of children cared for mainly in institutions and in private
foster homes. Child placing by the Delaware Children’s Home Society dd
24-^6. Recommendations: Child placing, pp. 54-62; the Children’s Bureau of
?hndTenf’ppP80-78372 ’
supervlslou’ pp- 77-80 ! importation of dependent
Child-Welfare Work in California; a study of agencies and institutions, by
William H. Slingerland. Department of Child Helping, Russell Sage
Foundation, 1915.
A descriptive survey of agencies and institutions in California devoted to the
care™ f ~1depel\dent’ ttehaquent, and defective children. Child-placing agencies
pp. 60-71; tab es, 71-73; child placing in families, pp. 179-191; asym posium
of executive opinion, pp. 198-212 ; standardizing child-placing work, pp. 229-235.
Child Welfare in Pennsylvania; a cooperative study of child-helping
agencies, and institutions, by W illiam H. Slingerland. Department of
Child Helping, Russell Sage Foundation, 1915.
Study of general child-caring agencies engaged principally in placing children
«LfWgUy homes, as paying boarders, free inmates, or paid workers- tables d p
* 1 2 S - 1 3 1 ; c h i l d p l a c i n g by c o u n t y children’s aid societies;, tables, d d
1 3 2 -1 4 2 -'
: recommendations, pp. 247—249.
■ ' °*
’

Child-Welfare Work in Oregon; a study of public and private agencies and
institutions for the care of dependent, delinquent, and defective children
for the Oregon Child-Welfare Commission, by William H. Slingerland. July
Bulletin, Extension Division, University of Oregon, 1918.
Child placing by agencies and institutions: Home-placing department’o f the juvenile
court, Portland, pp. 10-12 ; Boys’ and Girls’ Aid Society, Portland, pp. 43-45 - oliildren’s institutions, pp. 4 6 -4 7 ; recommendations, pp. 70-78.
, um

Child-Welfare Work in Colorado; a study of public and private agencies and
institutions and conditions of service, in the care of dependent, delinquent
and defective children, by W illiam H. Slingerland. University of Colorado
Boulder, Colo., 1920.
The report includes : A review of the child-placing work of the Colorado sta+a
Home for Children, pp. 7 -1 3 ; work of the Christian Service League of America m
fegislahon(CppmÎ72-Î74nS’ PP‘ 114-123 ; State supervision, p p .1 5 8 -1 6 1 ; s u ï | Æ

Bulletin, Vol. 20, No. 10, General Series No. 161.

Child-Welfare Work in Idaho; a study of public and private agencies and
institutions, and methods employed in the care of dependent, delinquent and
defective children, by W illiam H. Slingerland.
The Ah Kennard Pro.»
Boise, Idaho, 1920.
’
.* & * & * &
organization and methods of the Children’»,; Home-Finding and
Aid Society, pp. 25-43. Recommendations : Methods of case study, d d 44s-48 •
ttethods of réception pp. 4 9-56; qiiàlity of free and boarding homes, d d . 70^77:
condition of children in foster homes, pp. 78-83; legislation, ppf 107-112.
*

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APPENDIXES.

265

Cht u S lfi f ™ L in T^OU« f Vill?i a „study of condi«ons, agencies, and instiLouiiw’l l e f K ^ , 1919 H ' Sllngerland- Published by the W elfare League,

M
h
w
u
à on Child w dfare to the G» ' ^ » r? o t u f pkrt t! pp ^ e“ dent “ nd Ne8lectc<1 OUM ren In Connecticut.
b

/ Æ

f i , ^ f f Æ

S l f ^ e f t S T a f .« '^

Î“ “ r , " i - l "

» S i s

Stfon, 1910d ° f Charity of Massachusetts: Thirty-second Annual Report, BosA ppr S

° f min° r WardS ° f thG Massachusetts State Board of Charity,

c h f e r‘ whoa haddL°efn^

N 1 9 l J 0rk StatC B ° ard o f P a r i t i e s : Annual Report for the year 1911.

Albany,

SlVoîa i,rpp01358-382e PlaCing 0Ut of ohildren>by Mary E. Walsh, Inspector.
c h S S * whetheiStpLe^ d d1n 5?
r
7
temporarily, or otherwise or surrenderor)

” ; L

» S

and

“ ethods of ¿a re for dependent
¿ 01.nes- committed to institutions

May 1S- W j

EeErtat' S '*** * £

Society of the results "of fts work fn^hhd placingmade by the Boston Children’s Aid

Wald, Lillian D .: Boarded-out Babies.
S t S » » Y o S

Published by the Association of Neigh

“ e Clty ° £ New Y° rk' 237 East 0ne Hundred andf Fourth

boSifbi

boa,ded °ut * °pthate
MATERIAL ON PLACING-OUT LAWS.

United States.
° ^ î ^ ’S£ U^ au’ PV,ted ? tates department of Labor : State Commissions
for the Study and Revision of Child-Welfare Laws, by Emma O Lund
berg. Publication No. 131. Washington, 1924.
Una
The report includes brief discussions of the work of the varmn« a+a+,,

: 4 d? ,? ^ °?
tt>e United States ; the growth of public feeling of
responsibility m the protection of childhood as shown in the adoptioï and
preparation!°
(In press.)

Vari()US States, by Emelyn Foster Peck.

(In

? eS -tinf- t0 Interstate Placement of Dependent Children.
Publication N o , — •—. Washington, 1924.

Alabama.
4 j Î dÉ * M A iabarna Laws Affecting Children and Suggestions for Leeislarl the Alabama Child-Welfare Commission by the National
Child-Labor Committee. Published by the Alabama State Child-Welfare
Department m its official bulletin, A labam a ChMdhooa, Vol 1 No 4
(June. 1922).
’
•
a st? dy o f the existing situation relative to adoption indenture „n.i
horoe finding, and suggestions for legislation on child placing, pp. 4 6 —5 0 .
?

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Arizona.
First Annual Report of the Arizona State Child-Welfare Board to the
Governor, for the period from July 9, 1921, to June 30, 1922, inclusive.
Phoenix, 1922.
The child-welfare law— provisions relating to child placing, op. 6 , 14. Text of
law relating to child-welfare boards (1921), pp. 19-26.

California.
Tenth Biennial report, of., the State Board of Charities and Corrections o f
the State of California, from July 1, 1920, to June 30, 1922. Sacramento,
1923.
Text of laws directly affecting the work of the California State Board of
Charities with reference to supervision of child placing, pp. 136-137, 139,
California Laws of Interest to Women and Children, 1917. Compiled by
the California State Library, Sacramento, 1918.
Laws relating to adoption, pp. 35—37 ; control of children’s home-finding so
cieties, p. 189.

Colorado.
Report of Governor Shoup’s Committee on Child-Welfare Legislation for
Colorado ; to which is added the full text of the 13 bills recommended,
with notes, explanations, and answers to objections. Denver, 1921.
Discussion of the child-placing situation in Colorado : The law ; the existing
conditions ; recommendations, pp. 60—63.
State Board of Charities and Corrections : Bulletin No. 1. Denver, 1920.
References to laws on child placing from the Colorado State Home for De
pendent and Neglected Children, p. 7.

Connecticut.
Report of the Commission on Child W elfare to the Governor. Published
by the State, Hartford, 1921.
'
Volume 1, Part I : The Argument—-includes a discussion of the general princi
ples of child placing and of their violation in practice, pp. 3—24. Part II : The
Code— proposed legislation relating to child placing, pp. 37—44 ; adoption, pp.
81-84 ; importation and exportation of children, pp. 87—88 ; indenture of chil
dren, p. 91.
The Child and the Law in Connecticut. Compiled by Mary Selina Foote.
Edited by the Connecticut Child-Welfare Association. January, 1923.
Child placing from county homes by the Connecticut Bureau of Child W elfare;
adoption ; boarding homes, pp. 53—72.

Delaware.
State Board of Charities of D elaware: Official Directory. Publication No.
3. May, 1922.
Supervision of dependent children act (Laws of Delaware, Vol. 32, p. 182, ch.
50), pp. 12—14 ; act authorising child-placing agencies to remove children (Id.,
v Vol„ 30, n. 532, cb- 2(D),.
Delaware State.Board o f Charities—-Rules govern
in g the importation, eitv, of dependent ebiklren, adopted . April 19, 1922, by virtue*
of supervision of dependent children act, pp. 15—17.

Georgia.
The Georgia Child-placing Law (No. 521— Georgia Laws, 1922) ; text and
full explanation of the act regulating the placement of children in foster
homes. State Department of Public Welfare, Atlanta, 1922.
The discussion includes an outline of the essential features of the law— keep
ing families together, study of children for placing, study of foster homes,
supervision, adoption ; suggested methods for placing children ; provisions and
penalties : summary o f duties.

Illinois.
Report of the Department of Public W elfare Children’s Committee. Pub
lished by the Illinois Department of Public Welfare, December, 1920.
.Report of the subcommittee on the dependent child in families : Principles o f
child care and-State responsibility; existing facilities for placement and careo f children in families ; extent of State’s 'administration and supervisory au
thority under present laws ; recommendation as to legislation, pp. 107-112.
Manual of Laws Affecting Women and Children. Issued by the Juvénile
Protective Association of Chicago, 1922.
Adoption, pp. H -1 3 ; boarding homes, pp. 28—30 ; placing and visitation of"
children in family homes, pp. 132—134.

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APPENDIXES,

267

Indiana.
State o f Indiana Laws Concerning Children. Compiled by the Board of
State Charities, March 1, 1914. Indianapolis.
Af
and neglected children— placement and superyision, pp. 6 -7 ; boards
a^cn^v^AA Si9SUi 1 f ^ nS’ PP;. S - i l i orphansi' home associations and the Stat«
22-23^ PP' 12-18 ’ imP°rtatl(® of dependent children, pp. 2 0 -2 1 ; adoption, pp.

Iowa.
Child Legislation in Iowa, by Frank E. Horack. Studies in Child Welfare,
University of Iowa Studies, Vol. 1, No. 6. Iowa City, February, 1921.
13—146 ° f dependent children by adoption; children placed under contract, pp.
Iowa Child-Welfare Legislation Measured by Children’s Bureau Standards,
A*°-ne
Studies in Child Welfare, University of Iowa Studies,
vol. 2, No. 3. Iowa City, December 1, 1922.
Incorporation, licensing, and supervision of children’s agencies: removal of
children from their homes; principles governing child placing, pp. 32-36.

Kansas.
Export o f the Kansas Children’s Code Commission, December, 1922:
Laying the Foundation for the Rising Generation. State House,
Topeka.
Proposed bill for the supervision of placed-out children and amending adopOon law s: Provisions of the bill; comparison with existing law ; comparison
with laws o f other States, pp. 20-25.
*
Pr,e^ “ inary report of the Kansas Children’s Code Commission, May,
1922: Proposed Child-Welfare Legislation. State House, Topeka,
p ^ clng and supervision of dependent, neglected, and abandoned children,
Report o f the Kansas Children’s Code Commission, January, 1921: Pro
posed Child-Welfare Legislation. Dr. Florence Brown Sherbom, Secre
tary. State House, Topeka.
regulation ofa d o p Ptlo?s!10pp.0 1 ^ 2 o endent’ neglected’ and abandoned children,

Kentucky.
R eport of the Kentucky Children’s Code Commission Covering ChildW elfare Legislation Prior to and Through the Legislative Session of
1922. Louisville.
sfeucies, pp. 3 6 -3 7 ; recommendations relative to home finding
and importation o f dependent children, pp. 48-49.
*

Maryland.
Report of the Children’s Code Commission to the Governor. January
1922. (Typed.)
Recommendations for laws to regulate the importation ef dependent children
from * other^Stetes, i p . s^ rTlsion of children placed in foster homes by agencies

Massachusetts.
A Manual o f Laws Relating to the Department o f Public W elfare of
Massachusetts. July 1, 1922. W right & Potter Printing Co. State
Printers, Boston.
Protection and care o f children (General Laws, eh. 119) : Licensing and
famiifes0IppOf68^83Ilt boardins houses; adoption o? infants; child p l a c i n g ^

Michigan.
Michigan State Board o f Corrections and Charities: Twenty-fifth Biennial
Report, 1919-1920. Lansing, 1920.
Contains recommendations of the State board relative to children in boarding
“iffi?8', p , 1 1 : rule? and regulations of the State board for the government o f
a^ acie8>
ruI£? governing boarding homes, pp. 7 6 -7 7 ;
report o f the Michigan Child-Welfare Commission on child placing, pp. I l l —l i s !
Law Relating to Boarding Homes for Children.
of Corrections and Charities. Lansing.
Text o f Act No. 136, Public Acta, 1919.

Issued by the State Board

Statute Regulating Persons, Societies, and Corporations Engaged In Re
ceiving, Maintaining, or Placing Out Minor Children in Michigan.
Issued by the State Board of Corrections and Charities, i-anaing
Text o f Act No. 300, Public Acts, 1913*
12693°— 26------ IS

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

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M m nesota^
a^ion Qf the Laws of Minnesota Relating to Children 1921.
Compiled by W illiam Hodson. Published by the State Board of Con
t r o l St. Paul, 1921.
;
State board of control: Supervision and licensing of children s boarding homes:
supervision of child-placing organizations, pp. 20—26. Private societies placing out
childrenO rganization and powers, pp. 159-163.
Renort of the Child-Welfare Commission, with bills recommended and
synopsis of all changes from the present law. Office of the commission,
State Capitol, St. Paul, Minn., 1917.
Bills recommended by the commission to regulate child placing and supervision, adoption, etc., pp. 21—24, 58—75, 101—103.
^ ^ S t a t e B o a rd o f Charities and C o rre c tio n s: M o n t h ly B u l l e t i n . Vol. 23, No.
3 (March, 1921).
^
Laws relating to dependent children: Providing a State receiving home, pp.
3—6 ; supervision of child-caring agencies and institutions, pp. 6-7.
Children’s Code Commission: A Complete Revision of the Laws for the
W elfare of Missouri Children.
Second edition with additional bills,
January, 1917. Jefferson City, 1917.
Discussion of existing conditions with respect to child placing; measures
pr5n)sed in the children’s code, pp. 35-37. Bills recommended: Adoption, pp.
References to Missouri Statutes Relating to Children; an annotated and
«1 I classified' reference list of all statutes and constitutional provisions m
Missouri relating to children. Supplement to the report o f the Missouri
; Children’s Code Commission, January, 1917.
Adoption, p. 5 ; importation of dependent children, p. 54; placing ont children,
r pp. 57—58.
Report of the Missouri Children’s Code Commission, 1918; a complete
revision of the laws for the welfare of Missouri children. Jefferson City,
1919.
Discussion of laws relating to foster-home care, pp. 4 7 -4 8 ; drafts of laws,
pp. 148-154.
n,
^ R e p o r t of Nebraska Children’s Code Commission, 1920. Department of
Public Welfare, State Capitol, Lincoln.
Recommendations on child placing and supervision, pp. 2 3 -2 8 ; guardianship
and Adaption' p? 50. Text of bills recommended:_ Nebraska Home for De
pendent Children, provision for child placing, pp. 78-7J.
Session Laws (1910) on maternity homes, placing dependent and delin
quent children, and child welfare. Child-Welfare Bureau, Department of
Public Welfare, State of Nebraska, Lincoln, 1919.
.eWLaws ]R elating to the State Board of Charities and Correction. Fourteenth
biennial report of- the New Hampshire State Board of Chanties and
Correction, for the biennial period ending August 31, 1922.
Act relating to support of minor children placed out, pp. 11—1 2 ; act relating
to licensing and regulating the receiving, boarding and keeping o f infants, pp.
18-23- act to regulate the placing out in family homes and subsequent super
vision ’of dependent and neglected children, pp. 34r-35.
V

Jersey.
Law Creating a State Board of Charities and Corrections and a D ep a rt
ment of Charities and Corrections. Laws o f 1918, ch. 147.
Laws relative to child placing and supervision, pp. 60-64.

bIeWN ^w 'Y o rk State Commission to Examine Laws Relating to Child W e lfa re :
P relim in a ry Report, March 14, 1922. Albany, 1922.
Recommendation for repeal o f law providing ^
of children by
indenture, pp. 14-15; statistical data regarding placed-out children, p. 33.
_______ : Second Report, April 30, 1923. Albany, 1923.
Part I Legislation recommended by the commission; Repeal o f law authorizing
hindinff out of children, pp. 1 9 -2 1 ; revision of laws relating to placing out and
bearding out children, pp. 2 6 -2 9 ; strengthening o f provisions regulating legal adopti°Pa?tP I I 9~ M a rn ial of Child-Welfare Laws: Adoption of children, pp. 134-1401
plfloUig out and boarding out dependent and neglected children, pp. 337-348.

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. North Carolina.
The Bulletin of the North Carolina State Board of Charities and Publie
Welfare, third quarter— July-September, 1921. Raleigh, N. C.
Law regulating adoption, p. 29 ; licensing child-placing agency, pp. 33-34.
North Dakota.
North Dakota Children’s Code Commission: Report to the Legislative
Assembly, 1922.
Review of the existing conditions of child placing, supervision, etc., p. 1 1 l
recommendations of the commission, 11-21.
Ohio.
Report of the Commission to Codify and Revise the Laws of Ohio Relative
to Children. Columbus [1912].
Proposed amendments to the laws relating to children’s homes, the Ohio Board
or State Charities, and the juvenile courts, to provide a system of placing and
supervision of children in private homes, pp. 2, 11-13.
Laws of Ohio Relating to Benevolent and Correctional Institutions, Boards
and Officers, and to Kindred Subjects. The Ohio B ulletin o f Charities
and Correction, Yol. 26, No. 1 (March, 1920). Columbus, Ohio.
governing child placing and supervision by the Ohio Board of State
Chanties, pp. 38-40.
Oklahoma.
Q uarterly B ulletin, Department of Charities and Corrections, July, 1920.
Laws relating to adoption, pp. 11-12 ; child placing, p. 11.
Oregon.
Child-Welfare Laws of the State of Oregon. Published by the State ChildW elfare Commission o f Oregon, Portland, 1922.
Inspection and supervision of child-placing agencies by the Oregon ChildWelfare Commission, pp. 68-74.
“
Child-Welfare Commission : Oregon’s Duty to the Children. Second Bien
nial Report, 1917.
Statement of policy relative to child placing and supervision ; review of child
placing methods o f other States ; recommendations, pp. 19-22.
Pennsylvania..
Handbook of Social Laws of Pennsylvania. Compiled and edited by Ward
Bonsall. Published by the Associated Charities of Pittsburgh and the
Philadelphia Society for Organizing Charity, November, 1914.
Laws relating to boarding of infants, p. 5 ; dependent children in foster
homes, pp. 16 and 18 ; adoption, pp. 19-20.
Pennsylvania State Dependents Commission : Report and Recommendations.
Harrisburg, 1915.
Recommendation for the extension and standardization of child placing;
pp. 46—49.
A Compilation of the Laws Relating to the Board o f Public Charities,
with important provisions of the laws relating to the several State in
stitutions and the rules and regulations of the committee on lunacy
Indexed. Prepared by John H. Fertig and Frank M. Hunter under the
direction o f James N. Moore, director. Legislative Reference Bureau
Harrisburg, Pa., 1916.
’
Laws relating to placing out children, pp. 99-100.
Rhode Island.
Codification o f Rhode Island Laws Relating to Children, by Harold S .
Bucklin, Department of Social and Political Science, Brown University!
Published by the Rhode Island Congress of Mothers and Parent-Teacher
Associations, June, 1922.
„ A*>J>«on, PP. 1 7 -1 8 ; child placing by the Rhode Island State Home and School
for Children, pp. 102-103 ; child placing by institutions, p. 110; boarding and
keeping of infants, pp. 113-114.
South Dakota.
First Biennial Report o f the South Dakota Child-Welfare Commission,
1919-1920. Issued by the child-welfare commission, The Capitol, Pierre;
Recommendation for State supervision of child-placing institutions, p. 13.
Tennessee.
Tennessee Board o f State Charities: Biennial Report, 1923. Nashville.
1o ^ l l<?'n elfai e
(Tennessee, Public Acts 1917, ch. 120; House Bill No.
1276) . Guardianship and consent to adoption (sec. 5) ; child placing in
famines (sec. 6) ; Inspection and supervision (sec. 7) ; annual and biennial
ihnn’rH, (see- ®)* PP- 37-40 ; agencies and institution» licensed to place oat
tnuaren under this act, pp. 40—41.
.

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270
Texas. ■

The Laws oi Texas Relating to Labor, Children, Education, Health, and San
itation, Marriage and Divorce, Rights of Married Women, Delinquency,
Dependency, and Juvenile Courts, State Institutions, Penitentiaries and
Jails, Gambling and Disorderly Houses, Public Morals, Elections. Com
piled and published by The Civic Federation of Dallas. Dallas, Septem
ber, 1921
Laws relating to placing dependent children in family homes, pp. 1—3,; adop
tion, pp. 13-14: law governing child placing from the Texas State Home for
Dependent and Neglected Children, pp. 15-16.
Verm ont.
Handbook of the Board of Charities and Probation, 1921. State of Ver
mont, Montpelier.
Child placing by board of charifles and probation, pp. 18—20, 22, 23; act to
regulate importation of dependent children, pp. 24—25.
General Laws of the State of Vermont Relating to Charities and Probation.
Published by authority, Montpelier, 1918.
Laws governing child placing by the board of Charities and probation, pp, 7—8.
Virginia.
Juvenile and W elfare Laws, as Amended by the General Assembly of Vir
ginia, 1922. Issued by the State Board of Public Welfare, Richmond,
1922.
'
Act to provide for the licensing, regulation, and inspection o f children’s hoard
ing homes and nurseries. (Virginia, Acts o f 1922, ch. 486), pp. 15—1 7 ; aet to
regulate child placing (Acts of 1922, ch. 103), pp. 1 8 -2 0 ; adoption proceedings
(Acts o f 1922, ch. 483).

West Virginia.

„

Report of the W est Virginia State Child-Welfare Commission; Recommen
dations to be submitted to the 1923 session of the legislature to promote
the welfare of the children of W est Virginia, 1922.
State Capitol,
Charleston.
A Guide to the Laws of W est Virginia Affecting Child Welfare, issued by
the W est Virginia State Conference of Charities and Correction. L. M.
Bristol, Chairman of committee. Morgantown. [1918.]
Adoption, pp. 8 -9 ; placing in family homes, p. 26.

Wisconsin.

Statutes Relating to the Protection, Reformation, and W elfare o f Children.
Compilation by Edith Foster, Juvenile Protective Association, Milwau
kee. Printed by the legislature of 1919.
Laws relating to child placing from the Wisconsin State Public School, pp.
6 2 -5 4 ; adoption, pp. 69-74.
Laws of Wisconsin Relating to Public Charities, Powers and Duties of
Juvenile Courts, and Matters Pertaining to the State Board of Control
of Reformatory, Charitable, and Penal Institutions. Compiled by State
Board of Control of Wisconsin. Madison, 1920.
Laws relating to child placing from Wisconsin State Public School, pp. 5 3 -5 6 ;
apprenticeship and adoption from county homes for dependent children, pp.
60—61; home-finding corporations, pp. 148—150.

^ y<Wyoming Laws for the Protection of Children and Animals, 1920. Issued
by The Wyoming Humane Society and State Board of Child and Animal
Protection. State Capitol, Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Laws providing for child placing, pp. 24—28.
Llennial Report of the State Board of Charities and Reform o f the State of
Wyoming, 1921-1922.
REPORTS,OF PUBLIC AGENCIES.1
STATE DEPARTMENTS AND BUREAUS.

Alabama State Child-Welfare Departm ent: Official Bulletin, Alabama Child
hood. Vol. 1, No. 4 (June, 1922). Montgomery.
Note on the cooperation of the child-welfare department with the Children’s Aid
Society of Alabama in placing and supervising children in family homes, pp. 47-48.
* References are to the most recent reports available,

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APPENDIXES.

271

Arizona State C hild-W elfare Board: First Annual Report, for the period
from July 9, 1921, to June 30, 1922. Phoenix, 1922.
. P^ Y 1i®i'?ns for child placing in the child-welfare law of 1921, p. 6 : State payments
foi children in foster homes, p. 10 ; report on placements and supervision ov State
and county child-welfare boards, pp. 14—15 ; text of the child-welfare law, pp. 19—26.
California State Board o f Charities and Corrections: Tenth Biennial Report,
from July 1, 1920, to June 30, 1922. Sacramento, 1923.
Family boarding homes licensed by California State Board of Charities and Correotions. Homes holding .individual license; homes used by licensed child-placing agencies:
standards for supervision o f children in fbster homes, pp. 80-90.
5 agencies,
California State Board of Control, Department o f Finance: Report of th©
Bureau of Children’s Aid for the period beginning July 1. 1920. and ending
July 1, 1922. Sacramento, 1922.
Appointment of agents by State board of control to visit homes and institutions in
which children receiving State aid are cared for (text of law), p. 5 ; the foster home
as a method of subsidized child care, p. 16 ; status of children in current county
cases, p, « 1 ,
Colorado State Hom e for Children: Fourteenth Biennial Report of the Super
intendent to the Board of Control, from December 1, 1920 to December 1
1922. Denver, 1923.
*
Cenerai report on child placing ; activities of the State agency ; summary of place«
ments for 26 years ; statistical report, 1921-1922.
3
p
Connecticut Department o f Public W elfa re: Report to the Governor for the
Two Years Ended June 30, 1922. Hartford, 1923.
Report of tiie bureau of child welfare on child placing from county temporary
homes ; supervision òf placed-out children ; inspection and licensing of boarding homes •
minimum requirements for boarding homes, pp. 38-49.
8
*
District of Columbia— Board o f Charities: Report, 1922. Washington.
Report of the Board of Children’s Guardians on child placing and supervision,
pp. 7—8.
Georgia State Department o f Public W e lfa re: Report of the Third Year’s
Work, for the year ending June 1, 1923. Atlanta.
Discussion of powers and duties of the department to study child-placing work
•
State and to recommend the granting of licenses to child-placing agencies. Spe
cial study of child-placing work of Georgia Children’s Home Society undertaken by the
department in cooperation with Children’s Welfare League of America.
Illinois Department o f Public W e lfa re: Annual Report, July 1, 1921. to June
30, 1922. Springfield, 1923.
’
Discussion of the use of Soldiers' Orphans’ Home for temporary care of dependent
children to be placed in foster homes, pp. 1 9-21; report on child placing by depart539-140 visitatl<>n of chlldren> PP- 48-53 ; placement from Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home, pp.
Indiana State Board o f Charities : Thirty-third Annual Report of the Board
of State Charities, for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1922. Indian
apolis.
Report o f the Indiana State Agency for Dependent Children on the visitation and
supervision of children placed in foster homes by local associations or by the State
agency, pp; 140—143. Tables: Field work of State agents, pp. 144—147: placement
since creation o f the department, pp. 148—151.
*
Iowa Board o f Control o f State Institutions: Thirteenth Biennial Report, for
the period ending June 30, 1922. Des Moines.
le p o ri on the work of State agents : Placement and supervision of children from
the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home, Davenport, and the State Juvenile Home. Toledo no
7-9. Tables, pp. 86-90.
K ansas State Orphans' Home: Sixteenth Biennial Report, for the two years
ending June 30, 1918. (In first biennial report of the board of administra
tion, charitable institutions section.) Topeka, 1919.
Superintendent’s report: Placing children, pp. 9-10. State agents’ report: Children
jhd entured ; adopted; methods, pp. 17—19. Tables: Movement of population. 1917—
1918; general results, 1887-1918, p. 37.
Maine State Board o f Charities and Corrections: Seventh Report, for the
biennial period ending June 30, 1922. Waterville, 1922.
Children placed out by the Maine State Board of Children’s Guardians, d. 131
work of field agents, p. 21.
*
Maryland Board o f State A id and Charities: Eleventh Biennial Report. 19201921. Baltimore.
Powers and duties o f the board relative to the regulation of the importation at
dependent children and placing infants in foster homes (text of law), pp. 6-8.

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POSTER-HOME CARE POR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

Massachusetts Department of Public Welfare: Annual Report for the year,
ending November 30, 1921. Boston.
Report of the division of child guardianship on child placing: Children under three
years of age boarded in private families; children over 3 years of age in boarding
and free homes; investigation ; licensed boarding homes for infants, pp. 38-74. Ex
penditures, p. 146.
Michigan State Public School: Biennial Report of the Board of Control for
the years ending June 30,1917, and June 30, 1918. CoMwater.
Report of the superintendent: Methods of child placing; forms in use, pp. 19-21.
Report of the State agent: Investigation, placements, supervision, pp. 28-29. _ Statis
tical reports: General summary of placements, 1874—1918; placements, 1917-1918,
indentures; visitation, pp. 40—49.

Minnesota State Public School: Biennial Report, period ended June 30. 1922.
St. Paul.
Report on child placing: Field w ork; placements; duration of institutional life of
children placed; progress of children under supervision.

Minnesota Children’s Bureau of the State Board of Control: Report of the
Director of the Bureau to the Board for the biennial period ended June 30,
1922. St. Paul, September 1, 1922.
Report on children placed in permanent foster homes, pp. 3 -6 ; report on children
adopted i n t o permanent family homes, pp. 6 -8 ; licensing and supervision of boarding
homes, pp. 19—20.
Missouri State Board of Charities and Corrections: An address given at the
Twenty-second Annual Missouri Conference of Social Welfare, November 9,
1922, by Homer Talbot, Secretary, State Board of Charities and Corrections.
B im on th ly Bulletin, Vol. 24. No. 6 ( June, 1922.)
Establishment of the Missouri State Home for Neglected and Dependent Children ;
child placing, p. 6.
Montana State Orphans’ Home: Semiannual Report of the Executive Board,
for the six months ending May 1, 1918. (Typewritten.) Twin Bridges.
Number of children placed in private homes, Table No. 1.

Montana Bureau of Child and Animal Protection: Report for the Tear 19211922. Helena.
Report of the child-placing agent of the bureau: Children placed; investigations;
supervision, pp. 9-11.
Nebraska Department of Public Welfare: Report for the biennium closing
June 30, 1922. Lincoln.
Report of the bureau of child welfare: Children placed in private homes by child
placing agencies, p. 55.
Nebraska Home for Dependent Children: Report of the Superintendent to the
Governor and Board of Commissioners of State Institutions, for the biennium
ending November 30, 1918. Lincoln.
Placing out children ; Investigation of homes, pp. 7 -8 ; statistical d a ta : Movement
o f population, p. 27; field work in child placing, p. 33.

Nevada State Orphans’ Home: Biennial Report of the Orphans’ Home Direc
tors and Report of the Superintendent, 1919-1920. Carson City.
Note on expenditure for children cared for outside of State home.

New Hampshire State Board of Charities and Corrections: Report for the
Biennial Period Ending June 30, 1922. Concord.
Powers and duties of the New Hampshire State Board of Charities in placing chil
dren In family homes, pp. 11-12, 18-23, 34-35 (text of law) ; report on dependent
children, including children in foster homes, pp. 41—44.

New Jersey State Board of Children’s Guardians: Report for the Year 1922.
Jersey City.
Report on child placing by dependent children department : Numbers placed, in
vestigation, supervision, pp. 7-8 ; statistical summary, pp. 10-13.

New York State Board of Charities: Annual Report for the Year 1922.

bany, 1923.
Report on children in foster homes, p. 42. Children placed by county, city, and
town, and by private agencies, pp. 42—43. Statistical data, pp. 227—251.

North Carolina State Board of Charities and Public Welfare: Biennial Re
port, December 1, 1920, to June 30, 1922. Raleigh.
Temporary boarding homes, p. 37; children placed out by Childrens Home Society
o f North Carolina, pp. 96-97.

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APPENDIXES,

273

O hio Departm ent o f P ublic W elfares First Annual Report, for the fiscal year
ended June 30, 1922. Columbus.
n
u u ccertification
e r i u i c a i M j a oof
i p
r iv a t e
boaRX ? h o m ^ fo ^ c h U d rS 11- 611V>*
^
and^
private
; report of the child-care division on child
placing and supervision, pp. ’ 47-48. Report
of the bureau of juvenile research, pp.

53-58; 379-381.

Oklahoma Commissioner of Charities and Corrections: Eighth Biennial Report, from June 30, 1920, to June 30, 1922. Guthrie.
°* or?han minor children by the Oklahoma Commissioner of Charities
fnr n rn h ^ «ioSS,9 ?'. «¿-£?POirt ,on child placing from the East Oklahoma State Home
for Orphans, p. 23, child placing by private agencies, pp. 30-31.

Oregon State Child-Welfare Commission: Report for the Biennial Period End
ing September 30, 1922. Salem.
- l,i£ ?t,,esL,and P°w,ers of the commission relative to adoption and to suDervision of
agencies, pp. 7—8 ; policy with regard to child placing, p. 14. Statistical
chfldrln 0£
d P19?22
2 ^^2 2
« S ’1*10118
^ and
af encies
a u W ri& d to j 8 » X t
cmiaren,
pp.
l w -z 2
6 ,6 3*1^, adoption;
report
recommendations.

Island Penal and Charitable Commission: Fourth Annual Report to
the General Assembly at its January Session, 1921. Providence.
Report of

th e

placing-out department of the Rhode Island State Home

^ n » a r S „ artSt? m 0a
™ u°m
, b ^ WiC

and S ch ool

Bureau: Third

Methods o f child placing; statistical report.

° f PubKC Welfare: 8econd Annoal Report, 1921.
Report of the child-placing department, pp. 25—26.

VS . ° ^ J B
u n l 1 o , l 9 i :a K u a a S 4 P r° b * ti° " :

« » ten.

i ree and boarding homes under care of the board, d o 15-17* « ,*
State s shelter home; expenditures, pp. 19-21.
^ pp’ 10^1 • ♦ the

V?ginia State Board of Charities and Corrections: Eleventh Annual Report
to the Governor of Virginia, for the year ending September 30, 1919.
Report on inspection of homes of children placed by State board
S ^ a g e n cT e s ?^ . 4 7 S gmla State Board of Charities “ d C o r r e ^ t iS ^

6 • chll

l; % $g

West Virginia State Board of Children’s Guardians: Seeond Biennial
July 1, 1920-July 1, 1922.

R eD ort.

..Placem ent of wards in ^private homes, pp. 2 2 -2 3 ; hoarding homes, pp. 24-26* eonof placement, pp 28—31. Placement of colored wards, p . 1 8 ; reciprocal agreeto| c h i h i S np 18
End ° hi° ’ P< 18- Supervision o f privite a|enrfes | i ^

Wisconsin State Public School: Report for the Biennial Period Ending Juno
30, 1920 (being part of the biennial report of the State Board of Control of
Wisconsin). Sparta.
Report on child placing: Children in homes on indenture; babies, on, 260—262 1
table showing movement of population, p. 266.
^
P1**
•

Wyoming State Board of Charities and Reform: Biennial Report 1921-1922.
Cheyenne.
R^ ort °LH?e Wyoming State Home for Dependent Children (Cheyenne) indudta*
report on children placed in foster homes, pp. 120—122.
y
'
ineraamg

Wyoming Commissioner of Child and Animal Protection: Biennial Report for
the two years ending November 30, 1922. Cheyenne.
'
■taH?sth;alPlraeef e

p.°24.the Wyomills Stat* Hom* for Dependent Children, p. 10;
COUNTY AND CITY DEPARTMENTS.

Institutions Department, City of Boston: Annual Report for the year ending
January 31, 1921. Boston.
Report of the child-welfare department, including report on placed-oat children,
pp. 2 -3 ; statistical data on child placing, pp. 26-31
P
a l cnnuren.

Department of Public Welfare, City of New York, Boarding-Out Bureaus
Annual Reports.

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274

F O S T E R -H O M E ' CAR-E F O R D E P E N D E N T C H IL D R E N .

Commissioner of Charities and Corrections of W estchester County, N ew
Y o rk : Second Annual Report, January 1, 1918, to December 31, 1918. East
View, Westchester County, N. Y., 1918.
Report of the department of child welfare on child placing, pp. 96-101.
Board o f Children’s Guardians o f the City of St. L ou is: Annual Report for
the fiscal year ending April, 1920. 237 Municipal Courts Building, St. Louis.
Report o f the placing-out department, pp. 11—12; agent’s report, pp. 21—27.
Reports of State boards of charity or departments of public welfare contain
information in regard to the placing out of dependent children by county boards
in Connecticut, Indiana, Minnesota, New York, and Ohio.
PUBLICATIONS OF PRIVATE CHILD-CARING AGENCIES.
Alabama.
Alabama

Children’s

Aid

Society,

Steiner

Building,

Birmingham: Our

Children, quarterly bulletin.

Arizona.
Arizona Children’s Home Society, Phoenix: Annual Report,
ArKftnsftSt
Arkansas Children’s Home Society, 3210 W est Twelfth Street, Little R ock:
T h e A rkansas Children's H o m e F inder, quarterly bulletin.
California.
Children’s Home Society of California, 919 East Twenty-fifth Street, Los
Angeles : T h e California H om eless Children's Friend , quarterly bulletin.
Native Sons and Native Daughters Central Committee on Homeless Chil
dren, 955 Phelan Building, San Francisco: Annual Report.
Children’s Agency of the Associated Charities of San Francisco. 1500
Jackson Street: Annual Report and monthly B ulletin.
Berkeley W elfare Society, Children’s Department, 2120 Grove Street,
Berkeley: Annual Report.
Bureau of Catholic Charities, Child-Welfare Department, Diocese of Mont
erey and Los Angeles, 828 Higgins Building, Los Angeles: Annual Re
port.
Connecticut.
„ ,
Connecticut Children’s Aid Society, Brown-Thomson Building, H artford:
T h e Children's F riend, quarterly bulletin.
Delaware.
.__, . '■
Children’s Bureau of Delaware, 1112 King Street, W ilm ington:
Report.

.
,
Annual

Florida.
_
_ ,
The Children’s Home Society of Florida, 428 St. James Building, Jackson
ville: Annual Report and leaflets.
Georgia.
.
Georgia Children’s Home Society, Ormewood Court, A tlan ta: Child W e l
fare, monthly bulletin.
Idah<Children’s Home-Finding and Aid Society of Idaho, 740 W arm Springs
Avenue, B oise: T he Idaho Children's H o m e F inder, monthly bulletin.
The Illinois Children’s Home and Aid Society, 308 North Michigan
Boulevard, Chicago: H o m e L ife fo r Childhood, bimonthly bulletin.
Catholic Home-Finding Association of Illinois, 17 North La Salle Street,
Chicago: Annual Report.
Jewish Home-Finding Society, 1800 Selden Street, Chicago: Annual Re
port.
Indiana.
. . . . .
Family-Welfare Society of Indianapolis (succeeds Children’s Aid Associa
tion of Indianapolis), Baldwin Block, Indianapolis.
I ° W Iowa Children’s Home Society, 2340 East Ninth Street, Des Moines: Io w a
Children's H o m e H erald, monthly bulletin.

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

APPENDIXES.

275

Kansas.
T he Kansas Chiidren’s Home

Society,

1001

Harrison

Street.

Topeka-

K an sas Children s H o m e F in d er , bimonthly bulletin

The Christian Service League, 1825 W est Maple Street, W ichita- Annual
Report and Christian S ervice, bimonthly magazine.
Kentucky.
Kentucky ChiMren’s Home Society, Lyndon: Biennial Report.
Jewish W elfare Federation, Louisville: Annual Report in T h e Com
rnunity, published by the W elfare League o f Kentucky.
Louisiana.
LoJ?!®i8l;na Child-Finding and Home Society
Children’s F riend, quarterly bulletin.

(In c.),

New Or lean«? • The

Maine.
M biil?etinhildren'S H ° me Society’ Ausu sta : Our M ission

W o rk ,

monthly

Maryland.
Maryland Children’s Aid Society and Henry Watson Children’s Aid So
Seport

BUilding’ CalV6rt and L° mbard Str^

B a m io r e : A n n S l .

Massachusetts.
G portenS Aid Assodation’ 24 Mount Veraon Street, B oston: Annual ReBoston Children’s Friend Society, 48 Rutland Street, Boston : Annual ReChildren’s Bureau of the Federated Jewish Charities of Boston, 25 Tremont
»Street: Annual Report.
^ R e p o r tdren>S MiSSion t0 Children> 20 Ashburton Place, Boston: Annual
The Church Home Society for the Care of Children of the Protestant Episcopai Church 24 Mount Vernon Street, Boston: Annual Report
P
G ™ld
Infant Savior, of the Catholic Charitable Bureau, 43 Tremont
Street, Boston: Annual Report.
New England Home for Little Wanderers* 161 South Huntington Avenue,
Boston: T h e L ittle W a n d erers’ A dvocate, quarterly bulletin.
Children’s Aid Association of Hampshire County, 39 Main Street North
ampton: Annual Report.
Hampden County Children’s Aid Association, 5 Court House Place, Springheld: Annual Report.
New Bedford Children’s Aid Society, 12 South Sixth Street, New BedfordAnnual Report.
Worcester Children’s Friend Society, 452 Main Street, W orcester- Annual
Report.
Michigan.
Children’s Aid Society, 225 South Capitol Avenue, Lansing:
M ichigan Children’s H o m e F inder, quarterly bulletin.

Children’s Aid Society, 71 Warren Avenue, W est, D etroit: Annual Report
Society o f St. Vincent de Paul o f Detroit, child-caring department 611
McDougall Avenue: Annual Report.
Minnesota.
Th® CT^ild,re^ l Home Society of Minnesota, 2239 Commonwealth Avenue,
St. Paul : T h e M in nesota Children’s H o m e F inder, quarterly bulletin.
Minneapolis Children’s Protective Society, 404 South Eighth Street. Minne
apolis : Annual Report.
Mississippi.
Mississippi Children’s Home Society, Jackson: Annual Report.
Missouri.
The Children’s Home Society of Missouri, Newstead and Margaretta Avenues, St. Louis: T h e M isso u ri Children’s H o m e F inder, monthly bulletin
Children’s Aid Society, 3908 Olive Street: Annual Report and
Children s A id S ociety H ew s, bulletin.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

Montana.
The Montana Children’s Home Society, Helena Avenue and Warren Street,
H elena: Annual Report
Nebraska.
Nebraska Children’s Home Society, 602 Loan and. Building Association
Building, Omaha. H o m eless Children’s A d v o c a te , bimonthly bulletin.
Child-Saving Institute, 619 South Forty-second Street, Om aha: Annual
Report
New Hampshire.
New Hampshire Children’s Aid and Protective Society, 913 Elm Street,
Manchester: Annual Report
New Jersey.
New Jersey Children’s Home Society, 44 Forst-Richey Building, Trenton:
H om es fo r the H om eless, quarterly bulletin.
Speedwell County Homes Society, Morristown: Annual Report
The Catholic Children’s Aid Association of New Jersey, 776 Broad Street
N ew ark: Annual Report
N ew York.
Children’s Aid Society, 105 East Twenty-second Street, New York : Annual
StateP°Charities Aid Association, 105 East Twenty-second Street, New
Y o rk : Annual Report and S ta te Charities A id A ssociation N ew s, monthly
bulletin.
County Agencies for Dependent Children:
— : Subcommittee
Annual Report.
_
.. .
Catholic Home Bureau for Dependent Children, 289 Fourth Avenue, New
Y o rk : Annual Report
Hebrew Sheltering Guardian Society, Children’s Home Bureau, 470 W est
One Hundred and Forty-fifth Street, New Y o rk : Annual Report and
H o m e finder, monthly bulletin.
, „_
Free Synagogue Child Adoption Committee, 36 W est Sixty-eighth Street,
New Y o rk : Annual Report.
Brooklyn Children’s Aid Society, 72 Schermerhom Street, Brooklyn: An
nual Report.
Children’s Aid Society, Rochester: Annual Report.
Children’s Aid and Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children o f
Erie County, 261 Delaware Avenue, B uffalo: Annual Report.
N orth Carolina.
Children’s Home Society o f North Carolina, 207 Southern L ife and Trust
Building, Greensboro: Annual Report.
*
North Dakota.
North Dakota Children’s Home Society, 804 Tenth Street, F argo: T h e
N orth D a k ota Children’s H o m e F in der, quarterly bulletin.
Ohio.
Ohio Children’s Home Society, 30 and 40 W est First Avenue, Columbus:
Annual Report.
The Children’s Home, Ninth and Plum Streets, Cincinnati : T he Children’s
H o m e M o n th ly Record.

Ohio Hun ue Society, 24 East Ninth Street, Cincinnati: Annual Report
The Children’s Bureau of Cleveland, 712 Electric Building, Cleveland:
Annual Report
The Cleveland Humane Society, 106 City H a ll:
T h e H u m a n e S o c iety
Bulletin.
a'
The W elfare Association for Jewish Children, 401 Electric Building,
Cleveland: Annual Report.
Children’s Aid Department, Social-Service Federation, 572 Ontario Street
Toledo: Annual Report
Oregon.
Boys’ and Girls’ Aid Society of Oregon, East Twenty-ninth and Irving
Streets, Portland: Annual Report

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

APPENDIXES.

Pennsylvania.
Children’s Aid Society of Pennsylvania, 1428 Pine Street, Philadelphia:
Annual Report.
The Children’s Bureau of Philadelphia, 1432 Pine Street, Philadelphia:
Annual Report.
Juvenile Aid Society, 726 Spruce Street, Philadelphia : Annual Report.
Children’s Aid Society of Western Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh: Annual
Report.
Children’s Service Bureau, 405 B. F. Jones Building, Pittsburgh : Annual
Report.
Home for Friendless Children and the Children’s Aid Society, Reading:
Annual Report.

Rhode Island.
Children’s Friend Society, Providence: Annual Report.

South Carolina.
The South Carolina Children’s Home Society, Columbia : Annual Report.

South Dakota.
South Dakota Children’s Home Society, Sioux F a lls : T h e South D akota
Children’s F rien d , bimonthly bulletin.

Tennessee.
Tennessee Children’s Home Society, 901 Acklen Avenue, Nashville: Annual
Report.
Texas.
Texas Children’s Home and Aid Society, 515 Cotton Exchange Building,
Fort W orth : Annual Report.
Utah.
Children’s Home Society, Salt Lake C ity: Reports.

Vermont.
Vermont Children’s Aid Society, Burlington: Annual Report

Virginia.
Children’s Home Society of Virginia, 705 East Main Street, Richmond:
Annual Report and T h e Virginia Children’s H o m e F in d er, quarterly
bulletin.

Washington.
Washington Children’s Home Society, Lippy Building, Seattle: W a shing
ton Children’s H o m e Finder, bimonthly bulletin.

West Virginia.
W est Virginia Children’s Home Society, Charleston : T he Children’ s H o m e
F inder, monthly bulletin.

Wisconsin.
Children’s Home Society of Wisconsin, 727 Merchants’ and Manufac
turers’ Bank Building, Milwaukee : Report.
Juvenile Protective Association (placing-out department), 85 Oneida
, Street, Milwaukee: Annual Report.

Wyoming.
Wyoming

Children’s

W y o m in g

Home

Society,

Hynds

Building,

Cheyenne:

The

Children’s Frien d , bimonthly bulletin.

TYPICAL SYSTEMS OF FOSTER-HOME CARE IN FOREIGN
COUNTRIES.
AUSTRALASIA: STATE BOARDING GUT.

Australia.
Spence, Catharine Helen : State Children in Australia ; a history of board
ing out and its developments. Vardon & Sons (L td .), Adelaide, 1907.
Includes a history of the origin and development of the boarding-out system
of South Australia, a comparison of the laws and administration of the hoardingout systems in the Australian States, and a discussion of the results secured by
the system.

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FOSTER-HOME CAKE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

278

N ew South W ales.
Green, Alfred W illiam s: The history and development of measures
protection of dependent and delinquent children in New South
Report of the Proceedings of the First Child-Welfare Conference,
Cape Town, South Africa, March, 1917, pp. 45-52.
An exposition of the essential features of the boarding-out system
South Wales.

for the
Wales.
held at
in New

Mackellar, Sir Charles: The Treatment of Neglected and Delinquent Chil
dren in Great Britain, Europe, and America, with recommendations as
to amendment of administration and law in New South Wales. W . A.
Gullick, Government Printer, Sidney, 1913.
The boarding-out system: Principle and practice in Great Britain; the insti
tution of the system in New South W ales; argument for boarding out, pp. 202215.
*>---------: The State Children; an open letter to the Honorable A. G. F.
James, M. L. A. Minister for Education. W . A. Gullick, Government
Printer, Sidney, 1917.
A discussion of boarding-out and institutional care for State children.
Department of Education: Report o f the Public Service Board on an Inquiry
into the Working of the State Children Relief Branch, particularly with
reference to the conditions under which children are boarded out: Pre
sented to Parliament in pursuance of an order made by the legislative
council on 1 August, 1917. W . A . Gullick, Government Printer, Sidney,
1917.
Report in regard to boarding out of children under alleged undesirable condi
tions. Minutes of evi (fence taken at the public service board’s investigation.
State Children Relief B oard: Report for the Year Ended 5 April, 1915.
W . A. Gullick, Government Printer, Sidney.
Boarding-out system: Review of development of boarding out as a State
p olicy; children under control; rates of payment; number of children in each
home, pp. 43—45.
•

------: Report for the Year Ended 5 April, 1916.
Notes on the State system of boarding out, pp. 1 1 -1 3 ; report on boarding out
under State children relief act, pp. 14—2 3 ; foster homes under infant-protection
act, pp. 38-44; registration of boarded-out infants under children’s protection
act, pp. 52-53; opinions of visitors and teachers on the boarding-out system,
pp. 75-96.

•

------: Report for the Year Ended 5 April, 1920.
Tabular statement of the development of the work of the State children
relief department, 1900-1920, pp. 11-14; report on boarding out under the State
children relief act, pp. 14-24; under infant-protection act, p. 8 6 ; under chil
dren’s protection act, pp. 52-53.

N ew Zealand.
New Zealand Education Department: Report on Special Schools and
Infant Life Protection for the Year 1916. By authority: Marcus F.
Marks, Goverhment Printer, Wellington, 1916.
Report on licensing foster homes for children under 6 years boarded out by
parents or guardians, p. 3 ; tabular statement, pp. 11-12.
Queensland.
State Children Department: Annual Report of the Director for the year
1918. Brisbane, 1919.
Children boarded out with foster mothers; hired ou t; adopted, pp. 10-11.
South Australia.
State Children’s Council: Report for the Year Ended June 30, 1921.
authority: R. E. E. Rogers, Government Printer, Adelaide, 192L
Boarding out, p. 5.

Bee also General Sources, pp. 230-234.
AUSTRIA: BOARDING OUT UNDER OFFICIAL GUARDIANSHIP.
Bartsch, Dr. Robert: Government organization for social aid in Austria. T h e
A n n als o f the A m erican A ca d em y o f P olitical and Social Science, Supplement,
November, 1921, pp. 61-65.
The discussion of the system of official guardianship includes references to the
t o ties of public guardians toward children placed ia foster homes.

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

APPENDIXES.

279

Regulations of April 1, 1919, for the administration o f the law on the pro
tection o f placed-out children. Z eitsch rift fü r Säuglm gs-und K leinkinder schütz, Berlin, Vol. 12, pp. 323-329.
ß e e also General Sources, pp. 230-234.
Be l g i u m : t h e b o a r d i n g - o u t s y s t e m .

Œ u vre Nationale de l’Enfance: Rapport Annuel, 1920.
Supervision over placed-out children, pp. 44, 117; supervision of children of
unmarried mothers, pp. 129-130.
Bee al.so General Sources, pp. 230-234.
CAN ADA : H O M E F IN D IN G B Y C H ILD R E N ’ S A ID SOCIETIES.

Hart, Hastings H .: Twenty-five years of child-welfare work in Canada. T he
S u rv ey, Vol. 40 (M ay 11, 1918), p. 171.
Gives the Ontario plan of placing out children by children’ s aid societies under
the direction of the Department of Neglected and Dependent Children; extension
o f the Ontario system to other Provinces in Canada.
Juvenile Im m igration; selection from the report of G. Bogue Stuart, Chief
Inspector of British Immigrant Children and Receiving Homes in Canada.
T h e Child (London), Vol. 5 (June, 1915), p. 54.
K elso, John J .: Home finding in Canada. T h e Child (Chicago)* Vol. 2 (March.
1913), pp. 12-13.
Description o f the organization and work of children’s aid societies in Canada.
Miles, Mary C .: The emigration of poor-law children. P roceedings of the
English Poor-Law Conferences, 1904-1905, pp. 520-533.
Report on a tour of investigation to ascertain condition o f children emigrated to
Canada. Describes the methods o f various homes and agencies receiving and placing
out children.
Manitoba.
Public-Welfare Commission of M anitoba: Second Interim Report. Printed
by order of the Legislative Assembly o f Manitoba, February, 1919.
Winnipeg.
Report on child w elfare: Endorsement of a policy of foster-home rather than
institutional care for normal dependent and neglected children and for normal
young delinquents; recommendations relative to selection and supervision of
o f foster homes, boarding homes, and probation homes, pp. 140-154.
'N o v a Scotia.
Province of Nova Scotia: Eighth Annual Report of the Superintendent of
Neglected and Delinquent Children. Printed by order o f the legislature.
H alifax, 1921.
Reports of children’s aid societies placing out children, pp. 6 -3 5 ; visiting
children placed in foster homes or in boarding homes, pp. 9 0 -9 1 ; records of
foster homes and children, p. 92^ child placing by the superintendent, pp. 92—94.
Ontario.
Dymond, Allen M .: The Laws of Ontario Relating to Women and Children.
Printed by Clarkson W . James, Toronto, 1923.
Adoption, pp. 7 1 -7 6 ; child placing under the children’s protection act, pp.
128-138.
Conference of Associated Children’s Aid Societies of O ntario: Proceedings,
1911.
(In Report of the Superintendent of Neglected and Dependent
Children of Ontario for the Year Ending December 30, 1911.)
Miller, C. R . : Home finding and visiting, pp. 100-103.
Methods o f finding homes adapted to needs of the ch ild ; value of township
committees as advisory bodies; supervision.
Smith, Bruce: Institutional life, pp. 133-134.
The place of the institution in caring for dependent children not eligible or
ready for foster homes.
Neglected and Dependent Children in Ontario: Nineteenth Report of the
Superintendent, for the year ending December 30, 1911.
General statistical report, pp. 13-16; placement o f Catholic children, pp.
2 3 -2 4 ; supervision— visiting children in foster homes an essential feature of
lacing-out work (by John J. Kelso), pp. 25—3 3 ; juvenile immigration, pp. l i é
is .

75094°— 24------ 18

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

280

FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

Ontario— Continued.
Neglected and Dependent Children In Ontario; Safeguarding childhood.
Twentieth Annual Report for the year ending December 30, 1912.
Children under care, p. 19 ; visiting foster homes, pp. 26-29 ; reports of chil
dren’s aid societies throughout the Province, pp. 43—94.
--------: Twenty-second Annual Report, for the year ending December 30,
1914.
Children’ s aid societies: Procedure and forms used in application for chil
dren, inquiries concerning foster parents, agreements with foster parents ; re
ports of inspection, shelter, pp. 44-50.
--------: Twenty-third Annual Report, for the year ending December 30,
1915.
The value of the “ children’s shelter ” for temporary care ; methods of home
finding ; classes of foster homes and the necessity for special supervision for each
type ; directions for visitors, pp. 90—97.
Saskatchewan.
Neglected and Dependent Children of the Province of Saskatchewan ; An
nual reports of the superintendent. Regina.
1917: Foster homes, not institutions, p. 9 ; reports of aid societies placing out
children under children’s protection act, pp. 12—24 ; statistics, pp. 29—32.
1919 : Scope of work under children’s protection act, pp. 3—14; foster homes,
pp. 14-16.
1921: Children’s protection a c t ; inspection of foster homes; home finding, pp.
5-9.
P ublic H ea lth Journal, T h e [Toronto].

Barnabas, Rev. Brother : Standards o f child placing and supervision. VoL
13 (October, 1922), pp. 458-466.
Fisher, Mrs. A. D. : Standards of child plaeing.
(Address given March
11, 1920, for the Neighborhood Workers’ Association of Toronto.) VoL
11 (May, 1920), pp. 226-230.
Special report of the medical officer of health, Toronto, on the more effi
cient provision and care for infants and children born out of wedlock
and for homeless children in general, presented to the local board of
health August 15, 1919. Vol. 10 (October,, 1919), pp. 468-476.
Social W e lfa r e [Toronto].

Barnabas, Rev. Brother: Standards of child-placing supervision. VoL V
(December, 1922), pp. 56-59.
Rules for child placing derived from the writer’s experience of 25 years.
Bell, H azel: Child placing in families.
Vol. IV (December, 1 9 2 i), pp.
52-54.
The author points out the dangers in child placing from the standpoint of
the individual child and urges that such work be established upon scientific
principles.
Moberly, J. V era : The boarding-out system. Vol. IV (September 1, 1922),
pp. 268-269.
Describes the inauguration of a unit system of boarding out infants from the
Infants’ Home of Toronto.
Unsigned articles.
A report on child welfare In Toronto. Vol. I l l (June 1, 1921), pp.
234-236.
*
Notes on the tour of Inspection of various child-caring agencies of
Toronto made by C. C. Carstens at the request of the Child-Welfare Council
and his report and recommendations on child placing.
Child welfare in Saskatchewan. Vol. IV (July 1, 1922), pp. 220-224.
Review of the report of the superintendent of neglected and dependent
children on child placing.
S ee also General Sources, pp. 23 0 -2 3 4

DENMARK! BOARDING-OUT SYSTEM.
Fattigvardslagstiftningskommittens Betankanden, Barnavardslagstiftningens
Del. I l l — Redogorelse for Barnav&rdslagstiftning 'i Danmark, Norge, octa
Finland. P. Palmquists Aktiebolag, Stockholm, 1921.
The care of foster children in Denmark, pp. 11, 15-18.
B ee also General Sources, pp. 2 3 0 -2 3 4

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

281

APPENDIXES.

France ;

foster-hom e care for m pupilles de l ^assistance
“ PUPILLES DE LA NATION .”

and

Ministère de l’Instruction Publique et des Beaux-Arts, Office National des
Pupilles de la Nation: Bulletin. Paris.
thpT^>PnÎhUlli»wn^ . P?H ish^ ^ qua5Hlly’ xÇ0P > în the details of the administration of
pacing a id ’ supervision
d ° f thC Natlon’ which includes Provisions relating to
**'-------- : Rapport Présenté au Conseil Supérieur.
andTm end^nts650^

Paris.

! financlal statements ; discussion of provisions of the law

Nobécourt, P. et Schreiber, G .: Hygiène Sociale de l’Enfanee. Masson et Cie..
Paris, 1921.
Description o f the French system of boarding out and supervising children re
ceiving public assistance, pp. 573-591.
8
e
[Paris].
Cambillard, M : Rapport sur l’assistance familiale appliquée notamment
aux enfants difficiles ou anormaux. VoL 31 (1912), pp. 283-299.

%a R evu e Philanthropique

fosterIiefamilfeIr USSi011 ° f placing difflcult or mentally defective

children in

Fort^iAicide : Pupilles de l’assistance et orphelins de la guerre.

Vol. 38

.. An account of placing dependent children in rural families as practiced by

^ j ? i part" eDt

tte Selne *• * - * * “ o • « « « » » to i

Mannheimer, Gommés, Dr. : D’assistance familiale aux enfants anormaux.
Vol. 31 (1912), pp. 165-171.
Discussion of aid to mentally defective dependent children in their own
homes, in foster families, or in institutions; comparison of methods
Niibécourt, P. et Schreiber, G. : Les enfants assistés et abandonnés. Vol
42 ( 1921 ), pp. 317-333.
Placing out infants and older children under the auspices of the publie
charities.
»
Office National des Pupilles de la Nation. Vol.
Paterne, D r .: La loi Roussel: Améliorations
l’élëvage. Vol. 33 (1913), pp. 17-33.
S S P “ * * » for amending the law relative to
supervision Increase the authority of the medical

40 (1919), pp. 358-392.
à apporter au contrôle de
the supervision of placed-out
inspectors and to improve the

Renault, Jules: Placement chez nourrice isolée:
VoL 41 (1920) nn.
220-227.
^
Discussion of French legislation relating to the placing out of infants with
nurses &ud suggestions for the improvement of supervision and cure.
6A 1917r ^ ■ : 7France adopts her war orphans.

T h e S u rv ey, Vol. 39

Preference given family rather than institutional care; system of guardianship :
provision for legal adoption.
B ee also General Sources, pp. 230-234.
G E R M A N Y l T H E BOARDIN G-OU T S Y ST E M .

Engel, Sigmund: The Elements o f Child Protection. Translated from the
German by Dr. Eden Paul. The Macmillan Co., New York, 1912.
The care of foundlings : History ; the Latin system and the Germanic system i
modern methods; institutional care versus family care; supervision of family cares
subsidiary aims in the care of foundlings, pp. 140-154.
’

Hoffa, Dr. Theodor: Offene und geschlossene Fiirsorge fiir Haltekinder und
Unehelkffie.

Z eitsch rift fü r Sauglingsschutz, IV . Jahrgang (October, 1912),

Institutional and family care for children in various parts of Germany, with special
reference to the city of Barmen.
p
Salomon, Dr. A lic e : Child care in Germany. T h e S u rvey, Vol. 48 (August 15.
1922), p. 603.
A brief discussion of the child-welfare act of June 14, 1922, ingln<iing notes on
the new regulations dealing with boarded-«ut children.

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282

POSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

Schriften des Arbeitsausschusses der Kriegerwitwen-und Waisenfürsorge,
herausgegeben im Aufträge des Hauptaussehusses in Verbindung mit der
Nationalstiftung für die Hinterbliebenen der im Kriege Gefallenen. Fünftes
Heft. Kriegswaisen- und Jugendfürsorge. Carl Heymanns Verlag, Berlin,
1917.
Extract from an order of the Prussian Minister of Justice relative to keeping war
orphans with their own mothers if possible, or in foster families, pp. 14-15; institu
tional or family care, pp. 1 7-18; adoption, pp. 3 3 -3 5 ; endorsement of family rather
than institutional care in Bavaria, pp. 113-116.

Weitpert, Dr. Konrad: Berufsvormundschaft, Blätter für Säuglings- und Klein
kinderfürsorge. Munich, 1918.
Includes a description of the methods o f “ Pflegesteilervermittlung,” the agency
for foster homes of the Board of Public Guardians of Munich.
Zentralblatt fü r Vorm undschaftsw esen , Jugendgerichte und Fürsorgeerziehung,

Vol. 7, No. 6 (1915), p. 70.
Conditions under which war orphans may be placed in foster homes. The building
o f orphanages is discouraged, as mothers of the children are usually living.
Bee also General Sources, pp. 230-234.
GREAT B R IT A IN A N D IR E L A N D : T H E BOARDING-OUT SYSTE M .
GENERAL REFERENCES.

Aschrott, Dr. P. F., and Preston-Thomas, Herbert: The English Poor-Law
System, Past and Present. Second edition. Knight & Co., London, 1902.
The boarding-out system, pp. 257-260; the “ scattered homes ” system, pp. 261-262.
Batt, Rev. John H .: Dr. Barnardo, the Foster Father of “ Nobody’s Children
a record and an interpretation. S. W . Partridge & Co., 8 and 9 Paternoster
Row, London, 1904.
Review of the system known in England as “ Dr. Barnardo’ s Homes.” Chapter 1 :
Number and classes of children; boarding out infants; Canadian emigration; children
boarded ont in England. Chapters 4 -5 : Boarding o u t; emigration. Chapters 9 -1 0 :
Emigration system.
Chance, W illiam : Children*under the Poor Law, their Education, Training,
and After Care.
Swan Sonnenschein & Co. (L td .), Paternoster Square,
London, 1897.
Review of the report on an investigation of the hoarding-out system of Scotland and
in certain unions in England (1869), pp. 25-29; appraisement of the system, pp. 31-32.
The boarding-out system in England: Regulations under the two boarding-out orders;
the difficulties connected with compliance with »the regulations; the objections of
guardians; success of the system; defects in the system, pp. 180—235.

Dewar, David: The Children’s Act, 1908, and Other Acts Affecting Children
in the United Kingdom. William Green & Sons, Edinburgh and London, 1911.
Includes copies of acts and general statutes applicable to children, with notes;
coDies of official circulars, rules, regulations, and orders in council under the chil
dren’s act applicable to England, Scotland, and Ireland. Baby farming— infant-life
protection, pp. 7-13, 169-171; boarding out of children, pp. 34.
Garnett, W . H . Stuart: Children and the Law.
John Murray, Albemarle
Street, London, 1911.
A compilation of the British law concerning children, with a concise statement
and interpretation of the various acts with citations. Care of children by poor-law
guardians under the local government board.
Gorst, Sir John E J- The Children of the Nation. Methuen & Co., 36 Essex
Street W . C., London, 1906.
Comparison of methods of caring for State children: Outdoor relief; in workhouses • district schools; village communities (cottage system) ; in scattered homes
(Sheffield system) ; boarding o u t; “ Dr. Barnardo’ s Homes, pp. 227-240. Successful
operation of boarding-out system in Scotland, Ireland, Australasian colonies, and in
some continental nations, pp. 240-244.
Hall, W . Clarke: The State and the Child. Headly Bros., Publishers (L td .),
London, 1917.
Boarding out from reformatory and industrial schools, pp. 91-92.

Home Department, Committee on Child Adoption (Great Britain): Report
presented to Parliament by command of H is Majesty. Parliamentary Paper
Cmd. 1254. His Majesty’s Stationery Office, London, 1921.
Report on desirability of making legal provision for adoption in Great Britain, and
form of such provision. Includes notes on adoption laws of some European countries,
British Dominions, and the United States, and a discussion of the advantage* of legal
adoption in the care of dependent children.

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

APPENDIXES.
® T n Îw r

1908 tL f

283

iGrea*LBritain) : Report from the Select Committee on
Pr0teCtl0n* w yman & Sons (L td .), 109 Fetter Lane, London,

îmtjss t

e?tend. provisions of Infant-life protection act 1897 relative

w sæ

ni“'*“' 18

Loeai Governm ent B oard

(England and W ales) : Children under the Poor
L a w , report to the president o f the local government board, by T J MacX
ara' ParUamentary p aper Cd. 3899. Wyman & Sons <Lt.d.), London,
Boarding ont of children, p. 7 ; emigration of poor children, d d 7—12 •
homes plan, p. 13 ; conclusions, pp. 18-20.
’ pp’ 1 ^ •

“ sca ttered

scattered

: Boarding Out of Pauper Children; report by Miss M. H. Mason.
man & Sons (Ltd.), London, 1909.

June* iC9 io dren un<^er

Wy
J

P°0r ^aw » circular to boards of guardians, 16th

Recommendations relative to boarding out, pp. 6 -6 .

M«Kay, Thom as: A History of the English Poor Law— Yol. I ll, From 1834
to the Present Time; being a supplementary volume to A History of the Eng
lish Poor Law, by Sir George Nicholls. G. P. Putnam’s Sons, New York, 1900.
_ y he education o f pauper c h ild re n : Controversy over m eth od s: the boardinsrout
fo r ,2nd »a? ainst tbe system ; alternatives— cottage homes, Sheffield
type o f isolated or scattered h om es; results o f contending policies, pp. 425—440.

Percival, T o m : P oor-L aw Children.

St., London, E. C., 1911.

Shaw & Sons, 7 -8 Fetter Lane, Fleet

, A comPrehensive study o f the adm inistration o f relief to children under the noor
law. Summary o f existing methods, with a historical sketch o f the development Pand
legal sanctions o f each, with estimates o f value quoted from reports o f investigators
ou£
beyond the u n io n ” : Estim ate o f a d v a n teg ^ and
108-114. B oarding but “ within the union ” : A nalysis and discussion
o f the boarding-out order o f 1911, pp. 114-118.
*
a u “ ‘ scussion

Boyal Commission on the Poor Laws and Relief in D istress: ReDort.
liamentary Paper Cd. 4499. Wyman & Sons (L td .), London, 1909.

Par

- c i >ar,i
Chapter ® :..? b e Children. Boarding o u t : Development o f system, dd 180—
182 , boarding out wi tiim the union and “ w ithout the u n io n t9 • rAnort« « n
^m
mendations, pp. 182—1 8 6 ; emigration, pp. 194—195 ; summary o f rernmmpntla
198-200. Review o f existing conditions and proposed chan ges' pp. 619^620.^ S’ PP’

: Separate Report by the Rev. Prebendery H. Russell Wakefield Mr
Francis Chandler, Mr. George Lansbury, and Mrs. Sidney Webb (Minority
report.)
* '
J
Children under rival a u th orities: Boarding out “ within the union,” pp 8 0 4-80 5«
boarding out in Scotland and boarding out “ w ithout the u n io n « in r L i T j „ „ 4
W ales, pp. 8 0 6 -8 1 0 ; scattered homes, pp. 8 1 2 -8 1 3 ; conclusions, pp. 8 4 3 ?8 4 5 f d
“

-— : Appendix Volume I— Minutes of Evidence; being mainly the evidence
given by the officers of the Local Government Board for England a n d W a io a
Parliamentary Paper Cd. 4625. 1909.
es*
Statement o f evidence by Miss M. H. Mason, senior inspector o f boarding out fo r
to e local government board taken before the Royal Commission, on the operationf o f
to e boarding-out system under the poor law, pp. 437-460.
operation or

---------: Appendix Volume IA—Appendices to Minutes of Evidence
mentary Paper Cd. 4626. 1909.

Parlia
ama

. , . ApP®n<ijx No. X X : Statement in evidence (w ritten memorandum) handed in hv
Miss M. H Mason : System o f boarding out beyond the union— history o f the d evelop
ment and description o f the essential features c f the system, methods o f inJru**i£!T
practical results, pp. 2 9 1 -4 0 0 ; comparison between the7® , *
method o f K i n g
out beyond the union and those o f other countries, pp. 400-401 • boarding
the union, pp. 4 0 1 -4 0 2 ; adoption, 4 0 2 ; emigration pp. 4 ^ d 6 - ^ ta tiftic «i
pp. 4 0 6 -4 1 6 ; extracts from rules, annual reports, and records, pp! 416-442.al tables’

■"

: Appendix Volume XVIII—Report on the Condition of Children Who
Are in Receipt of Various Forms of Poor-Law Relief in England and Wales
by Ethel Williams, assisted by Mary Longman and Marion Phillips Partial
mentary Paper Cd. 5037. 1910.
v
a
v 1??,uirjr i“ to eouditton'^jf boarded-out children: Boarding out “ within the union ***
boarding out
without the union ” ; supervision o f boarded-out children d d 89-90?
B eport on inquiry into cases o f children boarded out, pp. 241-258.

72693°—26-----19

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POSTER-HOME CABE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN,

R oyal Commission on the Poor Law s and Relief in D istress: Appradlt

Volume X X III—Report on the Condition of tire Children Who Are in Re
ceipt of the Various Forms of Poor-Law Relief in Certain Parishes in Scot
land, by C. T. Parsons, assisted by Mary Longman and Marian Phillips.
Parliamentary Paper Cd. 5075. Wyman & Sons (Ltd.),, London, 1910.
P art I I I : Report on the inquiry into the condition o f children boarded out in
Scotland— administration, environment and character o f homes; the fam ily and its
income, guardians o f children, statistics, pp. 53—7 6 ; physical condition of boardedout children, pp. 85-86, 87, 88, 89, 9 0 -9 3 ; general summary and conclusions, pp.
100-103. Appendix C : Tables showing condition o f boarded-out children, pp. 168-170,
175-177, 1&2-183. 1 9 3 -2 0 6 ; tables showing comparison o f children under different
systems, pp. 233-236.

Smedley, Menella B .: Boarding-Out and Pauper Schools, Especially for Girls;

being a reprint of the principal reports on pauper education in the Blue Book
for 1873-1874. Henry S. King & Co., London, 1875.
B oarding out in Scotland, England, Ireland, Australia.

V ice-R egal Commission on Poor-Law Reform in Ireland: Report. Parliamen
tary Paper Cd. 3202. Alexander Thom & Co. (Ltd.), Dublin, 1906.
Boarded-out children in Ir e la n d : Numbers, evidence in fa vor o f system, comparative
Statement o f cost, finding homes, inspection, pp. 4 6 -4 9 ; boarding out in Scotland, p.
4 9 ; other systems in England, pp. 49-50.

W eb b , Sidney and Beatrice: English Poor-Law Policy.

Longmans, Green &

Co. 39 Paternoster Row, London, 1910.
A review o f the boarding-out system and the various orders regulating boarding out
" w ith in the u n io n ” and “ without the union,” pp. 195—2G0;
CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS.

P. S. King & Sons, London.
1904- 5. Birehall, J. Dearman: Boarding out, pp. 9-24.

Poor-Law Conferences: Proceedings.

Estimates the advantages o f boarding out, especially "b e y o n d the
union ” ; suggests amendments to existing law relative to ages and
classes o f ch ild ren ; states th e general grounds o f opposition to the
system.

1905- 6. Ley, Dr. J. W .: The boarding out of pauper children, pp. 480-492.
Discussion, pp. 493-498.
The elements o f success and failure in the boarding-out system under
the local government h o a rd : classes o f ch ild re n ; selection and super
vision o f h o m e s; rates o f payment. Suggests a combination o f boarding-out and “ scattered homes ” systems.

Stone, Henry: Provision for children by the poor law, pp. 175-191,
Discussion, pp. 191-211.
A comparison o f the various methods o f providing fo r dependent
children in E n g la n d : cottage or village homes, scattered homes, and
hoarding out as to relative cost and training and care o f children.

1910- 11. Mason, Miss M. H . : The report of the Royal Commission on the
poor laws—Children, pp. 6-21.
A concise statement
mission relative to the
and a comparison o f
m inority reports o f the

o f the recom m endations o f the R oyal Com
" New W ithin-the-Union Boarding-Out Order ”
the recommendations o f the m ajority and
Royal Commission.

--------- : The new “ Within-the-Union Boarding-Out Order,” pp.
664-671. Discussion, pp. 671-679.
Estim ate o f the value o f the new order (effective A pril, 1910) ; need
o f amendment to secure supervision by women.

Tebb, Rev. Alfred Barrett: Suggested methods for boarding,
training, and supervision of poor-law children, pp. 253-266.
Discussion, pp. 266-281.
Paper and discussion devoted to the relative merits o f the various
systems o f care fo r poor-law children in England.

1911- 12. Baker, Rev. J. W .: The placing out, apprenticing, and after care
of poor-law children, pp. 565-573.
The problem o f placing out in suitable situations boys and girls
w ho arrive at the ages o f 14 and 16 years under the care o f poorlaw guardians.

1912- 13. Williams, H. R .: Methods of maintaining poor-law children, pp.
395-411. Discussion, pp. 413-419.
R elative m erits o f boarding out and the various systems o f institu
tional c a r e ; use o f receiving homes.

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28$

APPENDIXES.

Poor-Law Conferences? Proceedings —Continued.
1913-14. Darmody, Rev. J. J .: The poor-law child; what Is being done and
what may be done, pp. 139%55.
The boarding-out system, pp. 144—147.

Philp, Miss F. Penrose: Methods of training poor-law children,
pp. 56-68.
Comparative study o f methods o f training under the different systems
o f institutional care and boarding out.
ARTICLES IN PERIODICALS.

[London!.
Burns, The Rt. Hon. John: Children and the poor law.
1910) , pp. 13-24.

ChMd, T h e

Vol. 1 (October,

Extracts from circular Issued to members o f boards of guardians. Statement
o f principles to govern relief on behalf o f ch ild ren ; general outline o f methods
o f care o f children under P oor Law.

Fairbridge, Kingsley: Child emigration to the British colonies.
(December, 1910), pp. 251-254.

Vol. 1

Procedure o f child em igrating so cie tie s; dangers o f exploitation o f child labor |
difficulties o f supervision under present sy ste m ; theories o f Society fo r F urther
ance o f Child Emigration.

Mason, Miss M. H .: The inspection of boarded-out children.

Vol. 1 (Octo

ber, 1910), pp. 154r-156.
P ractical directions fo r difficult and intim ate form s o f inspection.

Stewart, Edith A .: Boarding out of pauper children.
1911) , pp. 205-210.

Vol. 2 (December,

Development o f boarding out in Scotland, Ireland, England, and Wales. Dis
cussion o f new features o f the new boarding-out order (in force January 1, 1912).
Jotirnal o f

the

S o ciety

o f Com parative L egislation

[London].
Hopkinson, Sir Alfred: Adoption.

and

International

Law

Vol. 2 (January, 1920), pp. 3-9.

Lack o f provision fo r adoption in English and Scotch la w ; urgent need fo r
legislation regulating adoption, owing to conditions produced by w a r ; adoption
laws in other cou n tries; proposed amendment to English law.

[London]. (Editorials and articles on adoption.)
The adoption of children, laws relating thereto. Vol. 4 (April, 1920),
pp. 116-117.

M a tern ity and Child W e lfa r e

Adoption laws o f Argentina, Canada, Denmark, Greece, Italy, New York State*
Norway, Switzerland.

The adoption of children, a deputation to the Home Office.
1920), p. 129.

Vol. 4 (April,

Deputation from National Council o f Women o f Great Britain and Ireland
urge need fo r legalizing a d o p tio n ; arguments.

Is adoption desirable?

Vol. 4 (June, 1920), pp. 191-192.

Notes on the inquiry o f the Select Committee.

The adoption of children: Report of the Select Committee. Vol. 4 (June,
1920), pp. 196-197.
Legalized child adoption: Report of the Home Office Committee. Vol. 5
(June, 1921), pp. 175-177; (July, 1921) pp. 205-207; (August, 1921)
pp. 237-238.
Review o f r e p o r t; experience In the D om in ion s; provisions in E n g la n d ; draw
backs and d eterren ts; relative cost o f m aintenance; prelim inary con d ition s;
persons who may a d o p t ; orders and sa n ction s; revocation o f a d op tion ; recom
mendations.
,

Gard, W. D. S .: The principles of adoption. Vol 4 (March, 1920), pp.
71-73.
Wethered, Mrs. R. P .: Effect of adoption on the child and on the parent.
Vol. 4 (March, 1920), pp. 73-74.
Gray, Mrs. Edwin: The case for legalizing adoption. Vol. 4 (April, 1920),
pp. 114—
115.
Woodcock, H. Drysdale: Some concrete examples. Vol. 4 (April, 1920),
pp. 115-116.
March, Jessie: Drawbacks and alternatives. VoL 4 (May, 1920), pp.
144-147.

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FOSTER-HOME CARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

[London]—CoM4nued.
Beesley, Edward T .: The welfare of the homeless child. Vol. 4 (May,
1920), pp. 147-149.
•
Pierce, Esther: The child of the unmarried mother. Vol. 4 (July, 1920),
pp. 211-212.
Sherwood, Frederick W .: Adoptions. Vol. 7 (August, 1928), pp. 260-26L
S ee also General Sources, pp. 230-234.

M a ter n ity and Child W e lfa r e

H U N G A R Y : T H E BOARDIN G-OU T SYSTE M .

Bosnynâk, Zoltán de, et Edelsheim-Gyulai, Cte. L.î Le Droit de l’Enfant
Abandonné et le Système Hongrois de Protection de l’Enfance. Imprimerie
de la Société Anonyme "Athenaeum, Budapest, 1909.
Placing o f dependent mother and child in private fam ily, pp. 8 3 -84 ; placing o f
dependent children with foster parents as regulated by law o f 1901, pp. 89-97.
S e e also

General Sources, pp. 230-234.
N O R W A Y : T H E BOARDIN G-OU T SYSTEM .

Fattigvàrdslagstigtningskommitténs Betankänden, Barnavârdslagstiftningen î
Del. I ll—Redogörelse för Barnavfirdslagstiftning i Danmark, Norge, och
Finland. P. Palmquists Aktiebolag, Stockholm, 1921.
Legal provisions relating to the care o f foster children in Norway, pp. 37-41.

Kirke og Undervisningsdepartementet nedsatte utvalg: Endelig innstilling on
vergerâdenes overtagelse av tilsynet med de ay fattigvesenet og private bortsatte barn m. v. Steenske Boktrykkeri Johannes Bj0rnstad, Kristiania, 1921.
57 pp.
A discussion o f the advisability o f local juvenile commissions assuming the respon
sibility o f care o f placed-out children.

Wiesener, Bvrâchef G.: Var barneforsorgslovning ved utgangen av 1921.
TJtgitt av Norges Landslag for Barne og Ungdoms forsorg. Brosjure Nr. 2
[Kristiania], mai, 1922.
Tilsyn med bortsatte bam (Supervision of placed-out children), pp. 9-11.
S ee also

General Sources, pp. 230-234.
S W E D E N : T H E BOARDIN G-OU T SYSTE M .

Bamavfirdsmotet, 1911.

Svenska Fattigvardsforbundsskrifter No. 6. P. A.
Norstedt och Soners Forlag, Stockholm. [1911.]
Carlberg, Frigga, och Kihlqvist, J. L .: Vfird av friska barn. Ar utackordering eller anstaltsvfird att foredraga? pp. 113-121, 122-132.
The care of the normal ch ild ; is placing out or institutional care to he
preferred 7

Wawrinsky, R .: Vfir fosterbarnsvfird, vad som vunnits genom 1902 firs lag
och vad som fiterstfir att vinna, pp. 27-47.
The care o f foster ch ild re n ; what has been gained through the law o f 1902
and what remains to be gained.

Fattigvardslagstiftningskommittens Betankanden, Barnavfirdslagstiftningen:
Del. 1—Forslag till lag om den Offentliga Barnavfirden med flera Forfattningar. Del. II— Statistiska Undersokningar rorande den Offentliga Barnav&rden i Sverige. P. Palmquists Aktiebolag, Stockholm, 1921.
The results o f a committee investigation concerning child welfare in Sweden.
P art I Section 2, pp. 5 -6 . 28-37, 68 -69, 115-117, 139-140, 175-178, 277-307, 347-349,
356-357 447-451 : The existing legal provisions relating to foster children ; organiza
tions and their methods in dealing with this group o f children. Suggested changes
are discussed in a proposed law, which is submitted. P art II, pp. 19—26 : Statistical
data concerning foster children.

Guinchard, J., Editor: Sweden; historical and statistical handbook. By order
of the Swedish Government. P. A. Norstedt och Soners Forlag, Stockholm,
1914.
P art I : The care o f the needy and destitute, by G. H. von Koch, pp. 751-754.
P rotection o f children, by M. Blumenthal, p. 772.

Svenska Fattigvardsförbundets Kalendar, 1919. P. A. Norstedt och Soners
Förlag, Stockholm, 1919.
Linders, Häradshövding Jacob: Barnavfirdslagstiftning, pp. 42-44.
An outline o f child-welfare legislation, including a summary of the provisions
relating to foster children.
B ee also

General Sources, pp. 230-234,

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APPENDIXES,

287

ADDENDA.
Children’ s Bureau, Ü. S. Department o f Labor: Adoption Law s in the United
States ; a summary of the development o f adoption legislation and signifi
cant features of adoption statutes, with the text of selected laws, by Emelvn
Foster Peck. Publication No. 148. Washington, 1925. 51 pp.
A Guide Book for Boarding Mothers. Issued by Division of Charities, State
Department of Public W elfare, Columbus, Ohio. 44 pp.
Standards o f W ork for Child-Caring Institutions, D ay Nurseries, and Placing-O u t Societies. Council o f Social Agencies o f the W elfare Federation
o f Philadelphia, 811 South Juniper Street, Philadelphia, January, 1925.
Conference on Child W elfare, H eld In N ew York, M ay 15 to 20, 1925, under
the auspices of the Child W elfare Committee of America (In c .), (730 Fifth
Ave., New York).

publlsh^l in PamPhlet form, Including: Resolutions; Caring for Other
People s Children, by Mary E. Boretz; Orphan Asylums Seen as Passingf by Sophie
Thurston^ ’ After Care Work> by Sarah Sussman-Tromer; Address, by Prof. Henry*W.
National Conference of Catholic Charities: Proceedings
1924. Corcoran, Rev. J. F. R . : How can we find good Catholic boarding
homes?, pp. 157-162. Discussion, pp. 162-163.
Doherty, Rev. John F : H ow to prevent the frequent transfer of
children in boarding homes, pp. 164-172. Discussion, pp. 172-174,
Fitzgerald, Jam es: Correction of home conditions rather than foster
care, pp. 137-146. Discussion, pp. 146, 147.
National Conference o f Jewish Social Service: Proceedings.
1923. Jewish Children’s Bureau of Baltimore, pp. 332-343.
Dubinsky, Gertrude M .: Obstacles in the development o f foster
family care for dependent children, pp. 362-369. Discussion, pp.
369—380.
Goldsmith, Samuel A . : Results of the Child Care Study in New
York City, pp. 347-353. Discussion, pp. 353-361.
Lowenstein, Solomon: Comparative educational and cultural op
portunities in institutions and boarding homes, pp. 380-385.
Seligsberg, Alice L . : The Jewish Children’s Clearing Bureau o f
New York, pp. 260-272.
1924. Corman, B ertha: A study of the problem child in the foster home,
pp. 65-85. Discussion, pp. 85-93.
National Conference o f Social W o r k : Proceedings.
1924. Stoneman, Albert H . : Case work in child placing, pp. 318-321.
-----------: Safeguarding adoptions legally and socially, pp. 144-150.
Taylor, R u th : The care of children in foster homes, pp. 125-127.
Theis, Sophie van Senden: How foster children turn out, pp. 1 2 1 Whitton, Charlotte: Juvenile immigration, pp. 609-613.
1925. Carstens, C. C .: W hat children should be received for care by an
institution or agency, and what is the responsibility for those not
accepted?
Doherty, Rev. J oh n : Agencies for determining whether care outside
of own home is needed, and if so, what kind of care.
Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science.
Megee, Martha J. : The problems of children as a child-placing agency sees
them. Vol. 121 (September, 1925), pp. 159-163.
Hygeia.
W illiam s, C. Y . : Before you adopt a child. July, 1924, pp. 423-427,
Survey, The.
Ross, M a ry: Children who had a second chance. Vol. 52 (Julv 1. 1924)
pp. 382-385.
'
Quinn, Lillian A .: A county’s homeless children. Vol. 53 (December 15.
1924), pp. 347-349.

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288

FOSTER-HOME OARE FOR DEPENDENT CHILDREN.

Survey , The— Continued.
Deardorff, Neva R .: The welfare of the said child.
1925), pp. 457-461.

Yol. 53 (January 15,

A study of adoptions In Pennsylvania.
Baby boarders.

Yol. 54 (April 15, 1925), pp. 83, 84.

The day care of children In boarding homes versus day nurseries as worked out In
Milwaukee, Wis.
Commission Appointed to Study and Revise the Statutes o f Pennsylvania
Relating to Children.
Report to the General Assembly Meeting in 1925. Part I— W ith appendices
containing the results of the study of the practice of adoption in Pennsyl
vania, 1925.
Canada’s Child Immigrants. Committee on Immigration and Colonization to
the Social Service Council of Canada. Toronto, January, 1925. 90 pp.

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APPENDIXES.

289

A P P E N D IX E.— SELECTED BOOKS AND PAM PHLETS ON
CHILD CARE AND TRAINING OF INTEREST TO CHILD
PLACING AGENCIES AND FOSTER MOTHERS.
Care and Feeding o f Children, by L. Emmett Holt, M. D. D. Appleton & Co.,
New York, 1923. Price $1.25.
Infant Feeding, by Julius H. Hess, M. D. American Medical Association,
Chicago, 1923. 152 pp. Price $1.
Infant Care (R evised). United States Children’s Bureau Publication No 8
Washington, 1921. 118 pp.
T h * ? reSo ^ 001 ChTi.1^’ hl Arnold Gesell> M . D. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston,
1923. 264 pp. Price $1.90.
The Health o f the Runabout Child, by W illiam Palmer Lucas, M D
The
Macmillan Co., New York, 1923. 229 pp. Price $1.75.
Child Care, The Preschool Age, by Mrs. Max West. United States Children’s
Bureau Publication No. 30. Washington, 1922. 82 pp.
Child Training, by Angelo Patri. D. Appleton & Co., New York, 1922. 434
pp. Price $2.
H abit Clinics fo r the Child o f Preschool A g e ; their organization and prac
tical value, by D. A. Thom, M. D. United States Children’s Bureau Publica
tion No. 135. Washington, 1924. 71 pp.
H abit Training fo r Children. National Committee for Mental Hygiene (Inc ) .
370 Seventh Avenue, New York. Set o f 9 leaflets, 10 cents.
Chiid Management, by D. A . Thom, M. D. United States Children’s Bureau
Publication No. 143. Washington, 1925. 36 pp.
Mental Health fo r Norm al Children, by W . H. Burnham.
Massachusetts
Society for Mental Hygiene, 18 Tremont Street, Boston. 8 pp.
Mental H ygiene o f Childhood, by William A . White, M. D. Little, Brown &
Co., Boston, 1919. 193 pp. Price $1.75.
Safeguarding Children’s Nerves, by James L. W alsh, M. D., and John A.
lo o te , M. D. J. B. Lippincott Co., Philadelphia, 1924. 272 pp
Price $2
The Fate o f the First Molar. United States Public Health Service. Public
Health Reprint No. 645. Washington, 1921. 6 pp.
H ow to Build Sound Teeth. Distributed by the American Dental Association,
5 North Wabash Avenue, Chicago. 15 pp.
D odgers on Child W e lfa r e : W hat Do Growing Children Need? Books and
Pamphlets on Child Care. Is Your Child’s Birth Recorded? Bottle Feed
ing. Feeding the Child. The Care o f the Baby. United States Children’s
Bureau, Washington.
Feeding the Fam ily, by Mrs. M. S. Rose. The Macmillan Co., New York 1924.
487 pp. Price $2.40.
Food fo r the Fam ily. New York Association for Improving the Condition o f
the Poor. Publication No. 120. Revised 1922. 31 pp. Price 25 cents
Food fo r Y o u n g Children, by C. L. Hunt.
United States Department of
Agriculture Farmers’ Bulletin 717. Washington, 1920. 26 pp.
W h a t to Feed the Children, by D. R. Mendenhall, M. D. College o f Agri
culture, University o f Wisconsin, Madison, 1924. 24 pp.
W h y Drink M ilk ?
M ilk I s the Indispensable Food fo r Children
United
States Children’s Bureau Folder No. 3. Washington, 1924. 8 pp.
Nutrition and Growth in Children, by W illiam R. P. Emerson, M. D D Annieton & Co., New York, 1922. 342 pp. Price $2.50.
Am erican Red Cross Textbook on H om e H ygiene and Care o f the Sick, by
Jane A. Delano, R. N. Revised and rewritten by Anne Hervey Strong R N
P. Blakiston’s Son & Co., Philadelphia, 1922, 330 pp.
Price 70 cents*
paper; $1.25, cloth.
’
A B rief Manual o f Games fo r Organized Play, adapted from standard sources,
by Martha Travilla Speakman. United States Children’s Bureau Publication
No. 113. Revised edition. Washington, 1925. 37 pp.
Backyard Playgrounds.
United States Children’s Bureau Folder No 2.
Washington, 1923. 6 pp.
Pamphlets o f interest to mothers may be obtained from State boards o f
health and extension divisions o f State universities.

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Full text of Foster-Home Care for Dependent Children, Bureau Publication No. 136

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