CARE OF THE CHILDREN

Evening Post, Volume XCVII, Issue 24, 28 January 1919, Page 8

CARE OF THE CHILDREN

TO TBE EDITOB.

Sir, —I trust you will allow me space to protest against the sweeping assertions made by a member of the Charitable Aid Board with regard to foster homes and mothers. According to him we are all out to make money at the expense of the poor infant. I took a child into my home over six years ago, five months old, weighing s£lb, just discharged from Hospital. The bones were through the skin. I had to nurse him through pneumonia (fire day and night, sitting up poulticing). When he recovered, it cost me 10s a week for food alone for four months. He was under the Infant Life Protection Act and paid for by the mother at the rate of 10s per week. After a few months the mother neglected her payments. She went into the country, and in a week's time was admitted to hospital, where she remained eleven months, during which time the child had measles, whooping cough, and then chicken-pox, and a recurrence of measles, for all of which illnesses he had to have medical attention and medicine, for which I had to pay. Neither the Charitable Aid Board nor the Government offered me any money, and I had to get the child committed so as to receive some help. Since then I have received 8s per week, increased to 10s some time back, and if anyone keeping a child of, say, ten to twelve years of age on that sum these times can make anything out of it they are lucky. If such conditions pertain as the member speaks, then the fault must lie with the district visitor for not reporting the case and having the child removed from such surroundings. From what I have seen of the visitors they are conscientious women who are out for the welfare of the children, and would not gloss things over Hoping the gentleman in question will qualify his statements and not tar us all with one brush.—l am, etc., INDIGNANT.