The Ensign. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1911. PENSIONS FOR WIDOWS.

Mataura Ensign, 14 October 1911, Page 4

The Ensign. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1911. PENSIONS FOR WIDOWS.

Among the list -of proposals submitted by the Prime Minister to the country in the Budget not the least important is that which provides for pensions to widows. Very little objection can be taken to this scheme if it is admitted that ib is the duty of the State to care for the individual personal welfare of each of its citizens. This principal has been already admitted in the old age pensions scheme and in other measures designed for the relief of the infirm and the destitute. It is necessary, however, for the people to clearly understand that each step in this direction entails a charge upon the taxpayer. Something cannot be made out of nothing, and no benefit

can be conferred by the State per se upon its citizens. Ifney themselves must pay for all these humanitarian schemes, and it is questionable whether they would so cheerfully acquiesce in them if all the money necessary to pay their cost were raised directly instead of indirectly as is customary in every State. The principle of the State succoring those in need having been admitted, no more worthy object could be found for its application than the relief of widows left without means and with children to support. We therefore approve of the object of this Bill, but think that its provisions should be altered somewhat to make them more practical and beneficial. The Bill provides in Section 3 that every widow who conforms to the requirements of the Act shall be entitled to a pension. A widow to come under th« Act must be a resident of New Zealand and have a ch'ild or children under the age of 14 years who must be legitimate or have been legitimatised by the subsequent marriage of the parents. The child must not 'have been adopted, or born outside of New Zealand, and its mother must have resided six months in New Zealand before its birth. The widow must be of saber habits and of good moral character, and the pension must bo used for the support of the children. The pension is to be of the following rates, subject to the deduction hereinafter provided:—"lf the widow 'has one child to whom this Act applies the pension shall amount to twelve pounds a year: If she has two such children the pension shall be eighteen pounds a year: If she has three such children the pension shall be twenty-four pounds a year: If site has more than three such children the pension shall be thirty pounds a year. Each of the foregoing rates of pension shall be subject to a deduction of one pound for every pound by which the estimated annual income, as- hereinafter defined, of the widow and her children exceeds the sum of thirty pounds." No exception can be taken to the foregoing except in so far as it provides £l2 for a widow with one child and only £3O for one with more than three. In these days of race suicide we should have thought that Parliament would not have been asked to provide for a widow with one child without restriction as to the age of the mother and the' length of her married life. Even two is a very small family. But £3O a year is a very small allowance for a family of anything above three. We would have preferred to have seen the allowance to the widow with one child reduced or even left out, and a larger amount, up to say £1 a week, according to the number of the family under the age of 14 granted to the widow with a number of children. This would lave been some slight acknowledgment jf the worth to the State of that most Jeserving of all people, the mother of i large family. Large families should ie encouraged in every way possible, ind this would have afforded at least )ne way of doing so. The "estimated innual income" as used in the Bill is said to mean the "aggregate income "rom all sources" other than personal earnings or a pension under the Act. i widow is therefore supposed to be lble to exist on £3O a year plus the imount of the pension and what she ;an earn. It will certainly require jjreat economy on the part of a widow vith, say, six children under 14 years >f age to provide for all the wants of ler family with an income of £6O a rear. It is true that she will have ;he right to earn any sum she can ibove that, but the mother with a 'amily cannot be expected to do much outside her own household duties f she attends to her little ones. Certainly she will be better off than formerly but while Parliament is making a :hange it should see that the most leserving are cared for, and widows vith large families of children are more entitled to consideration than :hose with small ones. Considerable x>wers are given to magistrates to adudicate upon claims for pensions unler the Bill and care is taken to pro;ect the State from those who deprive themselves directly or indirectly of >roperty or income in order to qualify or a pension. If a pensioner dies or names or ceases to reside in New Zealand her pension also ceases. Pensions are inalienable whether by assignment, charge, execution, bankruptcy or otherwise. The object of the Bill s a laudable one, and it is worthy of support; but we repeat that more lonsideration should be shown to wid>ws' with large families. Very little nore money would be required if this vere done and a readjustment made lifferentially in favor of that worthy md patriotic class of the community ,vhich esteems it a privilege and a duty o rear large families thus rendering a service to the State.