9

H.—3la

Case No. 1. Father : Weak-minded. Mother : Weak-minded. < ' — ; — Female, born 1906. Female, born 1907. Female, born 1908. Female, born 1909. Female, born 1911. Male, born 1912. Male, born 1913. Male, born 1915. Female, born 1916. All these children except one are feeble-minded, and when committed to the care of the State were found living under deplorable conditions. Most of these children will require lifelong control in an institution. The total cost of maintaining this family will be approximately £9,500. These children are cousins of another family under State control. There are four children, two of whom are simple-minded. The mother is feeble-minded, and the father died in a mental hospital. In this case the mothers of the children are sisters. Case No. 2. Father : Feeble-minded. Mother : Feeble-minded and drunkard. Female, Male, Male, Male, Male, Male, Female, Female, Male, Male Mxlo illegitimate, born 1904. born 1906. born 1907. bom 1910. born, 1912. born 1914. born 1916. born 1918. born 1920. born 1923 born 1902. All these children are feeble-minded and have been brought under State control shortly after birth. Some are now in mental hospitals and some in special schools. All these children are lifelong custodial cases. The cost to the State for maintenance is approximately £16,000, towards which amount the father has contributed but £6*. Case No. 3. Father : Old-age pensioner in Home for Aged People. Mother: Apparently weak mentally and morally—at present in reformatory home.

All these children, numbering twenty-one, were committed to the care of the State, in most cases shortly after birth. Twelve of the children are illegitimate. The husband of daughter No. 6is also the father of one each of the offspring of daughters Nos. 2 and 3. Most of the children are delicate and poorly developed, and at least six of them are definitely tubercular. The remainder are either neurotic or erratic in their conduct and have given a great deal of trouble in their up-bringing. The total cost to the State for the maintenance of these children may be quoted at £10,000, but of this amount £482 has been recovered from the various men liable. It is difficult to assess the State's total commitment. If some of the children have to be maintained until they reach the age of twenty-one the additional cost will be £3,000. There is the probability, too, that the offspring of these children will become charges upon the State. Case No. 4. Father : Addicted to drink and degenerate. Mother : Drunkard and mentally deficient. < — — —* — Female, Male, Female, Male, Male, Female, Male, Male, Male, born 1908. born 1909. born 1910. born 1914. born 1916. born 1917. born 1918. born 1920. born 1923. Admitted special school, 1920. All these children are illegitimate and are feeble-minded, requiring lifelong control. Three are All probably feeble-minded. Not yet brought under State control. now inmates of mental hospitals, and in time the remainder of the family at present in special schools will be sent on to mental hospitals. An officer of the Education Department describes the home as " one of the dirtiest and most squalid homes I have seen." The cost (including past, present, and approximate future maintenance) to the State for the upkeep of this family is estimated at £10,000. Nothing has been paid by the parents towards the support of these children. In all probability, the remaining members of the family will be brought under State control at a probable cost of £4,500. Case No. 5. Father : Drunken waster ; subnormal; frequently in gaol. Mother : Feeble-minded helpless invalid. Died shortly after children committed to care of State. Male, born 1904. Female, born 1907. Male, born 1909. Male, born 1911. Male, born 1913. Female, born 1914. Male, born 1916 Tubercular. Partly Tubercular. Suffers Subnormal. May in Mentally deficient. Mentally deficient. Feeble - minded and Very backward. Mav self-supporting. from epileptic seizures. time become partly self- Case for lifelong control. Lifelong custodial case. badly nourished. Case become partly self-support-Inmate mental hospital. supporting under favour- for permanent segrega- ing under favourable eonLifelong custody. able conditions. tion. ditions. In 1916 the whole of this family was committed to the care of the State, and at least six of them will be lifelong cases. The cost to the State, computed up to twentyone years in each case, is approximately £8,500, but the additional future cost may easily be estimated at £5,000, making in all the sum of £13,500. The father was ordered to pay at the rate of 15s. a week, but the amount recovered from him to date is only £156. Case No. 6. Father : Subnormal. Was a watersider, so dirty in habits that watersiders complained. A sexual case.' Mother : Has always been addicted to periodic fits of insanity. Has been in mental hospital on several occasions. — A _ Female, born 1904. Female, born 1909. Female, born 1915. Female, born 1916. j Unknown. Unknown. Unknown. Subnormal. Subnormal; also Subnormal. Subnormal. delinquent. These four children were committed to the care of the State in 1917. | |Not yet brought under State control. The approximate cost to the State of maintaining these four children will be £5,150, less what is recovered from the father. Up to the present the amount received from him is £176. Should the other three children be brought under State control, the additional cost may amount to approximately £5,000. This is a glaring case of persons being allowed to marry who are totally unfit to marry. A relative stated that the mother's mentality was in a shocking state at the time of marriage. The father has always been subnormal. The woman is too insane at times to attend to ordinary household duties or matters of ordinary personal cleanliness. At the time the children were committed the home was in a shockingly filthy condition, and at that time was one of the worst brought under the notice of the Department in ihe district. The second girl (age fifteen) has had her hair cut for the sake of cleanliness by some kindly disposed well-wisher. The mother allowed the dirt to accumulate to such an extent that the whole of the girl's head was covered with a scab of dirt. She had to enter the Hospital to have this removed. This was a most objectionable case. After the State took charge of these children the mother and father were still allowed to cohabit, with the result that three more children have been born. Without doubt, these children will also be supported by the State. The father is a sexual case, and foster-parents of the children have objected to the father visiting them on account of the way he handles them.

2.— H. 31A.

1- 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Female. Female. Female. Female. Female. Female. Prostitute residing with drunk- Prostitute and addicted to Immoral and generally bad Indifferent, married criminal, Drunkard and married a Well - known prostitute, ard - drink. character. Inmate of private now in prison. drunkard although man of good married member of notorious reformatory. education. criminal family, and himself •• criminal. Female, Female, Male, Male, Male, Male, Female, Male, Male, Female, Female, Female, Female, Female, Female, Male, born 1910. born born born born born born born born born born born born born born born 1908. 1911. 1913, 1915. 1907. 1910. 1912. 1911. 1912. 1908. 1912. 1916. 1898. 1900. 1902. Male, Female, Female, Female, born 1914. born 1917. born 1905. born 1908. All these children are illegiti- Both illegitimate. Reputed Mother married a widower mate. Reputed father a drunk- All these children are illegiti- fathers well-known bad charac- with three children. There are All delicate neurotic types ard and man of bad character. mate. In most cases father ters. three more the result of marri- and difficult to manage. unknown. age maintained by the State.