During the course of a recent debate on underfed children
in elementary schools in the House of Commons Sir William Anson promised to give careful attention to the suggestion that Poor Law Guardians should be enabled to give relief to such children, and to recover the cost, where neglect could be proved, from the parents. This pledge has now been made good, and last Saturday an important Order embodying this principle was issued by the Local Government Board. The Order, which deals only with children under sixteen who are not blind, deaf, or dumb, and are living with a father not in receipt of relief, provides that the application for relief must be made to the Guardians by the managers, by a teacher empowered by the managers, or an officer duly empowered by the education authorities. On its receipt the Guardians are to inquire into the circumstances, and decide whether the relief is to be granted in the ordinary way or as a loan, in either case notifying their decision to the father. Thus the father will be allowed the opportunity of making the needful provision himself, but if he fails to do so, the Guardians will be empowered to recover by County Court process the cost of any relief given as a loan. The relief must in no case be given in money, nor is it to be continued on a single application for more than a month, and it is suggested that where possible arrangements should be made with local charitable organisations for the issue of tickets for meals. The Order is to be welcomed as a practical attempt to deal with a question of national importance. We see the most serious objections to relieving parents of their rightful responsibilities by the indiscriminate feeding of children at the public expense, but none against forcing parents to do their duty. To starve a child is to be guilty of cruelty, and cruelty to children should be punished.
Previous page
