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THE LIBRARY
OF THE

NEW YORK STATE SCHOOL
OF
INDUSTRIAL AND LABOR

RELATIONS

 

AT
CORNELL UNIVERSITY

 

 

 

 
IOWA SOCIAL HISTORY SERIES
EDITED BY BENJAMIN F. SHAMBAUGH
POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA
IOWA SOCIAL HISTORY SERIES
EDITED BY BENJAMIN F. SHAMBAUGH

 

 

HISTORY OF

POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION
IN IOWA

BY
JOHN L. GILLIN

PROPERTY OF LIBRARY

NEW YORK STATE SCHOOL

INDUSTRIAL AKD LABOR RELATIONS
CORNELL UNIVERSITY

 

 

PUBLISHED AT IOWA CITY IOWA IN 1914 BY

THE STATE eESnOE ey SOCIETY OF IOWA
rv TD
EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION

Poverty is such a persistent and perplexing
social problem and its amelioration through
government action so difficult that it is not sur-
prising to learn that poor relief legislation and
administration in Iowa have not been altogether
successful. There is need for new legislation and
more scientific methods of administration. But
changes in the system should be made in the light
of experience both in Iowa and in other jurisdic-
tions.

By tracing in this volume the history of poor
relief legislation in Iowa, Dr. Gillin has prepared
the way for that intensive study of the actual
workings of the system which must inevitably
guide changes both in the law and in its admin-
istration.

Bens. F. SHaMBaucH

OFFICE OF THE SUPERINTENDENT AND EDITOR
Tue State HistoricaL Sociery or Iowa
Iowa City Iowa

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at
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PROPERTY OF LIBRARY
NEW! YORK STATE SCHGOL
INBUSTHIAL AUD LABOR RELATIONS

CORNELL UNIVERSITY
AUTHOR’S PREFACE

Tue writer’s purpose in the pages which follow is
to present an historical and analytical study of legis-
lation for the relief of the poor in Iowa. Except
incidentally, no attempt has been made to deal with
the administrative side of public poor relief. Such
a study is much needed, however, for it is only
through a careful investigation of the actual work-
ing of the laws in the various local areas that the
shortcomings or successes of poor relief legislation
can be fully determined.

The present study has been divided into four
parts, the first of which contains a general historical
narrative of poor relief legislation in the States and
Territories from which the early laws of Iowa were
inherited, and in Iowa from 1838 to 1914. Part two,
dealing with special phases of poor relief legislation
in Iowa, aims to point out the part played by differ-
ent public officials and the general methods employed
in poor relief. In part three an effort has been made
to summarize the methods employed by the State in
caring for special classes of dependents, and to show
to what extent the principle of State control of poor

ix
x AUTHOR’S PREFACE

relief has gained ground in Iowa. Finally, part four
is devoted to a summary of the present system of
poor relief in Iowa and to some changes which, in
the belief of the writer, would bring the system of
relieving poverty more closely into line with modern,
scientific ideas.

That the present plan of public poor relief in
Iowa, which is largely inherited without substantial
change from the laws of a much earlier day, can be
improved and made really serviceable is shown by
the experience of Indiana with a system which until
recent years was equally as primitive. Furthermore,
the need of amendments is clearly shown by the
fact that since the Civil War the law-makers have
gradually been turning away from attempts to im-
prove the poorhouse and outdoor systems of relief
to efforts to formulate preventive measures and con-
structive laws for the care of children and other
special classes of dependents. Perhaps it is now
time that attention should again be turned to the
long-established institutions, namely the poorhouse
and outdoor relief, with the purpose of introducing
scientific methods.

The thanks of the writer are due to Professor
Benjamin F. Shambaugh, the Superintendent and
Editor of The State Historical Society of Iowa,
whose encouragement made possible the preparation
AUTHOR’S PREFACE xi

of this monograph; and to Dr. Dan EH. Clark, the
Assistant Editor of the Society, who has read both
the manuscript and the proof and has made many
helpful suggestions. Miss Ruth Gallaher rendered
assistance in verifying the notes and references.
Joun L. Giuin

SratH UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN
Mapison WISCONSIN
CONTENTS

Eprror’s INTRODUCTION
AUTHOR’S PREFACE .

IT.

Til.

IV.

PART I
GENERAL HISTORICAL NARRATIVE

Poor Rewier LEGISLATION IN THE NoRTH-
WEST TERRITORY AND IN Harty OHIO

Poor RELIEF LEGISLATION IN THE TERRITORY
oF MicHIGAN

Poor ReEieF LEGISLATION IN THE TERRITORY
OF WISCONSIN .

Poor RELIEF LEGISLATION IN THE TERRITORY
or Iowa

A GENERAL SuRVEY OF Poor Rewer Lacis-
LATION IN Jowa 1846-1914

PART II

ix

20
39
44

71

SPECIAL PHASES OF POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION

VI.
VII.
VIII.
Ix.

IN IOWA

Toe Law or SETTLEMENT .
County RELIEF OFFICIALS .
TOWNSHIP AND City RELIEF OFFICIALS

THE PoorHousE IN Iowa Poor Retier LEc-
ISLATION

OvuTpooR RELIEF OF THE Poor in Iowa

117
126
144

157
183

Xili
xiv

CONTENTS
PART III

SPECIAL CLASSES OF DEPENDENTS AND STATE

XI.

XI.

XIII.

XIV.

XV.

XVI.

XVII.

XVIII.

XIX.

CONTROL

SPECIAL CLASSES OF DEPENDENTS: Nor-
MAL CHILDREN j

SprecraL CLAsses OF DEPENDENTS: DE-
FECTIVES

SprciaL CLAsses or DEPENDENTS: SoL-
DIERS, SAILORS, AND MARINES

SpecIsL CLASSES OF DEPENDENTS: THE
Sick

SPECIAL CLASSES OF DEPENDENTS: VaA-
GRANTS .

SpecIAL RELIEF FOR THE VICTIMS OF
CALAMITY

State ContTRoL OF Poor RELIEF

PART IV
SUMMARY AND SUGGESTIONS

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT SYSTEM OF
Poor Reiter In Iowa .

Some Sucecrstep CHANGES IN THE Sys-
TEM OF Poor Rewer in Iowa

APPENDIX . :

Notes AND REFERENCES

INDEX

195

233

278

285

289

293
296

319

327
337
343
387
PART I
GENERAL HISTORICAL NARRATIVE
I

POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN THE NORTH-
WEST TERRITORY AND IN EARLY OHIO

The origins of the poor relief legislation of the
Territory of Iowa are to be traced through the stat-
utes of the Territories of Wisconsin and Michigan to
the laws adopted by the Governor and Judges of the
Northwest Territory. Hence it will be necessary to
make a brief study of the system of poor relief estab-
lished in the Old Northwest. Moreover, it appears
that in 1842 the legislators of the Territory of Iowa
turned to the statutes of Ohio and adopted, with only
a few modifications, a poor relief law that had been
in operation in that State for several years; and so it
becomes equally necessary to examine the evolution
of the scheme of poor relief which was transplanted
from Ohio to Iowa. ‘

The first mention of poor relief in the statutes of
the Northwest Territory is to be found in the laws
adopted by the Governor and Judges in 1790, three
years after the establishment of the Territory, and it
occurs only as a minor provision in an act dealing
primarily with the creation of townships in the sev-
eral counties. This act put the administration of
poor relief into the hands of one or more overseers
appointed for one year by the justices of the court of

3
4 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

general quarter sessions.* These overseers were re-
quired to take an oath of office similar to that pre-
scribed for the constable of that day. They were
merely assistants to the justices of the peace in the
administration of poor relief, it being their business
to report to the justices any persons needing relief
and to look into any case brought to the attention of
the justice and report back to him. Thus the cen-
tral figure in the administration of relief was the
justice of the peace: relief was a function of the
eourt.?

The act of 1790 was superseded five years later
by a law which was passed on June 19, 1795, and went
into effect on October 1st. It was a lengthy measure
of thirty-two sections, adopted from the statutes of
Pennsylvania. It differed from the former law by
making the justices of the peace merely the author-
ities to appoint the overseers of the poor in each
township and to enforce the orders of the overseers.
The latter now became the real administrators of
poor relief. They, not the justices, levied the tax.
They handed to the justices the names of those from
whom their successors were to be appointed. They
had the right to provide by contract for the care of
any poor person, and the authority to expend the
money raised by taxes levied by themselves in pro-
viding places where the poor could work on stocks of
hemp, flax, thread, and other materials to pay for
their support. It was they who apprenticed the poor
children of the township. They were declared to be
a body politic and corporate, and were authorized to
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY AND OHIO 5

receive grants and bequests for the use of the poor.

This law contained detailed regulations concern-
ing legal settlement for relief purposes. It provided
for the punishment of anyone who should bring into
the township any person who might become charge-
able to the relief agencies, and for the removal of all
paupers who had no legal settlement in the township.
It prescribed rules concerning the liability of indi-
viduals for the support of their indigent relatives,
and made provision for the seizure and custody of
the property of persons who deserted their wives
and children. In a word, this act, which was a slightly
modified copy of the laws of Elizabeth, passed about
two centuries earlier, provided a fairly complete sys-
tem of poor relief.* i

On December 19, 1799, a brief supplementary act
was passed which modified the law of 1795 in only
two particulars.* It provided for the farming out of
the care of the poor to the lowest bidder as the sole
method of relief, and transferred to the county com-
missioners the duties previously performed in re-
spect to poor relief by the justices of the county court
of quarter sessions.

For six years these provisions stood unchanged,
until on February 22, 1805, the Third General As-
sembly of the new State of Ohio enacted a law
chiefly for the purpose of making the previous laws
on the subject conform to an act providing for the
incorporation of townships.’ This act followed much
the same lines as the law of 1795, but was altogether
simpler in its provisions, centering the ultimate au-
6 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

thority for the relief of the poor in the township
trustees rather than in the county commissioners.
While overseers of the poor were in immediate
charge of the paupers in their respective townships,
they acted under the direction of the township trus-
tees.

An act passed in 1808 furthered the centralization
of the administration of poor relief in the township
authorities by putting into the hands of the trustees,
rather than of the electors, the power to levy taxes
‘‘whenever it may be found necessary’’. This act
also provided for the compensation of the overseers.°

Two years later, on February 19, 1810, an act was
passed which codified the laws of Ohio relating to the
relief of the poor, adding no new sections but elim-
inating the provision of the previous law which re-
lated to bequests for the benefit of the poor.’

On February 10, 1816, a statute was enacted which
modified the existing laws on the relief of the poor
in their homes in a few particulars. It added the
provision that in cases of necessity the overseers
might give aid without securing an order from the
township trustees. It omitted the former provision
that notice to depart must be given to any persons
coming into the township within five months after
their coming, in order to prevent them from gaining
a legal settlement. A new clause gave to any guard-
ian or parent whose child was bound out by the over-
seers and who felt aggrieved by such action, the right
of appealing to the court of common pleas. The law
also put definitely and completely into the hands of
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY AND OHIO 7

the township trustees the power to levy the poor tax.
In short, it only carried further the tendency to cen-
tralize the administration of poor relief in the hands
of the township trustees and their subordinates, the
overseers of the poor.’

It was in this same year, however, and but a fort-
night later, on February 26, 1816, that a law was
passed which was evidently intended to change the
whole method of poor relief.? The change aimed to
provide for the care of the poor entirely within a
poorhouse. For about eleven years this method was
tried; but when it failed to meet the approbation of
the public the mixed system of having both outdoor
and indoor relief was settled upon as the policy of
the State.*° Of the legislation concerning relief in a
poorhouse more will be said later.

In spite of the avowed intention of changing the
method of relief, the old laws continued upon the
statute books of Ohio, for the purpose of providing
for those counties and townships which did not erect
poorhouses pursuant to the provisions of the new
law. Moreover, the laws relating to the temporary
relief of the poor in their homes and to the farming
out of the care of the poor in counties having no
poorhouses were not tampered with during the
period from 1816 to 1829 when Ohio was trying the
experiment of having each county or township build
a poorhouse and care for its poor in that way. On
February 12, 1829, the law of 1816 was amended by
making the time of residence necessary to gain a le-
gal settlement for purposes of poor relief three years
8 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

instead of one, and by providing that no black or
mulatto could ever gain a legal settlement.* On
March 14, 1831, however, an act was passed which
changed the time necessary for securing a settlement
from three years back to one year — although three
years remained the period of continuous residence in
a place required to gain a legal settlement after once
being warned to depart.”

This law frankly recognized the fact that the plan
to have all the poor cared for in poorhouses had
failed of realization. Many of the counties and town-
ships had not built poorhouses. Accordingly, since
the provision of the law which permitted townships
to build poorhouses in counties having none had been
repealed, the new law explicitly permitted that the
care of the poor in any township of a county not hav-
ing a poorhouse might be farmed out, but that no
contract of this kind should be made for more than
ayear. This method was also open to a township in
a county having a poorhouse in case any poor person
had been rejected by the board of directors of the
poorhouse. This act also provided for the temporary
care of casual paupers who had no legal settlement,
without all the complicated processes prescribed by
previous acts.

Ohio had no specific provision for poorhouses until
February 26, 1816, although in the law adopted by
the Governor and Judges of the Northwest Territory
on June 19, 1795, there was a section which provided
that the overseers of the poor in a township, with the
approbation of any two justices of the peace of the
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY AND OHIO 9

county, could levy a tax ‘‘for the support of the poor;
to be employed in providing proper houses and
places, and a convenient stock of hemp, flax, thread
and other ware and stuff, for setting to work such
poor persons, as apply for relief, and are capable of
working’’.* Evidently this law contemplated a kind
of workhouse or poorhouse. There is no evidence,
however, that this plan was actually followed to any
considerable extent.

The law of 1816 was a very comprehensive act but
its importance in this connection lies in the fact that
the first five sections served as the model for the
poorhouse law adopted fourteen years later by the
Territory of Michigan; and the Michigan statute, in
turn, had many features in common with the first act
adopted by the Territory of Wisconsin— an act
which was almost literally adopted as the first poor
law of the Territory of Iowa. Moreover, it was the
Michigan law of 1830 which was in force when the
Towa country came under the jurisdiction of the Ter-
ritory of Michigan in 1834.

The chief feature of the Ohio law of 1816 was the
authority given to the county commissioners to erect
and establish poorhouses whenever they considered
such institutions necessary or advantageous. They
had power to buy land and levy taxes for that specific
purpose. The direct management of the poorhouses
thus established was placed in the hands of a board
of seven directors appointed by the county commis-
sioners, which board was declared to be a body politic
and corporate with all the powers of such a body.
10 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

It appointed a superintendent to reside in or near
the poorhouse and to have immediate management
under the regulations laid down by the board of di-
rectors. The law contained many of the features now
to be found in the laws relating to the management of
poorhouses, such as forbidding the superintendent to
admit any one to the poorhouse without an order
from the proper authorities, and requiring that he
should keep a book in which the names of all persons
admitted were to be recorded. The directors were to
see that the poorhouse was visited at least once a
month by a committee from their body. Each year
the board was to make a report to the county commis-
sioners concerning the condition of the institution.
Moreover, provision was made for the establish-
ment of township poorhouses in such counties as had
established no county poorhouses under this act, pro-
vided a majority of the legal voters of the township
favored such procedure. In such cases, if the county
should afterwards build a county poorhouse, the
township in question would not be liable for any of
the necessary expense either of building or support-
ing the county institution —a provision so framed
that every inducement was put upon the county to
build a poorhouse. In case the township built the
poorhouse, it was to be under the control of a board
of three directors, who were to be elected by the
voters of the township and make their reports to the
township trustees. They were to appoint a superin-
tendent of the poorhouse who was to proceed in the
same manner as the superintendent of the county
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY AND OHIO 11

poorhouse. Finally, this act released the county and
township overseers of the poor of so much of their
duties as related to the care of the poor in any county
or township where poorhouses had been established
as contemplated by this law. Manifestly the aim of
the law was to do away ultimately with all relief of
the poor outside of the poorhouse.*

For over ten years the law relating to the relief of
the poor in poorhouses was unchanged. On January
28, 1827, however, an act was passed which changed
the number of directors of county poorhouses from
seven to three, added the requirement of an oath of
office for these officials, and empowered the county
commissioners to fill any vacancies in the board of di-
rectors. It gave the directors power to bind out as
apprentices all poor children in the poorhouse, a pow-
er which under the system of farming out the poor
was in the hands of the township trustees or of the
township overseers of the poor. Moreover, this act
vested in the directors of the poorhouse the authority
to hold for the use of the poor of the county all per-
sonal property which had escheated to the State from
persons dying without heirs, and the care of which
property had been vested in the overseers of the poor
of the township ‘‘agreeably to the fourteenth section
of the ‘act regulating the course of descents and dis-
tribution of personal estates.’ ’’ This provision was
evidently made in the effort to bring the whole sys-
tem into line with the policy of relief in the poor-
house alone.

The law passed on January 19, 1829, further con-
12 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

centrated the care of the poor in the hands of the
directors of the county poorhouse,** who were now to
give orders upon the county auditor for the payment
of any expenses incurred in bringing the pauper to
the poorhouse or in keeping him while his case was
being investigated. They, not the township trustees
or the overseers of the poor, were the ultimate au-
thorities to decide whether or not a person was to be
admitted to the poorhouse. All the authority hitherto
vested in the overseers of the poor to investigate the
cases of those who might not be legal residents of the
State and to remove them now passed into the hands
of the directors of the poorhouse. The relief of even
those indigent persons who were in too precarious
health to be removed to the poorhouse was placed in
the hands of the directors. Thus, the tendency in the
legislation of Ohio was to concentrate authority in
the hands of the directors of the county poorhouse,
and to provide entirely for the care of the poor
through the authorities of that institution.

The last Ohio law dealing with the care of the poor
by means of the poorhouse which comes within the
scope of this discussion was passed on March 8,
1831.7 It was simply a codification of the laws
passed since 1816, with some modifications based on
the experience of the previous fifteen years. The
only changes made in the existing laws were the elim-
ination of the provision of the law of 1816 giving the
townships the power to erect. poorhouses if the
county commissioners failed to do so, and the inser-
tion of a provision that the superintendent should
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY AND OHIO 13

admit no one to the poorhouse except upon the order
of a member of the board of directors, instead of the
previous rule that such an order must be signed by
the president of that board. This act is of special
interest in this study because it was adopted as the
second poorhouse law enacted by the legislature of
the Territory of Iowa.

In 1834 a minor amendment was made to this act,
providing for the care of a needy person in the poor-
house even though he were not a legal resident of the
county.** This modification was made necessary by
reason of the fact that outdoor relief had been dis-
carded for relief in the poorhouse, and there was
need of some method of caring for transients and
non-residents.

A review of the course of development in the poor
relief legislation of the Northwest Territory and
Ohio from the beginning down to the year 1834 re-
veals many changes. From being merely a section
in a law primarily concerning other subjects, the
poor relief legislation had become a highly developed
series of laws dealing only with the subject of the re-
lief of poverty.

During this period of forty-four years two differ-
ent methods of relieving the poor had developed:
the old method of ‘‘farming out’’ the care of the
poor, which continued throughout this period; and,
after 1816, the new and alternative method of relief
by means of the poorhouse. During these years there
had also arisen the method of supplying temporary
14 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

relief to people in their homes, a method which was
destined later to assume an importance undreamed
of at its inception.

In the beginning the primary authorities for the
relief of the needy were the justices of the peace, as
in the acts of 1790 and 1795. Later these authorities
gave way to the county commissioners, as in the act
of 1799.. In 1805 these officials in turn were super-
seded by the township trustees, who in 1808 took the
place of the electors of the township in voting the
taxes necessary for the relief of the poor. The legis-
lation of 1816 left the township trustees as the pri-
mary authorities in charge of the care of the poor
in those counties in which there were no county poor-
houses, but put into the hands of the county commis-
sioners the care of the poor where county poorhouses
had been established.

The overseers of the poor in the townships were
never the primary authorities for the relief of pov-
erty during this period. They came nearest to the at-
tainment of that position by the act of 1799, but even
then they were required to report to the county com-
missioners the amounts which they had contracted to
pay for the care of the poor; while the county com-
missioners were empowered to levy the necessary
taxes. Usually the overseers were simply the sec-
ondary authorities immediately in charge of the ad-
ministration, but under the control of the justices of
the peace, as in the laws of 1790 and 1795, or of the
county commissioners, as in the act of 1799, or of the
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY AND OHIO 15

township trustees, as in the laws of 1805, 1808, and
1816.

In 1831 once more the overseers of the poor be-
came almost independent of the township trustees in
their care of those persons who required temporary
relief, in farming out the care of those persons who
must be cared for in counties having no poorhouses,
and in investigating the cases of those paupers sus-
pected of not having a legal settlement in their town-
ship. In removing such paupers to their last place
of legal settlement, however, the overseers were to
proceed under the orders of the township trustees.
By the act of 1834, their control over those needing
temporary relief was taken from them and they were
required to remove all such persons to the county
poorhouse, if there was one, under the orders of the
township trustees. Moreover, by the acts of 1831,
many of the powers of the overseers were taken from
them and vested in the directors of the poorhouse.

At the close of the period under review, therefore,
there were four sets of authorities having to do with
persons cared for in the county poorhouses: the
county commissioners, the board of directors, a su-
perintendent, and the overseers of the poor. Fur-
thermore, there were two sets of authorities, namely,
the township trustees and the overseers of the poor,
in charge of the poor in counties having no poor-
houses, of such persons as needed temporary relief,
of those who must be farmed out, and of those who
were refused care by the authorities of the poor-
houses for any reason.
16 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

In the terms of legal settlement there was not so
much variation: the chief changes were from one
year’s residence, as in the acts of 1795, 1805, 1810,
and 1816, to three years, as in the law of 1829, and
back to one year again, as in the act of 1831, except in
the case of indented servants or apprentices. By the
act of 1829 it was provided that no mulatto or black
person could ever gain a legal settlement in Ohio.
This provision continued throughout the period, and
is to be found in the laws of Iowa from 1842 to 1864.
The only law requiring more than a mere residence
for acertain length of time within a township was the
act of 1795, borrowed from Pennsylvania, which re-
quired service in public office for one year, the pay-
ment for two successive years of taxes for the sup-
port of the poor, or a leasehold of lands or tenements
and residence therein for one year — provisions
which bear the ear-marks of their English origin.
There was an exception to this rule in the case of
indented servants and apprentices, who obtained a
legal settlement by residence of one year in service,
and in the case of a married woman whose husband
had established a legal settlement.

The treatment of those who had no legal settle-
ment varied from detailed provisions for their re-
moval, most elaborate in the act of 1795, to simply
warning them to depart but allowing them to remain,
providing they furnished bonds to indemnify the
county or township in case they became dependent,
as in the law of 1816, or to giving temporary relief,
as in the acts of 18929 and 1831.
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY AND OHIO 17

In only one act of this period, that of 1831, was
there provision for discharge from the poorhouse,
and then only in the case of those who were in the
poorhouse because of bodily infirmity. When such
persons had recovered from their illness they were
to be discharged by the superintendent upon the or-
der of the board of directors.

The power to levy taxes for the relief of the poor
varied with the changes in the law relative to the pri-
mary poor relief authorities. In the law of 1795 the
township overseers of the poor, with the approba-
tion of any two justices of the peace of the county,
performed this function. By the act of 1799 the over-
seers were required to make an estimate of the
money needed, whereupon the county commissioners
levied the necessary tax. The act of 1805 authorized
the township, presumably the electors, to levy the
tax. In 1808 this power was given to the township
trustees, a provision which was retained in the acts
of 1810 and 1816. In 1829 the county commissioners
became the tax-levying authorities, and they contin-
ued to perform this function to the end of the period
under discussion.

The requirement that relatives should support
paupers when able to do so, came into the laws of the
Northwest Territory in 1795 with the statute adopted
from Pennsylvania. The father and grandfather,
mother and grandmother, and the children of paupers
were held chargeable according to this law — a pro-
vision which was not repeated in any other law
adopted in Ohio before 1834.
18 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

The provision for the binding out of pauper chil-
dren first appeared in the law of 1795. In this law
and in the acts of 1805 and 1816 the overseers of the
poor in each township, with the approbation of two
justices of the peace of the county, were authorized
to apprentice destitute children. After 1827, how-
ever, this power resided in the directors of the poor-
house in townships having such an institution.

Up to 1816 the prevailing method of caring for the
poor was by farming them out to the lowest bidder,
but in that year a law was passed making specific
provision for poorhouses. From that date through-
out this period there were in existence two methods
of caring for the poor. In those counties which had
poorhouses, it was intended that paupers should be
cared for in those institutions. In counties which had
not established poorhouses, the poor were still
farmed out, although from 1816 to 1827 it was clearly
the intent of the law-makers that the poorhouse
should supplant all other methods of relief for the
poor. After an experience of eleven years, however,
many of the counties still had no poorhouses, and the
laws give evidence that the law-makers had come to
recognize that some counties would not build them.
Accordingly further provision was made for the care
of the poor by the old method, and for the care of
those temporarily in need of relief in their homes.

Throughout this period the poorhouse was gov-
erned by a board of directors appointed by the coun-
ty commissioners, and was managed by a superin-
tendent appointed by the board of directors.
THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY AND OHIO 19

These laws of the Northwest Territory and of
Ohio have been reviewed thus fully because they not
only served as models so often in the Territories of
which the Iowa country was later a part, but for cer-
tain laws of the Territory of Iowa as well. It is in-
teresting to note what a great influence the early
poor laws of Ohio had upon similar legislation in the
Territories and States hewn out of the Old North-
west and the newer domain of Louisiana. It is not
remarkable, however, that Ohio had such an influence
on legislation when one remembers that that State,
together with the Northwest Territory, had experi-
mented with almost every possible system. By rea-
son of that fact the early statute books of Ohio con-
stituted a rich source of legislation for new Terri-
tories and Commonwealths. Almost any kind of a
law could be found therein. Doubtless also the fre-
quent transplanting of Ohio legislation was due in
part to the fact that the laws of that State were at
hand in convenient form for ready reference in
Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, and to the equally im-
portant fact that many of the early law-makers of
the Territories of the Middle West were men who
had come from Ohio or had come under the influence
of Ohio law.
Il

POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN THE TERRI-
TORY OF MICHIGAN

The Governor and Judges of the Northwest Ter-
ritory were given authority by the Ordinance of 1787
to enact laws borrowed from the original States until
such time as a Territorial legislature should be elect-
ed. This provision was repeated in the Organic Act
creating the Territory of Indiana, and in the later
act creating the Territory of Michigan. Accord-
ingly, until 1823 the Governor and Judges of Michi-
gan were the law-makers, and the laws were adapta-
tions of statutes from the various States.”? It was
but natural, therefore, that many of the laws of the
Territory of Michigan should be borrowed from
Ohio.

During the history of the Territory of Michigan
before 1834, the year in which Michigan’s jurisdic-
tion was extended over the Iowa country, eleven acts
affecting the relief of the poor were passed. Between
that date and July 4, 1836, when the Territory of
Wisconsin was organized, there was enacted but one
law touching upon the subject of poor relief, namely,
the act of March 7, 1834, relating to the care of in-
sane paupers. Of the eleven acts above mentioned,
four were amendatory of laws already existing.

20
THE TERRITORY OF MICHIGAN 21

These were the laws of 1824, 1825, 1829, and 1831.
The acts of 1827 and 1833 were practically alike with
the exception of a change in the name of the township
relief officials from ‘‘overseers of the poor’’ to ‘‘di-
rectors of the poor’’, and except that the latter act
incorporated several sections from the law of 1830,
providing for poorhouses. Two other laws, those of
1817 and 1820, resemble each other with the sole ex-
ception of the name of the relief authorities. In the
one case they are the justices of the peace in the
county, and in the other they are the county commis-
sioners. The essential features of the law of 1830
were incorporated in the act of 1833; and the act of
March 7, 1834, pertained solely to the care of insane
paupers.

Thus it appears that only five radically different
poor laws were enacted in the Territory of Michigan;
the acts of 1805, 1809, 1817, 1827, and 1830. The act
of 1833 was a codification of all the existing laws on
the subject of poor relief. The laws of 1817 and 1820
were peculiar in that they both repealed the law of ~
1805, while neither of them repealed the act of 1809.
In fact the latter law was not repealed in any of these
subsequent acts by specific mention. Another of
these laws, that of 1827, was enacted to expire by its
own limitations in 1829, but by an act of 1829 it was
continued in full force, except in certain provisions.

Characteristic of the first poor law of the Terri-
tory of Michigan, adopted in 1805 from the statutes
of New Jersey, were the unit of relief (the Terri-
tory) ; the primary relief authorities (the justices of
22 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

the peace) ; the legal method of calling the attention
of the justices of the peace to the needy person (by
means of a written statement); and the method of
caring for the poor (by contract to the lowest bid-
der, let by the Marshal of the Territory).** The act
of 1809, borrowed from Vermont, was marked by the
introduction of terms of settlement; penalties for
bringing into the Territory paupers or those likely
to become such; the change of unit of relief from the
Territory to the district; complicated regulations for
the removal of those paupers who had no legal settle-
ment and for the recovery of the costs of the tem-
porary relief of such persons; the introduction of
relief authorities called ‘‘overseers of the poor’’, to-
gether with detailed provisions for the keeping, aud-
iting, and settling of their accounts; and penalties to
enforce the service of those elected to the office of
overseer.” The law of 1817, adopted from Ohio, is
characterized by the unit of relief (the county) ; the
primary relief authorities (the court of general quar-
ter sessions of the peace of the county) ; the second-
ary authority (the sheriff, who let all contracts for
the care of the poor) ; provisions for a proper carry-
ing out of the contracts; and the introduction of the
policy of binding out pauper children to service until
they reached their majority.”*

The law of 1827, adopted from the laws of Ohio,
differed from those which preceded it in containing
more detailed provisions concerning settlement and
the removal of those who had no legal settlement; by
the introduction of a section relative to the support
THE TERRITORY OF MICHIGAN 23

of paupers by relatives, and desertion on the part of
natural supporters; by changing the unit of relief to
the township, thus introducing the principle of the
mixed township and county system of relief; by pro-
viding a complicated system of mixed control over
the money necessary to support the poor (a control
shared in by the freeholders of the township and the
county supervisors) ; by including no provision for
the binding out of pauper children; and by the ap-
pearance of a section concerning the removal of
slaves who had run away from their masters.”

In addition to these laws, which were of primary
importance, mention should be made of certain minor
acts in order to make clear the course of develop-
ment. By an act adopted from Ohio on May 30, 1818,
the courts of general quarter sessions of the peace
were abolished and their powers and duties vested in
the boards of county commissioners.” In accordance
with this change the existing poor law was modified
by an act of April 6, 1820.”

An act of July 17, 1824, amended the existing laws
by requiring the county commissioners to make the
contracts for caring for paupers, or to provide tem-
porary care for such as needed it, instead of dele-
gating that power to the sheriff as their representa-
tive in the premises.”

An amendatory act of 1825 introduced a number of
new features. It was the first important statute rel-
ative to poor relief passed in Michigan after that
Territory had passed into the second stage of Terri-
torial government, when the laws were no longer
24 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

passed by the Governor and Judges but by the Gov-
ernor and the Legislative Council. This law provided
that no one should be supported as a pauper who was
not a citizen of the United States or who had not re-
sided in the Territory at the time of its surrender by
the British authorities in accordance with the Treaty
of London of November 19, 1794. Furthermore, it
contained a clause providing for support of paupers
by relatives — parents, grandparents, grandchildren,
brothers, and sisters who were of sufficient ability —
up to a maximum of $2.50 a week for each pauper.
A residence of three years previous to application
for support was required; and the provisions relative
to legal settlement were very strict. Settlement for
the purposes of poor relief was limited to bona fide
renters of a tenement of a yearly rental value of
thirty,dollars or more actually paid, or to freeholders
of an estate valued at not less than one hundred dol-
lars, or to holders of a public office for at least. one
year, or to apprentices of at least two years’ stand-
ing. A legal settlement. could be established by these
parties only on the condition that they had not been
warned by the county commissioners to depart within
three years from the time of their coming to the Ter-
ritory. The act also incorporated the provisions of
the amendment of 1824.78

On October 29, 1829, an act was passed which pro-
vided for a board of five directors and a township
treasurer to administer the poor relief in the town-
ship ** — a provision which was changed by the act of
February 26, 1831, substituting a single director,*°
THE TERRITORY OF MICHIGAN 25

and modified again by the act of April 17, 1833, which
provided for two directors of the poor.” Aside from
some minor details the act of 1829 provided princi-
pally for the farming out of the care of the poor by
the directors, gave them power to lay down rules for
the government of the contractor, directed that the
taxes for the carrying out of the provisions of the
law should be collected by the township treasurer,
transferred the duties of the former overseers of the
poor to the directors, and provided for the building
of a township poorhouse by the board of directors
with the approbation and consent of a majority of
the householders of the township. The poor were to
be cared for exclusively in the poorhouse wherever
one was built. The chief features of all these amend-
atory acts were included in the important laws later
enacted, especially in the act of 1833.

The act of July 22, 1830, copied almost verbatim
from the Ohio law of February 26, 1816, was the first
law of the Territory of Michigan devoted entirely to
the subject of poorhouses.* According to the pro-
visions of this law the erection of poorhouses, as had
been the case under the Ohio law, was made optional
with the board of supervisors. The maximum
amount of land to be used for such purposes was
limited to one hundred and sixty acres — a provision
not found in the Ohio act. There was to be a board
of directors composed of not less than three or more
than seven discreet persons to manage the institu-
tion, as compared with a board of seven directors
in Ohio. Another new feature was the provision
26 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

that each township should share in the cost of main-
taining the county poorhouse according to the num-
ber of paupers which that township contributed to
the whole number therein. Moreover, those sections
of the Ohio law which related to the establishment
and maintenance of township poorhouses were
omitted.

The law of April 22, 1833, stands out preéminently
in Michigan’s legislation on poor relief by reason of
its comprehensiveness. It embraced practically all
the legislation on this subject which had been enact-
ed up to the time it was passed and which remained
unrepealed, but it contained no new provisions.

In this law there was incorporated the provision
of the amendatory act of 1829 to the effect that any
poor person who had not a residence in the township
was to be maintained by the county. It ignored,
however, many of the provisions of the act of 1829,
and went back in almost every detail to the act of
1827. At the same time it omitted the section of the
latter act relating to the support of paupers by rela-
tives. Instead of incorporating the changes in the
definition of the poor relief authorities made by the
acts of 1829 and 1831, it provided for two township
directors of the poor according to the act passed on
April 17, 1833. With a few minor changes, it incor-
porated the section of the act of 1829 providing for
the binding out of pauper children as apprentices.
Again, it provided for poorhouses on the basis of the
law of 1830, but modified that act in accordance with
the change made by the act of March 12, 1833, giving
THE TERRITORY OF MICHIGAN 27

the control of the poorhouse to the board of super-
visors themselves rather than to a board of directors
named by the supervisors. Finally, the act of 1833
retained the township basis of support for the county
poorhouse as provided in the act of 1830. In short,
as has already been stated, it was merely a codifica-
tion of the existing laws of the Territory of Michigan
upon the relief of the poor.®*

The primary relief authorities provided for in the
Michigan act of 1805 were any three justices of the
peace. The secondary authority, who carried out
the orders of the court, and let the contracts for the
care of the poor, was the Marshal of the Territory.
By 1809 the unit of relief had changed, for in the
meantime the Territory had been divided into dis-
tricts and the three overseers of the poor in each
district, appointed annually by the district judges,
had become the authorities for the relief of the poor.
By 1817 the whole scheme of local government had
been changed, and the court of general quarter ses-
sions of the peace in each county had been made the
primary relief authorities. The sheriff of the coun-
ty, as the secondary authority, let to the lowest bid-
ders the contracts for the care of the poor. The
only change made in this respect in the law of 1818
was that county commissioners displaced the justices
of the peace,** but the contracts were still let by the
sheriff. By an amendment adopted on July 17, 1824,
however, the county commissioners were authorized
to let the contract.

In the act of 1827 may be found the beginnings of
28 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

the mixed county and township system in the relief
of poverty. The justices of the peace of the town-
ship and the overseers of the poor in that township
were in primary control, but the freeholders voted
the taxes and the county supervisors levied them.
The secondary authorities were the constables and
the overseers of the poor. The overseers thus held
an unusual and unique position. In 1829 the law
put the entire control of poor relief into the hands
of a board composed of the treasurer of the township
and five directors. The taxes were voted by the
township electors. The number of these directors
in a township was changed in 1831 from five to one,
who had sole charge. The county supervisor from
that township, the township clerk, and the justices
of the peace, acting as a township board, had the
power to fill vacancies in the office of director and to
audit the accounts of the director and the treasurer.
In the act of April 22, 1833, recognition was given
to the fact that a general statute relating to town-
ships passed on April 17, 1833, had changed the num-
ber of directors from one to two for each township.

The unit of relief was the whole Territory in 1805.
A smaller unit for purposes of relief was not needed
at that time, since it was many years before much
money was appropriated for the care of the poor.
In 1809, however, the unit of relief was changed to
the district; in 1817, to the county; and in 1827, to
the township, except in the case of paupers who had
no legal settlement in the township, in which event it
was the county. The law of 1833 retained the town-
THE TERRITORY OF MICHIGAN 29

ship as the unit, even though provision was made
for a county poorhouse, since the township was re-
sponsible for the expense of keeping its paupers in
the county poorhouse.

The act of 1805 contained no law of settlement;
but in the act of 1809, borrowed from Vermont, there
were elaborate provisions on the subject, requiring
other than residence qualifications. These condi-
tions of legal settlement were supplemented by the
law of 1825, which added a number of qualifications.

In the special law of 1827 the provision of the act
of 1809 with reference to the payment of taxes was
repeated with a slight change, and the payment of
road taxes as a qualification for settlement was speci-
fically excepted. The provision of the law of 1825
with respect to occupying a tenement was repeated;
the length of time which one must have served ina
public office was doubled; a residence of one year for
mariners or foreigners coming directly to the town-
ship was required; and the value of the freehold
estate was reduced from one hundred to seventy-five
dollars, but there was an added provision that legal
settlement should continue only as long as the owner
occupied the freehold. A provision that no slave
could secure legal settlement first appears in this
law; and the section of the law of 1809 concerning
the legal settlement of bastards was repeated. These
conditions of legal settlement prevailed until the end
of the period under discussion, being specifically
repeated in the laws of 1829 and 1833.

The task of removing persons not legally settled in
30 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

any district was put upon the overseers by the act
of 1809, wherein an elaborate procedure was outlined
in order that the cost of caring for those to be re-
moved should be borne by the district where such
persons last had legal settlement. Disputes which
might occur over such matters were to be settled by
the Supreme Court of the Territory. In the act of
1825 the county commissioners were constituted the
authority to remove paupers not having a legal set-
tlement, unless the pauper had been brought in by
the master of a boat, in which case he must be re-
moved by such master under penalty of a fine of one
hundred dollars. The law of 1827 provided for
removal by the constable on orders from any two
justices of the peace, and the person removed was to
be turned over to the constable of the adjoining
county towards the place of his settlement, if out
of the county, or of the township in which he had a
legal settlement. Action to remove might begin
either with the overseers of the poor or with the
justices of the peace. Elaborate provisions, with
suitable penalties, were prescribed to force the au-
thorities of the proper local jurisdictions to receive
these unwelcome prodigals. Moreover, provision
was made for the removal of slaves who might come
into the Territory.

In the laws of 1829, 1831, and 1833, no changes
were made except that all the duties which had
formerly fallen upon the overseers of the poor de-
volved upon the authorities in charge of the poor of
THE TERRITORY OF MICHIGAN 31

the township, which authorities changed with the
enactment of each of these statutes.

During this period in the Territory of Michigan
taxation was the chief source of revenue for the
support of the poor. Certain fines, however, went
into the same fund. For example, in the law of 1809
it was provided that any person bringing into the
Territory any poor persons who had no legal settle-
ment therein or any person who from visible appear-
ances was a pauper, with the intent to make such
persons chargeable.to the Territory, should be sub-
ject to a fine of not to exceed three hundred dollars
which was to go to the overseers to be used for the
support of the poor in the district. According to
the laws of 1825, 1827, and 1833 as much of the cost
of supporting the poor as relatives were able to pay
was recoverable from them within certain degrees of
relationship. The laws of 1827 and 1833 stipulated
that any overseers of the poor of a township who
refused to receive any pauper who was removed from
a place where he had no legal settlement were subject
to a fine of twenty-five dollars for each offense, to
be used for the care of the poor in the township from
which the said pauper was removed. The principle
of turning fines for certain offenses into the poor
fund was firmly established in the law of Michigan
when the jurisdiction of that Territory was extended
over the Iowa country.

The method of levying the taxes for the support
of the poor varied with the changes in the system

7
32 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

of local government. In 1805 the authorities having
this power were the Governor and Judges of the Ter-
ritory; in 1809, the judges of the district courts; in
1817, the justices of the court of general quarter ses-
sions of the peace in each county; in 1818, the county
commissioners; and according to the acts of March
30, 1827, and April 17, 1833, the electors of the town-
ships.

Children were bound out by the court of general
quarter sessions of the peace under the provisions
of the act of 1817 — the first poor law in which pro-
vision was made for that method of caring for de-
pendent children. In the act of 1820 the county com-
missioners were assigned this duty, which by the act
of 1833 was transferred to the directors of the poor
in each township.

The liability of relatives for the support of pau-
pers was provided for in the laws of 1825, 1827, and
1833. In the first of these acts the father, grand-
father, mother, grandmother, children, and grand-
children were liable, according to their ability, up to
$2.50 a week for each pauper, the amount being de-
termined by the poor relief authorities. In the law
of 1827 the same relatives were made liable, but the
maximum amount which could be collected from them
was $1.25 per week for each dependent person, and
there was a special provision concerning the liability
of the property of any father or husband or widow
who abandoned those naturally dependent upon them
for support. The law of 1833 omitted the section
relating to the liability of relatives, but its provi-
THE TERRITORY OF MICHIGAN 33

sions concerning deserting supporters were identical
with those of the act of 1827, except for the change in
designation of the poor relief authorities who were
to have charge of the collection of the amounts for
which natural supporters were liable.

Provisions for the care of the poor in poorhouses
did not appear in the legislation of the Territory of
Michigan until the adoption of the act of 1829, al-
though in the act of 1809 there is language which
might be construed to allow the overseers of the poor
in each district to care for the poor by this method
but which doubtless meant merely that some kind of
a shelter should be provided, without implying that
the district should provide a poorhouse.

Before the enactment of the general poorhouse law
of 1829 a special act was approved on June 23, 1828,
providing for an election in Wayne County on the
proposition of building a poorhouse.* This act made
provision for a combined poorhouse and house of
correction, and the details of its management were
definitely outlined. This feature, moreover, has re-
cently been incorporated in the most successful ex-
periment in the care of the poor thus far made in
this country, namely, the plan adopted by the city of
Cleveland, Ohio.

In case the electors of Wayne County should vote
favorably on the proposition to erect a poorhouse,
the law provided that the supervisors were to select
a special committee to purchase the grounds and
erect the buildings and appoint a board of three re-
spectable citizens to manage the institution. These
34 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

directors were constituted a body corporate and
politic, and penalties were prescribed for refusal to
serve. The board of directors was authorized to
appoint the superintendent and such other officials
as were necessary to manage the poorhouse, to bind
out apprentices, and to exercise all the powers hith-
erto residing in the overseers of the poor in that
county. A limitation of one hundred and sixty acres
was placed upon the size of the farm, as was also the
case in the later laws of Michigan. The inmates of
the house of correction were to serve the inmates of
the poorhouse. Moreover, the act contained provi-
sions for the auditing of the accounts of the board
of directors and for a report by them to the county
supervisors.

This unique institution was to serve also as an
asylum for any pauper lunatics of the county, a pro-
vision which probably suggested the system of county
prisons for this class of dependents provided for in
the act of March 7, 1834. A quorum of the direc-
tors was required to meet at the institution once a
month to see that their orders were being obeyed.
Furthermore, the overseers of the poor in the vari-
ous townships of the county were relieved of their
functions so far as receiving and disbursing money
for the relief of the peor was concerned. In fact, the
overseers virtually became servants of the board of
directors of the poorhouse.

The proposition was voted on favorably by the
people of Wayne County, and Detroit was chosen as
the location of the first county poorhouse in the Ter-
THE TERRITORY OF MICHIGAN 35

ritory of Michigan. Doubtless the example fur-
nished by this county, which contained the largest
settlement in the Territory, had much influence in
determining the content of the general poorhouse
laws of 1829 and 1830. At first the poorhouse was
managed by the board of directors appointed by the
supervisors, as provided for in the statute. But by
an act approved on February 19, 1834, the common
council of Detroit was required to perform the same
duties with respect to the paupers of that city as
were required, according to the act of April 22, 1833,
of directors of the poor and justices of the peace in
other parts of the Territory.

By the provisions of the act of 1829 the care of
paupers in the poorhouse was not made obligatory,
but was an alternative plan which might be adopted,
and the authorities might rent, build, or purchase
poorhouses, if such a course seemed desirable. The
law of 1830, on the other hand, dealt exclusively with
relief of the poor by means of the poorhouse. Bor-
rowed from the Ohio act of 1816, it had the elabor-
ate machinery of that law, except that it made no
provision for township poorhouses in case a county
did not build one, and that it provided that a town-
ship should pay the county for the care of the pau-
pers which such township might have in the county
poorhouse. Otherwise, it corresponded in its main
features to the Ohio law upon which it was modeled.

The statute above outlined was incorporated into
the act of 1833—the first comprehensive statute
dealing with the care of the poor adopted in the Ter-
36 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

ritory of Michigan, and in fact, the first law com-
bining all the various methods of dealing with the
poor produced by the experience of the States and
Territories carved out of the Old Northwest up to
that time. It should be noticed, however, that when
the act of 1830 was incorporated into the law of 1833,
cognizance was taken of the fact that the statute of
March 12, 1833, had transferred the management of
the poorhouse from the board of directors appointed
by the supervisors, after the example of the Ohio law,
to the county supervisors themselves.”

Various methods of relieving the poor were pro-
vided for in the legislation of the Territory of Mich-
igan. The act of 1805 made provision for the farm-
ing out of the poor by the Marshal of the Territory
on the orders of any three justices of the peace. In
the law of 1809 any method was apparently left open
to the authorities, for the language of the act was
very indefinite. The probabilities are that farming
out the care of the poor was the method considered
most feasible. The laws of 1817 and 1820 specified
the farming out of the adults and binding out of the
dependent children. Farming out was supplemented
in the act of 1824 by provision for direct outdoor
relief in the case of those in temporary need — the
first appearance of this method in the legislation of
Michigan. In 1825 there was added the provision
for support by relatives, or by relatives and the
county. The temporary law of 1827 retained the
section relative to support by relatives, contained a
family-desertion clause, and provided again for di-
THE TERRITORY OF MICHIGAN 37

rect out-relief in money. The law of 1829 definitely
provided for the erection of city or township poor-
houses upon the approval of a majority of the in-
habitants and householders, and for binding out the
pauper children in the poorhouses. In 1830 provi-
sion was made for county poorhouses, supported by
the townships in proportion to the number of pau-
pers in that institution from each township. In 1833
the only changes made in the law of 1827 were to
omit the provisions concerning support by relatives
and to incorporate the optional provisions for county
poorhouses found in the law of 1830.

It was only in an act of March 7, 1834, that pro-
vision was made for the special treatment of the pau-
per insane.** It is quite likely that, while the laws
provided for the erection of poorhouses, very few
counties availed themselves of the opportunity, and
therefore the problem of the separation of any class
of defectives from the poor had not arisen. The act
of March 7th required the sheriff to receive insane
paupers and care for them in the county prison or
other place of security, if asked to do so by the di-
rectors of the poor in the townships, or by the mayor,
recorder, and aldermen of Detroit —a provision
pointing to the realization by the community that
this class of paupers required special care in the in-
terests of the public.

A study of the legislation of the Territory of
Michigan reveals the same uncertainty as to the best
method of relieving poverty as was exhibited in Ohio.
88 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

At the same time, it is evident that Michigan profited
by the experience of Ohio and did not endeavor to
solve the problem by any one method as was attempt-
ed in that State from 1816 to 1831 under the poor-
house law. During this period the Michigan country
was undeveloped, and hence one is not surprised to
find that the laws lack the elaborate details necessary
in older Commonwealths. On the whole, however,
the various systems of poor relief tried at one time
or another in the Northwest Territory and Ohio are
to be found in the laws of the Territory of Michigan;
while the only new features are the act which resulted
in the establishment of the poorhouse at Detroit, and
the law combining the methods of caring for the poor
in poorhouses, in their homes, or by contract.
Tit

POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN THE TERRI-
TORY OF WISCONSIN

For almost two years after the organization of the
original Territory of Wisconsin in 1836 no poor re-
lief law was adopted, the first Wisconsin act on that
subject being approved on January 3, 1838. Before
the passage of this act the poor laws of Michigan
continued in force in the Territory of Wisconsin,
since section twelve of the Organic Act provided that
‘‘the existing laws of the territory of Michigan shall
be extended over said territory [Wisconsin], so far
as the same be not incompatible with the provisions
of this act, subject, nevertheless, to be altered, mod-
ified, or repealed, by the governor and legislative as-
sembly of the said territory of Wisconsin.’’** Thus,
in theory the Michigan statute of 1833 relating to the
relief of the poor remained the law of the new Terri-
tory until the ‘‘first organization of the first board of
county commissioners, in the several counties in this
territory’’ under the Wisconsin acts of December 30,
1837, and January 3, 1838.

As a matter of fact, although the Iowa country was
a part of the original Territory of Wisconsin, it is
doubtful if the Michigan law was ever actually ap-
plied to the relief of poverty in the region west of the

39
40 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Mississippi River because of the sparse population.”
Moreover, since the Iowa country was organized into
a separate Territory in 1838 it is probable that the
Wisconsin law of the same year did not have any
important effect until after the division of the Terri-
tory had taken place.

The importance of the Wisconsin act in this con-
nection lies in the fact that the Territory of Iowa’
had no poor relief legislation of its own until Janu-
ary 16, 1840, and then the above law was adopted
with a few modifications. Consequently it may be
said that this Wisconsin law prevailed in the Terri-
tory of Iowa until the passage of the law of Febru-
ary 17, 1842, although again it is doubtful whether
the law was ever invoked by a single county in the
new and sparsely settled Territory.*

The lineage of this first poor law of the Territory
of Wisconsin is doubtful.” It had points of similar-
ity to the Michigan act of 1833, but its points of dif-
ference were no less striking than its similarities.
It resembled in some of its sections other acts of the
Territory of Michigan and, of course, more remotely
some of the Ohio laws upon which so much of the
legislation of the Territory of Michigan was modeled.
In section one it followed quite closely section one of
the Michigan act of 1820, although it was much differ-
ent in phraseology. Section two resembled in a gen-
eral way the same section of the Michigan act of
1825. Precisely the same relatives were made liable
for the support of paupers; but the Wisconsin stat-
ute made the penalty recoverable for refusal to sup-.
THE TERRITORY OF WISCONSIN 41

port pauper relatives fifteen dollars per month in-
stead of $2.50 a week, and excepted all relatives but
parents and children from liability to support pauper
relatives who were paupers by reason of intemper-
ance or bad conduct. Section three was simply an
extension of section two precisely defining the order
in which relatives should be ealled upon to support
paupers, a provision here met with for the first time
in the legislation of Ohio, Michigan, or Wisconsin.
Section four reminds one of those provisions of
the Ohio and Michigan acts which made certain per-
sons, who for some reason had no legal claim upon
the poor funds, a charge upon the county. The pur-
pose of the Wisconsin statute, however, was much
broader, in that it made the reference to those who
had no relatives to support them a means of defining
those who might receive relief, and provided two
methods by which the commissioners might care for
the poor — by contract or by appointing agents to
care for them. Section five, relating to the binding
out of minor paupers, resembled section fifteen of
the Michigan act of 1833 in principle, although there
were striking differences in the language. Sections
six and seven, the first part of section eight, and all
of section nine remind one of section sixteen of the
Michigan act of 1833, but they were much briefer
and simpler and were to be administered by different
authorities. The latter part of section eight was
somewhat like section five of the same Michigan act,
except that the procedure in the case of a non-res-
ident pauper was reversed. The latter part of sec-
42 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

tion ten resembled section two of the Michigan act
of 1809, in that it provided a penalty to be imposed
on any one who should bring a pauper into a county,
and it was similar to section six of the Michigan act
of 1825, in that the penalty for such an offense was
$100. Section eleven provided that the act should
take effect upon the organization of the first board of
county commissioners in the several counties of the
Territory.“

From this brief review and comparison, it is evi-
dent that the authors of the Wisconsin act of Janu-
ary 3, 1838, gathered their ideas from many different
sources — chiefly from the laws of Michigan — but
that they combined them into a new statute in an en-
tirely independent manner. Throughout the measure
there are signs of a demand for directness of method
and simplicity of procedure. Apparently the authors
were in close touch with conditions in the pioneer
region for which they were legislating and therefore
rejected all details that were superfluous and inap-
plicable. The simplicity and directness of the law
becomes apparent upon a brief analysis.

The unit of relief was the county; and so the pri-
mary relief authorities were the county commission-
ers, although there were township overseers of the
poor whose duty it was to care for those who needed
temporary relief and were not properly county
charges under the act, and to supplement the work of
the county commissioners. The terms of settlement
were simplified to a residence of one year. The poor
THE TERRITORY OF WISCONSIN 43

could be cared for by farming them out on contract,
by committing them to the care of agents appointed
by the county commissioners, by binding out the
minors, or by providing workhouses for their care.
Relatives were chargeable (if able to furnish the sup-
port) with the care of paupers according to a spe-
cifically designated order of relationship. In fact,
the primary responsibility for the care of the poor
according to this law lay upon the relatives — a pro-
vision the wisdom of which has been demonstrated
by modern philanthropy.

The law, furthermore, contained provisions for
the removal of paupers who had no legal settlement,
or for a warning to them to depart from the relief
unit and for the cessation of relief. Penalties were
also prescribed for the bringing of paupers into the
Territory. Idiots and lunatics were specifically in-
cluded with the poor in the provisions of this act,
and in the sections dealing with the care of paupers
who fell sick it continued the best practices of the
laws of Ohio and Michigan. Its brevity, simplicity,
and comprehensiveness, together with its lack of de-
tailed administrative directions, mark this law as —
distinctly modern in its nature.

‘
IV

POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN THE TERRI-
TORY OF IOWA

The First Legislative Assembly of the Territory
of Iowa passed no general law relative to the relief
of the poor, although a bill for such an act was intro-
duced, passed the House, and was sent to the Coun-
cil, where after considerable consideration it was in-
definitely postponed.** As a consequence the law of
Wisconsin Territory, approved on January 3, 1838,
remained in force in the Territory of Iowa. The
First Legislative Assembly did, however, pass an act
providing that all insane paupers should be entitled
to the benefits of the laws of the Territory for the re-
lief of other paupers, and that all officials concerned
should govern themselves accordingly.*

The first statute relating strictly to the relief of ©
the poor, enacted in the Territory of Iowa, was
passed by the Second Legislative Assembly. Intro-
duced into the Council on November 28, 1839, it
passed both houses and was signed by Governor Lu-
cas on January 16, 1840. This act was almost a
duplicate of the Wisconsin law approved on January
3, 1838. :

As in the Wisconsin act, the care of the poor was
vested exclusively in the county commissioners.”

44
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 45

From the list of relatives mentioned in the Wiscon-
sin law as liable for the support of paupers there
were omitted the grandfather, grandmother, grand-
children, brothers, and sisters. Only parents and
children were retained. From the Wisconsin law,
therefore, was also eliminated the proviso that in
case poverty was caused by intemperance or bad con-
duct only the parents or children were liable. Penal-
ties for the failure of support by the relatives named
were retained. Furthermore, this act followed the
Wisconsin law in allowing the county commissioners
to care for the poor by contract or by agents; and
differed therefrom only in the omission of the pro-
vision that married women during the lifetime of
their husbands were not to be liable to a suit for the
maintenance of pauper relatives, and in the omission
of section three of the Wisconsin act naming the or-
der in which relatives were to be liable — omissions
made necessary by the change concerning the rela-
tives who were liable for the support of paupers.
The section with reference to binding out minor chil-
dren differed from the Wisconsin statute only in
omitting the provision that they were to be bound
out to a ‘‘respectable householder of the county’’.
The method of earing for non-resident paupers was
the same in both statutes, except that the Iowa law
substituted the county commissioners for the town-
ship overseers of the poor. In both cases the expense
was to be paid out of the county treasury. Both laws
required the county commissioners to secure from
applicants for relief satisfactory evidence of a resi-
46 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

dence of twelve months before relief could be given.
The sections on the removal of non-resident appli-
cants for relief who were not sick were practically
identical, requiring, in both cases, either an order
directed to the constable to remove such persons at
county expense to their proper places of residence or
else a warning to the persons to depart, refusal of
any relief thereafter, and a report to the clerk of the
board of county commissioners by the constable in-
dicating the service of such a notice. Both laws had
the same provisions for penalizing persons who
brought paupers into the county, except that the Wis-
consin statute provided for a fine of one hundred dol-
lars to be recovered before any justice of the peace
or other court having jurisdiction, while the Iowa
statute omitted any mention of the justices of the
peace. In both cases the fine was to be used for the
care of the poor of the county.

The sections on the establishment of poorhouses
were alike in the two statutes — providing for the
building or establishing of workhouses, if deemed
proper, for such paupers as became county charges.
These institutions were to be under such rules and
regulations as the commissioners considered just and
necessary. The Iowa law omitted the last section of
the Wisconsin act stating the time when the act was
to go into operation. In short, the Iowa law was a
faithful copy of the Wisconsin act, with such modi-
fications as were needed to adapt it to the local ad-
ministrative system of the new Territory.“* The fol-
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 47

lowing parallel comparison will reveal more clearly
the close resemblance between these two statutes:

THE WISCONSIN STATUTE OF
January 3, 1838

Section 1. Be ié enacted
by the council and house of
representatives of the terri-
tory of Wisconsin, That the
board of county commis-
sioners, of the several coun-
ties of this territory, shall
be, and they are hereby vest-
ed, with entire and exclu-
sive superintendence of the
poor in their respective
counties.

Section 2. Every poor
person, who shall be unable
to earn a livelihood, in con-
sequence of bodily infirmity,
idiocy, lunacy, or other un-
avoidable cause, shall be sup-
ported by the father, grand-
father, mother, grandmoth-
er, children, grandchildren,
brothers or sisters, of such
poor person, if they or eith-
er of them be of sufficient
ability; and every person
who shall fail or refuse to
support his or her father,

grandfather, mother, grand- |

Tue Iowa Stature or JAN-
uaRY 16, 1840

Section 1. Be it enacted
by the Council and House of
Representatives of the Ter-
ritory of Iowa, That the
board of county commission-
ers of the several counties of
this territory, shall be and

‘they are hereby vested with

entire and exclusive superin-
tendence of the poor in their
respective counties.

Sec. 2. Every poor per-
son who shall be unable to
earn a livelihood, in conse-
quence of bodily infirmity,
idiocy, lunacy or other un-
avoidable cause, shall be sup-
ported by the father, moth-
er, or children of such poor
person, if they, or either of
them, be of sufficient ability,
and every person who shall
fail or refuse to support his
or her father, mother or
child, when directed by the
board of commissioners of
the county where such poor
48 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

mother, child, or grandchild,
sister or brother, when di-
rected by the board of
county commissioners of the
county where such poor per-
son shall be found, whether
such relation reside in the
county or not, shall forfeit
and pay to the county com-
missioners, for the use of the
poor of their county, the
sum of fifteen dollars per
month; for which if they or
-either of them shall fail or
refuse so to do, to be recov-
ered in the name of the
county commissioners, for
the use of the poor as afore-
said, before any justice of
the peace, or any court hav-
ing jurisdiction: provided,
that when any person be-
comes a pauper, from intem-
perance, or other bad con-
duct, they shall not be en-
titled to support from any
relation, except parent or
child.

Section 3. The children
shall be the first ealled on,
to support their parents, if
there be children of suffi-
cient ability. If there be

person shall be found,
whether such relative reside
in the county or not, shall
forfeit and pay to the coun-
ty commissioners, for the use
of the poor of their county,
the sum of fifteen dollars per
month, to be recovered in
the name of the county com-
missioners, for the use of the
poor as aforesaid, before any
justice of the peace or any
court having jurisdiction.
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 49

none of sufficient ability the
parents of such poor person
shall be next called on; and
if there be no parents, or
children, of sufficient ability,
the brothers and sisters of
such poor person shall be
next called on; and if there
be no brothers or sisters, the
grandchildren of such poor
person, shall be called on,
and then on the grandpar-
ents: provided, married fe-
males, whilst their husbands
live shall not be liable to a
suit.

Section 4. When any
such poor person shall not
have any such relatives, in
any county in this territory,
as are named in the preced-
ing sections, or such relative
shall not be of sufficient
ability, or shall fail, or re-
fuse, to maintain such pau-
per, then the said pauper,
shall receive such relief as
his or her case may require,
out of the county treasury ;
and the county commission-
ers may either make con-
tracts for the necessary
maintenance of the poor, or

PROPERTY OF LIBRARY

Sec. 3. When any such
person shall not have any
such relative in this terri-
tory, as are named in the
preceding sections, or such
relative shall not be of suf-
ficient ability, or shall fail
or refuse to maintain such
pauper, then the said pauper
shall receive such relief as
the case may require out of
the county treasury ; and the
county commissioners may
either make contracts for
the necessary maintenance
of the poor, or appoint such
agents as they may deem nec-

NEW YORK STATE SCHECL
INBUSTRIAL AND LABOR RELATIONS

CORNELL UNIVERSITY

359
50 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION .IN IOWA

appoint such agents as they essary, to oversee and pro-
may deem necessary to over- vide for the same.— Laws of
see and provide for the the Territory of Iowa, 1839-
same.— Laws of the Terri- 1840, pp. 83, 84.

tory of Wisconsin, 1837-

1838, pp. 178, 179.

Of all the features which were to be found in the
various laws of the Northwest Territory, and the
Territories of Michigan and Wisconsin, the follow-.
ing survived in the first poor law of the Territory of
Iowa:

1. The primary authorities charged with the care
of the poor were the county commissioners. In this
respect the law followed the Michigan experiment of
1818, when, on the basis of the experience in Ohio,
the device was invented of making the county com-
missioners responsible not only for the conduct of
the poorhouse as had been the case in Ohio, but also
for the outdoor relief.

2. The section making relatives responsible for
the care of paupers remained after it had been left
out of the laws of Ohio for many years. Of the rela-
tives named in the original statute of the Northwest
Territory (1795) which was borrowed from Penn-
sylvania there remained, however, only the father,
mother, and children of the pauper who were held
liable for his support. All other relatives had been
dropped entirely from enumeration in the law. In
the case of paupers not having a legal settlement and
falling sick in the county, the Iowa law differed from
the Wisconsin statute by making the county commis-
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 51

sioners rather than the overseers of the poor respon-
sible for their care.

3. The provision for overseers of the poor was
omitted from the Wisconsin statute when that law
was copied by the Legislative Assembly of the Terri-
tory of Iowa. The county commissioners were made
responsible for the entire care of the poor. On Jan-
uary 10, 1840, just six days before the general law re-
lating to the relief of the poor was approved, how-
ever, the legislature passed and the Governor ap-
proved an act concerning township officers, among
whom were two overseers of the poor to be elected
by the electors of the township. It was the duty of
the township trustees to settle the accounts of the
overseers of the poor, and to provide compensation
for them.*° Three theories may be advanced to ac-
count for this anomalous condition of affairs. In the
first place, it may be assumed that this provision was
made on the basis of the practice which had obtained
from the days when the jurisdiction of Michigan
Territory was extended over this region and that the
overseers here provided for did actually function
even after the adoption law of January 16, 1840, was
passed. Secondly, it is reasonable to suppose that
when the act of January 16th was passed, placing the
whole system of poor relief in the hands of the county
commissioners without any provision for township
control, the inconsistency between the two laws with
respect to the relief authorities was not noticed.
Finally, it is possible that the Legislative Assembly
allowed the provision for overseers of the poor to
52 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

stand for the reason that the law of January 16th
did not go into effect in any given county until after
the organization of the board of county commis-
sioners.

4. The Iowa law retained the provision that the
county commissioners should build a poorhouse if
they saw fit.

5. It retained the section relating to the removal
of persons not having a legal settlement who applied
for relief or were likely to need relief, the procedure
consisting of a warning followed by instructions to
the constable to remove such persons.

No statute relative to poor relief which has thus
far come within the scope of this discussion was so
admirably adapted to the needs of a young and grow-
ing community as the first law enacted in the Terri-
tory of Iowa. Simple, comprehensive, easily adapted
to the changing conditions of a new country, it repre-
sents a type of law on the relief of the poor which is
all too rare even at this late date.

The act of January 16, 1840, contained no clause
repealing any existing laws. At the special session
of the Legislative Assembly, held in the summer of
1840, however, an act was passed which repealed all
acts of the Territories of Michigan and Wisconsin
which were in effect in the Iowa country on July 4,
1838, the date of the organization of the new Ter-
ritory.™

The act of 1840 remained in force for two years,
or until the laws enacted by the Third Legislative
Assembly of the Territory went into effect.. Two
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 53

bills relative to the care of the poor were passed dur-
ing this session of the Territorial legislature. Turn-
ing away from the precedents set by Michigan and
Wisconsin in enacting a comprehensive bill covering
the care of the poor both outside and inside the poor-
house, the legislature in 1842 passed an act ‘‘for the
relief of the Poor’’ and another ‘‘to authorize the
establishment of poor Houses’’. Both were intro-
duced by Mr. Biggs on January 24, 1842,°* and both
were borrowed from the Ohio statutes of 1831.

The bill relating to the care of the poor outside of
the poorhouses contained a section which provided
that ‘‘nothing in this act shall be,so construed as to
enable any black or mulatto person to gain a legal
settlement in this Territory’’, a provision which had
been inserted in the poor law of Ohio in 1829, as has
already been seen. Mr. Porter, a Whig, moved that
this section be stricken out; but on a yea and nay
vote the motion was lost by a vote of twenty to
three. Aside from this incident neither of these
bills seemed to excite any popular interest at a time
when the chief points of attention were political
rather than humanitarian. This is indicated by the
fact that in the press of that day no notice was taken
of these bills except as they were mentioned in the
list of bills which had been introduced or passed. On
February 16th the act for the relief of the poor was
approved, and on the following day the law provid-
ing for poorhouses received the Governor’s signa-
ture. ,

The essential features of the law for the relief of
54. POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

the poor outside the poorhouse may be briefly sum-
marized. In general, legal settlement could be ob-
tained by a residence of one year in any township or,
in case a person had been warned to depart, by re-
maining three years after such warning without hav-
ing been warned again, or by a residence of three
years in the case of servants and apprentices. The
place of settlement of a married woman was that of
her husband, even after his death. In case the hus-
band had no settlement, that of the woman was the
place where she had her last legal settlement before
marriage. Blacks and mulattoes, as has been noted,
were denied legal settlement. Provision was made
that nothing in this act should be construed to pre-
vent any one from voting who had the right to the
franchise under the laws of the Territory. The
warning of persons suspected of becoming a charge
was placed in the hands of the overseers of the poor
in each township. The warning to depart was to be
issued by them to a constable, who was to serve it and
make a report of such service to the clerk of the
township, by whom the proper record was to be
made,

When any person entitled to relief was found to be
suffering in a county which had a poorhouse, the
township trustees were required to make out an order
and statement of facts as prescribed in the act estab-
lishing poorhouses enacted by this same Legislative
Assembly. But in case the county had no poorhouse,
the overseers of the poor were to give such relief as
they thought necessary, or in case more than tem-
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 55

porary relief was required, they were to let out the
relief of the poor by contract for a period of not
more than one year.

This law introduced the possibility of confusion by
reason of the fact that the last section of the act,
which provided that in those counties which were not
yet organized into townships the act of 1840 should
remain in full force and effect. It will be recalled
that under that law all poor relief was in the hands
of the county commissioners. The effect of the new
law, therefore, was that there were three systems of
relief in operation at the same time in the Territory
of Iowa — relief in the poorhouse in those counties
where there was one, relief by the overseers of the
poor in those counties in which townships had been
organized and in which there was no poorhouse, and
relief by the county commissioners by means of con-
tracts in those counties in which townships were not
organized.

In case the directors of the poorhouse refused to
receive and care for any pauper sent to them, the
overseers of the township sending him were to pro-
vide for his relief by contract.

The overseers were required to provide temporary
relief for any needy person not having a legal settle-
ment in the township. It was the duty of the over-
seers, however, to see that such person was sent back
to his place of legal settlement, and the cost of his
care paid by the township where he had a legal set-
tlement, if necessary by action before the district
court of the county in which either or both townships
56 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

were located. In case the person had no legal settle-
ment within the Territory, he might be removed to
his place of legal settlement by the overseers on or-
der of the township trustees.

Furthermore, it was specified that the overseers
keep a strict account of the expenses incurred by
them in supporting the poor in their townships, as
well as a record of the names of those aided and of
the services rendered to such poor persons, and that
they should present these accounts to the township
trustees on the first Monday of March in each year
to be audited and settled. The overseers were to be
allowed such compensation for their services as the
trustees thought just and reasonable.

The township trustees were authorized to issue
orders on the township treasurer for the payment of
any expenses incurred in the relief of the poor. They
were also the custodians of any gifts or bequests for
the care of the poor, under such rules and regulations
as might be made by law.**

The characteristic features of the poorhouse law
approved on February 17, 1842, and which was the
complement of the outdoor relief law, also deserve
some attention. Thus the county commissioners of
each county were authorized to establish poorhouses
whenever they deemed such action desirable. They
had the power to purchase as much land for that pur-
pose as they thought necessary, but it was distinctly
declared that the cost of such land and building
should be met by a tax levied for that express pur-
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA dT

pose, to be collected in the same manner as other
county taxes. That is, future generations were not
to be taxed through the issuance of bonds to raise
funds for the establishment of these institutions, nor
was the present generation to be loaded with that
expense by indirect methods. There was no limit on
the amount of land which could be purchased, as
there had been in Michigan.

A board of directors, composed of three residents
of the county appointed by the county commission-
ers, had charge of the poorhouse. Appointed for one
year, they were required to take an oath of office and
to serve until their successors were appointed and
qualified. Moreover, there was to be a clerk whose
duties were to be defined by the board. This board
of directors was a body corporate and politic and
had complete control of the poorhouse. Meetings
must be held quarterly and as much oftener as the
needs of the institution demanded. The board was
authorized to appoint,a superintendent who should
have immediate charge of the institution, but should
be under the strict control of the board.

The superintendent could require reasonable labor
from the inmates of the institution; and he could re-
ceive such persons only as produced a voucher signed
by the township trustees or by the county commis-
sioners, accompanied by a statement signed by those
authorities giving a list of specified facts about the
applicant for relief, and accompanied also by an or-
der from a member of the board of directors to admit
such person to the poorhouse.
58 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

The directors were to provide that the poorhouse
should be visited at least once a month by one of
their number, who should make a report of the condi-
tion of the institution and of the inmates to the board
at its next meeting. The directors, in turn, were to
report to the county commissioners in detail con-
cerning their work.

The expenses of maintaining the poorhouse, as
well as the cost of its establishment, were to be paid
out of the county treasury on the order of the county
commissioners. The directors were also to issue or-
ders on the county commissioners for the expense in-
curred by a township or individual in removing to
the poorhouse a pauper who was legally a county
charge or in caring for him before he could be re-
moved thither. The county commissioners were to
draw their order on the county treasurer for the
amount.

It was also provided that the directors were to bind
out all the poor children in the poorhouse, on the
terms prescribed by the act governing apprentices
and servants.

Another power given to the directors was the au-
thority to remove any person who might get into
the poorhouse, but whose legal settlement was in an-
other county, State, or Territory, to his proper place
of settlement in the same way as the overseers of the
poor removed those who had no legal settlement in
the township. The act also contained provisions for
the discharge of persons who had been admitted to
the poorhouse because of bodily infirmity or sickness,
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 59

when in the opinion of the directors such persons had
so far recovered as to be able to support them-
selves. The directors were to provide care for those
who were liable to be sent to the poorhouse but who
could not be removed at once because of sickness.

In case the ordinary revenue of the county was in-
sufficient to carry out the provisions of this act, the
county commissioners were authorized to levy a
special tax of one mill on the dollar for the relief of
the poor to be levied and collected with the other
taxes.

The directors of the poorhouse were to be allowed
such pay for their services by the county commis-
sioners as the latter thought reasonable, not exceed-
ing one dollar and fifty cents a day each for every
day necessarily employed in their duties.*

Both of these laws were copied from the Ohio stat-
utes of 1831, with but few changes. A few sections
in parallel columns will reveal this fact better than
any comparative discussion could do. First, the
close resemblance of the Iowa law on poor relief out-
side of the poorhouse to the Ohio act of March 14,
1831, will be seen from the following sections: °°

Tue Ovurt-revieF Act or THE OUT-RELIEF ACT OF
Out0, Marcu 14, 1831 Iowa, Frsruary 16, 1842

Section 1. Be it enacted, Section 1. Be it enacted
That any person or persons, by the Council and House of
other than those hereinafter Representatives of the Terri-
provided for, residing one tory of Iowa, That any per-
year in any township in this son or persons, other than
60 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

state, without being warned
by the overseers of the poor
for said township to depart
the same; or three years af-
ter being once so warned,
without being again warned
as aforesaid, shall be consid-
ered as having gained a legal
settlement in such township ;
every indented servant or
apprentice, legally brought
into this state, shall obtain a
legal settlement in the town-
ship where such servant or
apprentice first served his
master or mistress three
years; and every married
woman, during coverture,
and after her husband’s
death, shall be considered
legally settled in the place
where he was last legally
settled ; but if he shall have,
or shall have had, no known
legal settlement, then she
shall be considered as settled
in the place where she was
last legally settled before
marriage.

Section 2. That nothing

those hereinafter provided
for, residing one year in any
township in this Territory,
without being warned by the
overseers of the poor for said
township, to depart the same
or three years after being
once so warned, without be-
ing again warned as afore-
said, shall be considered as
having gained a legal resi-
dence in such township; ev-
ery indented servant or ap-
prentice legally brought in-
to this Territory, shall ob-
tain a legal settlement in the
township where such servant
or apprentice first served his
master or mistress three
years; and every married
woman during coverture,
and after her husbands
death, shall be considered
legally settled in the place
where he was last legally
settled; but if he shall have,
or shall have had, no known
legal settlement, then she
shall be considered as settled
in the place where she was
last legally settled before
marriage.

Sec. 2. That nothing in
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 61

in this act shall be so con-
strued as to enable any black
or mulatto person to gain a
legal settlement in this state.

Section 8. That the pro-
visions of the first section of
this act shall not be so con-
strued, as to exclude any
person from voting at elec-
tions, who would otherwise,
by the constitutions and laws
of this state, be entitled to
vote. — Chase’s Statutes of
Ohio, Vol. III, p. 1832.

this act shall be so construed,
as to enable any black or
mulatto person to gain a le-
gal settlement in this Terri-
tory.

Sec. 3. That the provi-
sions of this first section of
this act, shall not be so con-
strued as to exclude any per-
son from voting at elections,
who would: otherwise by the
laws of this Territory be en-
titled to vote.— Laws of the
Territory of Iowa, 1841-
1842, p. 58.

Again, the first poorhouse law of the Territory of
Iowa closely resembles the Ohio poorhouse law of
1831, as will be seen in the following sections:

THe Onto Act or Marcu 8,
1831

Section 1. Be tt enacted,
&c. That the commission-
ers of each and every county
within this state, shall be,
and they are hereby, author-
ized to erect and establish
poor-houses within their re-
spective counties, whenever
in their opinion, such a mea-
sure will be proper and ad-
vantageous; and for that
purpose it shall be lawful

THE Iowa Act oF FEBRUARY
17, 1842

Section 1. Be it enacted
by the Council and House of
Representatives of the Ter-
ritory of Iowa, That the
county commissioners of
each and every county with-
in this Territory, shall be,
and they are hereby author-
ized, to erect and establish
poor houses within their re-
spective counties, whenever
in their opinion, such a mea-
62 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

for the said commissioners,
to purchase such lot or tract
of land as they may judge
necessary for the accommo-
dation of the institution:
Provided, that if the com-
missioners of any county
shall think proper to pur-
chase land, and erect a
county poor-house under the
provisions of this act, the
expense of such purchase
and erection shall be defray-
ed by a tax levied on the ob-
jects of county taxation for
that express purpose; which
tax shall be collected and
paid over in the same man-
ner that other taxes are col-
lected.

Section 6. That the
board of directors shall,
yearly, and every year, re-
port to the commissioners of
the county, the state of the
institution, with a full and
correct account of all their
proceedings, contracts and
disbursements: and the ex-
pense of establishing and
supporting the institution,
shall be paid on the order of
the county auditor, by the

sure will be proper and ad-
vantageous, and for that
purpose it shall be lawful
for said commissioners, to
purchase such lot or tract of
land, as they may deem nec-
essary for the accommoda-
tion of the institution: Pro-
vided that if the commission-
ers of any county shall think
proper to purchase land and
erect a poor house under the
provisions of this act, the ex-
pense of such purchase and
erection, shall be defrayed
by a tax levied on the gen-
eral assessment roll for that
express purpose, and collect-
ed and paid over in the same
manner that other taxes are.

Sec. 6. That the board of
directors shall annually re-
port to the commissioners of
the county, the state of the
institution, with a full and
correct account of all their
proceedings, contracts, and
disbursements, and the ex-
penses of establishing and
supporting the institution,
shall be paid on the order of
county commissioners out of
any money in the county
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 63

direction of the commission- treasury, not otherwise ap-
ers, out of any money in the propriated— Laws of the
county treasury not other- Territory of Iowa, 1841-
wise appropriated.—Chase’s 1842, pp. 83, 84.

Statutes of Ohio, Vol. ITI,

pp. 1829, 18380.

The correspondence between the other sections of
these two laws is as close as between the sections
above paralleled.

Departing from the simplicity of the former law,
adopted from Wisconsin, these laws represented
from one point of view a stage of development in lo-
cal government which Iowa had not yet reached, for
they contemplated thorough township organization
throughout the region to which they applied. So ap-
parent was their lack of adaptation to local condi-
tions in the Territory of Iowa that a section was
added to the act concerning the relief of the poor as
passed in Iowa, providing that the law should apply
only in those counties where townships had been or-
ganized.

From another point of view, this legislation repre-
sented a retrogression. When these acts were adopt-
ed in Ohio the device of uniting the two methods of
caring for the poor by the outdoor or contract
method and by poorhouses had not yet been hit upon.
A comprehensive statute, including provisions for
both methods of caring for the poor, was the work of
Michigan legislators, as has already been noticed.
This statute was virtually copied in the Wisconsin
law, which in turn was followed in the first Iowa act.
64 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Thus in enacting the legislation of 1842 the Iowa
Legislative Assembly went back to old, outworn
methods.

Moreover, this return to the earlier legislation of
Ohio for models not only substituted complexity for
simplicity, separate laws for a comprehensive stat-
ute, and laws poorly adapted to the stage of develop-
ment reached in Iowa for a law admirably suited to
conditions, but it also meant the return to a system
and a method which had shown themselves to be un-
suited even to Ohio, a much older and more developed
Commonwealth. The system of poor relief which
these laws introduced was cumbersome and un-
wieldy. It possessed an involved machinery which
was not easy to operate even where the government
was far enough developed to carry it out. Divided
responsibility had been long tried, with the result
that the Territories of Michigan, Wisconsin, and
Iowa (in the first act) had turned to a simpler and
more practical system.

In the Ohio legislation reénacted in Iowa in 1842
there was that involved division of responsibility
and labor which appeals strongly to the political doc-
trinaire, but which is not practical in actual opera-
tion. A regular hierarchy of- authorities to have
charge of the care of the poor was provided for in
these laws. The county commissioners established
poorhouses and paid the expense of the erection and
maintenance of such institutions. They appointed a
board of directors who turned over the actual man-
agement of the poorhouses to a superintendent. The
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 65

directors were to appoint one of their number to in-
spect the poorhouse and report back to them; and
they in turn were to report to the county commis-
sioners. It should be remembered that these laws
were enacted, not for a State with a population of
millions, but for a thinly settled Territory in what
was then the far West during the first half of the
nineteenth century. They certainly were not de-
vised for the convenience of those unfortunates who
were supposed to get relief for their needs through
these complex arrangements.

So illy, as a matter of fact, did the law of Febru-
ary 16, 1842, suit the needs of the young Territory
that two years later the Legislative Assembly
passed an act, approved on February 12, 1844, which
amended the statute of 1842 by providing that all
costs of relieving the poor should be paid, not out of
the township treasury, but out of the county treas-
ury, and that the accounts were to be audited by the
county commissioners instead of by the township
trustees.” Finally, on June 5, 1845, an act was ap-
proved which made the township trustees the over-
seers of the poor in their respective townships.”
Both of these amendments were departures from the
complexity of the laws borrowed from Ohio and steps
in the direction of the simplicity of the first Iowa
statute.

The poor laws of the Territory of Iowa, both for
indoor and outdoor relief, were copies of laws al-
ready in existence. No new experiments were tried.
66 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

No new developments were made. Iowa first tried
the Wisconsin law, which had an honorable ancestry,
and then went to the statute books of Ohio and got
two laws which were adopted almost literally. And
yet, the poor laws of the Territory of Iowa, even
though not original, were made up of selections from
many different laws. In the course of development
from the early days of the Northwest Territory down
to the time when the first law was enacted in lowa
many experiments had been tried. In the furnace of
actual experience on the frontier, the laws first
adopted from the original States had been tested,
and out from that trial they had emerged with some
of their original features modified, with some new
features added, and with some entirely gone. The
unfortunate thing is that experience should not have
been consulted more fully before the adoption in
Iowa in 1842 of the laws borrowed from Ohio.

It may be profitable at this point to compare the
first pieces of poor relief legislation in the. Territory
of Iowa with each other.

The law copied from Ohio resembled the first Iowa
poor law in the matter of outdoor relief in that it re-
quired one year’s residence to establish legal settle-
ment and had much the same provisions concerning
the way in which a non-resident pauper should be
warned to leave the township or county. It required
the poor authorities to render temporary relief to
non-resident paupers. And finally, it made provision
for the farming out of the support of those paupers
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 67

who must be maintained outside the poorhouse for
more than mere temporary support.

The act of February 16, 1842, however, differed
from the first Iowa law in many more points than it
agreed with that statute. In the first place, it con-
tained several additional provisions in regard to set-
tlement. Not only must the needy person have re-
sided one year in a place, but he must have resided
there three years after having been warned once to
depart. An indented servant or apprentice secured
a residence for the purposes of relief when he had
served his master or mistress three years in a single
place. Provision was made for determining the set-
tlement of married women who applied for relief;
while any mulatto or black person was prohibited
from ever securing a legal settlement in the Terri-
tory. Again, the poor law of 1842 made the town-
ship the unit of relief in all counties where town-
ships had been organized. Consequently, the town-
ship trustees and the overseers of the poor became
the relief authorities rather than the county commis-
sioners. The sections relative to the support of
paupers by their relatives were omitted, and there
were no provisions for the care of minor paupers,
such as the law of 1840 contained. Moreover, it was
provided that if the support of the poor was farmed
out the contract should not be let for a period ex-
ceeding one year. Provision was made for the collec-
tion of the costs of supporting a pauper having no
legal settlement from the county or township where
68 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

such pauper had a settlement, and there was the
stipulation that if the pauper furnished security to
the county he need not be removed from the town-
ship. Finally, there was a section on bequests and
gifts for the use of the poor which was lacking in the
former Iowa law. ;
The law of 1842 concerning poorhouses agreed
with the act of 1840 in that the county commissioners
might establish poorhouses whenever they thought it
advisable. It differed from the earlier law in its
much greater detail and greatly increased complex-
ity, as follows: (1) it provided that if the commis-
sioners decided to establish a poorhouse the neces-
sary money was to be secured by a special tax for
that express purpose; (2) provision was made for
the appointment of a board of three directors to con-
trol and manage the poorhouse, for the organization
of this board, and for the making by them of rules
and regulations for the government of the institu-
tion; (3) provision was made for the appointment of
a superintendent by this board of directors, who
should reside either in the poorhouse itself or in some
adjoining building, and his duties were stated; (4) a
monthly visit to the poorhouse by a member of the
board of directors, and an annual report by the board
to the county commissioners concerning the state of
the poorhouse and all their proceedings, contracts,
purchases, etc., were required; (5) the section im-
posing a fine upon any person who brought a pauper
into the county was omitted ; (6) the directors, rather
than the county commissioners as in the former act,
THE TERRITORY OF IOWA 69

were given the power to bind out pauper children as
apprentices; (7) there were full and explicit direc-
tions as to who should be admitted to the poorhouse;
(8) full provision was made for the removal to his
place of legal settlement of any person not a legal
resident who might have found his way into any
poorhouse; (9) provision was made for the discharge
of any inmate who had been received because of sick-
ness; (10) authority was granted to levy a special
poor tax of not more than one mill on the dollar in
case the ordinary revenue did not provide sufficient
funds with which to maintain the poorhouse; and
(11) a section was inserted providing for the com-
pensation of the members of the board of directors.

There is a paucity of data to explain why the
Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Iowa
turned away from the legislation which had been
worked out in the frontier Territories of Michigan
and Wisconsin and went directly to the laws of Ohio,
a much more developed community in every way.
It may be assumed, however, that it was due to the
influence of the Ohio laws which were fresh in the
minds of men, like Governor Robert Lucas, who had
but recently come from Ohio, and to the availability
of these models in Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, which
were to be found both in the Territorial library and
in the private library of Governor Lucas. Other rea-
sons for this apparent retrogression have not yet
been discovered.

While final judgment should be passed only in the
light of a study of the way in which these two laws
70 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

actually worked out in practical administration, with
the evidence at hand it must be a matter of regret
that the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of
Iowa did not simply adapt the law borrowed from
Wisconsin Territory a little more closely to local
needs in Iowa by amendatory acts rather than reén-
act a law better suited to the more complex social
conditions of a State like Ohio.
V

A GENERAL SURVEY OF POOR RELIEF
LEGISLATION IN IOWA
1846-1914

During the years immediately preceding and im-
mediately following the admission of Iowa into the
Union other interests than such subjects as the care
of the poor engrossed the attention of the legislators.
In the first place, the strife of political parties was
strong. Each party was playing politics to gain con-
trol of the State government and, therefore, almost
every legislative measure was passed by a strict
party vote. The fate of practically every bill that
was introduced was determined so far as committee
action was concerned by the question of party ad-
vantage.

Furthermore, the questions which concerned the
legislators were quite different from those of the
present day. The Territorial legislatures spent a
considerable part of their time in passing special
legislation. For example, they granted divorces;
they were concerned with the passage of acts laying
out Territorial roads; and they authorized the pay-
ment of bills which would now be handled through
an administrative department. Large numbers of
acts were passed legalizing the proceedings of boards

71
72 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

of county commissioners, boards of election, and
other officials who were not too familiar with the du-
ties required of them by law. By special acts the
legislature incorporated all kinds of business enter-
prises, established ferries and bridges, permitted the
establishment of mills, incorporated institutions of
learning as well as cities and villages, besides pro-
viding for the organization of new counties and town-
ships, and passing laws for the government of a new
country. In spite of the fact that the Organic Law
of the Territory provided for the extension of the
laws of Michigan and Wisconsin over the new Terri-
tory until such time as the legislature should pass
substitutes, there was such pressing need of legisla-
tion on almost every subject that the matter of the
relief of the poor received scant consideration.

Again, it is to be noted that the interests of the
people during the State-building stage in Iowa were
not so much humanitarian as political in character.
Those were the days of the pioneer, of individualism,
of rough and ready independence, and while needy
individuals were supplied with ready hospitality,
there had not yet developed a sense of community re-
sponsibility for the relief of those elements of the
population which were either unfortunate or lacking
in the qualities necessary to the gaining of a liveli-
hood.

Under these circumstances it is easy to understand
why there were so few measures relating to the relief
of the poor introduced into the Territorial legisla-
tures and the early General Assemblies of the State.
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 73

Neither is it so inexplicable why the laws that were

passed were not the result of independent and eare-
ful thought.

The first Constitution of the new State of Iowa
provided that ‘‘ All the laws now in force in this Ter-
ritory, which are not repugnant to this constitution,
shall remain in force until they expire by their own
limitations, or be altered or repealed by the General
Assembly of this State.’ *° Thus, the poor laws en-
acted by the Territorial legislature in 1842 remained
in force in the State. Asa matter of fact, no laws of
importance in the history of poor relief legislation
were passed in Iowa between the year 1842 and the
adoption of the Code of 1851.

The only legislation relative to poor relief enacted
between 1846 and 1851 were special acts providing
for the building and managing of poorhouses in the
counties of Lee and Des Moines. These acts had for
their purpose the abrogation of those parts of the
law of 1842 which prescribed the procedure for pur-
chasing land and building thereon a poorhouse,® the
compelling of the county commissioners to purchase
land for a poor farm, and the repeal of the part of
the law respecting the appointment of a board of di-
rectors to govern the institution.”

Following the adoption of these laws came a series
of special acts endeavoring to restore the applica-
tion of the law of 1842 to Des Moines County; ® to
secure uniformity of action in the two counties;
and finally, to undo the legislative tangle produced
74 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

by these contradictory acts ‘** and thus revive the
special modification of the Ohio-Iowa law.* As a
matter of fact these special acts suspending the op-
eration of the law of 1842 which was borrowed from
Ohio and was still in force in Iowa, offer a significant
commentary upon the inadaptability of the Ohio law
to the Iowa situation, and especially that part of it
which related to a board of directors for the poor-
house.

In addition to these special acts, on January 25,
1848, the Second General Assembly passed a joint
resolution instructing the representatives of Iowa in
Congress ‘‘to use their best endeavors to procure a
donation of five sections of land out of any lands be-
longing to the General Government not yet disposed
of, in or near the township of Fairview in said
[Jones] county, or in the adjoining county of Linn,
near the same township, as a commissioner appoint-
ed for that purpose may select, for the use of an
Orphan Asylum and Manual Labor School.’’ The
resolution provided also that these lands were to re-
main a perpetual donation, the use and rent of which
were to be applied to the benefit of poor orphan chil-
dren and such other indigent persons as should be
admitted to the institution as objects of charity.
There is no evidence, however, that favorable action
was taken by Congress on this joint resolution.®’

Thus it will be seen that the only significance of
the poor relief legislation of this period is to show
how ill-adapted the law of 1842 was to the needs of
those counties which were ready to erect poorhouses,
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 75

and to indicate the small consideration which laws
for the relief of the poor received in those days.

The Code of 1851 was the outgrowth of a convic-
tion which had been growing for some time in Iowa
that a systematic arrangement of the existing law of
the State was absolutely necessary. So keenly was
it felt that the best talent available should be se-
cured for the work of codification that, in spite of
political strife, the commission finally chosen was one
‘‘eminently qualified for the task’’, being composed
of Charles Mason, William G. Woodward, and Ste-
phen Hempstead.

In general, the work of the commission which pre-
pared the Code of 1851, stands out as a model of its
kind. In part the new code was an orderly codifica-
tion of already existing laws; in part it consisted of
new laws. Its influence, says an eminent jurist, has
been so great that while its sections ‘‘have been over-
laid with subsequent legislation, they have been
largely retained in the Revision of 1860, the Code of
1873 and the Code of 1897, as the best statement of
that portion of the law which they were intended to
cover.’’®* Without doubt the poor relief law as
found in the Code of 1851 has been the dominant in-
fluence in all subsequent legislation upon that subject
in this State.

The table of the various sections of the Code of
1851 relative to the relief of the poor to be found in
the Appendix will make clearer the range of sources
from which these provisions were obtained. A brief
perusal of this table reveals to what a degree the
76 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

poor relief law contained in the Code of 1851 wasa
summary of the legislation with which the people
inhabiting Iowa were more or less familiar, and in
what sense the codifiers drew up a new law adapted
to the needs of a new community. The comparison
also reveals the debt which the code commissioners
owed to the rich collections of statute law to be found
in the statute books of Michigan and Ohio; and it
shows how much new material was incorporated into
the Code and what liberty was taken in rearrange-
ment.

Chapter forty-eight of the Code of 1851, on ‘‘The
Settlement and Support of the Poor’’, was divided
into four parts or articles. Article one dealt with
‘‘The support of poor persons by their kindred’’;
article two with ‘‘Legal Settlements’’; article three
with ‘‘Relief of the Poor where there is no Poor
House’’; and article four with ‘‘Relief of the Poor
where there is a Poor House’’. Under the first
article there were twenty-two sections ; under the sec-
ond, eleven; under the third, nine; and under the
last, twenty —a total of sixty-two sections as com-
pared with thirty-two in the longest act in the Ohio
statutes, that of 1795. At the same time, consider-
ing the number of subjects covered, this was the most
comprehensive, and yet the briefest, piece of legisla-
tion for the relief of the poor passed up to this time
in any of the States and Territories which have come
within the scope of this study.

One of the chief characteristics of the legislation
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 17

of the Code of 1851 is the vesting of primary author-
ity in the county judge. This is a feature not pecu-
liar, however, to the sections on the relief of the
poor, for the county judge was now made the central
figure in all phases of local administration. In this
respect the Code of 1851 represented in poor relief a
retrogression to a method which had not found favor
with those who had given most thought to the ex-
perience of those States where it had been tried,
namely, the system of administering poor relief pri-
marily through the courts. Provision was made for
the mixed system of relief: first, support by kindred
where there were such who could be compelled to
care for their pauper relatives; second, relief by
means of the poorhouse where such an institution ex-
isted, except in cases where some other plan seemed
desirable to the judge; third, the farming out of the
care of the poor to the highest bidder when that
method commended itself to the judge; and fourth,
relief by means of money to be used by needy per-
sons in their homes when that method was as econ-
omical and seemed best.”

Again, the law of 1851 was characterized by a re-
markable blending of the chief features worked out
by Ohio and Michigan into a new plan in which the
county judge was the dominant figure. In this re-
spect the law was prophetic of the tendency to con-
centrate authority which has been growing in more
recent years. To be sure, the township trustees were
required to help the judge in administering the law
in the townships. To them the pauper made applica-
78 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

tion, but they in their turn must report the case at
once to the county judge and warn from the town-
ship those paupers who had no settlement therein.”
There were to be directors of the poorhouse, but the
appointment of these officers, in case the county had
a poorhouse, was made optional with the county
judge.” If appointed, the directors were to have
most of the powers, and were hedged about with
many of the limitations, found in the Ohio and Michi-
gan laws and the earlier laws of Iowa.”*

On the other hand, the law contained many fea-
tures not found in the statutes thus far discussed,
such as new provisions concerning the support of
paupers by relatives, the continuance of a settlement
once gained until a new one was obtained, the change
of venue in cases of appeals, the removal of paupers
from a place where they had no settlement to their
place of settlement at their own request, a system of
espionage over the contractors caring for the poor,
and the creation of the position of steward of the
poorhouse — which was but a new name for an old
office.* The clearness of statement was one of the
most remarkable features of the Code of 1851. The
short, pointed sections, the lack of ambiguity, and the
close relation between the parts made it a model code
of poor relief legislation. Moreover, the strong cen-
tralization of power in the county judge removed the
danger of confusion otherwise imminent in a code so
complex in its origin.

The code commissioners, however, were not de-
pendent entirely either upon the laws of the North-
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 79

west Territory and of Michigan and Wisconsin, or
upon the early legislation of the Territory of Iowa.
A diligent search has been made for the origin of that
peculiar feature of the Code, the county judge sys-
tem. Numerous suggestions have been made. One
writer has suggested that it originated simply as an
extension and concentration of the powers of the
county commissioners combined with those of the
probate judge.” Another investigator suggests that
it was an imitation of the county court system of
colonial Virginia.” Still another writer has stated
that a correspondent of the Burlington Tri-Weekly
Telegraph, in replying to another correspondent,
made a rather direct suggestion that the county
judge was a feature borrowed from some other
State; but no data has been discovered thus far to
indicate what State was meant. Indeed, no direct
evidence has been presented to show upon what codes
or laws, if any, aside from the laws of the Northwest
Territory, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, and the earlier
laws of Iowa, the makers of the Code of 1851 drew.
Judge McClain accounts for many of the provi-
sions of the Code of 1851 by saying that legal reform
was in the air at this time, and that during the year
in which the code commissioners of Iowa were ap-
pointed, the New York commissioners, appointed to
report legal reforms to the legislature of that State,
had submitted the first of their reports. He adds
that these reports ‘‘were not fully accepted by the
New York legislature, either then or subsequently,
but many of his cherished reforms were incorporated
80 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

into the written law, and the code of procedure was
fully adopted. It was but natural that Judge Mason
should feel the influence of this movement, which,
commencing in New York, rapidly extended west-
ward and radically affected the legislation of all the
newer states, culminating eventually in California,
where the Field codes so-called were substantially
adopted in a body.’’ But this writer gives no evi-
dence that the New York legislation or the reports
of the Field Commission had any direct influence
upon the authors of the Code of 1851. In fact, he
says: ‘‘It must not be assumed that the Code of
1851 was a copy of, or substantially derived from,
any code found in any state. The general principles
of law reform as they had been discussed in New
York and elsewhere were recognized, but the result
was the production of the Iowa author, and not a
mere adaptation of the work of another.’ ®

Furthermore, the compilers of the Revision of 1860
declared that the ‘‘terms of the parent act [i. e. the
Revised Statutes of the State of New York 1848]
were so far departed from as to make it difficult even
to those well versed in both acts, and almost impos-
sible for others to apply the judicial illustration
which the New York act has secured, to the illumina-
tion of our own.’’

An examination of the Revised Statutes of the
State of New York, however, reveals that in draw-
ing up certain parts of the Iowa Code of 1851, the
commissioners borrowed quite freely from the New
York legislation. Below will be found in parallel
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 81

columns article one of chapter forty-eight of the
Code of 1851 and a number of sections from the Re-
vised Statutes of the State of New York, 1848. *°

SECTIONS OF THE CoDE oF SECTIONS OF THE REVISED

1851

787. The father, mother,
children, grandfather, if of
ability without his personal
labor, and the male grand-
children who are of ability,
of any poor person who is
blind, old, lame or otherwise
impotent so as to be unable
to maintain himself by work
shall jointly or severally re-
lieve or maintain such poor
person in such manner as
may be approved by the
trustees of the township
where such poor person may
be or by the directors, but
these officers shall have no
control unless the poor per-
son has applied for aid.

788. The word ‘‘father”’
in the preceding section in-
cludes the putative father of
an illegitimate child, and
the question of his being the
father may be tried in any
action or proceeding to re-
cover for or to compel the

Starures or New York

Section 1. The father,
mother and children who are
of sufficient ability of any
poor person who is blind,
old, lame, impotent or de-
crepit so as to be unable by
work to maintain himself
shall at their own charge re-
lieve and maintain such poor
person in such manner as
shall be approved by the
overseers of the poor of the
town where such poor per-
son may be.
82 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

support of an illegitimate
child. But there shall be no
obligation to proceed against
the putative father before
proceeding against the
mother.

789. Upon the failure of
such relative so to relieve or
maintain a poor person who
has made application for re-
lief the township trustees or
the directors may apply to
the court of the county
where such poor person re-
sides for an order to compel

“the same.

790. At least fourteen
days written notice of the
application shall be given by
summons which shall be
served as original process in
an action, may be served and
in any county by any officer
thereof or by any other per-
son.

791. The court shall
make no order affecting a
person not served but may
notify him at any stage of
the proceedings.

Sec. 2. Upon any failure
of any such relative so to re-
lieve and maintain any such
poor person, it shall be the
duty of the overseers of the
poor of the town where such
poor person may be to apply
to the court of sessions of
the county where such rela-
tive may dwell for an order
to compel such relief; of
which application at least
fourteen days’ notice in
writing shall be given by
serving the same personally
or by leaving the same at the
last place of dwelling of the
individual to whom the same
may be directed in ease of
his absence therefrom with
some person of mature age.

Sec. 3. The court to
which the said application
may be made shall proceed
in a summary way to hear
the allegations and proofs of
the parties, and shall order
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914

792. The court may pro-
ceed in a summary manuer
to hear the allegations and
proofs of the parties and or-
der any one or more of the
relatives of such poor per-
son who appear to be able, to
relieve and maintain him
charging them as far as prac-
ticable in the order above
named and for that purpose
making new parties to the
proceedings when necessary.

793. Such order may be
for the entire or partial sup-
port of the poor person and
it may be for support either
by money or by taking the
poor person to the relative’s
house, or the order may as-
sign the poor person for a
certain time to one and for
another period to another
relative as may be adjudged

83

such of the relatives afore-
said of such poor person as
appear to be of sufficient
ability to relieve and main-
tain such person, and shall
therein specify the sum
which will be sufficient for
the support of such poor per-
son, to be paid weekly. And
the said court shall therein
direct the relative or rela-
tives who shall perform that
duty in the following order:
The father shall be first re-
quired to maintain such poor
person; if there be none or
he be not of sufficient ability,
then the children of such
poor person ; if there be none
or they be not of sufficient
ability, then the mother.

Sec. 4. [Omitted].

Sec. 5. Such order may
specify the time during
which the relatives aforesaid
shall maintain such poor per-
son or during which any of
the said sums so directed by
the court shall be paid, or it
may be indefinite and until
the further order of the
court.
84

just and convenient, taking
into view the means of the
several relatives.

794, If the court order
the relief in any other man-
ner than in money it shall fix
a just weekly value upon it.

795. The order may be
specific in point of time or it
may be indefinite until the
further order of the court
and may be varied from time
to time when the circum-
stances require it on the ap-
plication of the trustees of
the poor person, or of any
relative affected by it, upon
fourteen days notice being
given.

796. When money is or-
dered to be paid it shall be
paid to such officer as the
court may direct.

797. If any person fails
to render the support or-
dered, on the affidavit of one
of the proper trustees or di-
rectors showing that fact
the court may order execu-
tion for the amount due rat-
ing any support ordered in
kind as before assessed. In
such proceeding the county

POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

The court may from time
to time vary such order
whenever circumstances shall
require it, on the application
either of any relative affect-
ed thereby or of any over-
seers of the poor of the town,
upon fourteen days’ notice
being given.

Sec. 6. [Omitted].
Sec. 7. If any relative
who shall have been required

by such order to relieve or
maintain any poor person
shall neglect to do so in such
manner as shall be approved
by the overseers of the poor
of the town where such poor
person may be, and shall
neglect to pay to such over-
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 85

is plaintiff and the person
sought to be charged defend-
ant.

798. An appeal may be
taken from such judgment
as provided in the chapter
relating to the county judge.

799. Whenever a father,
or a mother being: a widow
or living separate from her
husband, abandons their
children, or a husband his
wife, leaving them charge-
able or likely to become
chargeable upon the public
for their support the trus-
tees of the township where
such wife or children may
be, or the directors, upon ap-
plication being made to them
may apply to the court of
any county in which any es-
tate of such father, mother,

seers weekly the sum pre-
seribed by the court for the
support of such poor per-
son, the said overseers may
maintain an action as for
moneys had and received
against such relative, and
shall recover therein the sum
so prescribed by the said
court for every week the said
order shall have been dis-
obeyed, up to the time of
such recovery, with costs of
suit, for the use of the poor.

Sec. 8. Whenever the
father, or mother being a
widow or living separate
from her husband, shall ab-
scond from their children, or

a husband from his wife,

leaving any of them'charge-
able, or likely to become
chargeable upon the public
for their support, the over-
seers of the poor of the town
where such wife or children
may be, may apply to any
two justices of the peace of
any county in which any es-
tate, real or personal of the
said father, mother, or hus-
band may be situated, for a
warrant to seize the same.
86

or husband may be for a
warrant to seize the same,
and upon due proof of the
above facts the court may is-
sue its warrant authorizing
the trustees or directors to
take into their possession the
goods, chattels, effects,
things in action, and the
lands of the person abscond-
ing.

800. By virtue of such
warrant the trustees or di-
rectors may take the prop-
erty wherever the same may
be found in the same county
and shall be vested with all
the right and title to the per-
sonal property and to the
rents of the real property
which the person absconding
had at the time of his de-
parture.

801. All sales and trans-
fers of any such property
real or personal and leases
made by the person after the
issuing of the warrant shall
be absolutely void.

802. The said trustees or
directors shall immediately
make an inventory of the
property so seized by them

POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Upon due proof of the facts
aforesaid, the said justices
shall issue their warrant au-
thorizing the said overseers
to take and seize the goods,
chattels and effects, things in
action, and the lands and
tenements of the person so
absconding.

Sec. 9. By virtue of such
warrant the said overseers
may seize and take the said
property wherever the same
may be found, in the same
county; and shall be vested
with all the right and title
to the said property which
the person so absconding had .
at the time of his or her de-
parture. All sales and trans-
fers of any personal proper-
ty left in the county from
which such person absconded
made by him after the issu-
ing of such warrant, whether
in payment of an antecedent
debt, or for a new considera-
tion shall be absolutely void.
The overseers shall immed-
iately make an inventory of
the property so seized by
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 87

and return the same together
with the proceedings to the
court, there to be filed.

803. The court upon in-
quiring into the facts and
circumstances of the case
may discharge the order of
seizure, but if it be not dis-
charged the court shall have
power to direct from time to
time what part of the per-
sonal property shall be sold
and how, and how much of
the proceeds of such sale and
of the rents and profits of
the real estate shall be ap-
plied to the maintenance of
the children or wife of the
person so absconding.

804. If the party against
whom such warrant issued
return and support the wife
or children so abandoned or
give security to the county
satisfactory to the judge
that such wife or children
shall not become chargeable
to the county the warrant
shall be discharged by an or-

them, and return the same
together with their proceed-
ings to the next court of ses-
sions of the county where
such overseers reside, there
to be filed.

Sec. 10. The said court
upon inquiring into the facts
and circumstances of the
case, may confirm the said
warrant and seizure, or may
discharge the same; and if
the same be confirmed, shall
from time to time direct
what part of the personal
property shall be sold and
how much of the proceeds of
such sale and of the rents
and profits of the real estate,
if any, shall be applied to-
wards the maintenance of
the children or the wife of
the person so absconding.

Sec. 11. If the party
against whom such warrant
shall issue, return and sup-
port the wife or children so
abandoned, or give security
satisfactory to any two jus-
tices of the town, to the over-
seers of the poor of the town,
that the wife or children so
abandoned shall not become,
88 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

der of the court, and the or thereafter be chargeable

property taken and remain- to the town or county, then

ing restored. —Code of 1851, such warrant shall be dis-

pp. 124-126. charged by an order of such
justices, and the property
taken by virtue thereof, shall
be restored to such party. —
Revised Statutes of the State
of New York, 1st Revision,
1848, according to Revised
Statutes of the State of New
York, Sixth Edition, 1875,
Vol. II, Chap. XX, Title I.
pp. 808, 809.

It should be said, however, that the close corre-
spondence to be seen here is not to be found in the
other three articles of the chapter on the care of the
poor, which are based more directly upon the exist-
ing laws of Iowa, and the laws of Michigan, Ohio,
and the Northwest Territory. In addition to the pro-
visions derived from these sources, there were, as
has already been pointed out, certain sections which
apparently originated with the code commissioners
themselves.

Between the enactment of the Code of 1851 and the
adoption of the Revision of 1860 there was but little
legislation on the subject of poor relief, and none of
importance. But three acts are to be found in the
laws of that period, and two of these are legalizing
acts. The other was a special act approved on Janu-
ary 12, 1855, authorizing the county judge of Lee
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 89

County to sell the land then in use for a county poor
farm and to buy for the county other lands for that
purpose and erect buildings thereon.** One of the
legalizing acts, approved on March 23, 1858, legalized
the action of the county judge of Pottawattamie
County in purchasing real estate for a poorhouse.”
The other act legalized similar action on the part of
the county judge of Scott County. In addition to
these laws a joint resolution was passed by the Sixth
General Assembly, instructing the Senators and Rep-
resentatives from Iowa in Congress to urge the pas-
sage of a law prohibiting the introduction of con-
victs and paupers into the United States.

These acts have no bearing upon the general policy
of poor relief. Incidentally they reflect the political
strife which led one political party to make every
effort to embarrass the county judge politically, and
to suggest the possibility of corruption in the case of
some of the county judges.*

Poor relief, like many other problems of that day,
was the plaything of politics rather than a concern
which challenged the close consideration of legisla-
tors and public-spirited citizens. The poorhouse was
an ancient, if not honorable institution which it was
believed every county ought to have, along with the
jail and the courthouse, as soon as the people could
afford it. To supply this need sometimes the swamp
land money, which at first was to be devoted to roads
and bridges, was diverted to the building of such in-
stitutions. During this period may be discerned the
beginnings of that unscientific attitude which still
90 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

continues in most places toward the county poor-
house and which made it what it was then and still is
to-day — the refuge of the hopeless, the death-house
of the pauper sick, the winter home of the diseased
vagrant, the last refuge of the broken-down prosti-
tute, the asylum for the insane, the lying-in hospital
both for the feeble-minded woman whom society
failed to protect from its vicious and often feeble-
minded members and also for the poor unfortunate
girl, the victim partly of ignorance and partly of
lust, and perhaps saddest of all, the home of some in-
dependent, high-spirited person whom misfortune or
filial irreverence in his declining days left with only
such a place in which to close his eyes in the last long
sleep. Created because of such motives and devel-
oped in such a manner, is it any wonder that the
county poorhouse has continued to be the most
neglected subject of social legislation, not only in
Iowa, but with a few exceptions, throughout the
United States, and remains the despair of social stu-
dents everywhere?

There was very little interest in the relief of the
poor at this time on the part of any one, if one may
judge by the lack of attention given to the subject in
the public press. A careful search through various
newspapers, covering the years when these measures
were being enacted, fails to reveal any discussion of
the large problem of poor relief. This, however, is
not so surprising if one reflects upon the neglect
which is the portion of that subject at the hands of
the public press even to-day. Then, as now, it was an
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 91

uninteresting subject. No one went to see how the
poorhouse was conducted, unless his official duties re-
quired it; and the average citizen dismissed the dis-
agreeable subject from his mind with the consoling
reflection that the city or county had such a place for
those not able to care for themselves and that the
county made provision in some cases for the care of
certain classes of poor in their own homes.

The joint resolution just referred to is the first in-
dication in the legislation of Iowa of a definite con-
sideration of the causes of poverty. What part im-
migration played in causing the pauperism of that
day it would be impossible to estimate. That the
problem of poverty was pressing, however, is indi-
cated by the fact that the proposed legislation was
aimed at its prevention.

The provisions of the Revision of 1860 require but
little discussion. Absolutely no changes were intro-
duced by this Code in the law relating to the relief of
the poor except to incorporate the change which had
been made in the meantime respecting the officer of
administration. The county judge had given place to
the county supervisors by an act approved on March
22, 1860. The only thing which was done with these
sections of the Code was to insert in the first section
definitions making the words ‘‘court’’ and ‘‘judge’”’
as they appeared in the law mean ‘‘board of super-
visors’’. The word ‘‘clerk’’ was declared to mean
the ‘‘clerk of the board of supervisors’’ unless other-
wise expressed and whenever the nature of the duty,
92 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

the time of its necessary discharge, or the rules to be
made by the board of supervisors should so provide.
The word ‘‘directors’’ was made to mean ‘‘directors
of the poorhouse’”’ in counties where such an institu-
tion had been established.*

The act of March 22, 1860, overthrowing the county
judge system, provided also that the supervisors
should have authority to purchase for the county any
real estate needed for the erection of buildings for
the care of the poor and for a farm to be used in con-
nection therewith. In case, however, the money
necessary for this purpose amounted to more than
$2,000, the consent of a majority of the voters of the
county must be secured.*’ All the powers hitherto
possessed by the county court passed into the hands
of the board of supervisors.

The period from 1860 to 1873, when the next Code
was adopted, was marked by the Civil War. Out of
this emergency grew certain laws which have ever
since been retained in the legislation on poor relief
in this State. The soldier and his dependents were
the first to be exempted from the laws applying to
ordinary pauperism; and these exemption laws rep-
resent the first real, humane thought given to the sub-
ject of poor relief in the history of Iowa. What the
ordinary sentiments of humanity could not accom-
plish, gratitude to the soldier who was risking his
life for his country and pity for his wife and children
brought to pass in some degree.

Soon after the war broke out Governor Kirkwood,

/
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 93

in a special session message of May 16, 1861, refer-
ring to the promptness with which his appeal for
men to fill a regiment had been met, urged that the
State make provision to pay these men for their time
between the day when they left their homes and the
date when they were mustered into the service of the
United States.** In this same message he reported
that in most of the counties in which companies of
volunteers had been raised, the boards of supervisors
or public-spirited citizens had raised means for the
support of the families of the men who had volun-
teered and had left their families dependent upon
outside support. He suggested that it would be more
equitable if this burden were borne by the State
rather than by the counties from which the men vol-
unteered.*® The General Assembly did not see fit to
embody this suggestion in legislation, but by an act
approved on May 27, 1861, the acts of boards of su-
pervisors or municipal corporations in making ap-
propriations for the maintenance of families of sol-
diers were legalized. 'Two days later an act was ap-
proved which empowered boards of supervisors to
appropriate funds from the county treasury for the
support of needy families of volunteers in actual mil-
itary service either of the United States or of the
State of Iowa, provided such families had been resi-
dent in the county at the time of the enlistment and
were still resident in that county.”

As the war wore on the pressure of need on many
families was not diminished but the need for more
men in the army became apparent. To enable men
94 POOR, RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

to go who felt the duty of remaining at home and
supporting their families, Governor Kirkwood issued
an appeal through the press of the State on August
5, 1862, urging boards of supervisors to meet in their
several counties and take decided measures for the
support of the families of those who might volun-
teer.? On September 10th of the same year, in a
special message to the legislature, the Governor
urged that privates in the army be exempted from
their taxes while they were in service.*

A law approved on September 11, 1862, legalized
appropriations made by the boards of supervisors of
the various counties of the State and authorized them
to offer bounties to be given to volunteers or to be
used for the support of their dependent families.
This act, furthermore, legalized the payment of these
moneys either out of the ordinary county funds, or
out of a special fund thereafter to be provided for, or
out of the swamp land funds. The supervisors were
also empowered to levy a special tax if the ordinary
revenue was not sufficient for the purposes named,
and any special tax which any county had levied be-
fore the passage of this act was legalized.”

In his second biennial message, on January 12,
1864, Governor Kirkwood referred again to the necessi-
ty of furnishing aid in some way to the needy fami-
liesof Iowasoldiers. Herecommended that some sys-
tematic mode of furnishing such aid be provided by
the legislature. To a certain extent the General As-
sembly followed this suggestion in an act approved
on March 28, 1864, legalizing certain taxes levied by
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 95

county boards of supervisors for the payment of
bounties and for the support of families of soldiers.”
On March 28, 1864, however, an act was approved
which went still further in its provisions for the re-
lief of the families of soldiers, including the families
of non-commissioned officers and musicians as well as
privates. It authorized each county to levy a tax of
not less than two mills on the dollar in 1864 and 1865
for that purpose. The assessors were to enumerate
all soldiers and marines having families, and all who
had been in the service and were dead or disabled;
and they were to designate such of these families as
in their opinion were in need of aid. The supervisors
were then to distribute the funds, giving not more
than $150 to any one family in any year. All special
funds raised before that time for the relief of the
‘families of soldiers were to be turned into this fund.
The supervisors were authorized to borrow from
other county funds, except the school fund, for the
purpose of caring for soldiers’ families, in anticipa-
tion of the money expected from the special tax.
The fund thus created was known as ‘‘the relief
fund’’ and was destined to play a part in the future
of poor relief in Iowa of which it is probable that its
originators never thought. To prevent abuses in the
distribution of this fund a family was defined as
“only a wife, dependent children under the age of
twelve years, brothers and sisters under the age of
twelve years, aged and infirm dependent parents.’’
An indication that in some counties at least the fund
abundantly supplied the need is to be found in an act
96 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

of the Eleventh General Assembly, approved on
March 12, 1866, which provided that county super-
visors might transfer to any other county fund as
much of the relief fund as was not needed. On the
other hand, it was stipulated that in the counties
where past legislation for this purpose had not been
sufficient, the supervisors could levy for the years
1866 and 1867 an additional tax of not more than
one mill for that fund. All moneys raised in this
manner, however, were to be expended in accordance
with the provisions of the act of March 28, 1864.”
Just as the national pension fund for old soldiers,
now so overgrown and sometimes abused, grew out
of the great wave of gratitude and patriotic senti-
ment following the close of the war, so this method of
providing relief for the families of Iowa soldiers
sprang out of the helpless suffering entailed upon
them by the absence of their natural supporters who
were fighting for the life of the nation. The large
number of legalizing acts, special tax acts, and extra-
ordinary measures stretched the law-making power
to its utmost, but ample justification was to be found
in the dire necessities which broke up the ordinary
relations of life and made those dependent who in
other times would have been independent of public
help. Without doubt in the end these measures
proved demoralizing to many families and laid the
foundation of dependency in after years. Such a re-
sult, however, was an incident due partly to the pol-
itician who saw an opportunity to make capital for
himself by transforming a perfectly legitimate con-
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 97

cern for the family of the soldier into a pauperizing
influence, and partly to the weakness of individuals
who were unable to preserve the spirit of indepen-
dence when once the form had temporarily been
given up.

Thus, in the Civil War legislation originated the
soldiers’ relief fund still to be found in almost every
county in the State and in many of the States of the
Union. Beginning as a special kind of relief for a
special class it has continued with but little change
down to the present day. It remains chiefly because
it has not the stigma attached to it which has charac-
terized ordinary out-relief. The memories of hero-
ism, which those related to the recipients left in the
minds of the people who lived through the great
struggle, have deprived the acceptance of money
from this fund of the shame of pauperism. Furth-
ermore, it should be noted that this series of acts
marks the beginning of legislation for special classes
of dependents.

By an act approved on April 3, 1868, the power of
forcing relatives to support their dependent kindred
was taken out of the hands of the supervisors and
vested in the circuit courts, thus placing this feature
of poor relief once more under the jurisdiction of the
eourt authorities, as in the Code of 1851.”

Further modifications of the existing law which
were made by an act of April 6, 1868, are important
because they put into final form certain provisions
for the outdoor relief of the poor. This act pro-
vided that the city council of any incorporated city
98 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

of the first class and the township trustees of any
township in the State were authorized and required
to furnish relief for such persons as should not in
their judgment be sent to the county poorhouse, pro-
vided that the amount paid for their support should
not exceed two dollars per week for each person for
all their necessities food, rent, clothing, fuel,
lights, or money — exclusive of medical attendance.
It was further prescribed that no widows or families
of Iowa soldiers, or other persons who were sus-
taining family relationships, should be sent to the
poorhouse when they could be, and preferred to be,
relieved in the way and to the extent just mentioned.
The money necessary to carry out these provisions
was to be paid out of the county treasury after the
proper account had been rendered therefor and ap-
proved by the supervisors. Moreover, the law re-
quired the necessary appropriations to be made by
the counties to carry out these provisions, but the
supervisors had the power to limit the amount of
relief to be furnished in each case and could refuse
to continue the relief when in their judgment it was
no longer required.”

This law received enthusiastic support from the
leading State paper of the time, The Iowa State
Register Partly the product of a principle long
recognized in a minor way, and largely the fruit of
the effort to relieve the needs of soldiers’ families,
this act frankly introduced out-door relief for the
dependents of soldiers and for those having family
relationships. While this method of relief had been
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 99

permitted from the organization of the Territory,
it was now first required in the cases of the depend-
ents of Iowa soldiers and of dependents in families
to the exclusion of the time-honored poorhouse. This
law also introduced the principle of free medical at-
tendance into poor relief legislation.

One legalizing act was passed at the session of the
legislature in 1870. The board of supervisors of
Story County had appropriated five thousand dollars
for the purchase of land for a poor farm and two
thousand dollars for the erection of a poorhouse.
For this purpose they had issued county bonds at ten
per cent interest. An act approved on March 25,
1870, legalized these proceedings.“ During the ses-
sion of the General Assembly in 1872 a similar law
was passed legalizing the acts of the supervisors of
Poweshiek County in appropriating $3,500 for the
purchase of buildings and grounds for a county poor
farm.’”

The Code of 1873 differed materially from the Re-
vision of 1860. The latter was simply a compilation
of the existing statutes in addition to the Code of
1851, without any attempt to eliminate inconsisten-
cies where such existed, or to revise the arrangement
or the wording in order to make the law either more
intelligible or to make it conform to the decisions of
the Supreme Court. On the other hand, the com-
missioners who drew up the Code of 1873, in their
last report to the legislature not only brought the
law up to date by including the acts which had been
100 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

passed since the enactment of the Code of 1851, but
they revised and rearranged the laws so that incon-
sistencies were eliminated, errors which had crept in
were corrected, and the laws were rewritten when
that was necessary in order to bring them into line
with court decisions, to secure a clearer statement, or
to make them better serve the public welfare.’
Basing their revision frankly on the Code of 1851,
and ignoring almost entirely the Revision of 1860,
the commissioners set themselves to the task of mak-
ing the new Code contain the law as it actually ex-
isted in Iowa, as interpreted by the Supreme Court,
and arranged as they thought it ought to be in order
to render the largest service to the people of the
State, without changing the intention of the laws then
on the statute books.

Judge William G. Hammond, then Chancellor of
the Law Department of the State University, wrote
parts one and two, within which are to be found the
sections relating to the care of the poor. Nothing
can make as clear the changes which were made in
the existing law as the copy of the Report of the
Commissioners, 1873, in which the laws on poor re-
lief as they then existed were printed in the ordinary
Roman type and the proposed changes in italics. In
this Report at the end of each section there is a ref-
erence which shows where the section was obtained
or, if the section originated with the commissioners,
stating their reasons for the change.”

Various changes were proposed by the code com-
missioners. They suggested the making of a dis-
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 101

tinction between near relatives and distant relatives
in the support of paupers, and the compelling of rel-
atives to support paupers no matter from what cause
the latter became indigent. Again, they proposed
that not only the trustees, but also any other officers
who had charge of the poor, should be required to
apply to the circuit court to enforce support by rela-
tives; and that the wife should be made jointly re-
sponsible for the support of those naturally depend-
ent upon the heads of the family. A very important
change in the law was suggested whereby, instead of
giving the city council charge over out-relief in
cities of the first class and thus making possible a
conflict between the city and the county authorities,
the supervisors were given authority to appoint ov-
erseers of the poor in cities of the first and second
classes. Other recommendations were: the abolition
of boards of directors for poorhouses, since in no
county of the State, according to the Report of the
Commissioners had such boards actually been organ-
ized; the requirement that the support of the poor-
house be made one of the regular disbursements from
the county funds; and the elimination of a number of
the sections of the Revision of 1860 which seemed to
the commissioners either useless or confusing.’®
The most important of these proposed changes
were adopted by the General Assembly in toto, while
the alterations actually made in the proposals of the
commissioners were not numerous. The legislature
added a clause to section eight of the bill of the com-
missioners providing that no person should be sent
102 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

to the house of a relative if the latter was willing to
pay the amount necessary for his support elsewhere.
The clerk of the circuit court was substituted
throughout for the court itself in the administration
of the law. In providing free medical services for
the poor, the legislature added the statement that
the practitioner was to charge the county no more
than was usually paid for such services in the neigh-
borhood. It also added a clause to the section de-
voted to the outdoor care of the county poor in each
township by the township trustees, which was in line
with the attempt of the Code to put the control of
the poor more fully into the hands of the supervis-
ors, by stating that the trustees were to care for all
needy persons ‘‘until provided for by the board of
supervisors’’. Again, a trustee or an overseer was
forbidden to draw an order upon himself or a mem-
ber of the board for supplies for the poor unless he
had a contract to furnish such supplies; and there
was a provision for the bonding of the contractor
for the care of the poor. For the first time in Iowa
history, legal sanction was given to the appropria-
tion of the receipts from the poor farm to the use
of the poorhouse — a provision which doubtless sim-
ply recognized in law a long-established practice.
Finally, the legislature changed the ages up to which
pauper children could be bound out from ‘‘twenty-
one’’ for males and ‘‘eighteen’’ for females, as sug-
gested by the commissioners, to ‘‘eighteen’’ and
‘‘sixteen’’ respectively.?*
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 103

The Code of 1873, therefore, differs from the Code
of 1851 chiefly in having the supervisors instead of
the county court as the poor relief authorities; in
substituting the sheriff and supervisors for the di-
rectors of the poorhouse; in permitting the appoint-
ment of overseers of the poor for cities of the first
and second classes; in providing out-relief for the
families of Iowa soldiers and for any other persons
who preferred to be supported at home at a cost of
not more than two dollars per week, rather than go
to a poorhouse; in simplifying the laws of settlement
so far as they related to removal of those who had
no legal settlement in the counties of the State; in
providing for bonds to insure the support of pau-
pers by relatives; in introducing supervision over
the contractor for the care of the poor; and in cer-
tain verbal changes making for greater definite-
ness.*"

Without a doubt the provisions of the Code of 1873
with reference to the relief of the poor were more
definite and better adapted to the circumstances of
the State than any enacted in Iowa up to that time.
They contained a definite clause concerning support
of paupers by relatives more closely drawn than any
existing hitherto, laws of settlement based upon the
Code of 1851 but more closely fitted to conditions in
Iowa; provisions for the temporary support of per-
sons who had no settlement and for the support out-
side of the poorhouse of persons who had family re-
lationships, and sections providing for the support
104 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

of others in the poorhouse, especially those who had
no families, and for the care of soldiers’ orphans in
special institutions.

The fact that the Code of 1873 contained the best
legislation for the relief of the poor that Iowa had
ever had did not prevent an attempt to revise its
provisions at the very next session of the General
Assembly. No change was actually made, how-
ever, until 1876, when the provisions of the law
were extended to families of all Union soldiers,
whether Iowa soldiers or not; and, in addition to the
supervisors provision was made for overseers of the
poor as relief authorities. The overseers, however,
were to work under the direction of the supervis-
ors.* In 1878 the law was amended so as to in-
elude soldiers as well as their families.’

At the session of the General Assembly in 1876
several bills were introduced dealing with the sub-
ject of pauperism, but they failed to pass.** During
that same session, however, an act applying only to
counties having a population of not less than thirty
thousand provided that the expense of supporting
the poorhouse should be paid out of the county treas-
ury in the same manner as other county funds were
disbursed, and:that if the ordinary revenue of the
county was insufficient for the support of the poor, a
special tax not exceeding one and a half mills might
be levied by the board of supervisors for the pur-
pose.*?

In 1878 provision was made for paying to the
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 105

various school districts in which poorhouses were
located a proportionate part of the tuition for the
education of such pauper children as might be in the
poorhouse."* By an act of March 25, 1880, cities
with special charters were given the same right as
cities of the first and second classes to have special
overseers of the poor appointed for them. The last
part of the section of the Code providing against
excess charges for medical service to the poor was
eliminated; and a provision was added that enabled
the trustee or overseer to require labor from any
applicant or any member of his family, if able to
work, in exchange for relief. Work on the highway
might also be required of any ‘‘transient persons
who appear needy’’ and who were given relief.*
A law approved on April 10, 1888, gave the county
supervisors more direct control over the relief sup-
plied by the trustees. This was secured by authoriz-
ing them to examine the claims for the cost of poor
relief, including medical attendance, and to reduce
the claims if they found that relief other than the
bare necessities of life had been provided.**

At the extra session of the legislature in 1897, by
an act approved on May 4th, the Code of 1873 and
the acts of the Twenty-second General Assembly
were amended by striking out the provision that the
county supervisors could levy a tax of a certain
number of mills for county purposes, ‘‘including the
support of the poor’’.“* This change in no wise
affected the support of the poor. It served only to
eliminate the possibility of misunderstanding and
106 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

bring the statute into line with the expressed policy
of requiring that the cost of poor relief in counties
having a population of thirty thousand inhabitants
or over should be paid out of the regular income of
the county.

Besides these general laws, three legalizing acts
were passed during the interim between 1873 and
1897. One of these, adopted in 1882, legalized the
act of the supervisors of Wapello County in selling
the old poorhouse and paying a definite sum for a
new one without first submitting the question to the
voters.””7 Another, approved on April 1, 1892, legal-
ized the acts of the supervisors of Lee County in
levying annually since 1876 a special tax of one and
a half mills for the support of the poor.*** And the
third, a law of a more general nature, approved on
April 17, 1897, legalized the practice of boards of
supervisors in levying from year to year taxes for
the county revenue and for the support of the poor
at the same time.’*®

The act creating the code commission which pre-
pared the Code of 1897 gave that body wide powers.
It stated that the commission ‘‘shall carefully revise
and codify the laws of Iowa, and shall rewrite the
same and divide them into appropriate parts and ar-
range them under appropriate titles, chapters, and
sections; omit all parts repealed or obsolete, insert
all amendments and make the laws complete.’’ More-
over, the commission was given ‘‘power to trans-
pose words and sentences, arrange the same into
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 107

sections or paragraphs and number them, change
the phraseology and make any and all alterations
necessary to improve, systematize, harmonize and
make the laws clear and intelligible.’’ ”°

Under the terms of this law the members of the
commission felt that they had large powers in re-
writing the laws so far as such work would improve
their phraseology and make them more clear and
intelligible, but they did not think that they had any
power to make alterations in the meaning of laws;
and so the changes which they made were merely
verbal.*** They found, however, that much in the
old Code and in the more recent statutes might be
omitted as superfluous. In rearranging the sections
and making them clearer they often so changed and
transposed words and sentences that practically the
whole section was underscored in their report, indi-
eating changes, but only changes in the phraseology
or order of words without any alteration in the
meaning.’””

In accordance with this policy, no real changes
were proposed in the first six sections of the chapter
on poor relief as found in the Code of 1873, except
that those alterations made by the General Assem-
bly between 1873 and 1897 which the commissioners
considered essential were incorporated. Sections
one to six of this chapter in the Report of the Com-
mission correspond substantially with sections 1330
to 1349 in the Code of 1873. Sections seven and
eight ‘‘provide for the recovery from the poor per-
son himself, or his relatives, or his estate for the
108 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

support furnished, and impose a limitation on the
time of enforcing such claim. But it is provided
that this limitation as against the poor person him-
self shall not commence to run until he is able to
pay.”’

It was proposed that the time of residence neces-
sary to acquire a settlement be changed to six
months, the time required to secure the right to vote.
The provisions for recovery by the county supplying
the relief from the county of settlement in cases
where relief was given to non-resident paupers were
consolidated, but otherwise left unchanged. The
furnishing of outdoor relief was made subject to
rules to be adopted by the supervisors of the county,
and the provisions of the section were so changed
as to apply also to a city situated in two counties,
while a clause was added forbidding officers to have
any personal pecuniary interest in the furnishing of
supplies to the poor. The provisions of the law of
the Highteenth General Assembly, conditioning sup-
port on performance of labor on the public highway,
were excluded, except in the case of transient pau-
pers, from the recommendations of the commission-
ers as of no practical effect, inasmuch as such condi-
tions were never imposed, and if they should be,
there was no available machinery by means of which
such labor could be made effectual. It was made
discretionary with the board of supervisors whether
or not persons in families should be sent to the poor-
house. Moreover, the ultimate control of the super-
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 109

visors in the entire field of poor relief was definitely
provided for.

The Report of the Commission provided that a
contract might be let either for supplies or for sup-
port, as the board of supervisors might determine,
but in either case it was to be let to the lowest bid-
der. The commissioners proposed that only in cases:
where an expenditure of more than five thousand
dollars was involved should a vote of the people be
required, rather than in all cases as was prescribed
in the Code of 1873. Again, the definition of a poor
person was so stated that a person who had some
means might be aided without requiring, for exam-
ple, that he sell a homestead before aid could be
given him. Finally, the section relating to the bind-
ing out of poor children was transferred from this
chapter to the chapter on apprenticeship.’

Only a few important changes were made by the
legislature in the proposals of the commissioners.
The length of time necessary to gain a legal settle-
ment was left at one year as provided in the Code
of 1873, rather than at six months as recommended
by the commissioners. The provisions of the previ-
ous Code to the effect that in exchange for relief an
able-bodied person might be required to labor on
the streets or highways at five cents per hour under
the direction of those having charge of working such
streets or highways were retained; and some slight
modifications were made in the part relating to the
review of the expenditures of township trustees and
110 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

overseers of the poor by the supervisors, in order
to make this function conform more closely to the
previous practice than to the plan recommended by
the commissioners.’**

The Code of 1897, therefore, made no radical
changes in the method of poor relief. The only im-
portant change was to concentrate power more com-
pletely in the county supervisors, a step which was in
line with the tendency toward the centralization of
administrative authority —a tendency which has
prevailed ever since. Every State which is attempt-
ing to solve the problem is centralizing the adminis-
tration of poor relief. The Code of 1897 shows the
growth of the social consciousness with respect to
the increasing inadequacy of the old methods to cope
with the changing problems.

The ten years from 1897 to 1907, when the second
supplement to the Code of 1897 was published, wit-
nessed no changes in the laws relating to the relief
of the poor — the only ten year period in the history
of the State of which such a statement could be
made. This period is marked by the growth of other
social legislation, but decreasing attention was paid
to the care of the poor. Perhaps despair at the
results of the former methods of treating the prob-
lem of poverty caused the legislature to turn from
legislation aimed at the cure of poverty to laws for
the removal of the causes of poverty, and the treat-
ment of such causes through the juvenile court and
LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 111

other means of a similar character which will be
taken up in detail in subsequent chapters.

The only act passed by the Thirty-second General
Assembly in 1907 bearing upon this subject was one
to legalize the action of the supervisors of Chicka-
saw County in proceeding with the construction of a
poorhouse without submitting to the people the ques-
tion of whether or not they should expend not to
exceed $25,000 for such a purpose.’ The Thirty-
third General Assembly in 1909 changed the amount
of the tax which the supervisors might levy for the
care of the poor from one to two mills on the dollar.’”*
In this same year the name of the county institution
for the poor was changed from ‘‘poorhouse’’ to
“‘county home’’,*” in the vain hope that a change of
name might change the character of the institution.
The Thirty-fourth and the Thirty-fifth General As-
semblies have left untouched the subject of caring
for the poor either through the ‘‘county home’’ or by
means of outdoor relief.

During the period from 1897 to the present time,
while attention has been focused less and less upon
the poorhouse and outdoor relief, a vast amount of
legislation for the poor of various classes — such as
soldiers and their dependents, defectives whose rela-
tives can not afford to pay for their care and educa-
tion, and children and widows with children — has
been enacted. Moreover, during this period there
has been noticeable a strong tendency towards the
112. POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

centralization of authority in the care of dependents.
This tendency has not gone so far in Iowa as in some
States of the Union, but the Board of Control of
State Institutions has been given supervision over
those county institutions in which insane are kept,
in addition to the management of the State charita-
ble and correctional institutions.

Furthermore, there has been a growing realization
within this period that poverty and pauperism are
not isolated problems, but, on the contrary, that they
are interwoven with all kinds of other social prob-
lems, such as vice, crime, housing, inadequate health
regulations, neglected children, industrial neglect,
lack of a workman’s compensation act, and a number
of other unfortunate social conditions.

The problem of the relief of poverty has become
much more complicated than it was formerly. With
a study of its causes, the State has come to see that
no mere palliative like the ‘‘county home’’, however
good, will meet the situation. On the other hand,
there has not yet developed an appreciation of the
possibilities wrapped up in the scientific treatment
of paupers in an institution constructed for the pur-
pose of the rehabilitation or permanent segregation
of those who are in the working period of life and
for the proper care of the aged and infirm. The
legislators of Iowa have not come to a realization of
the fact that unsystematic out-relief is a pauperiz-
ing influence, and that both a properly conducted
poorhouse and properly administered out-relief can
do much to stem the tide of pauperism, as the ex-
‘

LEGISLATION IN IOWA 1846-1914 118

perience of Indiana since 1897 clearly shows. In
Iowa there has been no careful consideration of the
problem of caring for the poor in a way that will
make for cure and prevention, except as legislation
has taken other directions — as for instance in the
juvenile court statute, the mothers’ pension law, the
workman’s compensation act, and other laws looking
towards the removal of the economic and social
causes of poverty. These measures will be taken
up in the following chapters so far as they touch the
treatment of special classes of dependents, or bear
upon the growing emphasis which is being placed on
the prevention of poverty — both of which move-
ments are characteristic of recent legislation dealing
with the problems of poor relief.
PART IT

SPECIAL PHASES OF POOR RELIEF
LEGISLATION IN IOWA
VI
THE LAW OF SETTLEMENT

The law of settlement in force when Iowa became
a State was borrowed: the principle that a depend-
ent person must be supported by the legal unit in
which he has a residence is as old as the legislation
of Henry VIII.’** That principle, as has been seen,
was recognized almost universally in the legislation
of the States and Territories from which the legis-
lators of Iowa obtained their ideas concerning the
relief of the poor, and it was well established in the
poor relief legislation of the Middle West. Up to
the legislation of 1842 the Territory of Iowa, fol-
lowing the example of Wisconsin, retained the coun-
ty as the relief unit and therefore as the unit of
settlement.’*® When, however, in 1842, there was
enacted a new law, borrowed verbatim from Ohio
and originating in England, the Legislative Assem-
bly took over the mixed system of Ohio — the county
and township systems combined —and made the
township, rather than the county, the unit of settle-
ment.®° The Code of 1851 changed the unit back to
the county,*? where it has remained down to the
present time.

The length of residence necessary to gain a settle-
ment has, from the Territorial days, been one year.

117
118 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

The time necessary to reside in a county in order to
gain a settlement after being warned to depart has
been a year in every law with the exception of the
act of 1842, which provided for a three years’ resi-
dence. An unsuccessful attempt was made by the
code commission in its report in 1896 to have the
time of residence necessary to gain a settlement,
either upon first coming into the State or after being
warned to depart, reduced to six months — the time
necessary to gain the franchise.**? The legislature,
however, retained the time-honored period of one
year.**

The Code of 1851. retained the provision of the
Territorial act of January 16, 1842, first introduced
into the Ohio statutes in 1831, that only white per-
sons could obtain a settlement.*** But the Civil War
made it impossible to retain this provision in the
Code of 1878. The code commissioners changed the
wording in accordance with the amendment made by
the Tenth General Assembly in 1864 so that instead
of reading ‘‘any white person having attained ma-
jority’’, it read ‘‘any person having attained ma-
jority’’, and the legislature adopted the change as
suggested. Since that time this provision has re-
mained undisturbed."*

The Code of 1851 provided that a married woman,
abandoned by her husband and having obtained au-
thority to act as a single person, might acquire a
settlement as if she were unmarried. The code
commission of 1873 omitted the qualifying phrase;
and its recommendation on this point became the
THE LAW OF SETTLEMENT 119

law, thus precluding the necessity for court action
before a woman deserted by her husband could ob-
tain a settlement. Since 1873 this section of the
law has remained unchanged.’**

Provisions concerning the settlement of children
were first introduced into Iowa law in the Code of
1851, which provided that a legitimate child should
follow and have the settlement of his father, if his
father had acquired a settlement. If the parent was
without a place of legal settlement, then the status
of the child should be that of his mother. An ille-
gitimate minor child should follow and have the set-
tlement of his mother except when she had none, in
which case the place of settlement of the child should
be that of his putative father.**” The only change
since made in these provisions was the insertion in
the Code of 1873 of the word ‘‘minor’’ before ‘‘le-
gitimate’’ in the section relating to the settlement of
legitimate children, in order to make explicit what
was undoubtedly the original intention of the
framers of the Code of 1851.'** The minor whose
parents had no settlement in the State has shared
with the married woman living apart from her hus-
band the privilege of acquiring a settlement by a
year’s residence in the county since the introduction
of this provision into the Code of 1851.**°

Before 1851 the only provision for the settlement
of minors pertained to minor apprentices legally
brought into the Territory or State. By the pro-
visions of the Territorial law of February 16, 1842,
such minors, as well as other apprentices and in-
120 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

dented servants, acquired a settlement after a three
years’ service in any one place.” The Code of 1851
provided that any minor bound as an apprentice
should obtain the same settlement as that of his mas-
ter immediately upon becoming an apprentice; and
this provision has never been changed.**

The epoch-making Code of 1851 introduced also
the definite provision that a settlement once acquired
continued until it was lost by acquiring a new one.
This section, again, the code-makers and the legis-
lators have left undisturbed in the law of the State.”

Thus, in all but a few minor details the Code of
1851 has determined the law of settlement for the
State of Iowa during the major part of its history.
The framers of that Code apparently gathered the
laws of settlement from many States and Territories,
and especially from New York, and adapted them to
the situation in Iowa by freely modifying and sup-
plementing them with original provisions.

The regulations concerning the removal of such
persons as were, or were about to become, public
charges, but who had no settlement in the place
where found, were based largely upon the experience
of the Northwest Territory, Ohio, Michigan, and
Wisconsin.

In the preceding pages it has been shown how the
legislation on the subject of poor relief fiuctuated
from relative simplicity in the earlier acts of the
Northwest Territory to extreme complexity in the
THE LAW OF SETTLEMENT 121

laws enacted in Ohio about 1830. From that ex-
treme there was a reaction in the legislation of the
new Territories of the West during the next twenty
years toward the simplicity found in the law of Wis-
consin Territory. This act was copied in the first
law of the Territory of Iowa, but was superseded by
the complex law copied almost verbatim from the
Ohio statute of 1831. In the section relative to the
removal of a pauper who had no legal settlement,
however, the two laws were remarkably alike, pro-
vision being made for the removal of the person to
the place of his legal settlement or for a warning to
him to depart. Record of the warning was to be
made in order that it could be determined whether
the pauper had lived in a given place the length of
time necessary to gain a settlement after the warn-
ing had been given. In the law of 1842 the length of
time which a person must remain, without being
warned again to depart before he gained a settle-
ment was three years; while in the Code of 1851 this
period was reduced to one year — a provision which
has been retained ever since.

According to the Territorial law of 1842 the town-
ship overseers of the poor issued the warning to de-
part, which warrant was served by the constable and
returned to the clerk of the township to be record-
ed.‘ By the terms of the Code of 1851, the warning
in writing was to be issued by the township trustees,
or the directors of the poorhouse or the county judge,
and might be served by any person, but the person
122 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

serving it must report to the person issuing it, and if
not served by a sworn officer, such service must be
verified by an affidavit.**

A person making application for relief could be
removed on the order of the county judge issued to a
township trustee or a director of the poorhouse in
the county where he had a legal settlement, written
notice being given to the county judge or clerk of that
county. Or the judge of the county where the pauper
applied for relief might notify the judge of his
county of settlement that such a person was a county
charge. Then it was the duty of the latter to remove
him or see to his care." The Code of 1851 also con-
tained provisions for the payment of all reasonable
charges incurred in the temporary relief and removal
of non-resident paupers, for appeals from the order
of the judge of the county where the pauper applied
to the district court, and for change of venue.’

The only changes made in these provisions by the
Code of 1873 were those due to the change from the
county judge system to county government by super-
visors, and two changes in the interest of greater
definiteness. The order of removal was to be issued
by the township trustees or the county supervisors,
written notice was to be given to the county auditor
instead of the county judge or clerk, the return of
service was to be made to the supervisors, and the
county auditor took the place of the county judge in
notifying the auditor of the proper county that the
pauper in question was a public charge. Appeal was
made to the circuit, rather than to the district, court
THE LAW OF SETTLEMENT 123

—a change due simply to an alteration in the court
system. The order for removal was binding unless
the county so notified within thirty days served no-
tice on the county issuing the order of an intention to
contest the order.

In case of an appeal there was added to the issue
of whether the pauper had a settlement in the county
to which it was proposed to remove him, one other
question to be determined, namely, whether the
amount claimed by the county seeking his removal
had been actually and properly expended. In addi-
tion to this the burden of proof was placed upon the
county seeking to make the removal.’

The Code of 1897 introduced some minor changes.
The county from which the pauper, receiving tem-
porary relief, had come must notify the county grant-
ing relief within fifteen days if it intended to dis-
pute the claim to settlement.*** If the claim to set-
tlement was disputed, then within thirty days after
the notice above provided for the county seeking the
removal of the pauper must file in the district court
of the county disputing the claim a copy of the no-
tices sent and received.”

In the course of the history of the law of settle-
ment in Iowa certain changes of emphasis have taken
place. In the Code of 1851 the emphasis was upon
removal, as it was in the early laws of Ohio and in
the Territorial statute of 1842, while the notification
of the authorities in the county of settlement was in-
cidental. In the Code of 1873 and the Code of 1897
124 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

the emphasis was changed: the process of removal is
mentioned only incidentally, while the notification of
the county of settlement and the legal procedure on
the part of the county of settlement and the county
seeking to remove the pauper, are very much ampli-
fied. So well established has the principle of re-
moval become that little has needed to be said about
that subject in the later statutes.

It is a cause for regret, however, that so much em-
phasis has been laid in the poor laws of Iowa upon
settlement and removal. English experience had
long before shown that the introduction of the law of
settlement was a serious blunder. It interfered with
that mobility of labor so necessary to economic read-
justment, while it did not prevent the vagabondage
it was intended to circumvent *° and which must be
dealt with in quite another manner. It was feared,
when the law of settlement was introduced into Eng-
lish law in 1662, that unless some such provision
were made the poor would flock to the place offering
the most abundant opportunity for unearned sus-
tenance. Such a condition did prevail then, as it
does to-day, when poor relief is undiscriminating and
unorganized. But when relief is provided only after
careful investigation and on a work test, or when
the methods of scientific relief are rigidly applied,
paupers will, as a rule, go for relief to places where
they can be supplied by the old-fashioned, unscien-
tific methods. In short, the law of settlement works
a hardship to-day upon the honest, unpauperized
poor; while the person with the pauper spirit is able
THE LAW OF SETTLEMENT 125

to secure a living without work, the law of settlement
to the contrary notwithstanding, except where sci-
entific methods of relief are in vogue. If there were
no law of settlement only those communities would
suffer which are undiscriminating in their relief of
the poor; while the communities which have adopted
the best methods of relief would be rid of the
‘‘hobo’’ and the pauper.
Vil

COUNTY RELIEF OFFICIALS
THE COURT

According to the provisions of the Code of 1851
1e principal relief official was the county judge. It
‘ras he who issued the warrant to remove a person
yming from another State who had not yet acquired
settlement in Iowa and who had fallen into want
nd applied for relief. It was the county judge or
ie township trustees or the directors who issued in
riting the warning to any persons who it was
1ought might become county charges. It was the
sunty judge who issued the order for the removal
f a person who had no settlement and had applied
or relief; and to the county judge of the county
‘here the pauper had a legal settlement written no-
ce was given of the intention to remove him thither.
‘he county judge notified the judge of the county
‘here the pauper had a legal settlement that such a
erson was a county charge; and it was the duty of
ae judge of the latter county to order the removal
f the pauper or to provide for his care in the county
there he had applied for relief. Furthermore, the
ounty judge was authorized to make an appeal to
ae district court if he had reason to believe that the
auper had no legal settlement in his county.

126
COUNTY RELIEF OFFICIALS 1

Again, it was the county judge to whom the tow!
ship trustees, after satisfying themselves that the a]
plicant was in such destitute condition as to requil
relief at public expense, reported the case. He we
authorized to deny further relief if he found caus
All claims and bills for the support of the poor ha
to be certified by the proper trustees and presente
to the judge, by whom they were allowed if he we
satisfied that they were reasonable and proper. H
also had the power at his discretion to allow 1
paupers of sound years and mature mind who woul
probably be benefited by such a procedure, such sun
or annual allowances in cash as would not exceed tlk
charge of their maintenance by the ordinary metho:
. The judge might be appealed to from the decision «
the trustees in case they refused relief to an app]
cant, and he had the power to direct the trustees 1
afford relief. It was the county judge who let tl
contract for the care of the poor.to the lowest bidde
if he thought it expedient to do so. It was he wk
appointed that remarkable official whose business
was to ascertain and report to him the manner i
which the poor were kept and treated. If, upon dt
notice and inquiry, the judge found that paupe1
were not reasonably and properly supported, trea
ed, or cared for, he had the power to set aside an
contract at any regular session of the court.

The county judge was also authorized to o
der the erection and establishment of a poorhous
and to purchase land for that purpose; and he wé
invested with full authority to make all the necessar
128 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

contracts. The only limit upon his power in this re-
spect was that he should first estimate the cost and
submit the question of making such an expenditure
to a vote of the people at some regular election. The
judge had discretionary power to appoint directors
of the poorhouse, and it was his duty to fill vacancies
in the board of directors. If he decided not to ap-
point directors, he himself was invested with all the
authority usually conferred on directors in oversee-
ing the poorhouse. He had codrdinate powers with
the township trustees, or the directors of the poor-
house to admit by written order an applicant to that
institution. It was to the judge that the directors of
the poorhouse reported once a year a full account of
the condition of the institution, of their contracts,
disbursements, and proceedings. The county judge
issued the order for the payment of all expenses of
maintaining the poorhouse on certificates filed by the
directors. In case the ordinary county revenue
proved insufficient, he was empowered to levy a poor
tax of not exceeding one mill on the dollar. He might
allow the directors whatever sum he deemed reason-
able for their services not exceeding one dollar and
a half a day, and he had the authority to lease out the
poorhouse and the care of its occupants for a period
of not more than three years.***

With the abolition of the county judge system in
1860 and the substitution of the circuit for the county
court, the work of the court in the relief of the poor
became a mere bagatelle compared with its impor-
tance under the Code of 1851. All the powers of the
COUNTY RELIEF OFFICIALS 129

court and its clerk were now placed in the hands of
the county supervisors and their clerk. By an act
approved on April 3, 1868, however, the compelling
of relatives to support paupers was placed in the
hands of the circuit court — a provision which has
remained practically unchanged. Thus, the Code
of 1873 prescribed that the circuit court might be
applied to in order to compel relatives to support
paupers, and the Code of 1897 gave the same juris-
diction to the district court. The court procedure
in this respect, however, remained nearly the same as
outlined in the Code of 1851.”

Only a few changes were made in the procedure.
For instance, in cases of the seizure of property to
compel support of paupers by relatives either the
clerk of the court or the judge, instead of the judge
alone, might issue the order for seizure, and instead
of such order being issued to the township trustees
or the directors, it was issued to the trustees or the
sheriff. The duty of issuing the order, however,
still remained with the court and its clerk.** More-
over, the clerk of the circuit court took over the du-
ties of the county judge in respect to such an order
in case the absconding person returned and gave se-
curity against his dependents becoming chargeable
to the county. According to the Code of 1897 the
district court remained in charge.

A few slight changes in addition to those just
mentioned were introduced in the procedure to com-
pel relief by absconding natural supporters. The
township trustees dropped out as alternate author-
130 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

ities to seize the property of the one absconding,
and an appeal from the decision of the lower court
touching the support of pauper relatives was def-
initely stated to lie to the Supreme Court. More-
over, a time limit was put upon the bringing of an
action by the county against the person himself or
his relatives or estate, or by a relative against a
nearer relative, for the support of a poor person.
In the case of action against the person himself it
must be begun within two years after he became able
to pay; if against his estate, the claim must be filed
according to the law governing claims against the
estates of deceased persons; and if against relatives
for his support, or if against a nearer relative by
one more distant for support given, action must be
commenced within two years after the relief was
supplied.*** In the Code of 1897 the court or judge,
as in the Code of 1873, was inconsistently retained
to issue the order removing a pauper who had no
settlement to the place from whence he came, while
the actual removal of paupers was placed under the
authority of the township trustees or the supervisors.
In the Code of 1851 removal could be made by the
latter officials, or by the court or judge.*** Aside
from the provisions forcing relatives and natural
supporters to maintain paupers and those concern-
ing the removal of paupers, scarcely anything re-
mained of the former power of the court in the relief
of the poor after 1860. The other powers of the
county judge had been distributed between the board
COUNTY RELIEF OFFICIALS 131

of supervisors, the trustees of the township, and the
county auditor.

THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS

When the county judge gave place to the board of
supervisors by the act approved on March 22, 1860,
most of the powers of the county judge with refer-
ence to poor relief were taken over by the super-
visors. Ever since that time these officials have car-
ried on the major part of this work.

The supervisors assumed the court’s function in
issuing the warning to the pauper who had no reg-
ular settlement, but the power of ordering the re-
moval of a pauper to the county of his legal settle-
ment remained with the court. The board of super-
visors discharged the duties formerly incumbent
upon the county judge relative to the expenditure of
money from the county treasury on behalf of the
county and examined and approved all bills pre-
sented by township trustees for the care of the
poor. They allowed the bills presented by the town-
ship trustees, and they granted cash sums to such
persons as they chose under the same conditions as
had governed the county judge. It was to the super-
visors that appeal from the decision of township
trustees was now made. It was they who let con-
tracts either for the farming out of the poor or for
the building of a poorhouse. They also took over
the functions of the judge in making purchases for
the poorhouse and in prescribing rules and regula-
tions for the management of the same. Upon their
(182 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

written order admission was made to the poorhouse.
They levied a special tax for the support of the poor
in case the ordinary tax was not sufficient. If they
thought best, they let out the occupancy of the poor
farm and the care of the inmates for a period of not
exceeding three years. They, or the county auditor,
arranged for the maintenance of a pauper in one
county when he had a settlement in another, if such
a plan was satisfactory to the authorities in the
county seeking his removal. Moreover, they were
given authority to appoint in any city of the first or
second class embraced within the limits of a town-
ship an overseer of the poor for that city. This was
a modification of the act of April 6, 1868, which gave
to the city council codrdinate power with the town-
ship trustees in administering relief to the poor in
their city who, in their judgment, should not be sent
to the poorhouse.’”

In addition to these duties the Code of 1897 in-
vested the supervisors with the oversight of the re-
lief rendered by the township trustees to such poor
persons in each township as in their judgment should
not be sent to the poorhouse. It forbade, further-
more, any supervisor or township trustee to be di-
rectly or indirectly interested in any supplies fur-
nished the poor.’ It made it discretionary with the
supervisors whether they should relieve persons and
families, other than soldiers and marines, outside
the poorhouse. Any able-bodied applicant for relief
might be required to labor on the streets or highways
at the rate of five cents an hour.’
COUNTY RELIEF OFFICIALS 183

The Code of 1897 also made the out-relief fur-
nished by the township trustees subject to the ap-
proval of the board of supervisors, by requiring the
trustees to report all such cases at once to the super-
visors. Probably because the former statute on
the subject had not been enforced provision was
made for the appointment by the supervisors of a
person to examine and report concerning the meth-
ods employed by a contractor in caring for the poor,
whether the contract was for the care of all the poor
or for certain individuals.“ It strengthened the
control of the board over the contractor in the in-
terests of paupers employed by the latter by making
the supervisors rather than the township trustees
more explicitly responsible for the welfare of such
persons.’ It made it necessary for the supervisors
to obtain the consent of the voters for the purchase
of a poor farm or the erection of a poorhouse only in
case the estimated cost was above five thousand dol-
lars.*** On the theory that only sick people, or those
who for other reasons were unable temporarily to
work, were in the poorhouse, it also made it obliga-
tory, not merely permissive, as in the Code of 1873,
for the board to order the discharge of a pauper
when he became able to support himself..%* The
Code of 1897 also amplified the duties of the super-
visors by providing that they should examine all
claims, including bills for medical attendance al-
lowed by the township trustees, for the support of
the poor, and they were given the authority, if they
found the amount allowed to be unreasonable or ex-
134. POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

orbitant or for any goods or services other than the
necessaries of life, to reject or diminish the claim as
they thought proper. This provision applied not
only to the counties which had poorhouses, but also
to those in which relief was supplied by other meth-
ods.*®

On the whole, the Code of 1897 aimed at and pro-
cured a much greater centralization of the functions
of poor relief, both outdoor and indoor, in the hands
of the board of county supervisors. The board had
gained power at the expense especially of the town-
ship trustees and, to a lesser degree, of all the other
relief officials. EZXven the new officials created by
legislation between 1873 and 1897 as well as those
existing before 1873 were by this Code brought un-
der complete subjection to the supervisors.

THE COUNTY AUDITOR

The county auditor does not appear in the Code
of 1851 among the officers connected with the relief
of the poor. But by the Code of 1873 he was consti-
tuted one of the county relief officials to whom was
given a part of the duties belonging formerly to the
court. It was to him that the county contesting the
order of removal must give notice of its intention to
contest. In the action itself the county auditor took
the place of the judge in serving notice upon the aud-
itor of the other county of the amount claimed for
the support of the pauper.’

The Code of 1897 imposed one further duty upon
the auditor. He was made an alternate authority
COUNTY RELIEF OFFICIALS 135

with the supervisors of the county in which a pauper
had a settlement to request that a pauper unable to
be removed be cared for temporarily in the county
where he became chargeable.*

THE CLERK OF THE COURT

Even in the Code of 1851 the clerk of the court ap-
peared as an officer charged with certain functions
in poor relief. Hither he or the judge of the county
of settlement must be notified when a county had re-
moved from its borders a pauper who had no settle-
ment therein.’

The Code of 1873 increased the powers of the clerk
of the court. The code commission in its report de-
prived him of even the small part in the relief of the
poor that was given to him by the Code of 1851, but
the legislature saw fit to increase his importance by
substituting the words ‘‘clerk of the circuit court or
judge’’ for ‘‘circuit court or judge’’ in the section
providing for the seizure of any property of a party
abandoning those naturally dependent upon him,
after application by the latter to the township trus-
tees. The clerk had codrdinate power with the judge
to issue an order to seize the goods, and sole author-
ity to discharge such an order in case the party re-
turned and gave satisfactory security to the clerk.
Moreover, it was with the clerk that the notice and
transcript of the proceedings in case of a contest
between two counties over the removal of a pauper
must be filed.°° Subsequent legislation made no
changes in these provisions.
136 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

DIRECTORS OF THE POORHOUSE

Of a slightly different type from the county of-
ficials elected by the people and charged with duties
with reference to the poor were the directors of the
poorhouse. The appointment of these officers was
optional with the county judge according to the
Code of 1851. If he chose not to appoint such a
board, the judge himself performed their duties. He
could appoint one or three as he chose. Except in
certain matters concerning settlement and the col-
lection from relatives of expenses for the support of
paupers, where the directors were codrdinate author-
ities with the court or the township trustees, the di-
rectors were the secondary authorities in counties
which had a poorhouse, just as the township trustees
were in counties which had no such institution.

It was the duty of the directors to take charge of
and manage the affairs of the poor and of the poor-
house. They were a body corporate, were required
to take oath faithfully to discharge their duties, and
were appointed for one year and until their succes-
sors were appointed and qualified. Power was given
to them to make contracts and purchases needed for
the poorhouse and to prescribe rules for its manage-
ment. They had joint authority with the township
trustees and the county judge to admit persons to
the poorhouse. Moreover, they had power to coun-
termand any order of admission, or an order for the
relief of a person outside the poorhouse made by the
township trustees, and to make any other provision
they pleased in relation to the pauper so treated.
COUNTY RELIEF OFFICIALS 137

It was they who bound out poor children in the poor-
house, and ordered the discharge of any inmate of
that institution who had become able to support him-
self.

The directors of the poorhouse provided for the
relief of any poor person who made application and
whose condition did not admit of his removal to the
poorhouse. They were required to see that the poor-
house was visited once a month by a member of their
body. The directors were also invested with all the
powers theretofore given to the trustees of town-
ships in relation to the poor in counties having poor-
houses. They had authority in a county which had
a poorhouse to apply to the county court to compel
a relative to support a pauper, and to make affidavit
of such person’s failure to obey the court’s order, as
a preliminary to execution upon his goods. Further-
more, they were authorized to apply to the court for
an order to seize the estate of a father or of a mother
living apart from her husband, if they had aban-
doned child or children; or the estate of a husband
who had forsaken his wife, when such dependents
were liable to become chargeable to the public. The
directors could seize the property, under the orders
of the court, and use it for the maintenance of those
abandoned. The directors or the trustees and the
judge or court, warned from the county any persons
who came from other States or counties and were
about to become county charges. The directors or
the trustees received paupers removed from a county
where they had no settlement.*”
1388 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

After the enactment of the Revision of 1860 the
duties of these officers remained the same. They
were appointed by the supervisors, however, and
were subject to the latter as they had been to the
county court under the Code of 1851.

The commissioners who prepared the Code of 1873
omitted all reference to directors In an explanatory
note, however, to their draft of section forty-three,
title eleven, they stated that they omitted ‘‘§§ 1398-
1400, 1411, 1413, 1414, [i. e. those section of the Re-
vision of 1860 dealing with directors of the poor-
house] and all other provisions of this chapter with
relation to ‘directors of the poor-house’ as super-
fluous and practically obsolete. Such a board of
directors might be useful in a county governed by a
single county judge, but are worse than useless in
addition to a board of supervisors.’’ It was the be-
lief of the commissioners that ‘‘no such board does
in fact exist in any county in the State. The power
given to them by the statute is of course vested in
the board of supervisors’’.** Thus, the directors of
the poorhouse vanish from the history of poor relief
in Iowa. Asa matter of fact the only existence they
ever had, if the statement of the code commissioners
of 1873 may be believed, was statutory, since the pro-
vision for directors was never realized in actual
practice before the office was forever abolished.

THE COUNTY SHERIFF

Before the Code of 1851 was adopted the county
‘sheriff played no part in the administration of poor
COUNTY RELIEF OFFICIALS 139

relief in Iowa so far as statutory obligation was con-
cerned. In this Code he was not specifically named
as one of the officials concerned with poor relief. He
was included by implication, however, in the section
which related to the serving of the court summons
upon a person who had failed to support his pauper
relative. This summons was to be served ‘‘in any
county by any officer thereof or by any other per-
son’’.’”? The same provision was continued in the
Revision of 1860.1"

In the Code of 1873 the sheriff was implicitly in-
cluded among the relief officials in a new clause
which reads as follows: ‘‘And all provisions of this
chapter relating to trustees shall apply to any other
officers of a county, township, or incorporated town,
or city, charged with the oversight of the poor.’’ *”
Moreover, the sheriff now assumed the function
given to the directors by the Code of 1851 in seizing
the property of an absconding person who left those
naturally dependent upon him chargeable to the
county.’ Since that time his duties with reference
to poor relief have remained unchanged, except in
connection with certain poor children, as will be
noted later.

THE ‘‘SPY”?

By the Code of 1851 there was introduced among
the officials dealing with the relief of the poor one
whose duties were not concerned with relief, directly,
but constituted a sort of espionage upon the person
who had the contract for the care of the poor. He
had no title in the statute, but he was indicated in
140 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

the language of the law as ‘‘some person to examine
and report upon the manner in which the poor are
kept and treated’’. He was to be appointed from
time to time by the county judge, indicating that the
Code did not contemplate the appointment as more
than a temporary one. He was to make his inspec-
tions without notice to the contractor and, evidently,
report his findings to the judge. He was thus a kind
of inspector for that official, He remained as a ser-
vant of the supervisors in the Code of 1873 and the
Code of 1897.1"* In the latter, however, he remained
as a mere survival, for the contract system was rap-
idly disappearing.
THE CONTRACTOR

As has been seen, from a very early period in the
history of poor relief in the Northwest Territory, the
contract system has been one of the principal meth-
ods of caring for the poor. The system was intro-
duced by the law of 1795,'"" and its adoption became
practically universal in the Middle West. The con-
tract system was found in the laws of the Territory
of Wisconsin. Thence it came to the Territory of
Iowa; and it has been continued in every Code
adopted in this State. It stands in the law to-day,
although in 1911 there was only one county in the
State which let out the care of its poor by contract;
while one other county boarded out its few paup-
ers.*78

Under this system the contractor was a quasi
county official, for he had the right to employ a
COUNTY RELIEF OFFICIALS 141

pauper in any work which his age, health, and
strength permitted, subject to supervision of county
and township officials. Happily, however, the
State has arrived at a point in its development when
the contractor for the care of the poor has all but
vanished.

THE STEWARD OF THE POORHOUSE

Another subordinate official was the steward of
the poorhouse, appointed by the primary relief of-
ficials. Such an officer is to be found first, so far as
this history is concerned, in the ‘‘superintendent’’
of the poorhouse in the Ohio act of 1816 concerning
poorhouses; and this title was retained in the Iowa
Territorial poorhouse law of 1842. The title ap-
pears as ‘‘steward’’ for the first time in Iowa history
in the Code of 1851, and it has remained unchanged
to this day.’*

Under whatever name he was known the duties of
this officer have not changed much from those indi-
cated in the Ohio law of 1816. He receives into the
poorhouse all those who produce an order for admis-
sion from a township trustee or a county supervisor.
Under the Code of 1851 and the Revision of 1860 he
received those who brought an order from the county
judge, a trustee, or a director.** From the begin-
ning of Iowa history to the present it has been his
duty to see that each inmate was employed at such
labor as he was able to perform and that the name,
age, and date of admission of each pauper admitted
was recorded in a book kept for that purpose. More-
142 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

over, he was to conduct the poorhouse in such a man-
ner as the board of directors or, since 1873, the board
of county supervisors, might direct.**

Under the general powers granted the supervisors
to govern the steward, the poor farm was managed
by him up to the time of the adoption of the Code of
1873. Before that date one can not discover from
the statutes that the steward of the poorhouse had
anything to do with the management of the poor
farm. In that Code, however, it was provided that
the receipts from the poor farm ‘‘if there be one’’,
together with the proceeds from the labor of the
paupers were to be appropriated to the use of the
poorhouse in such a manner as the board of super-
visors might determine." This is but another illus-
tration of how frequently practices arise of which
legislation takes no direct cognizance.

In the beginning the superintendent, or steward,
of the poorhouse was merely the agent of the direc-
tors or other primary authorities in actually man-
aging the institution, which at that time was a
purely charitable establishment. Soon, however, the
problem of providing work for the able-bodied paup-
ers arose, as it did earlier in English experience.
Instead, however, of making the poorhouse into a
work-house in the same sense as was intended by
the Elizabethan legislation copied by some of the
early American States and an example of which is to
be seen in the law of the Northwest Territory of
1790, the American States of the Middle West
COUNTY RELIEF OFFICIALS 143

evolved the poor farm on which the able-bodied
paupers could work.

The poor farm, however, was destined to assume
an important place in its demands upon the time of
the steward of the poorhouse. He has really become
primarily the steward of the poor farm, and second-
arily of the poorhouse. Most of the latter functions
have been turned over to his wife as matron. He has
become the farmer, rejoicing more in making the
farm pay than in making the poorhouse a home for
the aged and infirm; taking more pride in his fine
eattle, hogs, or chickens, and in the spacious barns
than in the comfort, usefulness, and happiness of the
inmates of the poorhouse or in the buildings in which
they are housed.*** We must not forget, however,
that these men only reflect the attitude of their em-
ployers, the members of the boards of supervisors,
and that the latter simply carry out the policy which
they know the taxpayers consciously or unconscious-
ly hold.
Vill

TOWNSHIP AND CITY RELIEF
OFFICIALS

THE TOWNSHIP TRUSTEES

Of the minor relief officials the township trustees
do not come first from the point of view of historical
development. The township trustees are the lineal
functional descendants of the township overseers of
the poor of early American and English legislation.
At first there were both township trustees and town-
ship overseers of the poor.

So far as this study is concerned, the entrance of
the township trustee into the field of poor relief was
brought about by the Ohio statute of February 22,
1805, in which they took the place of the county com-
missioners as the primary relief officials. To them
the overseers of the poor reported complaints con-
cerning poor persons; and they, upon inquiry, de-
cided whether the overseers should afford relief.**
It is not surprising, therefore, that in the Iowa Ter-
ritorial acts of February 16, 1842 (which was bor-
rowed from Ohio), and June 5, 1845, the trustees
should be designated as township relief authorities.’

The provisions of the Iowa Territorial law of 1842
so far as it pertained to the functions of the trus-

tees, continued in force until the adoption of the
144
TOWNSHIP AND CITY RELIEF OFFICIALS 145

Code of 1851. In that Code the trustees were given
coordinate authority with the directors of the poor-
house in applying to the county court for an order
to compel a relative to support a pauper. It appears
that in every Code of the State the trustees have
been among the authorities empowered to warn pros-
pective paupers to depart, and to grant admission to
the county poorhouse.**’ Moreover, in the Code of
1851 and the Revision of 1860 the township trustees
of the county where the pauper had his settlement
were constituted codrdinate authorities with the
directors to whom could be delivered a pauper who
was removed from a county where he had no settle-
ment.*** They had the oversight and care, further-
more, in counties which possessed no poorhouse, of
all poor persons so long as such persons remained
county charges, and until provided for by the county
supervisors.*** They supervised the employment of
paupers by a contractor, subject to the ultimate con-
trol of the county judge under the Code of 1851, and
of the county supervisors under the Revision of 1860
and the Code of 1873; while the Code of 1897 placed
such control in the hands of the supervisors pri-
marily, although they might commit the subject to
the care of the trustees.’

It was to the township trustees, according to the
Code of 1851, that the poor must make application
for relief; and such trustees had the authority to re-
lieve the persons temporarily and make reports of
all cases to the judge forthwith. Thereafter they
were governed in further relations with the paupers
146 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

by the orders of the judge. These authorities certi-
fied to the judge all claims and bills for the relief of
the poor; while their refusal to grant relief was sub-
ject to review by the county judge on appeal.** In
subsequent legislation, although there were some
minor changes tending towards greater control by
the county authorities, the chief change was the sub-
stitution of the supervisors for the county judge.

Moreover, in granting relief outside of the poor-
house, or in issuing an order of admission to that in-
stitution, their actions had to be reported at once to
the directors of the poorhouse and were subject to
review by these authorities.**? To make sure that the
trustees would be duly subordinated to the county
authorities, the supervisors or their appointees, the
poorhouse directors, it was further provided in the
Code of 1851 that ‘‘the directors are also invested
with all powers before given to the trustees of town-
ships in relation to the poor.’’**? Thus the trustees
looked after outdoor, and the directors after indoor,
relief,

The Code of 1873 made little change in the duties
of the trustees as regards poor relief. The sheriff,
however, took the place of the directors of the poor-
house as a coordinate authority with the trustees in
forcing support of paupers by relatives. It was they,
nevertheless, who were made responsible for the re-
lief of all such persons as in their judgment should
not be sent to the poorhouse, except in cities of the
first and second classes, where an overseer might be
appointed.** In counties having no poorhouse they
TOWNSHIP AND CITY RELIEF OFFICIALS 147

had charge of the poor only ‘‘until provided for by
the board of supervisors.’’**> This Code added the
provision that no trustee could draw an order on
himself or on any member of the board for supplies
for the poor unless he had a contract to furnish such
supplies.**

Since the directors of the poorhouse did not ap-
pear among the poor relief officials listed in this
Code of 1873, the supervisors were substituted for
them in the provision requiring the trustees to re-
port to them any relief they might give outside the
poorhouse; while the requirement that the trustees
must report that they had issued orders for admis-
sion to the poorhouse was omitted entirely.’ In
fact, they could issue such orders without review by
the board of supervisors. *** In this respect the Code
represents a transition stage of development. In
the Code of 1851 the county judge, and in the Re-
vision of 1860 and the Code of 1897 the board of su-
pervisors, predominated in poor relief; while in the
Code of 1873 there were two coordinate authorities
in this respect. Probably, however, this was simply
an oversight, for a pauper who was refused relief
could still appeal from the township trustees to the
county supervisors.’

By the provisions of the Code of 1897 the trustees
retained authority to direct that relief be given by
relatives to paupers who had applied for aid; to ap-
ply to the district court for an order to compel rela-
tives to support paupers; to apply for a variation of
the court order against relatives of paupers; to make
148 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

affidavit to the court of the fact when a relative or-
dered to do so had not paid money ordered by the
court; and to make complaint upon application to the
clerk of the court or to the judge for an order to
seize the property of a deserting father, mother, or
husband. They, or the supervisors, continued to
serve written warning to depart to prospective
paupers with settlement elsewhere.

Subject to general rules which might be adopted
by the county supervisors, the township trustees
were charged with the duty of providing for the re-
lief of poor persons whom they thought should not
be sent to the poorhouse and for all persons in coun-
ties having no such institution, until provided for by
the supervisors.

It was further stipulated in the Code of 1897,
against the recommendations of the code commis-
sion, that the trustees should continue to require
able-bodied persons applying for relief to work upon
the streets and highways at five cents per hour in
payment for relief given. No trustee was permitted
to be directly or indirectly interested in any supplies
furnished the poor —a new provision which went
much farther than the provisions of the Code of 1873,
forbidding a trustee to draw an order upon himself
unless he had a contract to furnish supplies. The
trustees remained the authorities to whom applica-
tion must be made, who passed upon the application,
and who, if satisfied that relief was required, granted
it, subject to the approval of the county supervisors.
To the latter they were to report the case immedi-
TOWNSHIP AND CITY RELIEF OFFICIALS 149

ately. The legislature also incorporated in the Code
of 1897 the provisions of the law of the Twenty-
second General Assembly, giving the supervisors the
right to examine all claims presented by the trustees
for the support of the poor, and to reject or diminish
them if they found that the goods or services ex-
ceeded what was needed to supply the necessaries of
life. This provision was to apply to all counties in
the State whether they had poorhouses or not, and
to the acts of overseers of the poor as well as of
township trustees. All claims and bills, as before,
had to be certified to be correct and presented to the
supervisors. The applicant, if refused relief by the
trustees, could still appeal to the county supervisors.

The section dealing with the employment of paup-
ers by a contractor was so changed in the Code of
1897 that authority was more completely centralized
in the hands of the supervisors. The township
trustees, however, continued, codrdinately with the
supervisors, to admit people to the poorhouse.

Finally, the Code of 1897 contained a new section
providing that the word ‘‘trustees’’ should be con-
strued so as to include and mean any person or of-
ficer of any county or city charged with the oversight
of the poor — a provision which, from the references
to the other Codes appended to that section, seems to
have been meant simply to transfer to a separate
section the provisions of the last clause of Section
1333 of the Code of 1873.?”

If one considers the whole history of legislation on
the relation of township trustees to the relief of the
150 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

poor in Iowa, State and Territory, it becomes ap-
parent that the part played by these officials, from
the legislative standpoint, has been one of diminish-
ing importance. Their other duties have encroached
upon their efficiency as relief officials. This fact, to-
gether with the circumstances that they were usually
under the control of county relief officials and that
other officers gradually were given their duties
largely accounts for their decreased importance in
the plan of poor relief.

THE OVERSEERS OF THE POOR

From the standpoint of historical development the
overseer of the poor is the oldest of all the poor re-
lief officials in the history of Iowa. Originating in
England in 1572, with the purpose of securing the
better organization of the collection and distribution
of the common fund for the relief of the poor which
had been gradually developing in the English par-
ishes, this official was imported from England into
American poor relief systems in colonial days.?" He
appears in the first poor law of the Northwest Ter-
ritory, that of November 6, 1790; while in the second
law of that Territory, borrowed from Pennsylvania,
he occupied a still more important place.” In both
of these statutes English usage was predominant.
In the first poor law of the Territory of Iowa, that
of 1840, (borrowed from Wisconsin, as has been
seen), there were no overseers; but in the law bor-
rowed from Ohio two years later Iowa first obtained
these relief officials.°* By the act of June 5, 1845,
TOWNSHIP AND CITY RELIEF OFFICIALS 151

the township trustees were made ex officio overseers
of the poor, thus for the time being eliminating the
overseer.”

In the Code of 1851 the overseer of the poor is
mentioned but twice; ** and the two functions of the
office were to remove to the county of his usual resi-
dence a pauper who asked to be so removed, and to
have general oversight of paupers employed by the
person who had the contract for the care of the poor.
In this Code the term ‘‘overseer’’ is synonymous
with township trustee. Only the name remained:
the duties had been assumed by other officials. In
the Revision of 1860 this strange survival of a pre-
vious practice was retained as in the Code of 1851."

The Code of 1873 entirely omitted the matter con-
tained in Section 1392 of the Revision of 1860; and
mention of the overseer in connection with the con-
tractor was likewise eliminated.?” With reference
to the first omission the code commission said in ex-
planation:

Rev. § 1392 is omitted as needless if not conflicting with
the entire scope and object of the settlement law. Happily
these laws have heretofore been almost superfluous, and de-
fects in them have attracted no attention. But with a rap-
idly increasing population, and its inevitable results, they
will have to be more strictly enforced: and it will then be |
seen to be a mere waste of money to send a pauper from
one county to another unless he has a settlement in the lat-
ter, and therefore a legal claim to relief. Besides it will
lead to disputes and litigation between the counties if re-

tained.2°%
152 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

In the Code of 1873, however, there reappeared in
a new role this ancient official. By the act of April 6,
1868, city councils of cities of the first class em-
braced within the limits of townships were author-
ized to render relief to their poor who were not sent
to the county poorhouse, in much the same way as
the township trustees cared for those outside such
cities. This new provision divided authority in some
cases and led to disputes between city and county
poor relief authorities. At the same time it imposed
an irksome duty upon the city council. And so, it
seemed best to the commission which prepared the
Code of 1873 that this division of authority should
be eliminated, that the control of the poor relief in
cities should be left in the hands of the county of-
ficials, and that the latter should handle the problem
of out-relief in cities by the appointment of special
overseers of the poor in cities of either the first or
second classes.”° The overseer thus provided for
was given all the powers and duties of township
trustees relative to poor relief. Thus, after his prac-
tical disappearance from the list of poor relief offi-
cials of Iowa for thirty-three years, the overseer
found a new place and new duties in Iowa’s system
of poor relief.?”°

In the Code of 1897 no changes were made in these
provisions, save to make the section apply also to
cities situated in two counties." To-day, therefore,
in the poor relief system of Iowa the township
trustees are overseers of the poor for townships out-
side of cities of the first or second classes; while in
TOWNSHIP AND CITY RELIEF OFFICIALS 153

cities of the first and second class there is a special
overseer of the poor. In both cases these officers
are under the direction of the county supervisors.

In the law providing for overseers for cities an
effort was made to suit the administrative machinery
to the situation in the rapidly growing cities of the
State, for in these centers the old system had broken
down. Township trustees and county supervisors
might do well enough in a frontier county having but
a few hundred inhabitants, where every one was
known to the officials, at least by reputation. But in a
populous county, with an unstable population gather-
ed together in a city, where large numbers of the peo-
ple might speak a foreign language and where most
of the inhabitants were unknown to anyone but the
‘‘ward-heeler’’ or the missionary, the old neighbor-
hood conception of life was too sifaple. Moreover,
the county supervisors were, with the growth of pop-
ulation, forced to give their attention increasingly
to other matters. Thus, the office of city overseer of
the poor was created.

How unscientific, however, was the conception that
one overseer, unassisted, could by any method known
to man become acquainted with all the people in a
city of the first class well enough to enable him to
relieve applicants with discrimination! In actual
administration it was even too much to expect su-
pervisors to appoint to this office an expert in char-
itable work. The person chosen was doubtless a good
man, honest, and sympathetic, but often he was eith-
er old or crippled so that he found it difficult to get
154 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

about and investigate conditions; and in most cases
he lacked the qualifications necessary for scientific
poor relief.

The result can be easily guessed. Under such cir-
cumstances relief in the homes of the poor by the
public overseer is apt to be either wasteful or inad-
equate, and usually both—being wasteful in the
cases of persons who have a political or personal
‘‘null’’, and inadequate in those cases where the in-
dividuals are friendless or whose friends are not
close to ‘‘the powers that be’’. Usually the overseer
is jealous of organized charity workers; and in this
attitude he has the support of the supervisors. In
a very few cases the overseer turns over his cases to
the Associated Charities of his city for investigation.
Those instances, however, are all too rare.

At the same time it is perhaps true that with slight
changes this plan of poor relief by city overseers
would work well. In the first place the overseer
should be appointed on his merits as an up-to-date
relief expert, and he should be given paid and trained
assistants, or, as in the Elberfeld-Hamburg system
of Germany, he should be assisted by a large number
of volunteer helpers each of whom is given only a
very small number of needy to look after. If he him-
self is not a trained relief worker, there is one al-
ternative: if there is an Associated Charities organ-
ization in the city, he should be given to understand
that he must turn his cases over to that organization
with its trained workers for investigation; while in
the treatment of each applicant for relief he must
TOWNSHIP AND CITY RELIEF OFFICIALS 155

follow the course suggested by these workers. In
this way the county would be provided with expert
treatment of poverty without any increase in the tax
budget, since such a plan would obviate the necessity
of providing the overseer with trained assistants at
county expense.

To any one who has thoroughly considered the sub-
ject, however, this solution of the problem would be
merely a makeshift. While private philanthropy
was necessary in the relief of poverty until such
time as the methods of poor relief were standardized,
no self-respecting Commonwealth can permanently
abandon the most important part of the administra-
tion of its relief of the poor to private agencies.
That would be to confess that the public can not,
with its great resources, secure what private organ-
izations have secured with their voluntary and often
meagre support. Moreover, it is to profess that that
community is the better off which pays for these
services out of private contributions rather than out
of public taxes; and it is also to admit that the pub-
lic can not, or should not, secure as expert service in
the relief of the poor as a private association ob-
tains. The skepticism of the charity worker con-
cerning the possibility of having expert public relief
must pass away. The feeling against scientific pub-
lic poor relief is the outworn prejudice of a day that
is almost gone. It has served its purpose; it has
established private standards which even now are
becoming recognized by broad-minded public relief
officials. We must not abandon the public relief of-
156 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

ficial to his ignorance and folly: he must be re-
deemed. Public relief must cease to be the synonym
of pauperization. It should be made to mean ade-
quate relief after careful investigation and service
in the rehabilitation of people who are now or are
about to become paupers. Two pivotal factors in
this program of reform are the overseer in the cities
and the supervisors who appoint and support him.
Ix

THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA POOR RELIEF
LEGISLATION

The early poorhouse laws of America were bor-
rowed from England, the chief features being copied
from the great act of Elizabeth (43 Eliz. c. 2)”? and
from later English acts. The English idea of a work-
house, however, was adopted in America later than
the period when the laws were made upon which the
legislators of Iowa drew for models.”"* When Iowa
became a State the establishment and conduct of
poorhouses were governed by the law borrowed from
Ohio by the Territorial legislature in 1842 —a law
which remained upon the statute books until the
adoption of the Code of 1851. The chief character-
istics of that law have already been pointed out.?"*
It is perhaps sufficient in this connection to state
that it possessed the involved features of adminis-
tration which had been developed in Ohio on the
basis of the English poorhouse system borrowed by
Ohio from Pennsylvania; that it was introduced into
Iowa without serious consideration of its adaptabili-
ty to the pioneer conditions prevailing in the Terri-
tory in 1842; and that experience showed it to be illy
fitted to meet the needs of the young Commonwealth.

157
158 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Its involved machinery of administration made it un-
wieldy.

This machinery consisted of the county commis-
sioners, who governed the poorhouse only indirectly
through a board of directors appointed by them; of
a monthly visitor appointed from among the mem-
bers of the board of county commissioners; and of
the directors, who appointed the superintendent in
immediate charge of the poorhouse. The system of
reports from the superintendent to the directors,
then from the directors to the county commissioners,
and the monthly inspection directly by one of the
commissioners made the law too complicated for
efficient administration in a community where the
conditions were simple and the needs few. The
board of directors, organized as a body politic and
corporate with the members taking office by a solemn
oath or affirmation to properly perform their duties,
issuing its orders for the admission or discharge
of inmates after careful examination to ascertain
whether the applicant had a legal settlement in that
county, but receiving the application for admission
not directly but through the township trustees —
such a board was certainly a creation worthy of some
eastern potentate bent upon devising the trappings
of ‘‘majesty that doth hedge a throne’’, but was
hardly suited to the democracy of pioneers in log
cabins on the lonely prairies or along the forest-clad
banks of the rivers of Iowa from 1842 to 1851.

The sections in the Code of 1851 dealing with the
poorhouse were for the most part taken from the
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 159

Iowa law of 1842 or from the earlier legislation of
Michigan Territory or Ohio. Not a single section
finds precedent in the Wisconsin Territorial law. By
reference to the table given below in the Appendix
it will be seen that all the sections but five (828, 829,
830, 834, 838) are based upon provisions in the law
of 1842. Of these five sections two have close rela-
tionship with the Michigan poorhouse laws, while
three seem to be absolute innovations. The new sec-
tions, however, did not change the essential features
of the existing law relating to poorhouses, although
some minor changes were introduced.

The supremacy of the county judge in the estab-
lishment and administration of the poorhouse stands
out as the chief difference between the provisions of
the Code of 1851 and the law of 1842. The appoint-
ment of a board of directors was left to the option
of the judge—a change in the direction of sim-
plicity. The approval of a proposed expenditure
for a poorhouse by the voters put a limit on the al-
most absolute power vested in the judge, which
power in relation to the establishment of poorhouses
had been vested without limitation in the county
commissioners by the earlier law. This new feature
was borrowed from the Michigan law of 1829. For
the term ‘‘superintendent’’ was substituted ‘‘stew-
ard’’ of the poorhouse — a new term in the legisla-
tion of the group of States and Territories from
which Iowa had thus far borrowed legislation. When
a trustee gave relief outside of the poorhouse or is-
sued an order for admission to the poorhouse, he was
160 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

required immediately to notify the directors, a meas-
ure intended to concentrate relief in the poorhouse
more closely. Aside from these alterations the
changes made by the Code of 1851 were chiefly verbal
or matters of arrangement.

When one makes a comparison of the law regu-
lating the county poorhouse as found in the Code of
1851 with the law enacted on this subject at later ses-
sions of the General Assembly he is struck by the re-
markable fact that very little change has occurred.
It is true that the county judge disappeared as the
primary administrative officer, but that change was
incidental to the overthrow of the county judge sys-
tem. All that occurred was that the board of county
supervisors took over his functions. The Civil War
brought in some changes as to the admission of cer-
tain classes of unfortunates to the poorhouse, which
tended to recognize the stigma attaching to that in-
stitution and helped to accentuate the abhorrence
felt for the poorhouse as a result of seventy years of
history. In recent years, moreover, a futile effort
has been made to change the character of the institu-
tion by changing its name. Of radical changes in its
organization, its discipline, its general management,
or its essential character, there have been none.

The Revision of 1860 made no changes in the man-
agement of the county poorhouse except such as
were made necessary by the passage of the law of
that year which abolished the office of county judge
and substituted the board of county supervisors. In
fact, with one exception, the only change made in the
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 161

poor laws by the Revision of 1860 was the insertion
of a section of definitions at the beginning of the
chapter dealing with that subject, stating that wher-
ever in the law the words ‘‘court”’ or ‘‘judge’’ were
used they were to mean ‘“‘board of supervisors’’.2"°

THE CITY INFIRMARY

The exception in the Revision of 1860 mentioned
above was a provision in the chapter on the incor-
poration of cities and towns which gave to the city
council the power to erect, establish, maintain, and
regulate an infirmary for the accommodation of the
poor of the city, either within the limits of the city or
within the county in which the city might be situ-
ated; and for that purpose the city might purchase
or hold the necessary real estate. The government
of this infirmary and the granting of outdoor relief
as well were committed to a board of three directors
to be elected by the qualified voters of the city and
to hold office for three years. The city council might
provide for the election of, or it might order the di-
rectors to appoint, an overseer in each ward to per-
form such duties in the care of the poor and in their
removal to the infirmary as the council might pro-
vide. This provision was obtained by simply incor-
porating into the Code one section of an act approved
on March 23, 1858.?7*

This section, moreover, inaugurated a new kind of
a poorhouse and a new method of outdoor poor relief.
It was an attempt to adapt the outgrown county sys-
tem to new conditions in growing centers of popula-
162 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

tion — but it was about fifty years ahead of the date
when it might have had a chance to succeed. At the
same time the law possessed some promising feat-
-ures. It provided for a board of directors, and for
an overseer over a small section of the city who
should have been able to become acquainted with the
needy of his ward. It promised, thus, to give to the
city an officer with that intimate knowledge of the
poor which was possessed by the rural overseer, the
township trustee — an acquaintance which was the
prime factor in the success of the rural overseer of
the poor and of the friendly visitor in ‘the city, and
which has been the chief explanation of the favor-
able attention attracted by the Elberfeld-Hamburg
system of poor relief in Germany.

But the law had within it the seeds of its undoing
in that it was essentially a political system. The
directors were elected, and the council had control
over the appointment of the overseers. The cheap
demagogue, or the man unable to do anything else,
and not the expert in relief work, would naturally be
the one chosen as overseer under this law. Further-
more, the law was too complicated for the state of
social development which Iowa had then reached.

In the Code of 1873 this provision was reduced to
a single sentence giving the city council power to
establish and maintain an infirmary for the poor of
the city and to distribute the outdoor relief to the
city’s poor. Nothing was said about directors or
overseers.”
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 163

It is highly probable that the powers thus given
to the city council of providing a city infirmary were
never exercised, for the code commissioners in 1873
could say that they had omitted all the provisions of
that chapter relative to directors of the poorhouse
as superfluous and practically obsolete, and could ex-
press the belief that no such board did as a matter
of fact exist.** While they were writing directly
concerning county poorhouses, it is hardly possible
that a city poorhouse or infirmary had been estab-
lished with a board of directors between 1858 and
1873, if no county — with the possibility of a larger
number of paupers— had organized such a board
during the longer period between 1851 and 1873.
This supposition is the more probable by reason of
the comment made by the code commission on an-
other part of the same chapter, relating to outdoor
poor relief. In ‘discussing the changes which they
proposed in the act of the Twelfth General Assembly
granting cities of the first class the right to handle
their own outdoor relief through the city councils,
the commission remarked that they made the pro-
posed changes because it was understood that the
duty thus imposed upon the council was irksome and
led to collision or dispute between the city and coun-
ty authorities.“*® The probabilities are that the only
existence that city infirmaries with a board of direc-
tors ever had under these provisions was a paper
existence. At any rate the Code of 1873, while still
making such an institution possible in the section
164 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

relating to the powers of city councils, made no pro-
vision for it in the chapter devoted to the relief of
the poor.”

THE DIRECTORS OF THE POORHOUSE

Provision for directors of the poorhouse was made
in the Territorial law of 1842, which remained in
force in the State until superseded by the Code of
1851." Under this Code, these officials were re-
tained, although they were appointed by the county
judge at his discretion. As a matter of fact, how-
ever, the code commission of 1873 was unable to
discover that any such officers had ever been appoint-
ed. They therefore discarded from their report the
provision for directors of the poorhouse, with the
result that after 1873 such officials were no longer
included in Iowa’s poor laws. An examination of
the legislation providing for directors will, however,
serve a useful purpose, if it does nothing more than
show how illy adapted were the early laws to cir-
cumstances in Iowa: it will, perchance, reveal the
defects of the easy method of borrowing laws with-
out a consideration of their adaptability to condi-
tions in the Commonwealth for which they are in-
tended.

In the Territorial statute of 1842 and in the Code
of 1851 the directors of the poorhouse were declared
to be a body corporate and politic, they were to take
an oath of office faithfully to discharge their duties,
and were to appoint a clerk. They were to be the
actual governing body of the institution. In both
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 165

statutes they were authorized to make all contracts
and purchases for the poorhouse and to prescribe
such rules and regulations as they thought best for
the management of that institution and for the guid-
ance of the superintendent or steward. According
to both they had the authority to bind out such poor
children of the poorhouse as were likely to be a per-
manent charge upon the public — males until twenty-
one and females until eighteen years of age, unless
sooner married, or for shorter periods, if it was
thought best. Again the directors were to cause the
poorhouse to be visited once each month by a mem-
ber of their body to ascertain whether or not the
paupers were being properly cared for, and to in-
spect the books and accounts of the superintendent
or steward. Both statutes required the board of
directors to report the conditions of the poorhouse,
in the one case to the county commissioners and in
the other to the county court.

According to the Territorial law the county com-
missioners must appoint the directors; while the
Code of 1851 made their appointment optional with
the county judge. In the former law the number of
directors was fixed at three ‘‘judicious persons’’; in
the latter, either one or three might be appointed.
The law of 1842 gave the board no option as to
whether they should appoint a superintendent of the
poorhouse; while the Code of 1851 gave the directors
discretionary power. The former act stipulated that
no person was to be admitted to the poorhouse ex-
cept upon the written order of the trustees or the
166 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

county commissioners; while according to the latter
law admission was made upon the order of a town-
ship trustee, a director, or the county judge. Fur-
ther examples of the differences between the two laws
are perhaps unnecessary. The Code of 1851 was
simpler, less rigid, and better fitted to be of use, had
there been any need of such machinery. To the di-
rectors in both cases was delegated, for the manage-
ment of the poorhouse, the power of the primary
relief authorities, namely, the county commissioners
in the former law and the county judge in the Code
of 1851. With the disappearance of the directors,
their duties fell directly upon the board of county
supervisors.?””

Nothing could better illustrate the manner in
which some of the poor laws of Iowa were secured:
they were taken ready-made from the statute books
of other jurisdictions. Furthermore, nothing indi-
cates better the wholesome optimism concerning the
future development of the State, combined with the
reprehensible carelessness which was characteristic
of the early law-makers, than these laws providing
for institutions and a scheme of management which
were at least fifty years ahead of the times, and
which were lacking. in many of the elements that
would fit them to the stage of social development
then reached by the State.

THE SUPERINTENDENT OR STEWARD OF THE POORHOUSE

The other subordinate authority in the adminis-
tration of the poorhouse, and one who was actually
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 167

appointed and performed his functions, was the per-
son in immediate charge thereof, called the ‘‘super-
intendent”’ up to 1851, and since that date known as
the ‘‘steward’’.

The Territorial law which was in force in the State
until 1851 and the Code adopted in that year, had
common provisions relative to this official. He was
governed by the directors, gave what security they
demanded, was paid what they thought proper, and
was subject to removal at their pleasure. He might
require of all persons admitted such reasonable and
moderate labor as was suited to their ages and bodily
strength. The proceeds of this labor were to inure
to the benefit of the institution, as the directors
might determine. He was to admit only those who
brought to him an order from the proper authorities.
He was to enter in a book the names of all persons
admitted, with their ages and the dates of their re-
spective receptions to the institution; and his work
and his accounts were to be inspected once a month
by the directors.

The only differences between these two statutes
relative to this officer were in minor details. The
Territorial provisions are somewhat more detailed,
but the Code of 1851 had practically every feature
of the earlier law with ee to the superintendent
or steward.”

The only change made in a2 duties of the steward,
in the Code of 1873 was the introduction of a clause
requiring him to appropriate to the use of the insti-
tution any proceeds from the farm, if there was one,
168 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

as well as from the labor of the inmates,” and a pro-
vision that committees of the board should have au-
thority to impose regulations upon the steward.”
In the Code of 1897 no changes were made in the
duties of this official.’”*

The legislative history of the duties of the steward
however, does not tell the whole truth. When the
poorhouse was first devised a farm was not a nec-
essary accompaniment, even in its earlier history in
America, and in spite of the fact that originally in
England under the Great Act of Elizabeth it was
located on waste lands of the manor. With the
spread of the poorhouse system throughout the Mid-
dle West, where there was so much cheap land, the
idea occurred to some one to locate the poorhouse
upon a farm and have the inmates work the land.
As already noticed, it was not until the enactment
of the Code of 1873'that such an idea found its way
into the laws of Iowa. Then the mention of the farm
as a possible source of revenue was introduced by
the qualifying phrase: ‘‘if there be one’’.*7 With
the growing expense of poor relief the primary re-
lief authorities saw in the poor farm a means of
supporting the poor without resort to direct taxa-
tion. A growing emphasis was placed upon this
function of the poor farm and the steward, whose
duty originally had been to look after the welfare of
the inmates, now became chiefly a farmer. His suc-
cess was judged, not by his efficiency primarily in
making the inmates comfortable, in keeping such as
could work happily employed, and in looking after
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 169

the building, but rather by his ability to make the
farm pay. The very change in the name for this
officer is significant. A steward historically was one
who had the management of financial affairs. Em-
phasis upon the economic side of the work of the
steward has crowded out, to a large degree, his at-
tention to the supervision of the poorhouse and its
inmates.”*

ADMISSION TO THE POORHOUSE

Under the terms of the Territorial act of 1842 the
pauper’s needs were made known to a township
trustee. If there was a poorhouse in the county the
law contemplated that paupers should be cared for
in that institution, except in such cases as by reason
of sickness the dependent could not be removed, or
in case the pauper did not have a legal settlement in
the county or needed only temporary relief. The
trustees of the township where the pauper fell into
poverty, or the county commissioners, were to issue
an order to the directors of the poorhouse to admit
him. This order was accompanied by a statement
of facts signed by the trustees or the county com-
missioners setting forth the person’s name, age,
birthplace, length of residence, previous habits and
present condition, the date or dates at which he had
been warned to depart (if not a native of the county
or township), and if such warning had been neglect-
ed, the cause of the neglect. If, after examining
this statement the directors found the person was
entitled to relief under the law of settlement, they,
170 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

or a member of their body, issued an order to the
superintendent of the poorhouse to admit him.”*

In the laws of 1851 and of 1860, the process was
less complex. Here, however, it was prescribed that
the pauper must make application to the township
trustees before relief could be given by them. The
order of admission could be issued to the steward of
the poorhouse by the township trustees, by a director
of the poorhouse, or by the county judge, or later by
the county supervisors. This action of the trustees,
nevertheless, was subject to review by the directors
of the poorhouse.”*°

In the Code of 1873 and the Code of 1897 no direc-
tors were provided for; and so admission was upon
the written order of a township trustee or a member
of the board of county supervisors.*** Inasmuch,
however, as the actions of the trustees were subject
to review by the supervisors, the matter theoretical-
ly was ultimately in the hands of the latter officials,
although in practice the double control actually
existed.

DISCHARGE FROM THE POORHOUSE

There has been provision in every Iowa poor law
for the discharge of inmates of the poorhouse who
were able to support themselves. The Territorial
statute of 1842 provided that when any person had
been received into the poorhouse as a pauper on ac-
count of infirmity or disease and had become so far
restored to health as to be able to support himself,
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 171

the directors might order the superintendent of the
poorhouse to discharge him.?*?

In each of the later statutes the provision was
more general and included all inmates, whether ad-
mitted on account of sickness or not. In the codes
of 1851, 1860, and 1873, the ordering of the discharge
was made optional; while in the Code of 1897 it was
made obligatory upon the board having the matter
in charge.”

In none of the Iowa poor laws has there been any
provision to prevent an inmate from discharging
himself. There were no precedents for such a meas-
ure in the laws of the States and Territories from
which the poor laws of early Iowa were borrowed,
and the laws were made by persons who had had no
training in scientific methods of handling poor relief.
The age of the expert in legislation relative to the
care of the poor had not yet arrived. Therefore,
only legal precedents, gathered from a field limited
by a rather narrow horizon, dominated the making
of the laws. The result was that such an idea as
preventing a person from leaving the poorhouse
seems never to have occurred to either the code-mak-
ers or the legislators. Hence, the Iowa law to-day
on the discharge of paupers from a poorhouse is the
same as that of the reign of Elizabeth in England.
As a consequence, the poorhouse can become the
winter harbor of the vagrant from which he may
discharge himself at will when the gentler breezes
of spring begin to blow. Either he should not be al-
172 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

lowed to enter, or else his discharge should be con-
trolled by the body which admitted him.

CHILDREN IN THE POORHOUSE

When Iowa became a State the only mention of
children in the poorhouses to be found in the laws
was in connection with their being bound out. The
directors of the poorhouse were authorized to bind
out to apprenticeship pauper children in the institu-
tion — the boys until the age of twenty-one and the
girls until eighteen years of age, unless such girls
should marry before that age—on the terms and
conditions laid down in the act governing apprentices
and servants.***

Under the provisions of the Code of 1851 and the
Revision of 1860 the directors might bind out such
pauper children in the poorhouse as were likely to
remain a permanent charge on the public. <A pro-
vision was added which gave them the authority to
bind children out also for shorter periods than until
the ages mentioned above.” In the Code of 1873
the age to which they could bind out the children was
lowered to eighteen for boys and sixteen for girls,
unless the latter were married before that age.?**

On recommendation of the code commission of
1896, this section was transferred from the poor law
to the chapter on master and apprentice in the Code
of 1897. In that chapter the limit of the age to which
either boys or girls could be bound out was reduced
to eighteen, but the apprenticeship for both sexes ?*"
ended at marriage.
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 173

In this Code, however, a new section, based upon
an act of the Seventeenth General Assembly in 1878,
was inserted, which provided that poor children when
cared for in the poorhouse, should attend the school
of the district in which the poorhouse was located.
The pro rata expense of educating these children
was to be paid by the county to the school district
and charged up to the poorhouse expense account.”*

In spite of the fact that the law still permits the
sending of children to the poorhouse, it is true that
a consciousness of the wickedness of such a practice
has been growing among the people of Iowa, at least
since the Civil War. In 1866 a home for the orphans
of soldiers was provided for by the legislature.”
Just as sympathy for the soldier led to the creation
of the Soldiers’ Home and gave Iowa the provision
of its poor laws forbidding the sending of a soldier
or his family to the poorhouse, so it also resulted in
giving the State the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home and in
arousing agitation for the care of other orphans in
special homes instead of in the poorhouses.

In 1874 petitions were presented in both houses of
the legislature, praying that the Soldiers’ Orphans’
Homes should be opened to other children as well as
to orphans of soldiers.” So insistent was the de-
mand that in 1876 provision was made for the recep-
tion of other destitute children into the Home at
Davenport. This provision, however, did not work
out as its promoters had hoped. This was due to
the fact that the county from which the child came
was required to bear the expense of his support at
174 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

the Home. The county supervisors found it cheaper
to keep pauper children in the county poorhouse.
Governor Sherman in his second biennial message
on January 14, 1886, urged that a law be passed
prohibiting the sending of children to a poorhouse.
It remained merely a suggestion, since it was cheaper
for the county to keep its pauper children in the
poorhouse. While the law still permits them to be
kept in that institution, the agitation against the
practice has had the result of inspiring other agen-
cies to undertake their care. This was but one part
of a movement which has as a matter of fact taken
most of the children out of the county poorhouses.™?
Another movement which had the same result was
the organization of children’s homes and home-find-
ing societies, which have had a great growth since
the Civil War and are now under State regulation.
As a rule only those who are children of a parent in
the poorhouse are now retained in that institution
— and these are usually very young. The law should,
however, forbid children over a certain age (say two
years) to be kept in a county or city poorhouse. In
this instance the law has not only failed to lead the
social conscience, but it has not even followed it, ex-
cept by providing for the care of children elsewhere.

THE POORHOUSE AS THE ONLY METHOD OF RELIEF

The law in force in Iowa at the time of admission
into the Union provided for relief either in the poor-
house or in the homes of the needy. Inasmuch as it
was easier to provide for the needy by outdoor relief
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 175

than to build poorhouses in a new and sparsely set-
tled country, the law providing for care in those in-
stitutions was based upon the contingency that the
board of county commissioners, to quote the words
of the statute, thought it ‘‘proper and advantageous
to build a poor-house’’. The poorhouse was not
looked upon as the place in which all relief should be
given. As a matter of fact in the early days it played
avery small part in poor relief.

In the Code of 1851 and the Revision of 1860,
while provisions were made for the care of the poor
in their homes, the law provided that ‘‘relief is to be
furnished in the poorhouse only, when the person is
able to be taken there, unless the judge order other-
wise.’’ ** Without doubt the intention of the makers
of the Code of 1851 was to concentrate poor relief as
much as possible in the poorhouse, thus furnishing
an interesting parallel to a similar attempt in early
Ohio legislation.?**

The regard for the welfare of the soldier and his
family during and after the Civil War played havoc
with this economical but brutal theory. In 1868 the
Twelfth General Assembly had provided that no
widows or families of Iowa soldiers should be sent
to the county poorhouse when they could be, and
preferred to be, relieved in their homes to the extent
of two dollars a week. In the Code of 1873 this ex-
ception was extended to any other poor persons in
families — a provision which was again broadened in
1878 to include all Union soldiers and their widows
and families. Finally, in the Code of 1897 this priv-
176 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

ilege was extended to members of the army and navy,
and to their widows and families. The relief of other
persons outside the poorhouse was made discretion-
ary with the county supervisors.?**

In short, in the early history of poor relief in Iowa,
as represented by the Territorial law of 1842 the
minimum emphasis was upon relief in the poorhouse,
but after poorhouses increased in number there was
a tendency to concentrate relief in those institutions.
The Civil War checked this tendency for certain
classes, and the reaction found its expression in the
Code of 1873. With the founding of institutions
providing for the care of needy soldiers and their
families, and with the tendency to place poor relief
in the hands of the county supervisors, sentiment
swung back toward the former policy.

SUPPORT OF THE POORHOUSE

When one studies the legislation dealing with poor
relief one is impressed with the fact that in the ab-
sence of high motives growing out of careful sci-
entific study of poverty and its treatment, economic
considerations have largely determined the treat-
ment prescribed: the desire to save the taxpayer im-
mediate outlay, not the determination to so deal with
the question as ultimately to lower the rate of taxa-
tion for poor relief by prevention and rehabilitation,
has too often governed the law-makers. <A study of
the administration of these laws would doubtless
show this fact even more clearly, since the laws have
always made abundant provision for the care of the
THE POORHOUSEH IN IOWA 177

poor. One feels, however, that the authorities who
have been closest to the practical administration of
the laws and were chiefly responsible for the taxa-
tion necessary to carry out any plans, have not
always had the necessary social vision to conceive
or carry out a constructive social policy with re-
spect to the poorhouse. So far as giving the su-
pervisors power to do things goes the laws have
been adequate. What the legislation has lacked is
mandatory constructive features. These, however,
have been impossible with our political ideal of local
autonomy in the management of the county institu-
tions, an ideal which has had to yield to State con-
trol and direction in those Commonwealths, like In-
diana, which are handling the poverty problem hope-
fully.

In the Territorial law of 1842 the county commis-
sioners were empowered to levy and collect a poor
tax of not more than one mill on the dollar on the
valuation of all property taxable for county and Ter-
ritorial purposes, in case the regular revenue of the
county was insufficient for the support of the poor.**”
This provision was repeated in the codes of 1851,
1860, and 1873, except that in the first the court
levied the tax and in the last two the board of super-
visors performed this duty. The expenses were to
be paid out of the county treasury in the same man-
ner as other county disbursements.** The Code of
1897 omitted the statement of previous codes as to
the manner in which the expenses of maintaining the
178 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

poorhouse should be paid, although it retained the
millage tax provision.”*

CENTRALIZED CONTROL OF THE POORHOUSES

This short-visioned economy in the management
of the poorhouses inevitably gave rise to evil condi-
tions. Except in a few places the bad results of
county supervision of the poorhouse first became ap-
parent in connection with the treatment of the in-
sane in the poorhouses. Attention was called to the
situation in these institutions by a ‘‘visiting com-
mittee’’ appointed by the General Assembly to look
into conditions in the hospitals for the insane and
embody the results in their report in 1875. This
committee made an investigation of the care of the
insane and other mental defectives throughout the
State, and reported that fifty-three counties in the
State had poorhouses at that time, while forty-six
counties lacked such an institution. In these poor-
houses they found confined three hundred and thirty-
two men paupers and two hundred and eighty-five
women, a total of six hundred and seventeen. In ad-
dition, the poorhouses contained forty men and
forty-nine women who were idiots, and forty-six men
and forty-three women who were insane. The coun-
ties which had no poorhouses maintained two hun-
dred and sixty-six permanent paupers, three idiots,
and twenty insane persons. At that date Jackson
County was the only county which had a separate
building for the care of the insane, although Scott
County had an arrangement by which the twenty-
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 179

three insane persons in the county were cared for in
Mercy Hospital near Davenport.

In its report the committee protested vigorously
against the conditions existing in the poorhouses,
saying:

The experiences of all communities, and the results of the
especial inspections of the poor-houses in New York and
Pennsylvania, demonstrate that the retention in such places,
of cases of insanity and idocy, is not only a gross violation
of the commonest sentiments of humanity, but that such
disposition, especially as to females, inevitably and invar-
iably leads to results alike opposed to public morality and
public safety. In one of our own counties, (Scott,) a few
years ago, an investigation into the conditions and disci-
pline of the poor-house, and particularly as to the relations
between the ordinary male paupers and the insane females,
exhibited such shocking disclosures that the county au-
thorities immediately established the rule that no cases of
insanity should thenceforth be placed in their poor-house.

It is respectfully submitted that a similar ‘‘rule’’ should,
by legislative enactment, be established. throughout the
State.

Pending the completion of state accommodations for all
the insane of Iowa, there should at least, be provision, by a
statute enactment, for constant general supervision by of-
ficials appointed by the state, of all the county institutions
of detention, particularly including jails, poor-houses and
public and private hospitals, in which the counties may
have provided for such claimants on their care.”*°

In these words are to be found the first public no-
tice by State officials of conditions in the poorhouses
180 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

of Iowa and the first official suggestion of State con-
trol.

Following immediately upon this report, Governor
Carpenter in his second biennial message (January
12, 1876), and upon the suggestion of the committee
itself, urged that this Visiting Committee should
have its powers enlarged so as to include within its
scope the duties of examining county jails and poor-
houses and of suggesting improvements in the con-
duct of these institutions.”*

Governor Gear in his second biennial message
(January 10, 1882) cited the report made to him by
Dr. Margaret A. Cleaves, of Davenport, whom he
had appointed as a delegate to the National Con-
ference of Charities and Correction. Fresh from
this meeting, where State boards of charities had
been discussed, in her report she urged the necessity
of such an organization in Iowa. The Governor rec-
ommended that such a board be appointed, because
the disclosures of conditions in many States con-
cerning the management of poorhouses demonstra-
ted the fact that some supervision other than that
afforded by the existing system of government for
these institutions was necessary.”?

Not until twelve years later did another Governor
mention the subject. At that time (1894) Governor
Boies argued for a board of control which should
occasionally visit county institutions.” His suc-
cessor, Governor Jackson, in his biennial message of
January 14, 1896, while opposing the creation of a
board of control, urged that the powers of the Visit-
THE POORHOUSE IN IOWA 181

ing Committee to the Insane Hospitals be enlarged
so that they should be required to visit all poor-
houses where insane patients were kept *** — a sug-
gestion which was reiterated by Governor Drake two
years later.’

In spite of the opposition of Governors Jackson
and Drake to that particular form of a controlling
body, the Twenty-seventh General Assembly in 1898
passed an act creating the Board of Control for all
State charitable and correctional institutions.”* By
the terms of an act of April 7, 1900, there was com-
mitted to this Board of Control supervision of all
county poorhouses in which insane were kept.?*’

Thus a small measure of State supervision has
finally come to the management of the poorhouses of
Iowa. It must not be forgotten, however, that only
those poorhouses in which there are kept insane
people are inspected by the Board of Control. The
poorhouses of those counties in which the insane are
kept in another building, even though it be in the
same yard with the poorhouse, have no State super-
vision to this day.

It is well known that this supervision has had good
results. Ever hanging over the heads of local au-
thorities, solicitous now as always to keep down the
taxes of their constituents, is the power of the State
Board of Control — a body which is not so near to
the voters as are local officials, and is therefore
less subject to the influences which are largely
responsible for the inefficiency to be seen in the
administration of county poorhouses. This con-
182 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

trol should be further extended so as to include every
poorhouse. With a board of social vision and enough
intelligent inspectors there would be hope that that
travesty upon the name in most of the counties of
Iowa — the ‘‘county home’’ — would indeed become
a home for the infirm and aged poor who have no
friends but the county. Then perhaps that soulless,
conscienceless thing, the county, might become what
it should be — a humane friend of the helpless poor.
xX
OUTDOOR RELIEF OF THE POOR IN IOWA

Relief of the poor in their homes has ever been the
method employed in a newly settled country. It re-
quires no preliminary preparation; in the beginning
it is only one step removed from mere neighborly
assistance; and it is the most economical method.

While the earliest law of the Territory of Iowa
provided for poorhouses, the probabilities are that
such institutions were never built during the time
such legislation was in force. The law in operation
on this subject at the time Iowa became a State was
that approved on February 16, 1842 —a statute
adopted from the Ohio law of 1831, and devoted en-
tirely to the subject of the relief of the poor in their
homes. It concerned itself with questions of sup-
port by relatives, settlement, and the administration
of out-relief. Every other statute on the subject of
poor relief in Iowa has included provisions for relief
in poorhouses and in the homes of the poor, or by
contract.

From first to last some features have remained
common to all the various acts passed in Iowa. Two
methods of out-relief have been common to all of the
laws of the State for the relief of the poor, namely,
relief could either be furnished to poor persons in

; 183
184 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

their homes or be let out on contract. In all of these
acts relatives were held liable for the support of
paupers; while relief was contingent upon settlement
for a certain length of time in the township or
county, and there were provisions for the return of
paupers who had no settlement in the place in which
they fell into want to the place of their legal settle-
ment.

Moreover, certain officials persist throughout the
history of poor relief legislation in Iowa, although
their names were altered in some cases, as for ex-
ample, those having direct charge of relief in town-
ships. And although some officers were eliminated
in the course of development and their functions
were given to other county or township officials,
nevertheless, the chief functions remained the same
throughout. In other words, the main features of
the process by which out-relief was administered
were never changed. Except during the first four
years, when the Territorial law remained in force,
these features were application by the pauper, fol-
lowed by an investigation by certain township offi-
cials, either the overseers of the poor or the town-
ship trustees; then either direct relief by these of-
ficials and a report of their action to the county
officials, or else a report of the need to the county
officials first and direct relief with their approba-
tion afterwards; or sometimes direct relief by the
township officials without review by the county au-
thorities. Inasmuch as the details of relief, both in
the poorhouse and out, have been discussed in pre-
(

OUTDOOR RELIEF: OF THE POOR 185

vious chapters it will be necessary here only to sum
up on broad lines the development of out-relief in
Iowa.

RELIEF BY CONTRACT

The form of poor relief first established in Iowa
was relief under a contract. Strictly speaking this
was not out-relief in the sense in which that word is
used in later days. Since, however, it was an alter-
native form to relief in the poorhouse, it has been
treated as such. This system was applied to chil-
dren whose parents were unable to support them,
and included those who were in poorhouses as well
as those who had not yet been sent thither. More-
over, this form of out-relief has been incorporated
in every law enacted in the State of Iowa for the re-
lief of the poor.*** But even more universal have
been the statutory provisions relating to the care of
adult paupers by contract; for such provisions are to
be found in both of the laws on this subject which
were in force in Iowa during the Territorial pe-
riod.?**

The contractor has been dealt with in the chapter
on County Relief Officials.” In this connection,
therefore, it will not be necessary to do more than
trace very briefly the changes which occurred in
the position of that individual during the course
of the development. In all essentials the law re-
lating to the contractor was not changed, except
that provision was made for a more careful su-
pervision of his care of the poor. In the Terri-
torial law of 1840 no supervision of the contractor
186 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

was provided for. In the statute of 1842 a limit
was imposed in that the overseers could not contract
with any one for the care of the poor for a longer
period than one year.””

In the legislation of 1851 and 1860, probably owing
to the abuses which had arisen in connection with
this method of caring for the poor in the early his-
tory of the State and also to the fact that these codes
allowed the contractor to employ the poor, an addi-
tional provision was inserted. It was in the Code of
1851 that there is first to be found that interesting
official, ‘‘the spy’’, whose business it was ‘‘to exam-
ine and report upon the manner the poor are kept
and treated.’’ This examination was to be made
without notice to the contractor. While this pro-
vision remained in each of the succeeding codes, its
importance has constantly decreased by reason of the
passing of this method of caring for the poor.’

The contract system did not answer to the increas-
ingly complex conditions of society in Iowa. More-
over, two other methods were coming into favor and
tended to supplant the contract plan. The poor-
house was bound to increase in popular favor at a
time when men measured the development of the
State largely in terms of masses of people and in
buildings. Where, however, an institution seemed
too expensive for a county and therefore impossible
of realization, relief in the homes of the poor was
much cheaper, more humane, and not subject to the
abuses which had grown up in connection with relief
by contractors. Thus, relief in the homes of the
OUTDOOR RELIEF OF THE POOR 187

poor became the dominant mode where there was no
poorhouse, except in the case of the infirm or the
solitary pauper.

RELIEF IN THE HOMES OF THE POOR

Temporary relief of the poor who had no settle-
ment where they fell into want has been the policy
in Iowa from the beginning. At first the expense
was borne by the county or township where such
person received aid; later by the county where such
person had a legal settlement.”*

The Code of 1851 introduced out-relief in the
homes of the people. Up to that time the supposi-
tion was that relief must be given either in the poor-
house or by the contractor. In the codes of 1851 and
1860 the county court and the county supervisors, re-
spectively, were given discretion either to pay to the
poor a small sum from time to time or an annual al-
lowance, not to exceed the amount that might be
necessary to care for them by the other methods in
vogue.** Practically these same provisions were
continued in all later legislation. In the Code of
1873 the supervisors were authorized to grant this
relief; while in the Code of 1897 the matter was
placed in the hands of the supervisors directly or of
the township trustees or the overseer of the poor in
the cities, under the supervision of the county super-
visors.”

This method of relieving the poor leaped into in-
creased prominence during and immediately follow-
ing the Civil War. Concern for the soldier and his
188 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

family, and reaction against the stigma of the poor-
house for this class of dependents soon left their im-
press upon the poor relief legislation of the State.
The details of that development have been set forth
in other chapters.”” Here it will be sufficient to no-
tice that the movement to relieve the families of Iowa
soldiers naturally gave rise to a growing concern for
other families needing relief. An act approved on
April 6, 1868, gave dependents who had family rela-
tionships, aside from the families of Iowa soldiers,
the right to be relieved in their homes to the extent
of two dollars per week for each person, rather than —
go to the poorhouse.** With the passage of time
and the growing realization of the possibility of
abuse in outdoor relief, the law-making body of the
State receded from that position. In the Code of
1897 the question of providing relief for other per-
sons than the families of soldiers in this manner was
put within the discretion of the board of super-
visors.** There the matter remains, except with re-
spect to those to whom the recently enacted widow’s
pension law applies.

THE SOLDIERS’ RELIEF FUND

The Civil War caused the establishment of the
Soldiers’ Home and the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home.
Before either of these institutions had been provided
for by the State, the legislature, by an act approved
on March 28, 1864, had authorized each county to
levy a tax of not less than two mills on all taxable
property for the creation of ‘‘The Relief Fund’? for
OUTDOOR RELIEF OF THE POOR 189

soldiers and their families.” This fund was used to
relieve the families of soldiers and later came to be
employed also for supplying the needs of old sol-
diers themselves who became dependent.

This law is of interest in this connection because
of the fact that it helped to establish the principle of
outdoor relief of the poor. Once established in the
customs of the people, this principle held its own,
until to-day it costs the State more to care for the
paupers outside of the poorhouses than is expended
for the maintenance of those institutions.”"

As administered in Iowa there is no supervision of
out-relief aside from what meagre and inefficient
oversight is given by the county authorities, whose
chief concern seems to be to keep down the taxes.
The State has absolutely no control over the matter.
Nor is there inspection by State agents — one re-
spect in which the situation is much worse than in
the case of the poorhouses. Even the widow’s pen-
sion law is administered by the courts. In most cases
the judges are perhaps somewhat better fitted than
the supervisors to bring to the oversight of this
form of out-relief in the interest of dependent chil-
dren a wide experience and a more expert knowledge
of how such a fund should be administered. Yet it
can hardly be said that such oversight as they, with
all their other work and interests and with their
specialized training for the law, can give is the best
possible kind of supervision. At best they have no
experience outside of the one or few counties within
which they hold court. They can not give themselves
199 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

to a special study of the problems of poor relief.
With certain exceptions they are not men who
have a large and generous social interest. Men of
attainments in the law, experts in the interpretation
of laws, and men of fine character they usually are,
but they are not often men especially trained in the
methods of poor relief.

These qualities are not to be despised in a judge:
doubtless they count for much in the administration
of justice in a district. Are these characteristics,
however, those which make the judge expert in
knowing just how far to go in granting pensions to a
woman with a dependent child, or which serve to
make him the best possible person to give the final
word in the administration of a law dealing with the
delicate problem of the relief of mothers and chil-
dren —a word that may mean either pauperization
or rehabilitation, according to the judge’s wisdom?
That this is the best method of supervising out-
relief, even of the special sort represented by the
mothers’ pension, is open to serious doubt.

It would be very much better if some State super-
vising agency could be employed for this work. In-
diana has found that supervision by the Board of
State Charities is a very efficient method of decreas-
ing poverty through outdoor relief. Under such su-
pervision in that State from 1898 to 1909, the number
of townships which made no levy for outdoor relief
increased from 64 to 276. The number which made
a levy of less than one-half mill increased from 515
to 634, while the number levying more than one-half
OUTDOOR RELIEF OF THE POOR 191

mill decreased from 435 to 107. Under this system
in Indiana the cost of outdoor relief for that State
decreased from $355,255.29 in 1895 and 1896 to $279,-
967.31 in 1909, while the average amount given to
each person aided increased from $4.97 to $5.13. In
short, the number of persons aided was very materi-
ally decreased, while the relief was made more ade-
quate for those to whom relief was given.?”

This matter could be very efficiently handled by a
statutory provision which would give to the Board
of Control authority to appoint one or more efficient
inspectors to supervise outdoor relief. As in In-
diana, county boards of charities composed of un-
salaried appointees with the duty of overseeing poor
relief, reporting to the Board of Control, and pub-
lishing their reports in the newspapers, would enlist
the interest of people with non-political aspirations
and secure efficient administration. The statute
should give the Board authority to prescribe meth-
ods and regulations under which out-relief would
be given. With the waste which is almost every-
where characteristic of outdoor relief in Iowa, es-
pecially in the larger communities, this would put
an effective check upon indiscriminate giving, would
establish in our public out-relief system the prin-
ciples of scientific charity, and without a doubt in the
next five years would materially lessen the amount
spent in this way, as well as secure more adequate
relief in the cases of those actually in need. It might
be well, also, for such a statute to provide, as in In-
diana, that the amount spent by the overseers of the
192 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

poor in each community should be paid, not out of
county funds, but should be taxed back to each town-
ship or city. This would have the effect of making
the overseer of the poor and the township trustees
careful in the administration of relief, while the
State supervision would secure efficiency.
PART III

SPECIAL CLASSES OF DEPENDENTS
AND STATE CONTROL
XI

SPECIAL CLASSES OF DEPENDENTS:
NORMAL CHILDREN

The plan of treating all classes of dependents in
the same manner has been the worst enemy of sci-
entific poor relief. Progress began in Iowa when a
classification of the poor, with special treatment for
each class, became possible. This classification came
about chiefly in connection with three classes of
paupers, namely, soldiers and their families, chil-
dren, and defectives. The special treatment afford-
ed soldiers and marines in local relief has been no-
ticed briefly in connection with the discussion of the
poorhouse.

ILLEGITIMATE CHILDREN

The child of abnormal social relations first arrest-
ed the attention of the poor authorities; and that
unhappy being, the illegitimate child, was the sub-
ject of the earliest poor laws respecting the care of
children. The motives, however, which singled him
out for treatment were not the humane sentiments of
pity or the desire to give him a fair chance for man-
hood and independence, but the desire to prevent
him from becoming a charge upon the community:
it was partly a sordid motive and partly a legitimate

195
196 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

desire to place social responsibility where it be-
longed.

So far as Iowa is concerned the legislation relative
to this class of children goes back to the act ap-
proved in Michigan Territory on April 12, 1827,
which was extended over Wisconsin Territory in
1836 and still later over the Territory of Iowa. The
Iowa Territorial legislature by an act approved on
January 4, 1840, reénacted practically this same
statute, except that county commissioners were sub-
stituted for overseers of the poor. These acts pro-
vided that the father of the child should furnish
bonds to the overseers of the poor in the one case,
and in the other to the county commissioners, in or-
der to relieve the township or county of responsibil-
ity for the support of the child.’

The Code of 1851 contained practically the same
provisions, except that the county judge took the
place of the overseers of the poor, or the county
commissioners. There was added the express pro-
vision, however, that the father should give bonds to
insure that the child should not become chargeable
to any county in the State.’ No changes were made
in the Revision of 1860, save that the county super-
visors supplanted the county judge.” The only
modifications to be found in the Code of 1873 were
the provisions that the court, rather than the mother
of the child, should determine the sum or sums the
father must pay her for the support of the child, and
that the court could change the amount at any
time.?”*
NORMAL CHILDREN 197

From that date to the present time no changes
have been made in the statutes. Numerous decisions
have been rendered by the courts, however, which
indicate plainly that the whole purpose of the laws
upon this subject was to secure the maintenance of
the bastard child. For example, if another than the
father of the child married the woman while she was
enciente, knowing that fact, by reason of marrying
her he came to stand in loco parentis to the child,
and consequently the real father could not be held
for its maintenance.”

SOLDIERS’ ORPHANS

Reference has been made to measures to relieve
the families of soldiers of the Civil War outside of
the poorhouse.”"* Born of universal gratitude to the
men who risked their lives for the Union, these
measures were the first expression of revolt against
the sad condition of the poor in these county houses.
Sentiments of humanity rebelled against the inhu-
manity which would thrust the widow or children of
a man whose only fault was patriotism into an insti-
tution which might be endurable as the only home of
the social derelicts usually predominating there. To
this institution soldiers’ families must never be sent.
Soldiers’ children, therefore, shared with their
mothers the relief provided for them in their homes
to the extent of not more than two dollars each per
week. This provision for the relief of soldiers’ wid-
ows and orphans, however, did not satisfy the senti-
ment of the times. To Iowa belongs the credit of
198 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

priority in establishing soldiers’ orphans’ homes.
Even before the close of the war homes for soldiers’
orphans were opened in the State as private enter-
prises — one located at Davenport and one at Cedar
Falls. The leaders in this movement were Judge
C. C. Cole, who was president. of the Iowa Soldiers’
Orphans’ Home before it was taken over by the
State in 1866, and Mr. Ingalls, the president of the
institution at that date. These homes were at first
supported by voluntary contributions gathered from
soldiers in the army and from public spirited cit-
izens; but the institutions and the orphans in them
were taken over by the State when the ‘‘Board of
Trustees of the Iowa Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home’’
was established by the Eleventh General Assembly
in 1866." A tax of three-eighths of a mill on the
dollar was to be levied by the Census Board of the
State for the support of this institution,” the prin-
cipal department of which was located at Davenport,
with a branch at Cedar Falls and later one at Glen-
wood.?*

This same act made provision also for the creation
of a ‘‘Soldiers’ County Orphan Fund’’, to be used
for the maintenance and education of soldiers’ or-
phans in each county. This provision, however, was
not obligatory upon the counties. The assessor in
each ward and township was to make an enumeration
of all the children of deceased soldiers and make an
accurate report to the county supervisors. The lat-
ter might levy a tax, not to exceed one-half mill on
the dollar, if there were any such orphans in the
NORMAL CHILDREN 199

county needing aid. It was expressly provided that
these provisions for a county fund were not to be
construed so as to prevent the orphans, or a part of
them, from being sent to any orphans’ home in the
State. The supervisors, moreover, were to admin-
ister this fund.”*

In spite of the fact that the State Orphans’ Homes
were admirably managed, either on the cottage plan
or with a grouping of the orphans in each institu-
tion into wards with a special matron over each
group, and with provision for good schools in the in-
stitutions and later for the installation of special
equipment for trade training, it soon began to be
felt that no matter how good an institution was, it
was not ideal. Governor Merrill, in a special mes-
sage to the legislature on April 3, 1868, voiced this
feeling. He urged that the trustees of the Home, in
certain approved cases, should pay to the mothers a
sum equal to the estimated cost of the children’s sup-
port at the institution and allow the children to re-
main at home. His reasons for this proposal were
that in some cases the child would be better cared
for ‘‘under the combined influences of both duty and
affection’’, and that it would lessen what seemed to
be undue severity to the mother in depriving her of
the only part of her family left her by the cruel ne-
cessities of war — her children.***

The suggestion by Governor Merrill was not fol-
lowed; but in 1868 the legislature provided for the
adoption of any child from a soldiers’ orphans’
home into a good family, and for the discharge from
200 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

the home by the trustees of the institution of any
child who, himself, or whose mother had sufficient
means to provide for him.”* This law was prompted
partly by the fact that numerous soldiers’ children
whose fathers and in some cases both parents were
still living had, under a liberal interpretation of the
law, been admitted to the Homes. Governor Merrill
declared that the State had not yet undertaken to
care for the children of surviving soldiers of the late
war, and urged that provision be made for the adop-
tion of children from the Homes into good families
and that a more precise definition be made by statute
of the proper children to be received.”

If the children were to be kept in the Home it was
felt by large numbers of people that they should be
trained in some useful trade. From the first they
were taught to work at such tasks as a Home with
rather a small amount of ground attached permitted
—the boys working in the garden and preparing the
necessary stove-wood and doing the heavy work
about the institution, and the girls learning house-
work. But it was early realized that especially for
the boys trade training was essential. And so, by an
act approved on March 21, 1874, provision was made
for the introduction of industrial training into the
Homes.”

An act approved on March 15, 1876, represented
an endeavor to increase the educational privileges
afforded the children in the Homes by providing
that they were to be given the opportunity to obtain
as good an education as could be gained in the com-
NORMAL CHILDREN 201

mon schools and were to be furnished some useful
employment. Further provision was made in the
same act that any profits accruing from the labor of
these orphans should be used for the general support
of the Home. The children, moreover, were to be
assisted in finding homes and employment after their
discharge.’*"

In the natural course of events, with the passage
of a few years the need for so many institutions de-
creased. This fact, together with the frequent adop-
tion of children into families, conspired to foster
measures and suggestions for the reduction of the
number of these Homes; a bill providing for the
consolidation of the three Homes introduced in the
House in 1874 went to a third reading, but was de-
feated by a vote of forty-six to forty-eight. From
the records it is evident that the chief cause for its
defeat was the fact that it contemplated the closing
of the smallest of these Homes — the one at Glen-
wood, which was the only one in western Iowa. An
amendment was offered and passed during the dis-
cussion upon the bill which reveals the feeling that
institutions, no matter how good, lacked the influ-
ence of a good home. It provided that the children
at Glenwood should be sent to their parents and
guardians and that these parties should be paid
eight dollars a month for the maintenance of each
child until he or she was fourteen years of age.”**

Two years later the decrease in the number of
soldiers’ orphans in these institutions had become
so striking that Governor Carpenter pointed out the
202 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

fact that it would be necessary either to close the
institutions or to open them to others than soldiers’
orphans. This latter policy was recommended by
the superintendents and trustees of the Homes and
by the Governor, who argued that the State would
save the cost of sustaining such an institution in
raising to useful citizenship indigent orphans who
otherwise would be neglected and become criminals
or be left to grow up to a dependency in the poor-
houses. He insisted that the proposal was not un-
heard of, since New York had recently removed all
children from almshouses in that State — adding
that no event since the Emancipation Proclamation
had caused more rejoicing.?®

The legislature responded to these suggestions by
making a number of radical changes in the laws rela-
tive to the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Homes. An act ap-
proved on March 15, 1876, provided for the closing
of the Homes at Glenwood and Cedar Falls and for
the transference of their inmates to the institution
at Davenport. Besides permitting the admission of
such destitute children as in the judgment of the
trustees should be admitted, the law also changed the
membership of the Board of Trustees from a board
composed of one person from the county where each
Home was located and two appointed from other
parts of the State, to one composed of three persons
from the State at large. Furthermore, the county
from which others than soldiers’ orphans were sent
was made chargeable for their support —a provi-
sion which unfortunately resulted in the support of
\

\

NORMAL CHILDREN 203

most orphans except soldiers’ orphans in the county
poorhouses or in the State Reform School.”

For a number of years after the consolidation of
the various Orphans’ Homes at Davenport the num-
ber of inmates decreased. In 1871 there was a total
in the three institutions of 718." In 1891, on the
other hand, the total number of soldiers’ orphans in
the institution at Davenport had decreased to 88.
This decrease had begun to be felt in 1876, when the
legislature closed the Homes at Glenwood and Cedar
Falls and opened the Home at Davenport for the
reception of other destitute orphans. An interest-
ing fact, however, is that from 1891 to 1905, with the
exception of the year 1899, there was a gradual in-
crease in the number of soldiers’ orphans in the
Home.” Governor Drake in his biennial message
of January 11, 1898, referred to this strange circum-
stance. He accounted for it by pointing out the pos-
sibility that many had hitherto been sent to the
Home as county children whom more thorough in-
vestigation showed to be soldiers’ orphans. Anoth-
er explanation, however, is possible, namely, that
this increase came from the second families of sol-
diers.”*

The Board of Control was created by the Twenty-
seventh General Assembly in 1898, displacing the
various boards of trustees. Accordingly, on July
1st of that year the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home, with
the other charitable and correctional institutions of
the State, came under the control of this Board.”
In the first biennial report of the new Board certain
204 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

recommendations were made for amendments to the
law governing the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home. Of
chief interest in this connection is the recommenda-
tion that the Code be so amended that no person
should be admitted as an inmate of the Soldiers’
Orphans’ Home until his application had been made
to and approved by the Board of Control. It was
also recommended that the adoption of children from
the Home should be subject to the decision of the
superintendent of the institution and the Board of
Control, and that this control should be so absolute
that the consent of the parents or guardians should
not be required in those cases where the parents and
guardians were either dissolute or immoral in their
habits, or were unfit to have charge of or to rear the
children.”**

From the time of the opening of the institution to
all destitute orphans in 1876 soldiers’ orphans have
had the preference of admission. By a law ap-
proved on February 19, 1906, the Thirty-first Gen-
eral Assembly added the children of sailors and
marines to the preferred class for admission to the
Home;’* and this same General Assembly by a law
approved on April 5, 1906, provided for the adoption
or placing out on contract of children in the Soldiers’
Orphans’ Home at Davenport.” In response to the
recommendations of the State Board of Control, pro-
vision was also made for the appointment of two
State agents by the Board of Control to find suitable
homes or positions and employment when desirable .
for the inmates of the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home and
NORMAL CHILDREN 205

the Industrial Schools. These agents were also to
exercise supervision over those placed out in this
manner, and to examine their conduct and their sur-
roundings. If they found the latter bad, ‘they were
required to find other homes for these children or
other places of employment and report the facts to
the Board of Control.’

Further extension of control over these children
was granted the Board by an act approved on March
28, 1911. This act provided that children received
into the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home, no matter how
received, were wards of the State and unless adopted
under the law, might be placed by the superintendent
with any person or family of good standing and char-
acter, where they would be cared for and properly
educated under articles of agreement between the
superintendent and the person with whom they were
placed. These articles of agreement were to be ap-
proved by the Board of Control, the duty of which
was to provide for the custody, care, maintenance,
and earnings of the child for an agreed time, not to
extend beyond the child’s majority.”* This provi-
sion grew out of the fact that the Board was having
difficulty in securing the adoption of children from
the Home by the people of Iowa. As a consequence
of this fact, and of certain tendencies to be dis-
cussed under the next section, the Home was becom-
ing overcrowded.
206 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

DEPENDENT CHILDREN OTHER THAN SOLDIERS’
ORPHANS

The Soldiers’ Orphans’ Homes had not been in
operation many years before their advantages over
the poorhouse as institutions in which to care for
dependent children became apparent. The compar-
ative excellence of these Homes for soldiers’ or-
phans, as well as the decreasing number of this class
of dependent children, forced upon the minds of
people the question of throwing these Homes open
for other dependent children. In the legislature on
January 26, 1874, Mr. Tufts presented to the House
a petition from Mr. R. A. McIntyre and others, pray-
ing that the Qrphans’ Homes of Iowa be opened to
other orphans. Within the next month more than
fifteen petitions, asking for the same thing, were
presented to the House. Some of these were placed
on file and others were referred to the Committee
on Orphans’ Homes.*” In the Senate, also, a large
number of petitions was presented on the same sub-
ject." No action was taken, however, by the leg-
islators at this session.

In his first biennial message on January 23, 1874,
Governor Carpenter pointed out the fact that two
years before there had been a total of 718 children
in the various Homes; and that at the time he was
speaking the report showed that there was a total
of 508. ‘‘The work of this great charity,’’ he re-
marked, ‘‘as the children of the soldiers pass beyond
need of its help, draws to a close.’’ In view of this
fact and of the investments made by the State, the
NORMAL CHILDREN 207

board of trustees and the superintendents recom-
mended that the Homes be open to all orphans.*”
Two years later (January 12, 1876) Governor Car-
penter showed that the decrease which he had noted
two years before had gone steadily on, the total num-
ber in all the institutions at the time being but 298.
He remarked that this fact indicated that within the
next two years it would be necessary to close the
institutions entirely unless they should be opened for
the reception of other orphans. Therefore he strong-
ly urged that the recommendations of the superin-
tendents and trustees for the opening of these insti-
tutions as general orphans’ homes be adopted by
the legislature. It was his belief that the State
would save the cost of such an institution in raising
to useful citizenship in these institutions indigent
orphans who, if unprovided for, would become crim-
inals. Reference has already been made in another
connection to the fact that in support of his recom-
mendation he pointed out that New York on the first
day of January had removed all pauper children
from county almshouses to State asylums.*®

In accordance with these recommendations so of-
ten repeated, the Sixteenth General Assembly passed
a law approved on March 15, 1876, which permitted
the trustees of the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home at Dav-
enport to receive such destitute children as should,
in their judgment, be admitted.

The extension of the privileges of the Home to in-
digent orphans in general was strictly limited to
those who had a legal settlement in the State of Iowa,
208 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

and by the further proviso that soldiers’ orphans
were to have the preference in admission. More-
over, this act provided that the application for ad-
mission was to be made by the board of supervisors
of the county where the child resided. Thus the
whole matter of determining whether a child should
be cared for in the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home or by
some other method was placed in the hands of the
board of supervisors of each county. The act, fur-
thermore, provided that the cost of transporting and
supporting other than soldiers’ orphans in this in-
stitution should fall upon the county — a provision
which permitted the economic motive to dominate in
the determination of where an orphan should be
cared for.**

During the twenty-eight years when other orphans
than those of soldiers were received and cared for in
the Home at the expense of the county from which
they came some interesting things occurred which
throw much light upon the inadequacy of the
economic motive to secure social welfare. Governor
Gear, in his first biennial message on January 13,
1880, spoke of the existing urgency for legislative
action in the interest of the dependent and indigent
children of Iowa. He believed that the number and
the needs of such children were much greater than
had been supposed. He said that the benevolent
intent of the Sixteenth General Assembly in permit-
ting the admission of indigent children had for rea-
sons of economy not worked for the welfare of the
children, because of the fact that the law provided
NORMAL CHILDREN 209

that the board of supervisors in each county must
direct the placing of these children in the Home and
held the county responsible for the cost of support-
ing children so placed. On this point he added:

In other words, the several boards of supervisors in
question have preferred that the indigent children of their
counties shall be either remitted to the tender mercies of the
poor-house, or thrown upon the fitful charities of a world
whose benefactions in such relation are as often harmful
as helpful. These failures of the respective boards of su-
pervisors to place the dependent children of their coun-
ties in an institution wherein education, careful training
in good habits, regularity of employment in labor suited
to capacity and age, and association in groups approximat-
ing the family relation would supplement mere provision
for clothing and food, have certainly resulted from a mis-
taken policy. ‘‘Economy,”’’ falsely so-called, has incited to
this. But the State may well inquire whether it can afford
to allow any county to practice such ‘‘economy’’ at its ex-
pense and to the future peril of the property and lives of
its citizens. No fact in social science is more clearly de-
monstrated than that the criminal classes find their most
numerous and constant reinforcements from the ranks of
the neglected, and hence the certainly soon to be vicious,
children and youth. It is so much cheaper so to care for
the indigent children of the State as that these may con-
stantly be kept under the influence of education, industry,
and good morals, than to neglect them when children, and
to provide for them in poor-houses, jails, and penitentiaries
when adults, that a true regard for the interests of the tax-
payers must, I am convinced, urge the General Assembly
to a thoughtful consideration of the insufficiency of the ex-
isting laws in that regard. Such a consideration must im-
210 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

pel to the conclusion that the State can neither afford to
allow its dependent children to become ‘‘street Arabs’’ and
‘‘hoodlums’’ or permit them to be domiciled in poor-houses
to be educated into perpetual pauperism, or be started on
the highway to the State’s prison.° 3

)

In support of this contention Governor Gear cited
the fact that during the previous twelve years only
five per cent of the inmates of the Home had failed
to lead respectable and worthy lives. As indicating
the extent of the danger which the false economy of
boards of supervisors had produced in the State, he
said that on October 1, 1880, there were no less than
twenty-six girls and forty-four boys over five years
of age in poorhouses in sixteen counties of the State.
He therefore urged very strongly that the legislature
prohibit the placing of children above two years of
age in any poorhouse, and that it pass laws requiring
every child destitute of proper parental care, or care
on the part of relatives, or for whom adequate pro-
vision otherwise could not be made, to be placed in
the Orphans’ Home at the charge of the county
where settlement had been established.** Finally,
in his second biennial message on January 10, 1882,
Governor Gear repeated these recommendations and
said that there were at that time in the poorhouses
of the State eighty-five children under five years of
age, fifty-four between five and ten, and twenty-eight
between ten and fifteen.*”

These recommendations of Governor Gear secured
no response from the legislature. The economic mo-
tive was dominant, and indigent children, aside from
NORMAL CHILDREN 211

soldiers’ orphans, continued to be sent to the county
poorhouses rather than to the State Home. The
urgency of the matter, however, appealed also to
Gear’s successor, Governor Sherman, who in his first
biennial message (January 15, 1884) declared that so
long as the counties were forced to bear the expense
of the support of indigent children in the State Or-
phans’ Home and the law permitted the supervisors
the option of sending an orphan to the State Home
or to the poorhouse, there was no hope that a change
would be made. He urged therefore that the State
should bear the expenses of the support of other or-
phans as well as of those of soldiers in the State
Home in order that counties might be led to transfer
their orphans from the almshouses to this Home.*”
This recommendation met with no response at that
time, although it bore fruit later. Two years later
(1886) Governor Sherman urged that a law be
passed prohibiting the sending of any children to a
poorhouse.*”® If he had any hope that his recom-
mendation would be followed, he was doomed to dis-
appointment.

For twelve years there is no reference in the of-
ficial documents to the problem of placing children
in the poorhouses. Not until Governor Drake, in his
biennial message of January 11, 1898, called the sub-
ject once more to the attention of the legislators, is
any further mention of this question to be found. In
that message Governor Drake communicated to the
General Assembly the remarkable fact that many
children under ten years of age were sent to the re-
212 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

form schools as criminals by the counties rather than
to the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home, because their sup-
port at the reform school was at the expense of the
State; while if they were sent to the Soldiers’ Or-
phans’ Home they must be supported at the expense
of the county. It seems almost unbelievable that
any public authorities could be guilty of such a
practice were it not for the fact that the Governor
spoke of it in such certain terms and based his state-
ment on the report of the Board of Trustees. He
pointed out the immediate need of decided legisla-
tive action. ‘‘It must be a case of exceptional de-
pravity indeed,’’ he said, ‘‘that will justify sending a
child of that tender age to the Industrial school.’’ *°

That same year the law was passed creating the
State Board of Control, and the Soldiers’ Orphans’
Home, with the other charitable and correctional in-
stitutions of the State, passed under its control. In
its first biennial report in 1899 the Board of Control
points out the deplorable fact that seventy-six chil-
dren were inmates of the poorhouses of the State, in
spite of the fact that the law provided for the care of
such children in the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home at the
expense of the county. Under these circumstances
the Board recommended that the law should be so
changed that in all cases boards of supervisors
should be prohibited from keeping children in the
county poorhouses and should make suitable pro-
vision for their care elsewhere. Moreover, it was
declared that to let these children grow up amid such
surroundings as those to be found in the poorhouses
NORMAL CHILDREN 213

was to be considered as little less than a crime, and
the matter was referred to the legislature as one de-
manding immediate attention.

In its first report (1899), the Board of Control
recommended to the legislature, as has been noticed,
that application for admission must be made to and
be approved by the Board. It urged further that the
adoption of children who were inmates of the Home
should be subject to the approval of the superin-
tendent and the Board of Control, and that such
adoption might be made without the consent of
parents or guardians if the latter were of dissolute
or immoral habits and unfit to have charge of and
rear the children.*"

No response was made by the General Assembly to
these suggestions of the Board. In its second report
in 1901, therefore, the Board of Control again called
the attention of the legislature to the fact that chil-
dren were being kept in the poorhouses. In that
year they reported that forty-six children under fif-
teen years of age were in the poorhouses in the pre-
ceding June. Twenty-five of these were under five
years of age. As the reason for this deplorable con-
dition the Board cited the fact that it cost the county
less to support them there than in the Soldiers’ Or-
phans’ Home; and asked the legislature for author-
ity to transfer all poor children under fifteen years
of age in poorhouses, at the cost of the county where
each had his legal settlement, to the Soldiers’ Or-
phans’ Home, to the Institution for the Feeble-
minded, to the School for the Deaf, or to the College
214 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

for the Blind, as in each case it seemed best to the
Board. The legislature again turned a deaf ear to
this recommendation.

The Thirtieth General Assembly, however, twenty-
four years after the evil was first called to the atten-
tion of the law-making body of the State, passed a
half-way measure to correct it: by an act approved
on March 31, 1904, in an effort to destroy the force
of the economic motive which retained children in
the poorhouses, the legislature reduced the amount
for which the county from which the child was sent
to the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home was to be held liable
to six dollars per month — or about one-half of the
cost of their support in that institution. The cost in
excess of six dollars was to be paid by the State.**

Recommendations have continued to be made by
the Board of Control for the removal of all children
from the poorhouses; but thus far these recommen-
dations have been treated with legislative silence.

Curious illustrations of the short-sightedness of
county authorities in dealing with this important
problem of the care of indigent children come to
light in the statements of the Board of Control in its
report in 1911. Apparently the belief was widely
entertained by parents, judges, boards of supervis-
ors, and others interested that if a parent could not
give as good care to a child as it would receive in the
Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home that fact was sufficient for
sending the child to the Home, although the parents
or persons responsible for his care were financially
able to maintain them elsewhere. The Board com-
NORMAL CHILDREN 215

plained that many parents seemed to regard the
Home as a free boarding-school, with the result that
a considerable number of children who were in fact
not indigent within the meaning of the law were re-
ceived into the Home.

The report revealed another interesting side-light
upon the way in which the law worked out. Refer-
ence was made to the change in the law requiring the
State to pay half the cost of maintenance of children
whose fathers were not soldiers, sailors, or marines,
which was enacted by the Thirtieth General As-
sembly. The Board remarked that this change re-
sulted in many cases in the county authorities in-
ducing parents and others responsible for the main-
tenance of these children to agree to pay the half of
the cost of their maintenance charged to the county,
and to let the State pay the other half. The Board
observed that this practice had greatly increased the
number of children in the Home. It even charged
that the courts were parties to these agreements en-
tered into by the parents of children and the county
authorities. The Board urged that the law be so
changed as to forbid this practice. It was further
recommended that those in charge of the Home be
given authority by law to place children who came
to the Home in homes other than those of the
parents.**

One change was made by the last General Assem-
bly with reference to the support of children in the
Home, when it was provided that each county should
be liable for the sum of six dollars per month for
216 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

each child in the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home sent from
that county, just as the law had previously provided,
except that when the total number in the institution
fell below five hundred and fifty each county was to
pay its proportionate part of the expense.**

In this connection should be mentioned an effort
made by Governor Cummins in his biennial message
of January, 1906, to secure the adoption of a family
desertion law. He believed that many of the chil-
dren who were becoming dependent became so by
reason of the desertion of their natural supporters.**

In making a general survey of the history of the
State’s treatment of normal dependent children one
is struck by the lack of constructive measures for
the care of such children. For twenty-four years
Governors, boards of trustees, and the Board of Con-
trol urged without result the necessity of a simple
legislative act which would have taken every child
out of every poorhouse in the State and forever for-
bidden the placing of another child in these institu-
tions. By the simple expedient of reducing by half
the amount for which each county is held responsible
this result has been obtained in a measure. A law,
however, forbidding the placing of children in poor-
houses still remains to be enacted. In 1911 there
still remained in the poorhouses of thirteen counties
of Iowa twenty-one dependent children.**7 Fortu-
nately the other counties of Iowa at that date had no
children in their poorhouses. So far as the law is
concerned, however, there might have been children
NORMAL CHILDREN 217

in every one. The law is still inadequate to prevent
parents and counties from sending to the State Home
children who should be cared for by relatives. An-
other fact which has been clearly demonstrated is
the superiority of State control of dependent children
by a special board. The history of the Soldiers’ Or-
phans’ Home, whatever may have been its mistakes,
affords the only bright page in the legislative history
of Iowa’s treatment of indigent children. The laws
providing for soldiers’ orphans, permitting the ad-
mission of other indigent children, and providing for
their placement and supervision in families consti-
tute the only constructive legislation on the care
of dependent children, aside from the act providing
for the juvenile court, in the history of legislation on
the relief of the poor in Iowa.

THE CARE OF CHILDREN IN PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS

Very early in the history of the State efforts were
made to provide for orphan asylums under private
auspices. On January 25, 1848, a joint resolution
was approved, the purport of which was that the
State’s representatives in Congress be instructed to
use their best endeavors to procure a donation of
five sections out of any lands belonging to the gen-
eral government which had not yet been disposed of,
in or near the township of Fairview in Jones County
or in the adjoining county of Linn, near Fairview
Township. Just where this land was to be located
was to be determined by a commissioner to be ap-
pointed for that purpose; and the land was to be used
218 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

for the establishment of an orphans’ asylum and
manual labor school. The land was to remain a
perpetual donation and the use and rents therefrom
were to be applied for the benefit of poor orphan
children and such other indigent persons as might
be admitted to the institution as objects of charity.**
This project so far as can be discovered came to
naught; but it was the beginning of the establishment
of a large number of orphans’ asylums throughout
the State, usually under the charge of some church
or. philanthropic organization. It is not feasible
within the limits of this study, however, to include
a history of these various institutions; they can be
mentioned only as the State came into connection
with them for purposes of supervision.

A quite unusual attitude on the part of the State
toward orphan asylums is illustrated by the act ap-
proved on April 19, 1872, providing for a loan by the
State of $5,000 to an asylum for orphan children, lo-
cated at Andrew in Jackson County. The purpose of
this loan was to enable the institution to remain
open. To secure the State the trustees of the insti-
tution were to give a note and a first mortgage upon
the real property — the note to draw no interest un-
til due, and after that six per cent. At the time this
act was passed there were forty-eight children cared
for in that institution. There was no provision in the
law, however, that the State should have any super-
vision over the conduct of the institution. The re-
lationship was almost purely an economic one, al-
though there was the secondary motive that the in-
NORMAL CHILDREN 219

stitution should continue to provide a refuge for or-
phans.**

It was not until 1878 that the State undertook to
control the conduct of private institutions for de-
pendents. The first step in this direction was an act
of March 26, 1878, providing for the incorporation
of homes for the friendless under State laws. This
act provided further that these homes should have
authority to receive, control, and dispose of minor
children of deceased fathers and those abandoned by
their fathers or the children of fathers who, even
though they were able, had failed to provide for
them. The State was given no rights of supervision
after incorporation, except such control as lay in the
possibility of the withdrawal of the charter.*”

By a statute approved on April 10, 1902, it was
provided that any society incorporated under the
laws of the State for the purpose of receiving, caring
for, placing out for adoption, or in any way improv-
ing the:conduct of abandoned, abused, ill treated,
friendless, or orphan children, might do so in accord-
ance with the terms of the act. Such a society be-
came the legal guardian of the children committed to
its care.

No further steps were taken looking towards State
control of such institutions until the Board of Con-
trol was given supervision thereof. The Board was
authorized to visit and require such information
from these Homes as it should deem necessary. Each
association caring for children as provided by the act
was required to file with the Board of Control dur-
220 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

ing January of each year a report stating the num-
ber of children received, the number returned from
families, the number placed in homes, the number de-
ceased, the number returned to friends, and the num-
ber placed in State institutions, with such other in-
formation as the Board might require. The district
court was given authority, on a showing being made
that such an association had abused its trust, to re-
voke the charter of incorporation. The act further
provided that children’s associations incorporated in
other States should not place children in any family
within the State of Iowa until it had first furnished
the Board of Control guarantees, including a bond of
one thousand dollars, that no child having an incur-
able or contagious disease, a deformity, or one feeble-
minded or vicious in character should be brought
into the State.** Under this law such institutions
are still operating in the State of Iowa.

DEPENDENT CHILDREN OUTSIDE OF INSTITUTIONS

Reference has already been made to the care of de-
pendent children in the poorhouses. Iowa inherited
from the States from which it borrowed most of its
laws, the legal practice of using the poorhouse as the
temporary refuge of pauper children, but of binding
them out as soon as possible in families where they
could grow up under family influences. This pro-
vision, with all of its abuses, was the most humane
provision in these early laws.

Practically every code which has been adopted in
Iowa has provided for this method of disposing of
NORMAL CHILDREN 221

children in the poorhouses. For example, the Code
of 1851 made provision for the binding out of or-
phans in the poorhouse as practically the only way
of caring for this class of dependents. Children in
the poorhouse were bound out by the directors of
that institution according to this Code.*”* If the child
had not been sent to the poorhouse, the judge of the
county court had charge of the binding out.*”*

The same provisions obtained in the Revision of
1860, save that the county supervisors took the place
of the judge in binding out children who had not been
sent to the poorhouse.*** Under the provisions of the
Code of 1873 the board of supervisors bound out
those in the poorhouse, while the county clerk was
vested with authority in the cases of those children
who had not yet been sent to that institution. The
Code of 1897 contained certain additions to these
provisions. For example, any child under sixteen
years of age confined within any poorhouse or house
of refuge might be apprenticed up to the time he or
she was eighteen years of age. If, however, the child
was married before the age of eighteen the articles
of apprenticeship became void. This Code provided
that the supervisors or the board of trustees of a
house of refuge might appoint a committee from its
members consisting of one or more persons, subject
to the approval of the district court or judge thereof,
to execute the articles of apprenticeship.”° With
these slight administrative changes the law relative
to the binding out of pauper children has remained
unaltered during the history of Iowa.
222 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

The time-honored custom of placing children in
homes where they could grow up under the fostering
influence of natural family life has come into popular
favor again. Its return to favor, however, has not
been in connection with children in the poorhouse,
but has been revived to apply to children in orphans’
homes, whether public or private. Two years after
the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home was established, in
1868, the act was passed by the Twelfth General As-
sembly, which provided for the adoption of any child
in that institution. As has been noticed in a pre-
vious section, it was at a considerable later date
that the placing out of children on contract instead of
by adoption was incorporated in the laws of the
State.

The first person to place great emphasis upon the
placing-out system as against the institutional sys-
tem of caring for orphans was Governor Boies. In
his first biennial message on January 12, 1892, in re-
ferring to the Orphans’ Home at Davenport, he
urged that measures be adopted by the legislature
looking to the removal of the children in this Home
to the homes of respectable families. He thought it
a calamity for any child to be kept in a ‘‘home’’, de-
pendent upon the charity of the State after he was
old enough to realize that he was dependent. There-
fore, he argued that instead of building larger insti-
tutions for the reception of these unfortunates, the
State should be devising measures to insure that
everyone, whether fortunate or unfortunate, should
be taught to do everything within his power to sup-
NORMAL CHILDREN 223

ply his own wants instead of being cared for through
the charity of others.”

This same point of view was again presented by
Governor Boies in his second biennial message in
1894, in criticising the existing law which provided
that unless the parents of children in the Orphans’
Home should give their consent, these children could
not be placed out in families. In his judgment, there
was no kindness to anyone in such a law, inasmuch
as no institution could take the place of a kind and
respectable family. He argued with force that an
education in such an institution to the age of sixteen
years, if it accomplished anything, taught the child
that to become an object of charity was not a condi-
tion to be dreaded. In his opinion this was as great
a calamity as could happen to the child. Moreover,
he pointed out the fact that these children, if kept
until fifteen or sixteen years of age, must leave the
Home; and if they had no friends they must go
among strangers, and at that age they were not old
enough to be able to choose correctly a course of life.
The Governor believed that all these considerations
plainly demonstrated that it was the duty of the
State to place these children in comfortable homes
among respectable people as quickly as possible after
entering the Home.*** While the recommendations
of Governor Boies had no immediate effect, later they
were fruitful in influencing the General Assembly to
provide two State agents whose business it was to
travel constantly about the State in order to secure
homes for the children.*”
224 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

A very important step in providing for the care
of dependent children outside of institutions was
taken when the act establishing the juvenile court
was passed by the Thirtieth General Assembly and
received executive approval on April 7, 1904. Ac-
cording to this act the district court was clothed with
original and full jurisdiction. The terms of the law
applied to children under sixteen years of age who
were not inmates of a State institution or of any in-
dustrial school for boys or girls, and to all children
except such as were charged with offenses punish-
able by life imprisonment or death. Moreover, it
provided for dependent or neglected children as well
as for delinquents. Dependent or neglected children
were defined as any who for any reason are destitute,
homeless, abandoned, dependent on the public for
support; or who have not parental care or guardian-
ship; or who habitually beg or receive alms; or are
living in any house of ill fame or with any vicious or
disreputable person; or whose home is an unfit place
for children by reason of neglect, cruelty, or deprav-
ity on the part of the parents, guardian, or other per-
sons in whose care the child may be. The term was
also made to include a child less than ten years of
age who is found begging or giving public entertain-
ments on the streets for pecuniary gain for himself
or others, or who accompanies or is used by such
persons; or who by reason of other vicious, base, or
corrupting surroundings comes within the spirit of
this act in the opinion of the court. From this out-
line it will be seen that the definition is broad enough
NORMAL CHILDREN 225

to cover almost every conceivable situation in which
a child might be which would be detrimental to his
welfare. As such it deserves merited commendation.

Moreover, the court was given authority to commit
the child to the care of some suitable institution or
some industrial school provided by law, or to an in-
stitution maintained by some association whose ob-
ject was to care for and find suitable homes for chil-
dren. Such an association must be one of those ap-
proved by the Board of Control. The law provided
also for guardianship by the institution to which the
child was committed. The home or association,
moreover, was made a party to the adoption when a
child was adopted into the home of some family.
Again, the law provided that the support of such a
child was to be borne by the parents if they were
able to carry the expense. The Board of Control
was to designate institutions and associations to have
charge of juveniles under this act, and was given the
right of supervision, oversight, and visitation. These
homes and associations were required to report an-
nually to the Board of Control during the first fifteen
days of January. Religious belief was to be taken
into consideration by the court when committing a
child to an institution. As far as practicable, the as-
sociation or home, when it was controlled by a re-
ligious organization, was to be of the same religious
belief as that of the parents of the child.

Moreover, this law provided for the adoption or
placing out on contract of children, in all cases where
it could properly be done, in such a manner that the
226 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

child would find a place in an approved family, be-
come a member of that family, and thus have normal
social relationships. No other law has ever been
passed in Iowa for the care of dependent children
which compares with this one in its wisdom.**°

By an act approved on April 15, 1909 — an act on
contributory dependency — a further step was taken.
When any child was found dependent or neglected
according to the definition of the act just described,
the parents or any other persons having the care of
such a child who had by any act or remission of duty
encouraged, counselled, or contributed to the neglect
of such child, or was responsible for his neglect or
dependency, were to be deemed guilty of contribu-
tory dependency and proceeded against according to
the provisions of this act. The district court had
original jurisdiction as in the case of the juvenile
court law. :

If upon a hearing the court found the person guilty
of contributory dependency, judgment was to be en-
tered by the court requiring such person to do or
omit to do any act concerning which complaint was
made in the petition; and proceedings of this charac-
ter might be continued from time to time for two
years. The court could require the person to give
bond to comply with the orders of the court, and
might appoint a guardian for a person guilty of con-
tributory neglect or dependency who was a spend-
thrift or habitual drunkard incapable of managing
his own affairs. Furthermore, the court could ap-
point a person to find employment for the person
NORMAL CHILDREN 227

guilty of contributory neglect or dependency, if that.
person was physically or mentally able to do work,
but claimed he could not find work. If he refused
to work such a person was declared to be guilty of
contempt. If, on the other hand, he claimed he
could find work and did not do so within a reason-
able time to be fixed by the court, he was likewise to
be considered guilty of contempt.

Another section of this act made it the duty of the
court to commit to the State Hospital for Inebriates
at Knoxville such person, when the contributory de-
pendency resulted from drunkenness. After his re-
lease the court was to appoint a probation officer to
watch him, help him to get work, and aid in his
reformation. In case no guardian was appointed or
in case the person guilty of contributory dependency
failed to supply a sufficient sum for the benefit of his
family and it was deemed necessary by the court to
levy upon his property, including wages, for the ben-
efit of his family, the statute provided that he should
not have the benefit of the statutory exemption.

In case it was decided to leave the child in the cus-
tody of the person guilty of contributory dependency,
the court was, at its discretion, either to name the
conditions necessary to remove the contributory de-
pendency or remove the child from the custody of
such person temporarily until the conditions of pro-
bation were complied with and to place the child in a
juvenile detention home, if such existed, or in some
suitable institution provided for by the juvenile
court.
228 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

In case the person adjudged guilty of contributory
dependency failed to comply with the orders of the
court the child could be dealt with as an abandoned
child. After the passage of the two years, during
which the court might continue the proceedings
against the person judged guilty of contributory de-
pendency, if that person failed to provide a sufficient
support for the child, the court could find the child
abandoned. In case the child was adopted under the
law relative to abandonment he was not to lose his
right to inherit from the persons from whom he was
taken away.

It was further provided that the law was to be con-
strued liberally in favor of the State for the pur-
pose of the protection of the child from neglect or re-
mission of parental duty or from the effects of im-
proper conduct or acts of any person who might
cause, encourage, or contribute to his dependency or
neglect, even though that person was not related to
the child in any way.***

This same General Assembly by an act approved
on April 27, 1909, made a slight change in the ju-
venile court law with the purpose of increasing the
number of courts. The superior courts were substi-
tuted for district courts in cities and were given con-
current jurisdiction in the administration of the
juvenile court law with the district courts of the
counties in which the superior courts were located.*”
By an act of the Thirty-fifth General Assembly, ap-
proved on February 18, 1913, Section 3165 of the
Code of 1897, the section dealing with the support of
NORMAL CHILDREN 229

children by parents, was repealed and in lieu thereof
there was enacted a provision making the reasonable
and necessary expenses for the education of the chil-
dren chargeable upon the property of both husband
and wife, or either of them; and in relation thereto
it was provided that they can be sued either jointly
or separately for this amount.**

Finally, the last General Assembly took one other
step that shows an increased interest in the welfare
of dependent children, whatever may be the merits of
this particular act. In an act approved on April 19,
1913, provision was made for mothers’ pensions.
This law is an amendment to the sections of the Code
Supplement of 1907 dealing with dependent and
neglected children. The act provides that if the
court finds that the mother of a dependent or neglect-
ed child is a widow and that the mother is poor and
unable to properly care for her child, but is other-
wise a proper guardian, and that it is for the welfare
of such child to remain at home, the court may enter
an order stating such to be the facts and fixing an
amount of money necessary to enable such mother to
properly care for her child. Thereupon it becomes
the duty of the county board of supervisors through
the overseer of the poor or otherwise to pay to this
mother at such times as the court’s order may des-
ignate, the specified amount for the care of the de-
pendent or neglected child. This is to continue until
a further order of the court.

A limit, however, is placed upon the amount to be
paid: it must not exceed the sum of two dollars per
230 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

week for each child. Payments shall cease when any
such child attains the age of fourteen years. Under
this act any mother whose husband is in an institu-
tion under the supervision of the Board of Control is
considered a widow.**

Thus has the State proceeded in its efforts to care
for dependent children. Starting with their care in
the county poorhouse or binding them out to appren-
ticeship in families, step by step the legislation has
proceeded to a more humane and scientific care of
these unfortunates. The first mark of progress is to
be seen in connection with the care of the soldiers’
orphans. Marked at first merely by pity and growing
out of the gratitude for the heroic sacrifices of the
soldiers, it has finally come to the scientific basis.
Modifications have been introduced into the original
plan so that not only the children of soldiers are
cared for, but other dependent children as well. In
place of the original motive to merely provide these
children food and clothing and an education, there
has come the desire to place them in surroundings in
which they will have a chance to grow up in the fam-
ily circle and be prepared to live in the ordinary re-
lationships of life. Finally, the institution has be-
come merely a temporary home where these children
can be placed until they are put out into the homes of
the people of the State.

Likewise, step by step, approved methods —
been introduced into the private homes for children
and child-placing organizations. Beginning with
NORMAL CHILDREN 231

sporadic movements here and there over the State to
ameliorate, at least to a degree, the evil conditions
surrounding children in the poorhouse, these private
children’s institutions have been standardized and
placed under the supervision of the State Board of
Control. They provide an outlet for the expression
of sympathy for the child, touched by religious or
personal ideals, while they supplement the rather in-
adequate and somewhat feeble attempts of the State
to provide care for all needy children.

Best of all, constructive measures have been adopt-
ed through the juvenile court law and the contrib-
utory dependency law whereby the evil is attacked
atits source. These laws have grown out of the con-
viction, based upon wide experience, that the de-
pendent child can not be isolated in his treatment
from his parents and natural associates. And final-
ly, these measures have been supplemented by a pro-
vision which enables the support of the child to occur
within the home of his own mother, when she is the
proper person to have charge of him.

Doubtless the administration of these laws is
faulty. Perfect administration must always depend
upon the growth of social ideals, habits, and customs.
Let these wise and constructive measures become
grounded in the social life of the State and estab-
lished in the mass of social sentiment and tradi-
tion, let the faults be corrected as they appear in
. actual experience; but by all means let not the good
work that has been done in constructive legislation
for the dependent child ever be given up until a plan
232 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

has been worked out which will save these children
to lives of usefulness and independence.

It is a question whether the administration of these
laws dealing with the dependent child should be in
the hands of ordinary judges, who under the present
law are the juvenile court judges, or whether it
should not rather be committed to a special court or
board expert in dealing with problems of the child.
That, however, is a detail which should not lessen the
admiration of all good citizens for the social outlook
of the present laws dealing with unfortunate children
and their support until some better method is de-
vised.
XII

SPECIAL CLASSES OF DEPENDENTS:
DEFECTIVES

THE FEEBLE-MINDED

Institutional care for the feeble-minded was late in
being provided in Iowa, for it was not until 1876 that
the State Institution for the Feeble-minded was
established by the legislature. As far back as 1860,
however, the General Assembly provided that idiots
were no longer to be admitted to the hospital for the
insane. Up until that time it had been the practice
to send adult idiots to that institution. Children who
were idiots were either cared for in their own homes
or, if paupers, in the county poorhouse as other
pauper children.*** Adult pauper idiots, moreover,
were to be cared for in the same manner as other
poor after this date, that is, for the most part in the
poorhouses.*** While this special provision of the
Revision of 1860 was not repeated in the later codes,
as a matter of fact even up to the present time many
pauper idiots continue to be cared for in the poor-
houses.

Slowly the social consciousness of the State was
working toward a better system. An act approved
on April 3, 1866, made it possible for a county to care
for its indigent idiots or imbeciles in some special in-

233
234 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

‘stitution for such persons either in Iowa or in an-
other State, the expenses to be borne by the county
from which they came.**’ Doubtless this act con-
templated that church institutions and other institu-
tions of a private nature should be used by the coun-
ties for the care of these unfortunates in the absence
of a State institution for the feeble-minded. The
superintendents of the hospital for the insane, upon
the application of the guardian or friend of any in-
digent idiot person or of any indigent imbecile per-
son a resident of any county of the State of Iowa,
and upon approval by the board of supervisors of
that county, might order such idiot or imbecile to be
transferred to any such private institution. The in-
tent of the law doubtless was defeated in actual prac-
tice by the provisions that such applications must be
approved by the board of supervisors of the county
concerned and that that county must bear the ex-
pense.

The law itself was, however, an indication that
there was a growing sense of the necessity of the
segregation of idiots and imbeciles from the ordinary
insane. The fact that they were paupers, so far as
the law-makers were concerned, was not to be per-
mitted to interfere with that benevolent intention.
Respect for county autonomy, however, vitiated an
otherwise good law. In 1873 Dr. A. Reynolds, the.
medical superintendent at the Independence Hospital
for the Insane, in his first report, stated that there
were then in that institution, contrary to the law, two
idiotic, epileptic boys who had been transferred from
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 235

Mt. Pleasant. He stated that the census of 1870
showed 533 idiotic persons in the State, and he urged
that suitable provisions be made for their care and
maintenance.***

The agitation for the segregation of this class of
defectives and for their care and education in a
special institution continued. In their report to the
Governor on November 30, 1875, the Visiting Com-
mittee to the Insane Hospitals reported that their in-
quiries showed a total of not less than ninety-two
pauper idiots in the poorhouses and under the care
of local authorities that year. Besides these, they
estimated that there were in the State at that date
more than eight hundred other idiots — all of whom,
it was declared, should be cared for in public asy-
lums.**°

Governor Carpenter in his second biennial mes-
sage (1876) said that a school for the feeble-minded
would have to be established in the course of time,
and suggested that the buildings of the discontinued
Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home at Glenwood be used for
this purpose.**° Along with this suggestion he made
various others as to the use that might be made of
the buildings at Glenwood, such as a hospital for the
chronic insane and a hospital for inebriates.

The Sixteenth General Assembly, by an act ap-
proved on March 17, 1876, diverted the property pre-
viously used by the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home at
Glenwood to the uses of an Asylum for Feeble-
minded Children. A board of three trustees was
provided for, one of whom must be a resident of
236 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Mills County. The purpose of the institution was to
care for, support, train, and instruct feeble-minded
children, and the emphasis was placed at that time
upon education rather than upon segregation. Ad-
mission to the institution was limited to children be-
tween the ages of sevenandeighteen. They were to be
received upon application by the father and mother,
or either, if the other was either dead or insane, or by
the guardian; and in all other cases upon application
by the county supervisors. Parents or guardians
were to support the children in this institution to the
extent of their ability. The question of their ability
was to be determined by the county board of super-
visors. Incase such persons were unable to support
them the children were to be supported at the charge
of the State.**

The Highteenth General Assembly, by an act ap-
proved on March 26, 1880, at the suggestion of Gov-
ernor Gear in his second biennial message, provided
that the expense of the transportation of pauper
children to the institution and of providing clothing
for them should be chargeable upon the county from
which they came. This was a move in the direction of
county responsibility which, as has been seen, has
played so great a part in the support of all indigent
persons in the State of Iowa.*”

One further step was taken in the same direction
by the next General Assembly in an act approved on
March 10, 1882, which organized the machinery by
which the railroad fare and the charge for clothing
were to be collected. The bill for these items was to
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 237

be transmitted to the county auditor, who was to col-
lect it if possible from the relatives or guardian; and
if it could not be collected in this manner it was to be
paid by the county. This same act changed the name
of the institution from Asylum for Feeble-minded
Children to Institution for Feeble-minded Children,
and established a custodial department for the idiotic
children who could not be educated.***

So satisfactory to public opinion were these pro-
visions that no further agitation of the subject ap-
peared in the history of Iowa legislation until Gov-
ernor Jackson, in his biennial message of January 14,
1896, voiced the growing conviction that segregation
was of greater social importance for this class of de-
fectives than education, and recommended that the
law be so changed as to admit not only children be-
tween the ages of five and eighteen into the institu-
tion, but also all feeble-minded persons in the
State.*** This wise suggestion, however, was not
adopted by the legislature until a much later day.

The Code of 1897 contained a section requiring the
county superintendent to report each year to the su-
perintendent of the Institution for Feeble-minded
Children all persons of school age who because of
their mental defects were entitled to admission to
that institution.** This was an effort to secure the
elimination of all such children from the homes of
the State and to make certain that they would receive
an education in an institution especially adapted to
their condition. Their support was provided for as
before — by the parents and guardians if they were
238 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

able; if not, by the county from which they were sent.
The age limit in the meantime had been raised from
eighteen to twenty-one years.

The recommendation of Governor Jackson was re-
peated by the Board of Control in its first biennial
report in 1899,*** and these recommendations were in
part adopted by the Twenty-ninth General Assembly
when, in an act approved on April 7, 1902, it provided
that all feeble-minded women under forty-six years
of age might be admitted to the Institution for Fee-
ble-minded Children at Glenwood. They were to be
supported there on the same basis as the children.
By this act one of the most important steps was taken
in the custodial care of a most dangerous class of de-
fectives so far as the future welfare of the race is
concerned.**

The Thirty-third General Assembly seven years
later, in an act approved on March 29, 1909, extended
the same provisions to feeble-minded men under
forty-six years of age who were residents of the
State.“ One further step was taken by the Thirty-
fourth General Assembly in applying negative eu-
genics to the feeble-minded in an act approved on
April 10, 1911, which provided for the unsexing by
vasectomy or ligation of the fallopian tubes of feeble-
minded persons and idiots and such other mental de-
fectives as the judgment of a group composed of the
managing officer of the institution, the surgical su-
perintendent of the institution, and the members of
the State Board of Control, should determine.*”
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 239

The last General Assembly in a resolution ap-
proved on April 25, 1913, provided for a special hos-
pital for consumptives at the Institution for Feeble-
minded Children and a special cottage for girls.*°

Thus, step by step the care of the feeble-minded
paupers has been humanized and given social vision
in the State of Iowa. So far as legislation is con-
cerned there need not be a single feeble-minded per-
son in a poorhouse in Iowa under the age of forty-
six years. In the Institution for Feeble-minded
Children at Glenwood, provision has beén made both
for the education of those who are educable and
for the custodial care of the incurable up to the age
of forty-six years, so far as the accommodations pro-
vided by the legislature will permit.

Beginning with the care of these unfortunates in
the poorhouses of Iowa, provision has been made
whereby society shall be protected from their irre-
sponsible acts, and for an institution where they may
be given a good home in which to spend their days
under proper care. Moreover, provision has been
made for the education of those who are capable of
some training; and finally, power has been given the
authorities to try out asexualization on these dere-
licts of humanity. Only one further thing at the
present time needs to be done for the feeble-minded
in Iowa, namely, there remains need for much more
extended provision for the care of this class at Glen-
wood so that those who are still at large in the State
may be placed there.
240° POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

THE INSANE

The Territorial laws of Iowa provided for the care
of pauper insane. By an act approved on January
19, 1839, all insane persons who had no property for
their support were declared to be entitled to all the
benefits of the laws of the Territory for the relief of
the poor. Overseers of the poor and all other. per-
sons concerned were directed to govern themselves
accordingly.***

The act approved on January 14, 1841, contained
practically the same provisions as were later em-
bodied in the Code of 1851. Section twenty-five of
the Territorial act, however, provided that all the
expenses for caring for an insane person and for the
management of his estates by a guardian appointed
by the court were to be paid out of his estate, if pos-
sible, and if not, out of the county treasury. In case
his estate was not sufficient to provide for his sup-
port he was entitled to be cared for by the overseers
of the poor as other paupers. Like other paupers,
his father and mother, children, grandchildren, or
grandparents, if of sufficient ability, were required
to support him.*” This law governed the support of
indigent insane persons until the enactment of the
Code of 1851. There is no provision in this Code
under the sections dealing with insanity for the care
of indigent insane. This was provided for under a
separate section in the Revision of 1860.°** In these
Codes, however, practically the only change was that
the county court as a court of probate was invested
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 241

with the power to appoint guardians and provide
care for the insane person.

Very early in the history of the State agitation be-
gan for the establishment of special institutions for
the care of the insane. Governor Stephen Hemp-
stead, in his second biennial message under date of
December 8, 1854, urged the establishment and en-
dowment of an asylum for lunatics. He advanced in
favor of this recommendation the fact that there
were numbers of these unfortunates in the State who
had to be removed by their friends to other States
for treatment or else confined in the county jails and
poorhouses.*** Governor Grimes, in a special mes-
sage of December 22, 1854, in reply to a resolution
of the Senate calling upon him for information rela-
tive to the deaf, blind, dumb, and insane in the State,
estimated that there were about 130 deaf and dumb,
112 blind persons, 95 lunatics, and 211 idiots, or if
one-half the idiots were classed as insane, then 201
insane. He said that a large majority of these luna-
tics were either wholly uncared for or confined in
loathsome county jails with felons and outlaws.

Furthermore, Governor Grimes quoted from a let-
ter of Professor McGugin, who stated that he found
many of these unfortunates confined in jails and
there incarcerated in felons’ cells, not because of any
crime, but because they had lost their reason and
self-control. Among these were some who had been
among the most respectable, moral, and intelligent
citizens. Many of them, he said, were women.
242 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Others were confined in small tenements or apart-
ments poorly warmed or ventilated, where they were
kept confined without hope of recovery. On the basis
of these facts Governor Grimes urged that the legis-
lature appoint commissioners to visit asylums in
other States and obtain plans for buildings for a
State institution.**

As a result of the urgency of the situation thus
brought to the attention of the legislature, by an act
of January 24, 1855, there was established the State
Insane Asylum at Mt. Pleasant, Iowa. This institu-
tion was the only one in the State of Iowa for the
next thirteen years.** So inadequate gradually be-
came the provisions in this institution for the ac-
commodation of all the insane in the State, that the
Seventh General Assembly authorized each county
judge to allow the sum of fifty dollars a year out of
the county treasury for the support of any idiot or
lunatic resident in any county who was not sup-
ported by the county in the jail or poorhouse.*” This
provision probably referred to lunatics who were not
admissible to the State Insane Asylum because they
were considered incurable or who had been dismissed
as incurable. The same act provided that any insane
persons who under the law could not be admitted to
the hospital for the insane for any cause, should be
committed by the probate judge to the sheriff or
someone else who should take charge of him until the
impediment to his admission to the State Hospital
was removed. If necessary, such person could be
confined in the county poorhouse or jail. Any neces-
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 243

sities were to be supplied by the county if the person
was poor. Furthermore, it was provided that while
such a person could be confined in a jail he was not to
be confined with a person charged with a crime.
And finally, indigent insane were to have the prefer-
ence as a charge upon the county treasury over other
indigent persons equally meritorious.**

In the Revision of 1860 the provisions relative to
vagrancy were made to apply to insane persons not
in charge of some discreet person, except that the re-
straint to which they were to be subjected was or-
dered to be as mild and gentle as possible. This Code
contemplated, however, that if there was some friend
to whom an indigent insane person could be commit-
ted, that should be the procedure. In case this could
not be done, the same provisions as were found in the
acts of the Seventh General Assembly already re-
ferred to, were to operate. In general, pauper luna-
tics discharged from the hospital, or who were not
admissable thereto, were to be cared for in the same
manner as other poor.*”

The Revision of 1860 also incorporated the act of
March 23, 1858, providing for the admission into the
State Asylum of public patients, supported at the ex-
pense of the county, on the written certificate of the
county judge where such patient lived, and author-
ized the superintendent to receive and care for such
persons at the expense of the county. The expense
was charged back to each county by the insane asy-
lum, and the county clerks were authorized to collect
such expense from the property of the patients or
244 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

from such persons as were legally bound to support
them, if possible.** In actual administration this
plan worked no better in the case of the insane than
it did in that of the feeble-minded. And so, Gov-
ernor Kirkwood in January, 1862, recommended that
the law be so changed that the counties should pay in
advance for the support of their insane in the State
Hospital.

The practice from this time on vacillated between
caring for all cases of the insane in State institu-
tions, caring for incurables or those not admissible
to the State Hospital by the county, and later the
care of them by the county in a county institution for
the insane.

Governor Kirkwood in his message in 1862 also
urged the legislature to appropriate money with
which to furnish a wing of the Hospital for the In-
sane. He referred to the misery, the degradation,
and the hopelessness of cure in the cases of insane
persons who were confined in cells in the county
jails. The growing task, however, was too great
for the State, especially under the heavy expense in-
cidental to the Civil War, and so an attempt was
made by legislative enactment to make the county
officers more conscious of their responsibility for the
proper care of the indigent insane.**

So great was the pressure upon the State institu-
tion for the insane that Superintendent Ranney in
his report to the Governor on November 1, 1867, said
that the asylum or hospital, as it was now called, at
Mt. Pleasant was already filled to overflowing and
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 245

that chronic public cases must not be sent to that in-
stitution unless the superintendent first ordered it.
The superintendent, however, turned no such cases
away, with the result that the pressure became so
great under this humane policy that on April 6, 1868
there was approved a law by which another hospital
for the insane was established at Independence.***
Even this however, did not relieve the situation due
to the increased number of insane persons and the
growing consciousness of need for institutional care.
An act approved on April 12, 1870, therefore, pro-
vided that public insane patients who could not be
admitted to the Hospital for the Insane on account
of lack of room or other reasons, should be cared for
by the directors of the poorhouse or the overseers of
the poor at the expense of the county. In case there
was no poorhouse and if no more suitable place could
be found, they were to be confined in the county jail
in charge of the sheriff.** Thus once more the grow-
ing sense of need and the economic motive conspired
to thrust back into the poorhouses and jails those
whose only defect was mental unsoundness. This
provision was incorporated in the Code of 1873.
Moreover, this Code gave the trustees of the State
Hospitals for the Insane the right to send insane
patients back to the counties.°***

After the close of the war agitation commenced
against the care of indigent insane in the poorhouses.
Dr. Mark Ranney, superintendent of the Hospital for
the Insane at Mt. Pleasant, in his report to the board
of trustees in 1871, reported that many of those
246 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

whom he could not receive into his institution for
lack of room were kept in jails and in such poor-
houses as existed at that time.*’ Attention was di-
rected to this matter also by the report of the Visit-
ing Committee to the Governor in 1875. This com-
mittee reported that in response to a circular letter
sent to the authorities in every county in Iowa dur-
ing January, February, and March, 1875, they re-
ceived reports of one hundred and thirty-two insane
persons kept in various poorhouses in Iowa under
the local care of the county authorities. A large pro-
portion were women and all of these were indigent
insane. The committee urged that provisions should
be made for caring for all the unfortunates of this
class and particularly for the pauper insane, with
suitable and special accommodations under the con-
trol of officials directly responsible to the State. On
this point the committee said:

The experiences of all communities, and the results of
the special inspections of the poor-houses in New York and
Pennsylvania, demonstrate that the retention in such places,
of cases of insanity and idiocy, is not only a gross violation
of the commonest sentiments of humanity, but that such
disposition, especially as to females, inevitably and invar-
iably leads to results alike opposed to public morality and
public safety.

The committee added that in one of the county
poorhouses in Iowa a few years before an investiga-
tion into conditions and discipline, especially as to
the relations between the ordinary male paupers and
the insane females, resulted in such shocking dis-
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 247

closures that the county authorities immediately es-
tablished the rule that no cases of insanity should
thenceforth be placed in their poorhouse. The Visit-
ing Committee urged that a similar rule should by
legislative enactment be established for all the poor-
houses throughout the State. Furthermore, it urged
that pending the completion of State hospitals con-
taining accommodations for all of the insane of
Iowa, there should be a statutory provision for .con-
stant general supervision by State officials of all the
county institutions of detention, particularly includ-
ing jails, poorhouses, and public and private hos-
pitals in which the counties may have provided for
the care of insane claimants upon their care.*** Un-
fortunately it was not until a much later date that
these sensible recommendations were written into
the statutes.

The pressure became so great in the State hos-
pitals, in spite of the exclusion of some persons who
should have been in those institutions, that the trus-
tees in June, 1878, felt constrained to take other
measures possible under the laws to relieve the situ-
ation. They took advantage of section 1425 of the
Code which permitted them to order the discharge
from the asylum of incurables and harmless pa-
tients.**° This procedure only made the already bad
situation in the county poorhouses very much worse.
At that time but two counties were prepared to take
care of the insane, and the return of these cases in
most instances, if the statements of the State Board
of Control written twenty. years later may be be-
248 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

lieved, were carried out against the expressed wish
of the county authorities.

The effect of this order was to force many counties
to erect county asylums and others to take care of
these incurable and harmless insane in the poor-
houses. In 1899 more than twenty counties had pro-
vided county asylums. The policy of keeping down
the numbers in the State asylums to manageable
proportions was continued until the time of the open-
ing of the third State Hospital for the Insane at
Clarinda. By that time the counties had become ac-
customed to thus caring for their incurable insane
and wished to continue to do so. When the Board of
Control made its first report in 1899 the county com-
missioners of the insane had come to the opinion that
they were authorized to order the discharge of any
inmate of the State hospitals coming from their
counties and have them returned to the counties at
such time as they thought best — a theory which the
new Board of Control hastened to upset as vicious
in its tendencies.*”

After the wholesale delivery of insane patients
from the State to the county institutions had been
effected in 1878, the Visiting Committee to the State
Insane Hospitals made an inquiry to find out the
numbers of insane in the county institutions and the
conditions surrounding them. They reported that
out of eighty-five counties replying to their inquiry,
forty-nine reported three hundred and thirty-five pa-
tients; while thirty-six retained no insane patients
within the county. Only three or four counties re-
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 249

ported that they had suitable arrangements for the
care of these patients: in most cases they were kept
in the county poorhouse. Of the forty-nine counties
twenty-four reported that they preferred to keep the
insane in their own county rather than in the State
institutions, and in every case their preference was
based solely upon the ground of economy. The high-
est cost reported by these counties for the care of the
indigent insane was reported at seven dollars, the
lowest at sixty-six cents, and the average at two dol-
lars and a half per week.

The committee declared that in their opinion it
was for the best interests of all that the State should
provide at once for the accommodation of this class
of the insane.*”

These recommendations were without legislative
results, however, and for more than ten years noth-
ing more was heard upon the subject. Governor
Larrabee, in his second biennial message (1890) re-
ported that he had appointed Mr. J. W. Rich to make
an investigation of all the State charitable and cor-
rectional institutions, except the penitentiaries. Mr.
Rich’s examination of the jails, poorhouses, and
county asylums for the insane showed in general that
many of the jails were damp, ill-ventilated, and de-
fective in construction; and that there was great
need for improvement in these institutions as well as
in the county asylums for the insane.

Mr. Rich visited seventeen counties in various
parts of the State. Two of these, both in the western
part, had neither poorhouse nor asylum for the in-
250 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

sane. Only one of the counties visited, namely, Polk
County, had special attendants for the care of the in-
sane. In five of the seventeen counties visited there
was no separation of the sane and insane paupers.
He found the strong room, the dark room, the ball
and chain, and locks and chains used in restraining
the insane. In these seventeen counties he found
three hundred and four insane persons provided for.
Three of the counties made provision for those of
their insane who were not in the State hospitals in
private institutions. Mr. Rich estimated that there
were thirteen hundred and fifty insane persons in
the various county poorhouses and asylums; and he
noted the fact that those in the county institutions
were supposed to be incurable and that many of them
became unmanageable and had to be restrained by
force. Furthermore, nearly ninety per cent of the
insane within the walls of the State asylums were
also incurable. This latter fact he used as a basis
for the argument that the State was bound to make
provision for the one class of incurables as well as
for the other. This investigation convinced Mr. Rich
that the State should care for all its insane in State
institutions. If that could not be done, then the
various county asylums should be consolidated into
district asylums. He concluded that the county sys-
tem might be economical as it was then administered,
but that was its only recommendation, for it was not
humane.*?7 _

The Code of 1897 retained the provisions of the
Code of 1873.5 Gradually, however, there was be-
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 251

gun the practice of separating the insane inmates of
the poorhouse from the other paupers. This prac-
tice was begun in Scott County during the early sev-
enties, as a result of the unfortunate experiences al-
ready referred to.*"* But in spite of this tendency
the Board of Control in its second biennial report
(1901) stated that it found in the first half of that
year seventy insane persons in poorhouses who had
not been adjudged insane.** It was cheaper to sup-
port these persons in the poorhouse than in a State
institution.

Moreover the Board found other conditions in the
county institutions that were anything but good. In
its first biennial report in 1899 the Board declared
that the State permitted various county and four
private institutions to retain insane patients, and
that about all that the county asylums and poor
farms could do for the insane was to clothe and feed
them. Some of the insane were shut up all of the
time and never saw the light of day except as they
observed the sky over the top of a high board fence
surrounding their pen or looked out through the win-
dows of the rooms in which they were confined.
Many were compelled to sleep at night in dirty, dingy
cells without ventilation, without anyone to look after
them during the night; and hundreds, it was re-
ported, were in constant peril of their lives from fire
because of want of proper care and protection. They
found women, sometimes at night and often in the
day time, shut up in charge of a man who was sup-
posed to look after them when their condition was
252 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

such as to demand attention. Furthermore, many
were confined in these institutions who, in spite of
the fact that they were supposed to be harmless and
incurable, were claimed to be so violent that they
were kept in constant mechanical constraint or
locked up in their cells.

In the four private asylums the Board found four
hundred patients, about half of whom were sent
there by the various counties of the State which had
no means of caring for the insane. These institu-
tions were under no regular supervision or control.
Moreover, in the county institutions examined they
found women inmates who had no attendant or night
watch of their own sex, save as some attention could
be given to them by the wife or daughters of the
steward, and sometimes even this was lacking. In
other cases they found women inmates locked up day
and night in a building for the care of the insane
with no sane person staying in the building day or
night, the only attendant being a man who slept out-
side the building and cared for them in the day time.
At several institutions insane women and pauper
men had ample opportunity to be together if they
wished. In spite of the provisions of the Code to the
effect that women when adjudged insane were not to
be taken to the State hospital without the attendance
of some other woman or some relative, and that they
were not to be placed in confinement without at least
one woman attendant in charge of them — in spite
of these provisions men attendants cared for the in-
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 253

sane women patients in some of the county asylums
and carried the key to their apartments.

Moreover, in many county asylums the Board re-
ported that more than one patient was bathed in the
same water—in some cases four. In one of the
largest as well as one of the best of these institu-
tions the steward, when questioned concerning this
practice, expressed himself as considering it all right
and he could see no reason for changing the custom.
If such things were tolerated in the best of these in-
stitutions, asked the Board, what might be expected
in the smaller and poorer ones where all the water
for bathing had to be carried considerable distances.
In only one of the institutions examined did they
find a nurse regularly employed; in none of them was
a night attendant employed. In one case two men
were found chained to the wall inside of the build-
ing, and in one three women were shut up in a room
too foul and filthy to be described. Several instances
were found where insane men and women associated
and ate with the paupers. In some institutions men
and women were kept in dark, ill-ventilated, damp,
and disease-breeding basements. In none of the
counties visited did the Board find the patients re-
ceiving any attention from the time they were locked
up at night until morning, unless they were sick or
unless attention was attracted to them by some un-
usual noise. In several cases there was no regular
medical service, and in most institutions there were
no religious services, no amusements, and in nearly
254 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

all cases there was a lack of sufficient exercise for the
patients.

‘As a result of these conditions, the Board recom-
mended that no county not having an insane asylum
should thereafter be permitted to keep insane pa-
tients; that all private and county institutions for
the care of the insane be placed under the super-
vision of the Board of Control; and that no such in-
stitutions be permitted to keep insane patients with-
out complying with the requirements of the Board.
They further recommended that the Board be made
the judge as to whether in any case a patient was in
such a condition as to warrant his removal from or
his retention in a county asylum; that the Board be
given the power to order a transfer of the patients
from a county asylum to a State hospital, or from
the hospital to the county asylum at the expense of
the county concerned; and that no patient be dis-
charged from a State hospital on the application or
order of any person or board unless first approved
by the Board of Control.*”

These recommendations have not as yet, however,
been written into the statutes of the State. The last
legislation on this subject was the provision for a
special room for the detention and examination of
the insane in the county hospital, enacted by the
Thirty-third General Assembly and approved on
April 6, 1909. Curiously enough, this provision was
made obligatory only in case the hospital was located
at the county seat.”
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 255

Thus at the present time the system of caring for
the indigent insane in Iowa is rather complicated.
Those whom the insanity commissioners deem cur-
able are supposed to be sent to one of the State Hos-
pitals for the Insane at the expense of the county.
The fact, however, that in six months time the
Board of Control found seventy-two persons in poor-
houses who were insane, but had not been adjudged
so, would indicate that the intent of the law is some-
times evaded. Those cases which are pronounced
chronic by the authorities at the Hospital for the
Insane are sent back to the county poorhouses for
support. Gradually there has grown up the practice
of segregating the pauper insane from other paupers
by placing them in a special ward devoted to the in-
sane. In more than half of the counties this has gone
to the extent of providing a separate institution for
the insane paupers.** At the present time they may
still be retained in jails, but if kept in poorhouses
their care is subject to oversight by the State Board
of Control. If history has shown anything it has
shown the necessity for a closer State supervision of
the care of this unfortunate class of paupers.

Out of the reaction against the abuses in connec-
tion with the care of insane in the poorhouses of
Iowa two suggestions were born. One proposed that
the State should build an asylum for the care of the
chronic insane. The enormous expense of such hos-
pitals as the State had already built had been dem-
256 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

onstrated. Moreover, it was beginning to appear
that the chronic insane did not need the same kind of
care as those who gave promise of cure. The Visit-
ing Committee in its report to the Governor in 1875
recommended that the State build cheaper asylums
for the chronic insane, leaving the expensive hos-
pitals for the treatment of the incipient and hopeful
cases.*”* Jn line with this suggestion Governor Car-
penter, in his second biennial message, suggested
that the discontinued Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home at
Glenwood be used for the chronic insane, thus reliev-
ing the crowded condition in the insane hospitals and
providing State care for the large class.of unfor-
tunates who were then being cared for in the poor-
houses and sometimes in county jails.**°

The recommendation for an asylum for incurable
insane was repeated by Governor Gear in his first
biennial message in January, 1880. He called atten-
tion to the report of the Visiting Committee in which
this policy had been recommended. In support of
his recommendation he urged the fact that the re-
turns from ninety-six counties showed that there
were in jails, poorhouses, and county asylums, three
hundred and sixty-eight insane persons maintained
at county expense. The presumption, he argued,
was that a large number of these persons were in-
curable; but from the very nature of things they
could not receive as good care in these institutions
as they could in a well-ordered State asylum. He
cited the example of a number of eastern Common-
wealths to show that such an asylum would be much
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 257

cheaper than the existing county hospitals in Iowa.*™
In 1882 Governor Gear repeated the same recom-
mendation, urging that a large asylum be erected
somewhere near the center of the State to care for
those who were incurable, whether found in the State
hospitals or in the county institutions.*”

Gear’s successor, Governor Sherman, took prac-
tically the same ground. Moreover, in his first bi-
ennial message two years later, he stated that on the
first of the previous November there had been re-
ported to him five hundred and nineteen insane per-
sons in county almshouses, one hundred and thirty-
three in private asylums, fifty-eight in the homes of
relatives, and fifteen in county jails.**

Unfortunately, these recommendations have never"
been followed up by the necessary legislation. The
specific recommendation that the institution at Glen-
wood should be turned over for the use of the insane
was made impossible by its being transformed into
a school for the feeble-minded. The building of a
special institution would mean the putting of money
into another State institution which would require a
considerable sum. Moreover, since there was to be
only one such institution there would be difficulty in
determining where it should be located.

Those who had made a special study of the situa-
tion in the State and had also looked into the practice
of the older Commonwealths of the Hast were doubt-
less right in their recommendations. The care of the
chronic insane will never be properly performed
when supervised by county authorities. The only
258 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

other alternative is the one which was adopted later
in Iowa, namely, the plan of putting the insane in the
county poorhouses and asylums under the control of
some State body like the Board of Control. This
plan, while it has worked very much better than the
earlier system, still leaves much to be desired, as the
Board itself has frequently pointed out in its reports.

The other movement which grew out of the reac-
tion against keeping the insane in the poorhouses
and jails was a movement for the establishment of
county asylums for the chronic insane. Governor
Jackson in his biennial message on January 14, 1896,
referred to the fact that the State was then keeping
eight hundred and sixty-two insane in the county
poorhouses and in county and private asylums. He
urged that they could all be kept in one institution
at but little greater expense; and he characterized
the institution method as just and humane, while he
considered the care of insane by counties unworthy
of a great State.**

The legislature, however, did not agree with the
Governor. The Code of 1897 made no provision for
such an institution. It did, however, contain a new
section providing for a county insane fund, in ac-
cordance with which the supervisors were to include
a tax of one-half a mill or less in the regular county
levies for the purpose of raising a fund for the sup-
port of such insane persons as were cared for and
supported by the county in the insane ward of the
poorhouse or elsewhere outside the State hospital.?*
Evidently the purpose was to provide more adequate
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 259

support for the care of the insane in the county in-
stitutions which had grown up.

In his biennial message of January 11, 1898, Gov-
ernor Drake remarked with disfavor upon the then
recent tendency to care for the incurable insane in
county asylums or insane wards of the poorhouses.
He argued that the patients were not so likely to
have expert care and treatment as they would have
in a State institution; and he thought that the tend-
ency ought to be discouraged.** But the Governor
was fighting a losing battle, for already too many of
the counties were taking care of their pauper insane
in this fashion to be willing readily to give up the
plan.

The legislature endeavored to make some amends
when, two years after the establishment of the Board
of Control, it gave that Board supervision over the
county and private institutions where insane were
kept. Moreover, the Board of Control, after its es-
tablishment in 1898, has frequently urged State care
of the insane. In its second biennial report in 1901
the Board said that while in many counties, even
before the creation of the Board, the insane were
supplied with kind and skillful attendants, good
food, and sufficient clothing and were given all the
care which could reasonably be demanded, in several
counties they were treated with less consideration
than the farmer gave his stock. Little or no atten-
tion was paid in such counties to the cleanliness and
personal habits of the inmates; they were seldom if
ever bathed, and as many as six were sometimes
260 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

bathed in the same water. The Board mentioned
one case where a young man was given charge of six
insane women, and other cases where men had unob-
structed access to the rooms of women.

Again, in its report of 1903 the Board of Control
declared that in few, if any, of the county and private
institutions were the insane so well cared for as they
would be in State hospitals, and urged that this fact
should be sufficient to prevent the construction of
new county institutions for the insane and a strong
argument in favor of closing those already in exist-
ence. This, moreover, was their opinion, in spite of
the fact that two years before they had reported that
State inspection and regulation of these institutions
had resulted in the improvement of some and the
closing of others. In all the smaller institutions the
insane were treated in practically the same manner
as the paupers, although the law contemplated that
they should receive different treatment and in sepa-
rate apartments.**"

The last General Assembly, in an act approved on
March 25, 1913, expressed the growing sense of im-
patience with the county care of the pauper insane
by providing that no patient whose relative or guard-
ian pays the expenses of his keep in the State Hos-
pital for the Insane should be transferred to the
county asylum except with the written consent of
such relative or guardian. It further provided that
a patient who is kept at the State Hospital for the
Insane may be transferred to the county institution
only on the joint written request of the board of
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 261

supervisors, or the commission on insanity of the
county to which the patient belonged, and the Board
of Control.*** By this act the Board of Control is
given coordinate authority with the county officials
in transferring pauper insane to the county insti-
tutions.

It may seem strange to one who is not acquainted
with the force of economic motives in these matters
that such primitive methods as are still in vogue
should have continued in spite of the agitation of the
last forty years and the recommendations of visiting
committees, Governors, and the Board of Control.
When, however, the question of the support of the
pauper insane arises and the legislative history of
that support is examined one can easily understand
why primitive methods have triumphed: the large
numbers of insane who were to be cared for by a
growing Commonwealth and the dominance of
economic over humanitarian and scientific motives
among the people account for all the facts. In the
general survey of the care of the insane the policy,
which was early in vogue in Iowa both as a Territory
and as a State, has been noticed. This policy was
based upon the method of caring for the poor: sup-
port by relatives, if they were able, or through the
proceeds from the insane man’s estate ; and if neither
of these means of support were available, then sup-
port out of the county treasury. As the State insti-
tutions for the insane were established, this method
had to be modified to some extent. As has been seen,
262 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

however, the only modification was that the expenses
were paid by the State and were charged back to the
county, which either paid them itself or collected
them from those who were legally chargeable.

A great deal of difficulty arose in connection with
this question of support by reason of the law of set-
tlement, applicable to all pauper insane, as well as
to other paupers. A number of acts were passed by
the General Assembly regulating the support of in-
sane paupers who had no legal settlement in the
State of Iowa. The Twenty-first General Assembly
provided that such a person found to be insane in a
county might be sent to the place of his legal settle-
ment by an order of the commissioners of insanity
directed to the county sheriff.**° Provision was
made in another law for the settlement of disputes
between counties as to the legal settlement of an in-
sane person in the State hospital.°° Moreover, an
act of the Twenty-fourth General Assembly made a
county from which any soldier, sailor, or marine had —
been admitted to the Iowa Soldiers’ Home, respon-
sible for all the costs connected with the investiga-
tion and with his disposal.?*

Loose administration of these laws permitted
abuses. The counties were very keen to discover
after a patient was placed in the State institution,
that he had no legal settlement in the county from
which he was sent. Governor Jackson, in his bien-
nial message of 1896, called attention to the fact that
in the State Hospitals for the Insane there were
three hundred and thirty-nine patients maintained
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 263

by the State at large because they had no settlement
in any county in the State. Of these twenty-seven
had their residence abroad, twenty-eight belonged in
various eastern and southern States, twenty-four in
far western States, thirty in Illinois, fourteen in Ne-
braska, fourteen in Missouri, twelve in Wisconsin,
eight in Dakota, and seven in Minnesota. Thus there
was a total of eighty-five inmates in the State hospi-
tals of Iowa who belonged in neighboring States.
Thirty-nine claimed to have a legal settlement in
Iowa, but the county was unknown; and one hundred
and thirty-six others had no residence. The Govern-
or sharply criticised the commissioners of the coun-
ties and the police for sending to the hospitals these
people instead of returning to the proper places
those who resided in other States, and urged that the
law be changed at once so that this burden need not
be borne by Iowa.

This was an appeal which met with a ready re-
sponse from the legislators, and the General Assem-
bly passed an act providing that the trustees and
the superintendent of the Hospital for the Insane
might remove any patient who had no legal settle-
ment in the State to the place of his settlement and
pay the expenses out of the State treasury. Further
details regulating the payment of the expenses con-
nected with the examination and care of an insane
patient who had no settlement in the county in which
he became insane were enacted by the Thirtieth and
Thirty-fifth General Assemblies. In general, the ef-
fect of these acts was simply to make the county
264 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

where the insane person was found pay the expense
in the first instance, and then charge it either to the
county of settlement (if within the State) or to the
State (if the place of settlement was elsewhere), in-
stead of committing the administration of the law
in this respect to a special board or commission — a
plan which has worked so successfully in New York
State.*”

By an act approved on April 9, 1906, however, the
General Assembly provided that the non-resident
insane within the State were to be cared for at the
expense of the State in one of the State hospitals to
be designated by the Board of Control. The Board,
following the New York method of handling the
matter, was made responsible also for the removal
of insane persons having settlement in another State
or the charging of the expense of support to the
proper county, if it was found that they had a settle-
ment within the State of Iowa.** It was not until
the Thirty-fourth General Assembly passed an act
approved on April 1, 1911, that a previous change
in the poor laws was made applicable to the support
of the pauper insane. This change made the estates
of such persons and all people legally responsible for
their support, instead of the county as hitherto,
liable to the State for a reasonable sum for their
care and maintenance.**

It is very apparent that the endeavor to place
financial responsibility for the care of the indigent
insane upon the county in which such persons had a
legal settlement was responsible for many of the
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 265

backward features of the laws for the care of this
class of unfortunates. Had the State come out
squarely and provided for their care at State ex-
pense, doubtless there would have been abuses: prob-
ably there would have been cases of counties send-
ing to the State hospitals for the insane people whose
only defect was poverty. Whether that, however,
would have been worse than the condemning of the
people in the poorhouse to associate with insane peo-
ple and providing the insane only with the poor ac-
commodations there to be found is open to question.

It is further to be observed that had the State
taken under its care the chronic insane, as was so
often suggested, the abuses which have been men-
tioned as being possible would have been more easily
detected and remedied than those which actually oc-
curred. In this case, as in the case of the feeble-
minded, and especially as in the case of children,
the attempt to apply the county system of respon-
sibility in the care of dependents has worked badly.
The only redeeming feature in this whole history of
the county care of these dependents, whether of
children, feeble-minded, or insane, has come after
State control was introduced. Only in so far as the
institutions caring for these unfortunates have been
strictly controlled have they been improved and
made up-to-date. Moreover, the abuses which still
remain are due to the lack of strict and careful State
control. There is not a county in the State of Iowa
which has an asylum for the insane separate from
the county poorhouse (the one being supervised and
266 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

regulated by the State while the other is not) in
which a comparison does not show a contrast be-
tween the conditions prevailing in these two institu-
tions. In the neighboring State of Wisconsin, where
the county system of caring for the chronic insane
is very much further developed than it is in Iowa,
there is evident this same contrast between the coun-
ty asylum and the county poorhouse — and this is
true in spite of the fact that in that Commonwealth
there is a quasi State control over the poorhouses.
This control is, however, not so strict in the case of
the poorhouses as in the case of the county insane
asylums.
THE DEAF AND DUMB

Sympathy for those people who could neither talk
nor hear and the nation-wide movement championed
by Mr. Howe and Professor Gallaudet in the East
early led the legislature of Iowa to make provision
for the care of the deaf and dumb.

The Code of 1851 provided for the payment from
the State treasury annually of not more than one
hundred dollars to each deaf and dumb person be-
tween the ages of ten and thirty years, which amount
was to be applied in paying for their education.
This provision goes hack to the act approved on
January 15, 1849, in which the amount named was
fifty dollars with a maximum of not more than one
hundred dollars.** In 1855 the General Assembly
provided for the establishment of an institution for
the deaf and dumb. According to this act every such
person in the State of suitable age and capacity was
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 267

to receive an education at the expense of the State ;°°°
while the previous provision was for an education at
State expense either outside a special institution or
else at an institution in another State.

The institution for the education of the deaf and
dumb thus provided for was first located at Iowa
City, at that time the capital of the State. It was
conducted in a building rented by the State for
three hundred and seventy-five dollars a year even
as late as 1864,°* and it was not until 1868 that a
measure was introduced into the legislature provid-
ing for the erection of a building for a school for the
deaf and dumb. In that year a bill was introduced
as House File No. 145 providing for the erection of
such a building.** On April 7th of that year an act
was approved which accepted the grounds located
near Council Bluffs * and selected by the commis-
sion appointed under an act approved on April 3,
1866. On the same day an act was passed providing
for the education of the deaf and dumb whose par-
ents could not afford to pay the thirty dollars per
quarter required by the statute for the support of
inmates of that institution. The law provided that
this amount in such cases should be paid by the
county supervisors.*” The difficulty of securing the
admission of a person who needed the facilities which
this institution provided were obviated, which was
not true in the case of the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home,
by a provision that the county superintendent of
schools was required to report to the superintendent
of the institution for the deaf and dumb all persons
268 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

of school age in his county whose hearing and speak-
ing faculties were such that they could not obtain
an education in the common schools.*™

A measure was passed by the last General As-
sembly relating to the care of this class of unfor-
tunate dependents: an act approved on March 29,
1913, provided that every resident of the State be-
tween five and twenty-one years who was deaf and
dumb or so deaf as to be unable to acquire an edu-
cation in the common schools, and every other per-
son between the ages of twenty-one and thirty-five
who should secure the consent of the Board of Con-
trol, was entitled to receive an education in the in-
stitution for the deaf and dumb at the expense of
the State. Thus the age limit was extended because
of the realization of the fact that many of those who
were beyond school age could be taught useful trades
by which they could support themselves, and the
county superintendent was required to report all
such persons between the ages of five and thirty-five.

The State’s record in the care of the indigent deaf
and dumb is in striking contrast with its care of
children and insane persons in the poorhouses, and
is very similar to its record for the care of the feeble-
minded. One can point to the care of the feeble-
minded and the deaf and dumb in Iowa with a feel-
ing of pride. On the other hand, when one thinks
of the atrocities committed on defenseless children
kept in poorhouses, and the sufferings endured by
insane paupers in the State of Iowa during the last
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 269

fifty years, he must hang his head with shame and
burn with indignation.

THE BLIND

Public care of the blind in Iowa began early. On
January 15, 1849, at the second session of the Gen-
eral Assembly the same provision was made for the
instruction of the blind as for the deaf and dumb.
That is to say, the act provided that the sum of fifty
dollars should be paid from the State treasury an-
nually to the parents or guardian of such a person
to be applied in defraying the expenses of his educa-
tion. In no year was the amount to be more than
one hundred dollars. This provision was also in-
corporated in the Code of 1851.”

An Asylum for the Blind was established by an
act approved on January 18, 1853.*°° All blind per-
sons resident in the State and of suitable age and
capacity were to be admitted to this institution and
given an education at the expense of the State, ac-
cording to the provisions of an act approved on
January 22, 1855 *°*— a law which was modified to
a certain extent by an act of the Eleventh General
Assembly approved on March 22, 1866, according to
which the clothing of the paupers in the ‘‘ Institution
for the Education of the Blind’’ was to be furnished
by the parents or guardians or by the county from
which they came.*”

An attempt was made in the legislature in 1868
to secure a further modification of this law, limiting
the support of the State to those who were incapaci-
270 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

tated from self-support by incurable diseases of the
eye; but a bill to this effect failed to pass. The
Thirteenth General Assembly in 1870, however, pro-
vided for an industrial home for blind adult persons
who were unable to support themselves, in connec-
tion with the institution. It was governed by the
same trustees and was open to such blind persons
as were dependent on their own labor for support.
In 1872 the name was changed to Iowa College for
the Blind.
This movement for an institution where the adult
blind could support themselves received great im-
petus twenty years later when Governor Larrabee,
in his second biennial message on February 18,
1890, made reference to the report of a commission
which he had appointed under an act of the Twenty-
second General Assembly to examine various insti-
tutions in other States in which the blind were em-
ployed in useful arts. That report was transmitted
“by the Governor with his message. He said that it
was estimated that there were from fifteen hundred
to eighteen hundred blind people in the State at that
time, many of whom were idle at home or in the
poorhouses and dependent upon charity. He urged
the building of an institution for the adult blind; *”
and the General Assembly, in an act approved on
April 23, 1890, gave effect to this recommendation
by providing for the establishment of an Industrial
Home for the Adult Blind at Knoxville. Nothing
was said in the act as to the terms upon which such
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 271

persons might be received. It was stated, however,
that the object was to provide a home and means for
the blind to earn and provide their own living. This
Home continued in operation until the Twenty-
eighth General Assembly in 1900 directed the Board
of Control to close the institution, sell the building
and the property within it, send the inmates to
their homes, and lease the farm.** Four years later
the institution at Knoxville was turned into the
Hospital for Inebriates.

From 1849 the court in each county was required
to certify to the State Superintendent of Public In-
struction the names of all deaf, dumb, and blind per-
sons in each county from ten to thirty years of age.
In the Code of 1897 the county superintendent was
required to report to the superintendent of the in-
stitution for the blind the name and post-office ad-
dress of all residents in his county who were so
blind that they could not gain an education in the
common schools.“ This Code put the care of the
blind back upon the original basis of State support
for the purposes of an education including all the
blind, and not merely those who were indigent.

The Thirty-fourth General Assembly by an act
approved on April 6, 1911, removed the College for
the Blind from oversight by the Board of Control
and placed it under the State Board of Education.*”
Thus, again, the State of Iowa has throughout its
history pursued a strictly constructive policy with
respect to this class of indigents.
272 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

INEBRIATES

One can hardly say, however, that the State has
pursued a consistent policy in caring for indigent
inebriates. From a very early date in the States
and Territories from which the early laws of Iowa
were borrowed there were provisions for the ap-
pointment of guardians to care for the estates of
drunkards, and provisions were made for their care
by the poor relief authorities." These provisions
for the appointment of a guardian for a habitual
drunkard, incapable of managing his own affairs,
were repeated in the Code of 1873, and, although to
a considerable extent a dead letter, stand in the law
at the present time.*”

As long ago as 1876 it was recognized that the
desultory care of inebriates was not meeting the sit-
uation. Governor Carpenter suggested in 1876 that
the discontinued Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home at Glen-
wood might be used as an inebriate asylum — the
purpose which he had in mind being the reformation
of drunkards. The usefulness which this class of
institutions had had in other States was the reason
for his advocating the same policy for the State of
Iowa.** As a matter of fact, however, the move-
ment for such an institution lay dormant until the
Twenty-ninth General Assembly, in an act approved
on April 12, 1902, stipulated that the Board of Con-
trol should provide for the diagnosis and treatment
of dipsomaniacs, inebriates, and persons addicted
to the excessive use of morphine and other narcotics,
in one or more of the State Hospitals for the Insane.
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 273

This act also provided that the expenses connected
with such cases should be borne and paid in the same
manner as in the case of the insane, that is, by the
estate of the person concerned, by his relatives
chargeable under the poor laws, or by the county.

In accordance with this act departments for in-
ebriates were opened on July 21, 1902, at the insti-
tution at Mt. Pleasant; on October 10, 1902, at Cher-
okee; and on January 8, 1903, at Independence. Be-
cause of the large number of persons needing treat-
ment, the Board in its report in 1903 recommended
the establishment of a separate institution fer such
cases.** In response to this suggestion the Thir-
tieth General Assembly, by an act approved on April
6, 1904, established the State Hospital for Inebriates
at Knoxville. For four years this property had lain
idle, since its discontinuance as a home for the adult
blind.“ This same act provided that the expenses
of the arrangements, trial, and transportation occa-
sioned by the transference of inebriates to this hos-
pital at Knoxville were to be paid by the county and
recovered by it if possible from the persons or others
chargeable with the support of such persons as in the
case of the insane.*** The next General Assembly
slightly changed the method of collecting the
amounts due for certain inmates at Knoxville, but no
alteration was effected in principle.*”

The last General Assembly took two steps in the
development of the plan for the care of inebriates.
A custodial department was provided in the hospital
for inebriates by an act approved on April 17, 1913,
274 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

for the care of habitual inebriates or those who were
a menace to the discipline of the institution: they
were to be employed on the same terms as those who
were not in this department. The other step was a
provision for the payment by the State for the labor
of the inmates, all of whom were to be employed on
the farm, gardens, and grounds of the institution
and were to be allowed seventy cents per day for
their labor. Fifty cents of this amount was to be
retained by the State for their maintenance; and the
other twenty cents a day was to be paid monthly to
those dependent upon the men, if there were any
such, otherwise to be paid to the inmates upon their
legal release.**®

This institution — half hospital and half institu-
tion of correction in its nature — so far as the prob-
lem of dependent inebriates is concerned, has been
conducted upon a very high plane. So far as the
law governing it is concerned, it is subject to the
same criticism which applies to the care of the in-
sane. Counties are very slow to send to the institu-
tion people who need the treatment because of the
expense. A removal of the provision charging the
cost to the counties would doubtless have the effect
of causing more of these victims of drink to be sent
to the institution.

The other laws relating to this institution have
not been discussed because they do not come within
the purview of this subject. The institution has been
mentioned only in so far as it has to do with those
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 275

who can not support themselves while taking the
treatment.

EPILEPTICS

For a number of years before any definite meas-
ure was adopted for the special care of epileptics by
the State, they had been cared for either in the
county poorhouses or in the State Insane Asylum,
or in the home for the feeble-minded. Often had
the trustees of these institutions urged the necessity
of providing a special institution for the care of
epileptics. In 1896 Governor Jackson, in his bien-
nial message, urged that the State in the near future
should locate at some central point a colony for
epileptics.“* He made this recommendation on the
ground that to do so would relieve the insane hos-
pitals of many patients. Superintendent Powell, in
a paper read before the Board of Control on Decem-
ber 13, 1898, had reported that after a careful exam-
ination he was led to the belief that there were over
thirty-three hundred epileptics in the State of Iowa.
Of these, two hundred were in the institution for
the feeble-minded, about fifty in each of the State
hospitals for the insane, and one hundred and forty-
three in county poorhouses and asylums. The rest
of them were not cared for in any State or county
institution. The presence of those in the hospitals,
he argued, was a source of constant danger to the
other patients. He therefore urged that a colony be
established for the special care of this class of de-
fectives. The epileptic’s need of special treatment,
276 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

the necessity of his employment out of doors, and the
constant attention which he required, as well as the
success of epileptic colonies or villages which had
been established previously in Ohio, New York,
Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and New Jersey, were
considerations upon which he urged the establish-
ment of such an institution.*”°

The Board of Control, moreover, from its very
beginning pressed upon the legislature the necessity
of the establishment of a colony for epileptics. In
its third report it called attention to the fact that
there were four hundred and two epileptics in vari-
ous State and county institutions at the close of the
previous biennium. Of these one hundred and nine-
ty-two were in the institution for the feeble-minded,
two hundred and three in State hospitals for the in-
sane, and seventy-nine in county poorhouses.*** The
Board of Control, furthermore, consistently urged
this matter upon the attention of the legislature in its
later reports; and Governor Carroll, in his second
biennial message in January, 1911, added his sup-
port to the recommendations of the Board.*”

After more than thirteen years of agitation by
these executive officers the legislature responded
with an act approved on April 10, 1911, providing
for the unsexing of epileptics along with other de-
fective classes in the State institutions, whenever, in
the judgment of the authorities of those institutions
it was considered advisable.‘ And finally, there
was passed an act approved on April 18, 1913, pro-
viding for the establishment of a State Colony for
CARE OF DEFECTIVES 277

Epileptics. In this act nothing is said about the
support of persons to be admittted. It provides,
however, for the admission of all persons affected
with epilepsy who have been residents of the State
one year. The probabilities are that the same meas-
ures for the support of those who are unable to sup-
port themselves or who have relatives unable to
support them in this institution as apply in the case
of indigent insane or feeble-minded will be operative
when the institution is ready to receive patients.**

One could wish that in establishing a new institu-
tion the legislature might try out the system of State
support in order to see how it would work as com-
pared with the antiquated system of county support,
dominated as it is bound to be by purely economic
motives rather than by the motives of large social
vision which sees only the welfare of the population
of the State.
XII

SPECIAL CLASSES OF DEPENDENTS: SOL-
DIERS, SAILORS, AND MARINES

In the chapter dealing with dependent children the
measures taken by the State for the care of the or-
phans of soldiers, sailors, and marines have already
been discussed. Concurrently with legislation rela-
tive to the children of these classes, the legislature
provided for the care of soldiers and their families.
In connection with the discussion of the poorhouse
it has been seen that counties were forbidden to care
for the widows and families of Iowa soldiers at these
county institutions when they preferred to be re-
lieved outside of the poorhouse at two dollars per
week for each person, exclusive of medical attend-
ance.*?

Laws enacted by the Twenty-second and Twenty-
fourth General Assemblies provided for the levy of
a tax in each county, the first of three-tenths and the
latter of one-half a mill on the dollar, to create a
soldiers’ relief fund. The purpose of this fund was
to pay for the relief of the families of soldiers and
the funeral expenses of honorably discharged Union
soldiers, sailors, and marines, and for the care of
their indigent wives and minor children if the latter
were boys below fourteen years of age or girls below

278
SOLDIERS, SAILORS, AND MARINES 279

sixteen years of age, and if they had a legal resi-
dence in the county. <A special soldiers’ relief com-
mission was to be appointed in each county to ad-
minister thisfund. The law was amended at various
times: first, by the Thirtieth General Assembly,
which changed the act so that it was no longer limit-
ed to the soldiers of the Civil War, but included those
of any war; and second by the Thirty-third General
Assembly, raising the amount which could be al-
lowed for funeral expenses from thirty-five to fifty
dollars, and raising the rate of taxation permitted
from one-half mill on the dollar to one mill.**

The Thirty-fourth General Assembly in an act
approved on March 11, 1911, extended the funeral
expense benefit to the deceased wife or widow of
such an indigent soldier, sailor, or marine who had
not an estate sufficient to pay funeral expenses.

The early provisions for the care of indigent sol-
diers and sailors in their homes were not satisfac-
tory. Governor Sherman in his second biennial
message on January 14, 1886, approved the sugges-
tion for the establishment of a soldiers’ home.*”
This was simply the culmination of an agitation,
partly political and partly humanitarian in its mo-
tives, that had gone on for some time with respect to
special provision for the old soldiers. The legisla-
ture responded by enacting a law approved on March
31, 1886, establishing the Iowa Soldiers’ Home at
Marshalltown. The purpose stated in the act was to
provide a home and subsistence for all honorably
discharged soldiers, sailors, and marines who had
280 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

served in the army or navy of the United States and
who were disabled by disease, wounds, or otherwise.
They must have been residents of the State three
years unless they had served in an Iowa regiment or
were accredited to the State of Iowa. <A board of
six commissioners appointed by the Governor with
the advice and consent of the Senate was constituted
the governing body of this institution.*”*

An act was approved on April 9, 1892, providing
for the erection of ten cottages at the Soldiers’ Home
for the use of soldiers, sailors, and marines and their
dependent wives who desired to be with their hus-
bands at the Home. The wife first had to secure the
approval of the Grand Army post nearest her place
of residence in order to be supported and maintained
and to receive the same allowance from the State as
the other inmates. This same act provided also for
suitable rooms at the Home for the widows of de-
ceased soldiers, sailors, and marines who at the time
of the decease of their husbands were entitled to
become inmates. They also were required to secure
the approval of the local Grand Army post as in the
case of the wives of soldiers just mentioned.*”

A restriction upon the use of pension money was
made by the legislature in an act approved on March
, 29, 1900. In case a soldier in the Home who had
been twice convicted of a crime or misdemeanor had
a wife, child, or parent dependent upon him for sup-
port, one-half of his pension money was to be sent
to such person and the other half was to be kept and
paid out for the dependent pensioner subject to the
SOLDIERS, SAILORS, AND MARINES 281

approval of the Board of Control and the Com-
mandant of the Home for things necessary for his
keep and welfare. In all cases those who had wives
or minor children dependent upon them were re-
quired to deposit with the Commandant one-half of
their pension money to be sent to such dependents,
unless it could be proved that such wife was a woman
of immoral character.**°

The law admitting soldiers to this Home was in-
terpreted liberally by the Board of Control after the
Home came under its control in 1898, and was made
to include those who had served not only in the Civil
War but in the regular army in times of peace and
those who had served in the recent war with Spain.**
After 1907 admission to the Soldiers’ Home was
made only after a certificate had been signed by the
board of supervisors of the county in which the per-
son resided, showing that such person was a resident
of that county. This requirement was made in or-
der that in case such a person should leave the Home
or be expelled for any cause, the county from which
he came could be made chargeable with his care.*”

A further step was taken by the Thirty-third Gen-
eral Assembly when, in an act approved on March
12, 1909, it provided for the admission to the Sol-
diers’ Home of the fathers of soldiers, sailors, or
marines who were dependent upon the latter for
support.*** This same General Assembly made pro-
vision also for the admission into the Home of those
who were only partially able to pay for their sup-
port, provided those who were entirely dependent
282 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

had first been admitted. Those who received a pen-
sion under twenty dollars a month were not required
to pay for their maintenance in the Home. If they
received more than that amount they paid the
amount over twenty dollars a month up to the total
amount necessary to pay for their support in the
institution unless someone was dependent upon them.
In that case the excess over twenty dollars per month
went to the dependents.**

Partly because of objections raised to using funds
received by the soldiers from the National govern-
ment to pay for his keep in a State Home and partly
because of a sentimental feeling against making the
soldier pay for his keep out of his pension money,
the last General Assembly changed this rule in part
by providing that no pension money received from
the United States shall be taken from the old soldier
for his support in the Iowa Soldiers’ Home.** This
General Assembly further amended the act for the
support of dependent soldiers, sailors, and marines,

_and certain of their natural dependents. A woman
who before 1890 had married a soldier and who had
lost her husband by death or by divorce, if the fault
was not her own, even though married again and
even though her present husband is not an inmate,
is entitled to support in the Soldiers’ Home. Army
nurses and mothers of honorably discharged sol-
diers, sailors, and marines were added to the list of
those already entitled to admission. Furthermore,
husbands and wives may be allowed by the Board
SOLDIERS, SAILORS, AND MARINES 283

of Control to occupy cottages or other quarters to-
gether.**

Thus the provision which was first made for the
support of indigent soldiers was gradually extended
to include sailors and marines, and then the members
of the families of these persons—at first the widows,
then the fathers, and finally the mothers, innocent
divorced wives — and army nurses. Furthermore, by
the interpretation of the Board of Control not only
the soldiers, sailors, and marines of the Civil War,
but members of the regular army in time of peace
and soldiers of the Spanish-American War were
admitted.

Without doubt in many cases the establishment of
the Soldiers’ Home performed a most worthy service
in caring for the old soldier and his dependents. On
the other hand it is also true that the Home was the
method by which some old soldiers have been pau-
perized. The stimulus of the necessity of personal
endeavor to make a living has in some cases been
weakened. Relatives who should have had the bur-
den of the old soldier’s support placed upon their
shoulders have easily shifted that burden to the
State, and the old soldier has been bundled off to the
Soldiers’ Home to live and die without the love and.
care of those who naturally should be expected to
give him a home. In those cases in which the old
veteran was a hard drinker doubtless the Home pro-
vided a great relief to the relatives, yet it is difficult
to see how this shifting of the. responsibility in most
284 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

cases was beneficial either to the relatives, to the
soldier, or to the State.

Furthermore, it is open to grave question whether
the act of the last General Assembly which forbade
the taking of as much of the soldier’s pension as is
necessary to pay for his keep in the Home is an
evidence of the highest social wisdom. Perhaps it
will do no harm to those veterans who know how to
spend their money wisely; but to those who will
squander it for drink or for even more questionable
purposes the law will be a doubtful kindness. The
old soldier should be cared for. That care, how-
ever, should be given by his children or his other
close relatives whenever possible, and when that is
impossible, then the State should not remove the
last means of retaining self-respect by forbidding
him to pay for his keep in the State institution out
of his only source of income, his pension. Hven
though he be an old soldier he should be helped by
the State to retain his economic independence by
self-support wherever possible.
XIV

SPECIAL CLASSES OF DEPENDENTS: THE
SICK

It has been already shown that early in the devel-
opment of outdoor relief as well as of relief in the
poorhouse, provision was made for medical attend-
ance for the poor at the expense of the county. This
system has continued to the present day, but as a
general rule it has been notoriously inadequate. The
county doctor has usually been some man who need-
ed the practice so badly that he would under-bid
every other physician in the county for the work.
Taking it at a very low figure, he doubtless felt
justified in not doing any more than was absolutely
necessary. The result has been in most cases that
the county doctor’s visits to the poorhouse are not
made oftener than once a week and in some cases
even less often.**”

Partly because of the inadequacy of county medi-
eal relief the Thirty-third General Assembly pro-
vided for the optional establishment of hospitals by
counties, to be at the service both of public patients
and of those who were able to pay for treatment.
The same act provided for the care of indigent tu-
berculosis patients at county expense.** Up to the

. 285
286 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

present time but two counties have established insti-
tutions of this character.

Before the establishment of these county hospitals
the legislature, in an act approved on April 9, 1906,
provided for the establishment of the State Tuber-
culosis Sanitorium at Oakdale for the care of incip-
ient cases only. Indigent patients, however, were
admitted, and the expenses of their transportation
and care in the hospital were to be paid out of the
State treasury on certification of the board of health
of the city or incorporated town where the patient
resided, or of a majority of the trustees of the town-
ship — this provision extending only to indigent res-
idents of the State. The same act gave the superin-
tendent the authority to stimulate the organization
of hospitals or dispensaries in the various counties,
and large centers of the State for advanced cases.“

The last General Assembly, by an act approved on
April 12, 1918, went one step further. The county
supervisors may now provide for the segregation
and maintenance of persons in the advanced stages
of tuberculosis who are unable to provide for them-
selves and who have no relatives liable for their sup-
port. The amount to be spent in counties for build-
ings to care for such cases is limited according to the
population, unless a greater amount is approved by ©
a vote of the qualified electors.**

Furthermore, the legislature in 1913 provided for
a department at the State Sanitorium for the treat-
ment of advanced cases, and especially for the pa-
tients from those counties which had not erected
CARE OF THE SICK 287

county sanitoriums for such cases. In these in-
stances the counties from which they came were to be
liable in case the amount could not be collected from
the patients — a provision in all respects similar to
the county liability for insane people and for incip-
ient cases in the sanitorium. Until 1913, as has been
seen, incipient tuberculosis patients had been sup-
ported at State expense if they were unable to pay
for their own maintenance. The same act which pro-
vided for the department for advanced cases and for
county support of these advanced cases, placed the
financial responsibility for the support of dependent
incipient cases on relatives or on the county from
which they came.***

Thus a beginning has been made in Iowa in the in-
stitutional care of the sick, while special institutions
have been established in the State and have been
made possible in the counties for the care of those
affected with tuberculosis. Unfortunately the last
General Assembly abandoned the plan of State sup-
port for that of county support of dependent tuber-
cular patients. Doubtless the same results from
this new plan will be seen as in the care of dependent
children and of the insane. For reasons of economy
the counties will probably prefer to keep their pa-
tients in a county institution with inferior care
rather than to send them to a State institution where
expert knowledge and methods can be applied to
their treatment. Except in counties having large
cities the same stories of neglect may be expected
from a system possessing merely the form of institu-
288 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

tional ‘care of the advanced tuberculosis patients
without the substance thereof. The doctors employed
will be on a par with the physicians who look after
the county poor — probably they will be the same
persons — since such a plan will be cheaper. The
nurses who will be employed without doubt can in
most cases be called such only by an accommodation
of language. Those responsible for such short-
sighted, inhuman, but economical procedure, will
probably lay the comforting unction to their souls
that these advanced cases are hopeless and will die
in any case. Such reasoning will have the advantage
of not being novel in the history of the care of the
poor in Iowa. Perhaps one may be permitted to
hope that the next legislature will repeal the pro-
vision relative to county care and support, except in
counties having a population of perhaps fifty thous-
and, and concentrate the State’s money and attention
on the department for advanced cases established by
the last General Assembly at the State Sanitorium. If
some such plan is not followed, good people through-
out the State may well petition the General Assembly
to enact a law requiring the county supervisors to
put to a painless and quick death in a lethal chamber
the advanced and hopeless cases of tuberculosis. It
would certainly be more merciful than county care
would be in the less populous counties — and it
would be cheaper.
XV

SPECIAL CLASSES OF DEPENDENTS:
VAGRANTS

Vagrancy is a subject which is merely related to
that of dependency: the vagrant is a semi-criminal,
semi-pauper person. In order to make the treatment
complete, however, a brief discussion of the legisla-
tion relative to vagrancy has been included.

From the earliest days of the Territory vagrants
have received attention in the laws of Iowa. In the
House of Representatives in 1838 a bill was intro-
duced concerning vagrants,*” and it was probably
this bill which became a law on January 24, 1839.
In this act a vagrant was defined as any person who
gained his livelihood by gaming, any able-bodied
person who was found loitering and wandering about
and not having the wherewithal to support himself
by some visible property and who did not labor, any
person who might become chargeable to the county,
and any other idle, vagrant, dissolute person, wan-
dering about without any visible means of subsist-
ence. A penalty of commitment to the county jail
until the next district court was provided. If it ap-
peared to the court that such a person was a vagrant
and if he happened to be a minor, he was to be bound
out until he was twenty-one years of age or he might

289
290 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

be hired out by the court for atime. In case he had
a wife and family who lived in the Territory he could
be let out on bond to return to them and follow some
useful employment for their maintenance and sup-
port. The money earned by a vagrant during the
period of retention was to be given him when re-
leased, or to his wife and children if there were such.
All justices of the peace, sheriffs, constables, and
grand jurors were charged with the enforcement of
this law.***

This act continued in force in Iowa until the en-
actment of the Code of 1851. Besides the persons’
named in the act just noted, in that Code all fortune-
tellers or persons who claimed to be able to tell
where lost or stolen goods might be found, common
prostitutes and keepers of bawdy houses or houses
for the resort of prostitutes, all habitual drunkards
or other disorderly persons, all public beggars or
those who forced children to beg, all persons going
about as collectors of alms for charitable institutions
under any false pretenses, and all public fakers deal-
ing in games of chance or pretended games of
chance were defined as vagrants.*** These pro-
visions were continued in the Revision of 1860 and
also in the Code of 1873.**

The Sixteenth General Assembly imposed a fine or
jail sentence on vagrancy, and in this act the defini-
tion of vagrants was limited to male persons begging
or ‘‘in a state of vagrancy’’. The board of super-
visors was to provide for the working of prisoners
of this character upon the county farm.“ The
VAGRANTS 291

Twenty-third General Assembly applied the term
‘‘tramp’’ to this same class of persons and provided
a penalty. A tramp was defined as any male person
sixteen years of age or over, physically able to per-
form manual labor, who was wandering about prac-
ticing common begging, or who had no visible calling
or business by which to maintain himself and was
unable to show reasonable efforts in good faith to se-
cure employment.**”

In these laws, except in the act of the Six-
teenth General Assembly, there is no provision
for putting the tramp or vagrant in the poor-
house. In actual practice, however, many of them
found their way, especially in the winter seasons, to
the poorhouses, usually those of populous counties.
From this time on, to an even greater degree than
before, vagrancy came to be looked upon as a crime
rather than as a phase of dependency. The fact re-
mains, however, that in the more populous counties
winter finds many vagrants gravitating to the poor-
houses. So long as there is no work test provided
in these institutions, except such work as naturally
has to be done around such an institution in the win-
ter, and so long as discharge from the poorhouse is
not strictly regulated, some exploitation of the insti-
tution by this class of paupers will continue. It is
for such as these that the State needs a misdemean-
ants’ farm colony. Cleveland, Ohio, has such a place
in its ‘‘Cooley Farms’’, as they are called. New
York State provided for such a farm colony in 1911.
The nations of Europe— among them, Germany,
292 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Switzerland, Holland, and Belgium — have had such
institutions for some time, and they find that such
places fill a long-felt want. No county poor farm or
county jail can touch the problem. A farm colony
for this class would not only save the counties and
municipalities of Iowa thousands of dollars by de-
terring vagrants from coming within its borders, but
would provide a place where constructive work in
the rehabilitation of manhood and independence
might be accomplished. To-day nothing constructive
is accomplished by the current ‘‘passing-on’’ method
of treating vagrants.
XVI

SPECIAL RELIEF FOR THE VICTIMS OF
CALAMITY

In the history of poor relief the unusual calamity
has always offered the occasion for putting into
practice the best methods of relief. The unusual has
always attracted the attention and careful study of
men. On the other hand, those poor whom we have
always with us become commonplace and do not at-
tract the careful thought of the majority of people.
So universally prosperous has Iowa been through-
out its history and so fortunate with respect to
calamities that there have been but few occasions for
the exercise of special relief measures.

The first illustration of this phase of relief in the
history of Iowa is to be seen in the care given to
those made dependent by the Civil War, a subject
which has already been discussed. The next calam-
ity which focused the attention and sympathies of
the people of Iowa upon the problem of the relief of
their own stricken fellow-citizens was the visitation
of the grasshoppers in northwestern Iowa in the
early seventies. A special committee of the Fifteenth
General Assembly appointed to investigate condi-
tions in northwestern Iowa in its report to the legis-
lature stated that the people in the counties of Sioux,

293
294 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Osceola, Lyon, and O’Brien were the worst sufferers
from these pests. The report pictures the destitu-
tion of the people and the impossibility of doing any-
thing more than they had done to help themselves.
The report shows a fine spirit of pioneer indepen-
dence on the part of the people. Their homes were
already heavily mortgaged, and every one of these
counties had placed itself very heavily in debt in or-
der to help its farmers. They were unable to do
more. All the people now asked, however, was a
temporary loan from the State with which to buy
grain to sow their fields. The committee recom-
mended a loan of $100,000 for seed, $15,000 for feed
for horses and stock, and $5,000 for expenses in con-
nection with the purchase and distribution of this
grain.** .

The General Assembly responded to this recom-
mendation with an appropriation of $50,000, or as
much of it as might be necessary, to be distributed
by three commissioners appointed by the Governor
with the advice and consent of the Senate. This
money was to be applied in the purchase of such
seed, grain, and vegetables as might be deemed
necessary. The commissioners were to file with the
State Auditor an affidavit to faithfully and impar-
tially perform their duties, and a bond in the sum of
$40,000 with good and sufficient sureties to be ap-
proved by the district court in the county where each
commissioner resided. They were given power to
make such rules and regulations and to appoint such
assistants as they deemed necessary, and to admin-
RELIEF FOR VICTIMS OF CALAMITY 295

ister oaths and examine persons concerning any fact
which they thought necessary to the proper dis-
charge of their duties. They were required to make
bills in triplicate for all articles purchased, and to
file one copy with the Auditor of State and one
with the auditor of the county in which the distribu-
tion was made. For this work they were to be paid
three dollars a day and actual expenses, and a full
report was to be made to the Governor on or before
June 1, 1874.**°
The details in this instance have been presented
thus minutely in order to point out clearly the meth-
od of procedure which was followed. An example of
different method of relief is to be found in the proc-
lamation of Governor Boies on July 7, 1893, asking
the citizens of Iowa to contribute money for the suf-
ferers from the tornado at Pomeroy. In this case
"the money was not expended under State auspices,
but by the Pomeroy Relief Committee, a local or-
ganization.*°
These two instances will be sufficient to show the
methods by which special exigencies for relief have
been met by public authorities in the State of Iowa.
There have been other visitations of pest and storm,
but for the most part private individuals through
non-public agencies, or the counties concerned have
been able to handle the situation without State aid.
The experience of Iowa, therefore, is not especially
illuminating on the subject of the relief of poverty
due to special calamity.
XVIT
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF

Towa inherited from other jurisdictions the system
of local relief of the poor, and during the first fifty
years that system was dominant. As a matter of
fact, State control of the relief of the poor in any
adequate sense of the term has not yet arrived in
Iowa.

Until the early seventies there were, in the re-
ports of the legislative or administrative officers of
the State, scarcely any suggestions of the necessity
of State control. A first step in the direction of such
control was the appointment of a Visiting Committee
for the Insane Hospitals. This committee was pro-
vided for by an act approved on April 23, 1872,*** and
was limited in its power strictly to the State Insane
Asylums. Even this beginning had elicited lively
discussion in the legislature, Governor Carpenter as-
serted, and when finally enacted into law it was with
some reluctance, he confessed, that he gave it his ap-
proval. After two years of operation, however, he
admitted that the work of the committee had vindi-
cated the wisdom of the law.*”

The first bill introduced into the legislature for a
more comprehensive State supervision was one pre-
sented by Mr. George M. Wilson on February 17,

296
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF 297

1874, providing for the creation of a Board of Char-
ities and prescribing its duties. The bill was re-
ferred to a special committee which reported it back
with certain amendments. Section 14 of this bill pro-
vided that the creation of the board should preclude
the necessity of the appointment of visiting commit-
tees to the institutions other than such as might be
created and clothed with special power by the Gen-
eral Assembly. The bill, however, was indefinitely
postponed.***

The Visiting Committee to the Insane Hospitals
in its report to the Governor on November 30, 1875,
suggested that its powers be extended so as to give
to all the State institutions the right of State super-
vision which the insane hospitals had. As an alter-
native to this suggestion, the Visiting Committee
proposed a similar committee for each class of in-
stitutions, or, as another alternative, the creation of
a board of charities which should include within its
powers the visitation not only of the State charitable
institutions, but also of the jails and poorhouses and
the collection of information for the legislature con-
cerning ‘‘the extent and nature of the various de-
partments of the state and county aid and char-
ities.’’ *°*

The suggestion of the committee as to the enlarge-
ment of its powers so as to form a kind of board of
charities was heartily seconded by Governor Car-
penter in his second biennial message in 1876.“° Two
years later Governor Gear in his first inaugural ad-
dress suggested the establishment of a board of
298 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

charities whose duties should be to see to the con-
struction and repairing of all the State buildings de-
voted to charitable purposes, examine into their con-
dition from time to time, report on these matters to
each General Assembly, and make recommendations
relative to the needs and management of the institu-
tions. In favor of this plan, he argued that it would
do away with the necessity for the appointment of
visiting committees at each session and that the
States which had adopted such a plan had found it to
work beneficially and in the interests of economy.**
By 1880 Governor Gear had turned from the idea of
a board of charities to a board of control. This
change on the Governor’s part was made on the
ground that the board of control would be more
economical than a board of charities such as was
common in other States. This suggestion was in line
with the Governor’s well-known emphasis upon the
necessity of economy in the support and control of
the charitable institutions.*”

Two years later, in his second biennial message
(1882) on the strength of a report by Dr. Margaret
A. Cleaves of Davenport, whom he had appointed as
a delegate to the National Conference of Charities
and Correction, Governor Gear returned to the idea
of a State board of charities. He added, however,
that the powers of such a board should include the
supervision of poorhouses and jails, as well as the
oversight of the charitable and penal institutions of
the State.*** This is the first official suggestion that
a State board should include within its powers the
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF 299

supervision of the State penal institutions. Nothing,
however, came of these various suggestions. The
Visiting Committee to the Insane Hospitals was con-
tinued; and each of the State institutions continued
to have its own board of trustees, while the county
jails and poorhouses were left unsupervised by
State officials.

For ten years there is no reference in the official
documents of the State to the subject of State con-
trol, or until, in his first biennial message of January
12, 1892, Governor Boies again recurred to the idea.
The Governor urged the creation of a State board of
some kind either to control the State institutions or
to oversee them, basing his arguments on the undue
amount of expense entailed by the maintenance of a
separate board for each institution and the Visiting
Committee to the Insane Hospitals.**® Two years
later Governor Boies again mentioned the matter,
but placed the emphasis upon a board of control
which he thought should occasionally visit the county
institutions.*°

Governor Jackson, in January, 1896, once more
brought this matter to the attention of the legisla-
ture but urged that the powers of the Visiting Com-
mittee be enlarged to include visitation of the Institu-
tion for Feeble-minded Children and all private in-
stitutions in which insane were kept, all poorhouses -
and county asylums for the insane, and all jails.**
In this same message he argued against the plan of
establishing a board of control, urging chiefly that
the institutions had been managed so long without
300 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

scandal and by people who had made a special study
of each institution and who gave their sole atten-
tion to the subject and therefore were more expert in
the management of that institution than any board
could possibly be in the management of all the insti-
tutions of the State.“ Here the voice of reaction
first found its official expression; but Governor Jack-
son was not alone in that opinion. His successor in
the Governor’s chair held the same views: Governor
Drake in his message in 1898 recommended that the
powers of the Visiting Committee to the Insane Hos-
pitals be so enlarged as to control every hospital and
asylum for the insane and all poorhouses. More-
over, he argued in favor of the existing plurality of
boards in the management of the State institutions
with the modification that each kind of institution,
like the various insane hospitals, might well be un-
der the control of a single board.** But the informa-
tional dynamite to blow this bit of reactionary medi-
aevalism to fragments was even then in the hands of
a legislative committee.

At the special session of the Twenty-sixth General
Assembly there had been appointed a joint commit-
tee to examine the various State institutions and
make a report. This committee found very irregular
conditions prevailing in some of the institutions,
showing wastefulness, if not something more serious
in some cases. The report to the Senate showed very
clearly that the statements of Governor Jackson and
Governor Drake had no foundation in fact. Indeed,
the report showed that the system in existence at
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF 301

that time was anything but economical, that in many
cases position on the board of trustees. of a State in-
stitution was largely honorary, and that service upon
these boards had not resulted in giving the members
of the boards more knowledge about that particular
institution with which they happened to be connected
than was possessed by the average citizen. The out-
come of the committee’s findings was the recom-
mendation that the system then in vogue give way
to a board of control in charge of all the State insti-
tutions.“* This report, known as the Healy Report,
was the most searching investigation ever made of
the State charitable and penal institutions in the his-
tory of Iowa. All that was needed to show up the
faults of the old system was a careful test of effi-
ciency. Yet the methods condemned by this com-
mittee, at least in part, had been in common use for
years.

So important is this report that a summary of its
findings will not be out of place at this point. The
committee, after viewing the whole situation, de-
cided not to suggest specific changes in the laws gov-
erning the institutions, for the reason that the great-
er number of the amendments which they would be
obliged to propose could only properly form a part
of a measure creating a central or supervisory
board. In their judgment the difficulties were in-
herent in the system as it then existed. They found
no uniform method in the purchasing of supplies;
they found different funds intermingled in violation
of the law; at many of the institutions there was no
302 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

auditing of the bills and at others the auditing oc-
curred only after the bills had been paid; different
salaries were paid for the same kind of work; ap-
propriations were asked of and secured from the
legislature on ex parte statements; and in many
cases the appropriations were expended in such a
manner that it was impossible to tell whether they
had been used in a manner agreeable to the legisla-
tive intent. There was, furthermore, very little con-
tinuity of purpose to be found in the appropriations
for many of the institutions; while there was a lack
of the proper mutuality of interest between the dif-
ferent institutions, with a consequent reciprocal dis-
trust and a disposition in many cases to regard the
legislature as a hostile body.

In this report, moreover, the committee proposed
that the statute should be so amended that the sup-
port fund should not be drawn until it was required
by the institution; that the State Treasurer should
be authorized to dispose of all warrants issued to the
institutions for the payment of which the State had
no ready funds; and that the per capita support be
reduced. The committee believed that a more eco-
nomical management so as to reduce the per capita.
allowance for support purposes for the institutions
would largely do away with county care of the in-
sane. Their argument was that if the people and
the members of boards of supervisors were once con-
vinced that the per capita allowance for insane was
not greater than was actually required in the county
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF 303

institutions, then such county institutions would not
be built.

Again, the committee believed that the Visiting
Committee to the Insane Hospitals spent more time
at the work than was actually necessary. This con-
stituted another argument for a central supervising
body. They further recommended the establishment
of a uniform system of accounts — which could bet-
ter be brought about under central supervision. Tax
levies for State institutions, they recommended,
should be discouraged, as also the precedent of one
General Assembly making appropriations for an in-
stitution covering a period longer than two years.

After due regard for all the facts and conditions
prevailing in the State institutions, the committee
came to the conclusion that the system of having a
separate board of trustees for each of the institu-
tions or for each class of institutions in the State was
both wasteful and inefficient. A change in the gov-
ernment of these institutions was not only advisable,
but imperatively demanded. They were convinced
that whatever success had attended the public insti-
tutions of the State had come in spite of the methods
and practices then existing. That the method was
not economical was shown by the fact that during the
previous biennial period seventy percent of the total
expenditures of the State was for these various
State institutions —a sum which was entirely be-
yond their proper share of the income of the State.
To show that the method then in vogue was ineffi-
304 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

cient, they cited the fact that the trustees of one in-
stitution were entire strangers to those having
charge of another institution. They demonstrated,
furthermore, that two-thirds of the members of the
various boards of trustees had no such intimate
knowledge of their institutions as was necessary to
enable them to be of any value in their management.
As a result the superintendents or their subordinates
really conducted the institutions.

The committee stated that there was no other
State in the Union which governed its public institu-
tions by separate boards without a supervising au-
thority lodged in some board of control or board of
charities and correction. On inquiry they found that
Wisconsin, Rhode Island, Kansas, Nebraska, and
South Dakota, each governed their institutions by a
board of control. Of the States which had once
adopted the system of supervision by a board of con-
trol, but one had changed the system; while those
which retained the boards claimed that they had
proved very satisfactory. Those Commonwealths
which did not have boards of control had supervising
boards such as a board of charity, as in Illinois and
New York.

The committee found, furthermore, that there was
no disposition on the part of those closely connected
with the institutions to institute or agitate a change,
nor was there any disposition on the part of present
or former members of the legislature to criticize the
conduct of institutions in their communities, even
though they knew that abuses existed. The commit-
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF 305

tee therefore recommended that the State provide
for a board of control which should be clothed with
large administrative and executive powers, and not
merely an advisory body. They recommended that
the board be so chosen that partisan politics should
not enter into the management or the selection of the
officers of the various institutions. It was believed
that the establishment of such a board would result
in a very great decrease in the charges upon the
State and a much greater efficiency in the manage-
ment of the State’s institutions.

Two of the members of this committee, Mr.
Thomas D. Healy and Mr. Claude R. Porter, believed
that the three great educational institutions might
well be omitted from the list of institutions placed
under the proposed board of control. Mr. Frank F.
Merriam, on the other hand, could see no reason why
the educational institutions should not be placed
under the control of this board as well as the char-
itable and correctional institutions.

The recommendations of the committee were
adopted in almost every respect. The legislature
accepted Mr. Merriam’s view of the situation and
in drafting the law placed the educational, as well as
the other institutions, partially under the Board of
Control —a proceeding, however, which was recti-
fied after a few years.

At this same session of the General Assembly a
joint resolution was proposed in the Senate creating
a commission to investigate the poorhouses and other
places in which the insane were kept, and to report
306 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

on the question as to whether insane should be kept
at county or at State expense and under State care.‘
After the passage of the bill creating the Board of
Control, however, a substitute resolution was offered
placing this investigation in the hands of the
Board.**

The act creating the Board of Control was ap-
proved on March 26, 1898. It provided that the
Board composed of three members, appointed by the
Governor with the consent of the Senate for a term
of six years each, should take over the management
and control of the Soldiers’ Home, the charitable,
reformatory, and penal institutions of the State, pro-
vide for supervision over the governing boards of
the State educational institutions, recommend ap-
propriations for the institutions under their care,
and define certain offenses and provide penalties
therefor. The members were each to receive a salary
of three thousand dollars a year, and were remov-
able by the Governor with the consent of the Senate
for malfeasance or nonfeasance in office, or for any
cause that rendered them ineligible to appointment
or incapable or unfit to discharge the duties of the
office.

The Board of Control was given full power to man-
age, control, and govern, subject only to the limita-
tions of this act, the Soldiers’ Home, the State Hos-
pitals for the Insane, the College for the Blind, the
School for the Deaf, the Institution for Feeble-mind-
ed Children, the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home, the In-
dustrial Home for the Blind (since abandoned), the
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF 307

Industrial School in both departments, and the State
penitentiaries. It was vested with all of the powers
relative to these institutions hitherto exercised by
the various boards of trustees which it superseded
and by the Governor and the Executive Council.
This was not intended, however, as a limitation upon
the general supervisory or examining powers vested
in the Governor by the laws or Constitution of the
State, or upon any committee appointed by him.
The Board was to make a biennial report to the Gov-
ernor and legislature embodying its observations and
conclusions respecting each and every institution
named; and furthermore, was to recommend to the
General Assembly at each session desirable changes
in the legislation affecting the charitable and correc-
tional institutions of the State.

Other significant powers of the Board were au-
thority to investigate the question of the insanity of
any person committed to any State hospital; to col-
lect information concerning the experience of any of
these institutions either in Iowa or in any other State
and have it printed; and to encourage the scientific
investigation and treatment of insanity and epilepsy
in the Hospitals for the Insane and the Institution
for Feeble-minded Children, and publish the results
from time to time. In addition, they were to investi-
gate the work of the boards of regents of the educa-
tional institutions of the State. This power, how-
ever, was of no importance in this connection; and
furthermore, a separate board was later organized
for these institutions.*”
308 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

In the act creating the Board of Control there was
no provision for its supervision of any county insti-
tutions. At once, however, the members of the Board
saw that it was necessary for them to know what
care the insane were receiving in the county and pri-
vate institutions. They, therefore, proceeded to look
into conditions in nineteen of the county poorhouses
and insane asylums. What they found has been al-
luded to in the chapter dealing with the care of in-
digent defectives.‘ The conditions there led the
Board to recommend that it be given authority to
supervise and control to a considerable extent the
county and private institutions caring for the in-
sane.*°°

The Twenty-eighth General Assembly, to which the
Board made its first report, heeded its recommenda-
tions and gave it supervision over all county and
private institutions in which insane were kept. The
Board was authorized to send a visitor twice a year
to each of these institutions, and to make rules and
regulations for their government. It was empow-
ered to remove to the State asylum at the expense of
the county concerned any patient in the county asy-
lum, if his case was acute and if they believed that he
would receive better care in a State institution. The
Board could also remove chronic cases from the
State institutions to the county asylums, but only
after obtaining the consent of the immediate rela-
tives of the patient, if he had any, or the consent of
the commissioners of insanity of the county con-
cerned.*”°
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF 309

Moreover, in addition to the duties laid down by
the act creating the Board of Control, it was later
given certain additional powers. The Twenty-ninth
General Assembly, in an act approved on April 10,
1902, gave it control of all homes receiving children
to be placed out or cared for.** This same General
Assembly put the Hospital for the Inebriates under
the control of the same Board.*” The Thirtieth Gen-
eral Assembly gave the Board power to designate
and appprove the institutions and associations in the
State having charge of juveniles under the Juvenile
Court Act, and to visit, and to have oversight and
supervision over such homes and associations.** An
act of the Thirty-first General Assembly granted the
Board authority to appoint two State agents for the
Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home and for the Industrial
Schools, whose duty it should be to look after the
placing out of children from these institutions.**
By another law of the same session the Board was
charged with the care and disposition of the non-
resident insane.*”* Again, by a law of the Thirty-
third General Assembly the Board was authorized to
investigate any charges of abuse, neglect, or other
misconduct made against the conduct of any officer
concerned with the management of any county or
private institution in which the insane were kept or
against any association or society coming within the
provisions of the sections of the Code Supplement of
1907 concerning institutions which received and
cared for children.*”

The activity of the Board of Control in regulating
310 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

institutions which had hitherto been unregulated
gave rise to considerable criticism. Governor Car-
roll, in his second biennial message in January, 1911,
took cognizance of this criticism and recommended
that a special committee in each house be appointed
by the legislature to consider Board of Control mat-
ters. These criticisms related largely, however, to
the Board’s methods in purchasing supplies,*” and
did not affect the Board injuriously in any way.

There had been a contention for some time that
the School for the Deaf and the College for the Blind
were in no sense of the term either charitable or cor-
rectional institutions and should therefore not be
under the regulation of the Board of Control. After
the educational institutions of the State were put
under the control of the newly organized State Board
of Education, the reason for keeping these two in-
stitutions under the supervision of the Board of Con-
trol ceased to exist. Accordingly, the Thirty-fourth
General Assembly removed the College for the Blind
from the jurisdiction of the Board of Control and
placed it under the supervision of the Board of Edu-
cation.**®

Finally, the Thirty-fifth General Assembly made
a number of changes in the law regulating the pow-
ers of the Board of Control. In an act approved on
March 25, 1913, it was given the authority to trans-
fer insane persons from State to county institutions
in cases where they are public patients, with the con-
sent of the county supervisors or the county commis-
sioners of insanity; but if the persons to be removed
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF all

are supported by relatives or guardians, this trans-
fer can not be made without the written consent of
such relatives or guardians. It furthermore pro-
vided that no uncured patient could be discharged
from the State Hospital for the Insane without the
consent of the Board of Control. The act makes the
powers of the county supervisors codrdinate with
those of the county commissioners of insanity in re-
ceiving to the county asylum the insane patients in
the State hospitals whom the Board of Control
wished to transfer to county institutions, and made it
perfectly plain that no superintendent of a State
Hospital for the Insane or a county board of insanity
commissioners or any other board could discharge
an uncured patient from a State institution without
the consent of the Board of Control.*® Further-
more, the last General Assembly placed under the
Board of Control the State Colony for Epileptics
created at that legislative session.**° The Board was
also given control over the admission of certain des-
ignated dependent persons into the Soldiers’ Home
and of persons from twenty-one to thirty-five years
of age to the School for the Deaf to receive an educa-
tion at the expense of the State.**

One further step was taken by the Thirty-fifth
General Assembly for the purpose of controlling the
solicitation of funds for charitable purposes. An as-
sociation which solicits public donations in the State
is required to file with the Secretary of State a
statement giving its name, its location, and the
names of its principal officers and soliciting agents.
312 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

If the Secretary of State is satisfied that this state-
ment is sufficient evidence that the money so collected
is to be used for the, purposes represented, he is to
issue to the association without expense a State li-
cense authorizing it to solicit donations.

Thus gradually from insignificant beginnings
State control of certain institutions dealing with the
relief of poverty has developed, but the development
is still incomplete. Its course has been uncertain
and in no sense comprehensive. It began with the
State institutions for the care of indigent defectives
where the State was in control of these institutions
from their very inception. It was furthered when
provision was made for the State care of the soldier
and his orphans and later his widow. It has been
extended gradually to State supervision of county
and private care of two classes of dependents,
namely, the insane and children; and there it seems
to have been arrested for the present.

Often during the history of Iowa it has been urged
by Governors, visiting committees, and others in a
position to know the situation with respect to the re-
sults of local methods of the poor relief that a board
of charities should be appointed to supervise the
poorhouses. To-day only those poorhouses which
contain insane persons have inspection at the hands
of the Board of Control, while as for outdoor relief,
there is absolutely no attempt at State supervision.

The county insane asylums have been under the
supervision of the State Board of Control for more
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF 313

than a dozen years. This supervision and regulation
has without controversy been of inestimable service
in bringing up the standards of comfort and decency
in these county institutions. And yet, they represent
by no means what the State of Iowa should do for
this unfortunate class of dependents. Patients in
these institutions do not have the expert care which
they deserve; they lack the comforts in many cases
which a State institution could afford; they are not
looked after except to provide the merest means of
physical existence; and they are immured in an in-
stitution which, if not an integral part of the
‘‘county home’’ is yet in the same yard and essen-
tially a part of the same plant and governed in most
counties by about the same authorities.

The conditions in the county poorhouses are even
worse. Filled with hopeless wrecks who are cared
for through the stingy ‘‘bounty’’ of the counties,
neglected and shunned by all who are not paid to
look after them, and ministered to by a class of per-
sons whose only qualifications too often are merely
kind hearts and the ability to run the farm and the
‘<home’’ as economically as possible,** certainly the
county homes need State supervision. In spite of
recommendations many times repeated by all sorts
of officers, committees, and organizations who have
studied the question, Iowa has not given the county
poorhouses even such supervision as the Board of
Control with its multitudinous duties could give.
They are left uncontrolled, unless they have insane
inmates, by any other authorities than those whose
314 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

chief interest is to make them cost as little as pos-
sible to the taxpayers of the county. This body of
men, however sincere and kind-hearted they may be,
are not usually acquainted with the best methods of
earing for the poor. They are concerned with other
and more pressing affairs of the county, such as
roads, bridges, and concerns of more interest to the
average voter than the care of paupers. They will
not do their full duty by the poor in most cases
simply because they do not know what it is, and be-
cause the other interests of the county have first con-
sideration in their thoughts. There is needed a su-
pervising body of State experts in these matters who
have given the subject of the relief of the poor some
study, seeking to learn the best methods employed
elsewhere in the world and making practical applica-
tion of these methods for the benefit of the poor of
Iowa.

Badly as this oversight is needed in connection
with the poorhouses, it is needed even worse in the
outdoor relief of the poor. No one has claimed that
the poorhouse as conducted in Iowa pauperizes the
poor, except in the case of some of the larger ones
near large cities where the vagrants congregate.
The charge to which the poorhouse is open is rather
that of neglect. In the case of outdoor methods of
relief, not only are the poor neglected in some cases
and treated without due consideration of what they
really need, but they are pauperized in many in-
stances. Hither there is pauperization or else there
is such neglect that private philanthropy must needs
STATE CONTROL OF POOR RELIEF 315

come to the rescue and piece out what public relief
fails to supply. Why this paradox? Simply because
outdoor relief as administered in most of the larger
cities of Iowa is simply the giving of food, money, or
clothing, without consideration by the relief officers
of the real needs of the family to whom aid is given.
It is as true in the relief of the poor as in poetry, that
“The gift without the giver is bare’’. Scientific
poor relief shows that it is worse than that: the gift
without the giver is positively demoralizing.

The overseers of the poor are very often old men
who are given the position seemingly because they
ean not make a living in any other way; or per-
chance, as in some counties, they have so many ap-
plicants for relief that they can not give any time to
the investigation of the applicants; and in practically
all cases they are men who have had absolutely no
training in the methods of investigation and the
proper relief of the poor which have been devised by
those who have long studied how to give to the poor
without pauperizing them. In all too many cases
they are so jealous of the prestige of their offices that
they refuse to turn over the investigation of the
cases to the associated charities of the city with its
trained officers and investigators, people who have
been trained in the use of the best methods of hand-
ling poor relief. The result is that many people who
could be independent are receiving relief and coming
to lose their capacity for independence and to look
upon relief as a right which the community owes
them; while the really deserving do not receive re-
316 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

lief, or if they do, they receive it in a way which
further demoralizes instead of rehabilitates them.

What is needed is some plan whereby the con-
science of the local board of supervisors will be
quickened. One of the first requirements is that
they shall come to know what is proper for the poor.
If their care of the insane in the poorhouses has been
improved by the supervision and regulation of the
county asylum by the Board of Control, it is quite
probable that to give this Board complete super-
vision over the poorhouses would work a similar
change in the institutions. Then, if in addition to
this, the Board were charged with the study and reg-
ulation of out-relief in the homes of needy families,
it is quite within the possibilities that they might be
able to secure the introduction of more effective
methods into the cities of the State. Even overseers
might be brought to see that relief of the poor means
more than writing out orders for doles of groceries
or coal and guessing at the necessities of applicants
and ministering to them by absent treatment. Possi-
bly some greater measure of codperation between or-
ganized charity in the cities and the public relief
officials might be worked out. That, however, would
have to be supplemented by a program which would
have for its end the securing of efficient public relief
officials. After all is said, the problem is chiefly one
of the relief official, Adequate machinery to guard
against ignorance in poor relief will result in some
gain, but no piece of machinery for the relief of the
poor has ever yet been invented which is proof
against ignorance or indifference.
PART IV
SUMMARY AND SUGGESTIONS
XVIII

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT SYSTEM OF
POOR RELIEF IN IOWA

The system of poor relief employed in Iowa is
based upon the time-honored double system of indoor
and outdoor relief. All but four counties in the
State — Crawford, Emmet, Ida, and Osceola —
maintain county homes or poorhouses, as they were
formerly called.*** This institution in each county is
under the control of the county board of supervisors.
If it contains insane persons it is inspected about
twice each year by a representative of the State
Board of Control and is subject to certain regula-
tions of this Board. If it contains no insane, there
is absolutely no provision for its inspection and reg-
ulation by the State. The poorhouses of forty-nine
of the ninety-nine counties in the State have no in-
mates who have been adjudged insane, and thus
these forty-nine county institutions are not subject
to any supervision aside from that which they re-
ceive from the board of supervisors.***

These institutions are in the immediate charge of
a steward. In the ninety-five institutions for the
year ending June 30, 1912, there was a total of 1,137
sane or normal inmates. In addition to these there
were thirty-six who were held as insane, but had not

319
320 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

been so adjudged, eight hundred and forty-two in-
sane, fifty-seven blind, twenty-one deaf or dumb, two
hundred and eighty-two feeble-minded, and seventy-
four epileptics, or a total of 1,313 defectives. Thus
these institutions are refuges for defectives rather
than homes for the aged and infirm and the poor.
In these institutions, therefore, there is a grand total
of 2,477 persons, twenty-eight of whom are children
under fifteen years of age.**°

The average salary of the steward of these poor-
houses in 1911 and 1912 was $724; while the average
salary of the matrons was $265.**

Supplementary to the county poorhouse as a meth-
od of relieving poverty, is relief given in the homes
of the poor. The recipients of relief in their homes
may be divided into three classes: first, soldiers,
sailors, and marines and their families; second, wid-
ows and children who benefit from the mothers’ pen-
sion law; and third, all others who, in the discretion
of the board of supervisors, should not be sent to the
poorhouse.

In the first class are all soldiers, sailors and ma-
rines and any member of their families who are not
willing to go to the Soldiers’ Home at Marshalltown,
or who can not be admitted there for any reason
whatever. In the second class are all children who
are orphans as defined by the law and whose moth-
ers, in the judgment of the court, are the proper per-
sons to care for and rear them. These are the chil-
dren who in an earlier period in the history of the
State would have been bound out for support. Be-
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT SYSTEM 321

fore the passage of the widows’ pension law in 1913,
as a matter of fact, the probabilities are that the
mother would have received some relief from the
overseer of the poor or the township trustees, and
some from private relief agencies in the community,
or else her children would have been sent to some or-
phans’ home to be placed out if possible in normal
family relationships.

In the third class belong all other dependents. It
includes those in families who can not quite support
themselves and who occasionally in winter or in case
of sickness must have some aid to supplement their
incomes for a short period. They may be old couples
who have been left somewhat destitute and have no
one upon whom they may rely for even a part of
their support, or they may be widows with children
who for the most part can make a living. This class
includes also those who because of temporary sick-
ness or accident to the bread-winner, are unable to
support themselves. The law in such cases is in-
tended: to apply only to those who have family rela-
tionships, and a limit is placed upon the amount that
may be supplied to each person.

The Iowa law contemplates that any dependents
who have relatives shall be supported by those rela-
tives who stand in the relation to the pauper of
father, mother, or children, primarily ; and by grand-
parents, if they are able to support the dependent
without personal labor, or by the male grandchildren
who are of ability either by personal labor or other-
wise to contribute to the support of the pauper.
322 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Dependent children, if illegitimate, are to be sup-
ported by the putative father, if he is known, or by
the mother, or they may be bound out or adopted or
sent to a home approved by the Board of Control.
In case both the father and mother are unable or
can not be forced to support the child, then he be-
comes a charge of the county. He may be kept in
the county poorhouse or he may be sent to the State
Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home and be kept partly at the
expense of the State and partly at the expense of the
county. If the child is legitimate he is to be sup-
ported by the relatives before mentioned, if they are
able todo so. If not, he may be bound out or placed
in some family for adoption or committed to some
private association or home for orphan children ap-
proved by the Board of Control, or he may be sent to
the Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home at Davenport. Since
the passage of the mothers’ pension law, if he has a
mother living and she is considered a proper person
to rear the child, he may be supported at the expense
of the county in the home of his mother. In addi-
tion to these measures the State has a contributory
dependency act very comprehensive in its nature,
providing for the protection and support of a child
by those upon whom he is naturally dependent or, in
case they are unable, providing for his support and
care in one of the ways mentioned above.

If the dependent person is feeble-minded and has
not been pronounced so by the proper authorities, it
is permissible under the Iowa law to send him to a
poorhouse for support. If he is a person below the
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT SYSTEM 323

age of forty-six years, he may be committed to the
State Institution for Feeble-minded Children at
Glenwood. If he is insane and has not been adjudged
so by the county commissioners of insanity, he may
be sent by the county supervisors to the poorhouse.
Or if he has been adjudged insane and has been pro-
nounced incurable, he may be committed back to the
poorhouse of the county from which he came to the
State hospital by the Board of Control, with the con-
sent of the county supervisors or the county insanity
commissioners. In case that county has a separate
institution for the insane he will be cared for in that
institution, under the supervision of the State Board
of Control. If, however, there is no asylum for the
insane in the county he will be kept in the poorhouse
with the other inmates, perhaps in a separate ward.

If the dependent person is blind and is above the
age permitting him to be admitted to the College for
the Blind at Vinton, he has no other refuge in the
State of Iowa but the poorhouse. If he chances to
have family relationships he may be supported from
the county funds as any other poor person in a fam-
ily. A person who is deaf and dumb or is so deaf as
to be unable to acquire an education in the common
schools, and is between the ages of five and twenty-
one or even if he is older than twenty-one, but is not
yet thirty-five, and provided he can secure the con-
sent of the Board of Control, may be sent to the
School for the Deaf at Council Bluffs at the expense
of the State. An indigent epileptic until the last ses-
sion of the legislature had no legal refuge but the
324 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

poorhouse. When the State Colony for Epilepties,
provided for at the session of the legislature in 1913,
is opened, persons of this class may be cared for in
that institution on terms to be determined by some
future General Assembly.

Sick persons who are unable to provide their own
physician may be treated by the county physician at
county expense. Moreover, in those counties which
have county hospitals, they may receive hospital
treatment at the expense of the county.

In general it may be said that there is State super-
vision over the care of dependent children provided
they are sent to the State Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home
or to private orphans’ homes or are placed out by
any of these institutions just named, or if they are in
poorhouses in which insane are kept. In all other
cases whatever supervision is exercised over the
manner of their care is at the hands of the boards of
supervisors or their agents or the judge of the court.
Dependent soldiers, sailors, and marines and their
widows who are inmates of the State Soldiers’ Home
are under the supervising care of the State Board of
Control. Soldiers relieved elsewhere have no such
supervision. Furthermore, all outdoor relief is un-
supervised by the State, as are also all poorhouses
in which there are no insane. Outdoor relief is ad-
ministered in cities of the first and second classes by
an overseer of the poor. In other places it is fur-
nished by the township trustees. Supervision of
their work is supposed to be given by the county
supervisors.
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT SYSTEM = 325

Thus it is apparent that in Iowa there are three
sets of agencies concerned with the relief of the
poor. Immediately connected with the relief are the
overseers, the township trustees, or the stewards of
the poor farms. Immediately above these officials
there are the county supervisors, who are supposed
to visit the poorhouse at least once a month and to
oversee the relief given by the overseers of the poor
and the township trustees. As a matter of fact,
however, their practical function is to give general
orders to the overseers of the poor and the township
trustees without very often being called upon to give
any specific direction as to how the relief shall be ad-
ministered. In the case of certain classes of de-
pendents certain functions are performed by the
judge of the district court. All dependents in State
charitable institutions and in county homes where
insane are kept, and in private institutions keeping
children or insane, are under the general supervision
of the State Board of Control.

In many respects this may appear to be a complex
system. As a matter of fact, however, complexity
is not its chief difficulty. The citizens of Iowa ex-
perience very little difficulty in ascertaining what
authority is charged with the care of a particular
case. The chief obstacle in the way of successful
public relief work is that centralized supervision has
not gone far enough. Some counties spend very little
onthe relief of the poor in their homes; others spend
a great deal. Even in the absence of careful figures
showing comparatively what different counties
326 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

spend, from the figures at hand it is possible to say
that the situation in Iowa is much as it was in In-
diana before 1897. In that State it was found that
the per capita amount spent on the relief of the poor
in their homes varied from six cents in some counties
to sixty-eight cents in others. The amount depended
much upon the personnel of the officials concerned in
its distribution.
XIX

SOME SUGGESTED CHANGES IN THE SYS-
TEM OF POOR RELIEF IN IOWA

The system of caring for dependent children in
Iowa needs very little change. There can be no
doubt that the Orphans’ Home, as a receiving home
for children until they are placed in normal family
relationships among the people of the State, is an
excellent institution. It is possible that more chil-
dren could be placed out in homes were there more
State agents at work under the Board of Control, se-
curing homes for such children. Furthermore, the
operation of the private homes for children under the
supervision of the Board of Control has been unex-
pectedly good. The supervision under an efficient
Board insures sanitary conditions in the home where
they are temporarily cared for. It also insures that
they shall not be cruelly treated, that they shall be
adequately fed, and decently clothed; and in addition
it provides some sort of control over the placing-out
methods employed by these institutions and associa-
tions. So far as has been discovered there is very
little fault to be found with the plan which the State
is following in caring for orphan children. It might
be well to have the almost obsolete provisions for

327
328 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

binding out children from the poorhouses removed
from the statute books.

As has already been suggested, the mothers’ pen-
sion law, if administered by the court at all, should
be administered under the supervision of a State
expert. In fact, it would be well to place the admin-
istration of mothers’ pensions under a special officer
of the Board of Control. This person should be an
expert in scientific charity, and should be able to ad-
vise judges as to methods of treating cases which
come under the provisions of this law. Further-
more, his suggestions should have the force of law,
within due limitations to be set by statute.

The change in the law making the State respon-
sible for one-half the cost of keeping children in the
State Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home, has had the effect
of removing most children, except those who have
parents in the poorhouses, from those institutions.
A law should be passed in the interest of the chil-
dren, forbidding the keeping of those over two years
of age in the county homes. Reference was made
when discussing this matter in a previous chapter to
the fact that counties had induced relatives to pay
the county’s half of the cost of keeping a child in the
Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home. This practice points to a
loose administration of the law and indicates that
stricter provisions should be made for the support of
such children by relatives, and more power over this
class of children be given some administrative body
like the Board of Control in the absence of a special
board of children’s guardians.
SOME SUGGESTED CHANGES 329

With respect to the county homes radical changes
are needed. Ideally the county home can never be a
successful institution in the less populous counties of
Iowa. In the judgment of the writer a law should
be enacted giving adjoining counties the right to
erect, at some point centrally located for the counties
concerned, a joint county home or poorhouse. The
law should forbid the keeping in this institution of
children, feeble-minded, or epileptics, and other
classes of defectives except the blind or deaf and
dumb who are too old to be kept in the State institu-
tions for these classes. The law should make this a
home for the aged and infirm. By a slight change,
providing for the employment of a farmer for each
of these institutions, the farm could be made to pay
better than it does at the present time when run by a
man who is neither an expert farmer nor an expert
in the care of the poor. The law should provide for
certain definite qualifications for the steward of a
poorhouse. In no unmistakable terms he should be
designated as the one to have charge of the inmates
of the poorhouse, and to see to their comfort and
provide for their employment and happiness.

The advantages of the district infirmary for a
rural State like Iowa, especially in those counties
where there are no large cities, have been set forth
in another connection, but the main points may be
summarized here. There would be a larger body of
inmates, allowing better classification and special-
ization in treatment, providing for larger numbers
of each class and thus making possible careful atten-
330 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

tion to each group of inmates. There would prob-
ably be more able-bodied persons to be set to work.
The group of the infirm would be large enough so
that it would be worth while to secure the services of
a better doctor for their treatment. If the chronic
insane were retained in connection with the county
home, there would be a sufficient number so that they
could have a trained alienist and special nurses to
care for them; and greater care would probably be
taken also to look after their entertainment and hap-
piness. The treatment of larger numbers together
would be more economical or would provide at the
same cost much better care.

A more complete segregation, not only of the sexes,
but of the classes in a poorhouse, should be made.
All of these things could be best accomplished in a
large institution in a district composed of several
counties. Moreover, a district infirmary or poor-
house would have the advantage that it would make
possible the establishment in connection therewith of
a work-house for the misdemeanants of the counties
concerned. Such a plan has been worked out with
far-sighted wisdom by the city of Cleveland in its
‘‘Cooley Farms’’. In such an institution, the in-
mates of the work-house would perform a large part
of the labor on the farm connected with the district
infirmary.

Since in Iowa there is considerable agitation for
the establishment of county sanitoriums for the care
of chronic tubercular patients, and since the State
has now authorized counties to build such institu-
SOME SUGGESTED CHANGES 331

tions, the district plan would also enable the counties
within such a district to combine in the erection of a
joint sanitorium, which could be separated on the
farm a sufficient distance from the infirmary and the
work-house to cause no stigma to attach to the in-
mates of the sanitorium. With such a combination
better buildings could be provided, expert attendants
could be hired because better salaries could be paid,
better classification of the inmates could be secured,
a more personal division of labor between the in-
firm and able-bodied paupers could be provided for,
and the probabilities are that all this could be done
at a greatly decreased expense.

These district homes should be under the super-
vision and regulation of special agents of some cen-
tral administrative body, such as the State Board of
Control or a board of charities. Without State su-
pervision it is doubtful whether the district poor-
house would be any better than the county institu-
tion.

As an alternative to the plan of district poor-
houses, the State should give the Board of Control
authority over all poorhouses, and provide officers
appointed by the Board to inspect these institutions.
These officers, or the Board itself, should have the
power to approve all plans for poorhouses before
such buildings are erected by counties. This plan in
Indiana has resulted in the erection of an altogether
different and better type of poorhouse and has pre-
vented the squandering of the money of the counties
on useless buildings.
332 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Changes in the administration of out-relief should
also be made. The present system is almost as bad
as it is possible to make it. Indiana has secured
very great improvement in outdoor relief by the
simple device of requiring three things: first, the or-
ganization of an unsalaried county board of char-
ities to supervise the work; second, requiring the
overseers of the poor in each township to levy a tax
upon the property of the township for the amount
which they have expended for the out-relief of the
poor of that township during the preceding year;
and third, requiring quarterly reports from the over-
seers of the poor to be filed, one copy with the county
supervisors, one with the State Board of Charities,
and one with the county board of charities. By these
three steps Indiana has secured the application of
scientific charity to the treatment of the poverty
cases in each township. This plan has brought to
the attention of the taxpayers of each township any
extravagance or wastefulness to which the overseers
* may have been tempted in order to avoid doing real
investigating and constructive work. Again, it has
enabled comparisons to be made between the poor
relief methods of the various townships throughout
the State. In the State of Iowa at the present time
no one knows whether one county or one township is
doing better than another or not. The township or
city which has a good overseer suffers because of a
bad one in the neighboring township or city.

In addition to these measures provided by the law
of Indiana, if the State Board of Control were given
SOME SUGGESTED CHANGES 333

authority to prescribe rules for the overseers and on
recommendation of the proposed county board of
charities to discharge an overseer of the poor, and if
after a certain length of time the county supervisors
should not appoint another, the county board of
charities should be authorized to appoint an over-
seer themselves in the place of the one dismissed, a
new day would dawn in the history of Iowa outdoor
relief. Since the center of difficulty is the overseer
of the poor, upon him must be concentrated the ef-
forts toward remedying the evil conditions. This
plan would do that, and furthermore, it would lessen
the power and authority of the county board of su-
pervisors — an object very much to be desired so far
as poor relief is concerned.

The State Board of Control has repeatedly urged
that the care of the indigent insane should be under-
taken by State institutions rather than by county
asylums. It has presented all the arguments against
the supposedly economical but nefarious county sys-
tem and has demolished that dominant argument
that county care of the chronic insane is cheaper
than State care. Moreover, it has demonstrated be-
yond the peradventure of a doubt that State care
on the same level as the county care that is now given
would be just as cheap if not cheaper. It has also
shown, however, that the present grade of care is not
desirable either in a State institution or in a county
institution.

Without doubt, the patients in the county asylums
could receive very much better care in a State in-
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NOTES AND REFERENCES
NOTES AND REFERENCES

CHAPTER I

1 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. I, pp. 107, 108.

Where this law was obtained can not be determined. At least
Chase’s Statutes of Ohio gives no indication. Notes showing the
State from which each law was adopted do not appear until one
comes to the laws of 1795. Chase says that the Governor and Judges
did not observe the requirements of the Ordinance to adopt laws
from the original States during the period from 1788 to 1795.— See
Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. I, pp. 19, 20.

He also states that this was one of the eleven laws passed ‘‘by
governor St. Clair and Judges Symmes and Turner’’. — Chase’s Stat-
utes of Ohio, Vol. I, p. 106 (footnote).

2In this connection it may not be out of place to observe that the
recently much discussed mothers’ pension bills put the administra-
tion of this form of relief back into the hands of a court.

3 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. I, pp. 175-182.

A large part of this act was a faithful copy of the various statutes
of Elizabeth from 1575 to 1601. It is remarkable how long the in-
fluence of that provision of the English statute, 18 Eliz. ¢. 3, lasted,
which required that the authorities provide a stock of wool, flax, ete.
on which the poor could work. See Leonard’s English Poor Relief,
p. 72; Nicholls’s History of the English Poor Law, Vol. I, pp. 170,
171.

4Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. I, pp. 284, 285.
5 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. I, pp. 513-515.
6 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. I, p. 591.

7Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. I, pp. 695, 696. In fact, this
law, aside from the omission of Section 10 of the old act, made no
change in the existing state of things. Section 10 related to be-

343
344 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

quests and gifts for the benefit of the poor, and was put back into
the law by the act of February 10, 1816.

8 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. II, pp. 943-945.
® Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. IT, p. 998.

10 The special act establishing a poorhouse in Wayne County, Ter-
ritory of Michigan, passed on June 23, 1828, had a similar provision,
but it was not so thoroughgoing and did not apply outside of Wayne
County. Doubtless, however, both the latter and the act of October
29, 1829, were affected by the existence of the Ohio law. Laws of the
Territory of Michigan, Vol. II, pp. 677, 727.

11 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. ITI, p. 1626.

12 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. III, p. 1832.

13 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. I, p. 176.

14 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. I, pp. 998-1000.
15 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. III, p. 1547.

16 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. III, p. 1619.

17 Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. ITI, p. 1829.

18 Ohio General Laws, Thirty-Second General Assembly, 1833-34,
pp. 35, 36.

CHAPTER IT

19 Shambaugh’s Documentary Material Relating to the History of
Iowa, Vol. I, pp. 49, 59, 61.

20 McCarty’s Territorial Governors of the Old Northwest, pp. 121,
122-136; and Shambaugh’s Documentary Material Relating to the
History of Iowa, Vol. I, pp. 71, 72. These were ‘‘adaptations’’ in
a very much looser sense than the word had for the authorities of the
Northwest Territory after 1795. See Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol.
I, pp. 19, 26.

21 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. I, pp. 90, 208; and
Shambaugh’s Documentary Material Relating to the History of Iowa,
Vol. II, p. 116.

22 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. II, pp. 40-42.
23 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. II, pp. 115, 116.
NOTES AND REFERENCES 345

24 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. II, pp. 595-602; and
Shambaugh’s Documentary Material Relating to the History of Iowa,
Vol. II, p. 204.

25 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. II, p. 130.

26 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. I, p. 531.

27 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. II, p. 185.

28 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. II, p. 287, 288.

29 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. II, p. 727.

30 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. III, p. 868.

31 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. III, p. 1038.

32 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. III, pp. 822-824.
83 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. III, pp. 1134-1142.
34 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. II, p. 130.

35 By an act approved on March 6, 1833, the legislature provided
that the county supervisors should direct the collector of the taxes in
each town (township) to pay ‘‘to the director of the poor such money
as shall be raised for the maintenance of the poor of such town’’.
This money for the relief of the poor was to be paid ‘‘out of the
first money which shall be collected’’, seemingly giving the poor a
first claim upon the money raised for township expenses.— Laws of
the Territory of Michigan, Vol. III, p. 982.

36 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. II, p. 677.
37 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. III, p. 986.
38 Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Vol. ITI, p. 1293.

CHAPTER III
39 Laws of the Territory of Wisconsin, 1836-38, p. 11.

40‘<Local assessments appear to have been made from time to
time in Green Bay, but apparently no regular tax was levied until
after 1833. It was, indeed, not until the organization of Wisconsin
Territory that all of the region included within its bounds came un-
der the operations of a well-regulated system of administration.
Even the school taxes of 1838-1840 created much dissatis-
346 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

faction, and for a time they necessarily were made optional with the
community.’’ — Thwaites’s Wisconsin, p. 280.

41‘*A census taken in August [1836], as a basis of apportioning
members of the legislature to the various counties, showed a total
population of 22,218. Des Moines was first, with 6,257; Iowa next,
with 5,234; Dubuque third, with 4,274; Milwaukee fourth, with
2,893; Brown fifth, with 2,706, and Crawford last, with 854.’’? —
Wisconsin in Three Centuries (New York: The Century History
Co., 1906), p. 301.

42 Laws of the Territory of Wisconsin, 1836-38, pp. 178-181.

43 The organization of boards of county commissioners was pro-
vided for by an act of December 20, 1837.— Laws of the Territory
of Wisconsin, 1836-1838, p. 138.

CHAPTER IV ‘

44 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1838-1839, pp. 79, 83,
96, 104; Journal of the Council, 1838-1839, pp. 92, 93, 198.

45 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1838-1839, p. 276.

48 Journal of the Council, 1839-1840, pp. 49, 52, 142, 159; Jour-
nal of the House of Representatives, 1839-1840, pp. 216, 226; and
Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1839-1840, pp. 83, 84. Governor
Robert Lucas in a communication to the Council under date of Jan-
uary 16, 1840, acknowledged the receipt of ‘‘an act for the relief of
the poor.’’— See Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the
Governors of Iowa, Vol. I, p. 201. In the Executive Journal of Gov-
ernor Lucas in a memorandum of bills and resolutions under date of
January 16, 1840, there is one entitled ‘‘ An act for the relief of the
Poor’’, which is marked ‘‘approved’’.— See Shambaugh’s Executive
Journal of Iowa, 1888-1841, p. 310.

47 Laws of the Territory of Wisconsin, 1836-38, p. 178.
48 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1839-1840, pp. 83, 84.

49 The Michigan law of 1825 included the entire list of relatives;
the law of 1827 dropped out brothers and sisters; while the act of
1833 omitted the section entirely. On the other hand, the Wisconsin
law which the legislators of the Territory of Iowa borrowed included
all of the relatives mentioned in the Michigan law of 1825 and the
NOTES AND REFERENCES 347

act of the Northwest Territory of 1795, with the proviso that no one
but parents and children were to be held responsible for paupers
who were such by reason of intemperance or bad conduct. More-
over, since the Iowa statute omitted some of the relatives which the
Wisconsin law named as responsible for the care of pauper relatives,
it was natural that it should also omit that part of the law which
related to the order in which these parties were liable for the support
of paupers.

50 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1839-1840, pp. 48, 49.

51 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1840, Extra Session, p. 20.

This may have been thought necessary by the legislators not only
by reason of the fact that the laws of Michigan and Wisconsin had
been extended over this new Territory by the Organic Act, but also
by reason of the provision in section six of the Wisconsin act pro-
viding for the care of non-residents who might fall sick in the Ter-
ritory, by the overseers of the poor of the township. The new Iowa
law did not provide for township overseers.

52 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1841-1842, pp. 128,
146, 158, 159, 167; and Journal of the Council, 1841-1842, pp. 156,
157, 161, 223.

58 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1841-1842, pp. 158,
159. The following quotation from a contemporary newspaper will
show the attitude of mind then dominant in the legislature.

‘‘Mr, Hepner from the committee on memorials, reported Nos. 2
and 32 C. F. and Nos. 66 and 80 H. R. file, back to the house with-
out amendment, and recommended the passage of the same. _

‘<Mr. Morgan, from the committee on the judiciary, to which was
referred certain petitions and remonstrances to the law regulating
blacks and mulattoes, submitted the following report:

‘“¢That they have considered the subject as set forth, both in the
petitions and in the remonstrances, and are of opinion that it would
be inexpedient, if not dangerous, to have any additional legislation
on the subject.

‘The existing law is, in the opinion of your committee, essential
to the protection of the white population against an influx of run-
away slaves and outcast blacks from adjoining States; and your
committee are also of opinion that said law is already sufficiently
" liberal in its provisions respecting such blacks and mulattoes as may
348 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

choose to make a home in our Territory. So far, then, from recom-
mending any alteration in our law on this subject, giving still
greater liberty and protection to blacks and mulattoes your commit-
tee think that an amendment to the law, prohibiting positively their
settlement among us, would approach more nearly the true policy of
our Territory. But this course your committee do not now feel fully
instructed to recommend.

‘*Your committee refrain from any discussion of this subject, as
it is one which has already created a dangerous excitement through-
out the States of the Union; and your committee, deprecating all
such excitements as dangerous to the interest and happiness of so-
ciety, deem it most prudent to meet the first outburst of the spirit
of fanaticism among us with a respectful silence rather than run the
risk of increasing its fury by discussion and formal opposition.

‘*Your committee, therefore, recommend that no legislative action
be taken in regard to the prayers of the petitioners, and ask to be
discharged from the further consideration of the subject.’’— Iowa
Capitol Reporter (Iowa City), February 12, 1842, from the report of
the business of the House of Representatives, February 9, 1842.

54 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, pp. 58-60.
55 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, pp. 83-85.

56 Both were copied from the Ohio laws of 1831. The dependence
of the poorhouse law upon the Ohio law of 1831 was first brought
out by Dr. Aurner in his work on the History of the Township Gov-
ernment in Iowa, Ch. XVI.

57 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1843-44, p. 18. The course of
this act through the two houses of the legislature shows that there
was no particular interest in the matter.— See Journal of the House
of Representatives 1843-1844, pp. 168, 179, 185, 231; and Journal of
the Council, 1843-1844, pp. 149, 151, 153, 154.

58 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1845, p. 28.

CHAPTER V

59 Constitution of Iowa, 1846, Article XIII, See. 2, in Sham-
baugh’s Documentary Material Relating to the History of Iowa, Vol.
I, p. 208.

80 Laws of Iowa, 1846-1847, p. 150. The repeal of the law of

&
NOTES AND REFERENCES 349

1844 by this act affected no important principle, as the provisions of
the former related solely to the paying for the support of the poor
out of the county treasury, rather than out of the township treasuries
as was sometimes the case, and the auditing of the accounts involved
in the expenses for the support of the poor by the county commission-
ers.— See Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1843-1844, p. 18.

61 Laws of Iowa, 1846-1847, p. 182.
62 Laws of Iowa, 1848-1849, p. 62.

63 Laws of Iowa, 1850-1851, p. 77. For the provisions see note 69
where this act is described.

64 Laws of Iowa, 1850-1851, p. 230.

65 The history of these two bills in their passage through the two
houses will perhaps throw some light upon the methods of legislation
in general and the results of legislation for the poor in particular
during this period. The bill providing for the poorhouse in Des
Moines County was introduced by Mr. Milton D. Browning on Feb-
ruary 10, 1847. It was read a first and second time and on his motion
was then laid upon the table. In the afternoon of that day it was
taken from the table and referred to a select committee composed of
the Senators from Des Moines County. On the next day this com-
mittee reported it to the Senate with two amendments, which were
concurred in, and the bill was then ordered to be engrossed and read
a third time on the next day. This was done on the 12th and the
bill passed. On the motion of Mr. Samuel Fullinwider the title was
amended to read ‘‘require’’ in stead of ‘‘authorize’’. — Journal of
the Senate, 1846-1847, pp. 204, 206, 211, 214.

In the House the bill was read a first time on February 15th, and
a second time on the 18th, at which time Mr. William J. Cochran,
who later introduced the bill applying to Lee County, moved to
amend the bill by including Lee County within its scope. This was
agreed to by the House and the bill was then referred to a select
committee composed of the members from the counties of Lee and
Des Moines. On February 24th, Mr. Alfred Hebard of the select
committee to which it had been referred reported it back to the
House with amendments. The amendments were concurred in, the
rules suspended and the bill read a third time, passed, the title agreed
to, and the chief clerk ordered to acquaint the Senate of that fact.—
350 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, pp. 311, 342, 343,
411.

That during the discussion of this bill in the select committee of
the House the amendment by which Lee County was included in its
provision was eliminated is to be inferred from the fact that the
Senate concurred in the amendments as passed by the House on
motion of Mr. Browning, thus indicating that any changes made in
the bill were made in the House.— Journal of the Senate, 1846-1847,
p. 293. As approved by the Governor and printed it did not contain
the amendment including Lee County.

During the time while this bill was in the hands of the select com-
mittee of the House, from the 18th to the 24th, it must have become
clear to the committee that for some reason Lee County should not
be included for on the 22nd Mr. Cochran introduced House File No.
132, a ‘‘bill for the relief of the poor’’ which became a law on the
same day as the other and applied only to Lee County.— Journal of
the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, p. 375.

The reasons for the decision to have two bills instead of one may
be inferred from the fact that the bill for Lee County was quite dif-
ferent from that for Des Moines County. One act approved on Feb-
ruary 25, 1847, repealed the Territorial act of February 12, 1844, in
the county of Lee and gave the commissioners of that county au-
thority to have the citizens vote on the question of the erection of a
county poorhouse. The second act, approved on the same day, re-
quired the county commissioners’ court of Des Moines County to
purchase any amount of land up to the two hundred acres for the
purpose of establishing thereon a poorhouse and farm. It also pro-
vided that the provisions of the law of February 17, 1842, for a
board of directors for the poorhouse were to be repealed in their
application to the county of Des Moines. The duties of this board
were made by this act the duties of the county commissioners’ court.
In other respects the act of 1842 was to remain in full force in the
county of Des Moines.— Laws of Iowa, 1846-1847, pp. 150, 182

On January 12, 1849, a special act repealed the law of February
25, 1847. Again on February 4, 1851, by a special act the legisla-
ture provided that the county commissioners of Lee County were au-
thorized to purchase any quantity of land for a poorhouse up to two
hundred and forty acres. It was to be located and managed along
lines similar to those laid down in 1847 for Des Moines County. In
order to bring about legislative consistency it was necessary on the
NOTES AND REFERENCES dol

following day to repeal the act of January 12, 1849, which repealed
the previous act of February 25, 1847, thus reviving the latter. Noth-
ing could more clearly show how chaotic were legislative conditions
at this time than this series of special acts relating to the counties of
Lee and Des Moines.— Laws of Iowa, 1848-1849, p. 62; 1850-1851,
pp. 77, 230.

66 During this session, on February 18th, another bill of the same
general nature, but applying to Muscatine County, was introduced in-
to the House as House File, No. 121. This bill, however, after being
read the second time, was laid on the table from which it was never
taken.— Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, p. 342.

67 Laws of Iowa, 1847-1848, p. 95.

68 Powell’s History of the Codes of Iowa Law, in the Iowa Journal
of History and Politics, Vol. X, No. 1, pp. 12-14.

69 McClain’s Charles Mason —Iowa’s First Jurist, in the Annals
of Iowa (Third Series), Vol. IV, p. 607.

70 Code of 1851, pp. 124-132.
71 Code of 1851, pp. 128, 129.
72 Code of 1851, p. 130.

78 Compare Code of 1851, pp. 131, 132; Laws of the Territory of
Towa, 1841-1842, pp. 83-85; and Laws of the Territory of Michigan,
Vol. II, pp. 727-781, Vol. III, pp. 822-824; and Chase’s Statutes of
Ohio, Vol. II, pp. 998-1000; Vol. III, pp. 1547, 1548, 1829-1832.»

74 Code of 1851, pp. 124-132.

75 Bowman’s The Aministration of Iowa, in the Columbia Uni-
versity Studies in History, Economics and Public Law, Vol. XVIII,
No. 1, p. 171.

76 Crawford’s The County Judge System of Iowa with Special Ref-
erence to its Workings in Pottawattamie County, in the Iowa J ournal
of History and Politics, Vol. VIII, p. 482.

17 Garver’s The History of County Government in Iowa (not yet
published).

78 McClain’s Charles Mason — Iowa’s First Jurist, in the Annals
of Iowa (Third Series), Vol. IV, p. 608.
352 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

79 Report of the Code Commissioners, 1859, p. 190; Powell’s His-
tory of the Codes of Iowa Law, in the Iowa Journal of History and
Politics, Vol. X, p. 43.

80 The Code of 1851 was compared both with the first revision of
the New York laws and with the sixth edition of The Revised Statutes
of the State of New York, 1875, Vol. II, Ch. XX, Title I, where the
sections which belonged to the first revision are indicated. It is pos-
sible that had the Field reports been at hand a study of these would
have revealed many more similarities, and the greater debt of the
Iowa Code Commissioners to these reports. This is hardly probable,
however, as the Revised Statutes of the State of New York show
close agreement only in these sections.

81 Laws of Iowa, 1854-1855, p. 7.
82 Laws of Iowa, 1858, p. 282.

83 Laws of Iowa, 1860, p. 48. The amount of land purchased in
this case is mentioned, namely, ‘‘one hundred and ten acres’’.

84 Laws of Iowa, 1856, p. 454.

85 In Pottawattamie County objection to the county judge system
was first aroused over the action of the judge in loaning out the
money received from the swamp lands instead of using it to buy a
county farm, as was apparently voted by the electors of the county.
See Crawford’s The County Judge System in Iowa, in the Iowa Jour-
nal of History and Politics, Vol. VIII, p. 489.

Finally the judge bought the land for the county poor farm, and
was then accused by his political enemies of going beyond his au-
thority. His friends in the next legislature secured the adoption of
an act legalizing his action. As a matter of fact his enemies were
right in asserting that he had exceeded his authority, whether or not
the editor of the Council Bluffs Daily Morning Bugle was correct
in saying that two years before, according to his recollection, the
people had voted to use some of the swamp land money for the pur-
chase of a poor farm, for the law granting the swamp lands to the
counties provided that it should be used to build roads and bridges.

As to official corruption on the part of the judges see Crawford’s
The County Judge System of Iowa, in the Iowa Journal of History
and Politics, Vol. VIII.

Bloomer says: ‘‘During the early part of 1859, a tract of land
NOTES AND REFERENCES 353

for a poor-farm was purchased’’.— Bloomer’s Notes on the History
of Pottawattamie County, in the Annals of Iowa, July, 1872, Vol.
X, p. 183. This can not be true for the act legalizing the purchase
of real estate for a poor farm was approved on March 23, 1858.—
Laws of Iowa, 1858, p. 282. Therefore, it must have been early in
1858, as Crawford asserts in his article referred to above. As a mat-
ter of fact Judge Nye bought the land in the spring of 1858, but at
what was claimed an exorbitant price. In the indignation which
broke out in connection with this transaction his authority to do this
was called in question, with the result of the legislative action re-
ferred to above. See Journal of the Senate, 1858, pp. 506, 533, 595,
596; Journal of the House of Representatives, 1858, pp. 776, 781; and
Laws of Iowa, 1858, p. 282.

An attempt had been made three years before this to divert the
income from the swamp lands by a bill introduced by the representa-
tive from Pottawattamie County, but while it passed the two houses
apparently with but little opposition, it did so only in the last days
of the session and failed to receive the Governor’s signature. Under
the Constitution of the State at that time a bill so failing to receive
the Governor’s sanction did not become a law if the legislature ad-
journed within three days of the time when it was sent to the Gov-
ernor. For the course of the bill through the legislature see Journal
of the House of Representatives, 1854-1855, pp. 228, 322, 366, 408,
415, 437, 439; and Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, pp. 256, 282,
297, 314.

While this bill failed to become a law, it is quite possible that the
county judge of Pottawattamie County may have labored under the
impression that since it has passed both houses of the legislature
and had not been vetoed, that it was a law, and therefore he pro-
ceeded to buy the land with the swamp land money. :

86 See the Revision of 1860, Sec. 1854. Compare the Code of 1851,
See. 786.

87 Revision of 1860, Sec. 312, sub-sections 20, 23.
88 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. II, pp. 258, 259. :

89 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. TI, p. 261.
90 Laws of Iowa, 1861, Extra Session, p. 3.
354 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

91 Laws of Iowa, 1861, Extra Session, p. 31.

92 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. II, pp. 498, 499.

93 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. II, pp. 457, 458.

94 Laws of Iowa, 1862, Extra Session, pp. 37-39.
' /

95 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. II, pp. 349, 350; and Laws of Iowa, 1864, p. 36.

96 Laws of Iowa, 1864, pp. 99-101.
97 Laws of Iowa, 1866, Ch. 25, p. 23.
98 Laws of Iowa, 1868, Ch. 86, Sec. 3, pp. 113, 114.

99 Laws of Iowa, 1868, Ch.. 95, pp. 130, 131.

This bill, introduced by Mr. John A. Kasson of Polk County on
March 13, 1868, was debated on March 25th when called up by Mr.
Benjamin W. Johnson of Marshall County for a third reading. Mr.
Thomas 8. Wilson of Dubuque moved to strike out the words ‘‘the
city council of any incorporated city of the first class’’, saying that

he was opposed to sending the orphans and widows of soldiers to
the poorhouse, but the motion failed to carry. Mr. John M. Garrett
moved a reconsideration, but this motion likewise failed. After some
attempts to amend section three as it stood in the original bill Mr.
A. R. Cotton’s motion to substitute a new section for section three
earried and the section as it was finally adopted in the law was in-
serted. The strange wording in the last part of the first section is
explained by the fact that Mr. Horace Hamilton’s motion to insert
after the word ‘‘lights’’ in the sixth line the words ‘‘medical at-
tendance’’ finally carried and that Mr. Trusdell’s motion afterwards
to add to the end of the section as it originally stood the words ‘‘ex-
elusive of medical attendance’’ was carried, thus resulting in a sec-
tion which seems in one part to include medical attendance and in
the other to exclude it from the total of two dollars a week allowed
for each person aided. Mr. Charles Dudley moved to strike out the
words ‘‘other persons’’ in the first line of section two, but his mo-
tion failed.— Journal of the House of Representatives, 1868, pp. 382,
385, 472, 488, 611, 634, 639.
During the debate Mr. L. W. Babbitt made an unsuccessful motion
NOTES AND REFERENCES 309

to strike out the whole of section two. Mr. Brannock Phillips urged
against the provisions of the bill that if the words ‘‘other persons’’
and ‘‘and prefer to’’ were left in the bill, no one would go to the
poorhouses, with the result that these institutions would become ut-
terly useless and deserted, for all would prefer to be kept outside the
poorhouse rather than in it. Mr. John A. Kasson replied by saying
that it was the intention of the bill to give those in families the
choice of being supported outside at two dollars per week each, or
go to the poorhouse, and that so far as the fear that the poorhouses
would be deserted was concerned he hoped that God would hasten the
day when this should be so, to which several members responded with
an ‘‘Amen’’. Mr. John Y. Stone tried to have an amendment
adopted providing for the sending of the children of soldiers to the
nearest orphans’ home, but after Mr. Kasson had pointed out that
the numbers were so great the homes could not accommodate them,
Mr. Stone withdrew his motion— Iowa State Register (Weekly),
April 1, 1868.

There is no hint either in the Journal or in the press as to why
only incorporated cities of the first class and townships were included
within the provisions of the act.

200 In an issue of the Iowa State Register (Weekly) of April 8,
1868, the editor, under the caption of ‘‘A Righteous Bill’’, says:

‘*We are glad that in the mass of local legislation, enactments of
general interest are not overlooked by the General Assembly. One
of the most necessary measures of this kind, passed almost unani-
mously in the House of Representatives, is House File, No. 319, for
the relief of certain classes of indigent persons and particularly de-
signed to afford relief to the families of deceased soldiers, without
requiring them to be sent to the poor-house. There is no other
civilized country whose laws make no provision for furnishing needed
aid, outside of the poor-house, to certain classes of indigent un-
fortunate citizens. In Iowa we have no outdoor poor law, and hun-
dreds of worthy but indigent persons, in families, have suffered un-
told privation and misery, by reason of the want of such a law. A
respectable, sensible mother, or disabled, unfortunate father sur-
rounded by her, or his, flock of little suffering children, will suffer
on almost to the point of starvation, rather than take their children
to one of our county poor-houses, which, in nine cases out of ten,
is utterly unfit for their reception. As the law is now, hundreds of
356 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

honorable indigent persons in the State are supplied, or partially
supplied, by private charity, who should be aided by the county in
which they live. In many cases they are furnished more or less as-
sistance by the township trustees, or the board of supervisors, who
take the responsibility of giving some relief, without any law to au-
thorize it. That there should be a law authorizing such acts of pub-
lic humanity, is too manifest to admit of argument; and we sin-
cerely trust that the Senate, in this matter, will follow the example
of the House and give its sanction to the enactment at once.’’

The writer of this editorial was not quite correct in saying that
Iowa had no outdoor relief at that time. See Sec. 1390, Revision of
1860. This had been in the law from at least 1851. Doubtless, how-
ever, the editorial reflects the actual practice.

101 Laws of Iowa, 1870, p. 38.
102 Laws of Iowa, 1872, p. 72.

108 Powell’s History of the Codes of Iowa Law, in the Iowa Jour-
nal of History and Politics, Vol. XI, pp. 182-185, especially note 73,
on p. 185. For a full statement see Report of Commissioners to Re-
vise the Statutes, 1871, p. 33.

104 Report of Code Commission, 1873, Title XI.

105 Report of Code Commission, 1873, Title XI.

106 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1873, pp. 243, 244.
107 See Code of 1878, pp. 245-251; and Code of 1851, pp. 124-132.

108 Senate File No. 147 was introduced by Senator Joseph H.
Merrill of Wapello County in 1874 to amend this part of the Code.—
Journal of the Senate, 1874, pp. 150, 189.

109 Laws of Iowa, 1876, p. 21.
110 Laws of Iowa, 1878, p. 33.

111 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1876, pp. 55, 68, 105,
116, 123, 514, 603.

112 Laws of Iowa, 1876, p. 1438.
113 Laws of Iowa, 1878, p. 153.
114 Laws of Iowa, 1880, pp. 128, 129.
115 Laws of Iowa, 1888, p. 137.
NOTES AND REFERENCES 357

116 Laws of Iowa, 1897, Extra Session, p. 15.

117 Laws of Iowa, 1882, p. 55. Contracts for the new buildings
amounted to $12,500.

118 Laws of Iowa, 1892, p. 171.

119 Laws of Iowa, 1897, Extra Session, pp. 30, 31.
120 Laws of Iowa, 1894, Ch. 115.

121 Report of the Code Commission, 1896, p. 1.

122 Report of the Code Commission, 1896, pp. 3, 4.
128 Report of the Code Commission, 1896, pp. 64, 65.

124 See the so-called ‘‘ Black Code’’, the proposed code of the Com-
mission of 1896, pp. 437-443.

125 Laws of Iowa, 1907, Ch. 254, p. 254.
126 Laws of Iowa, 1909, Ch. 132, p. 131.
127 Laws of Iowa, 1909, Ch. 29, p. 29.

CHAPTER VI

128 As a matter of fact the 27 Hen. VIII, c. 25 provides that the
poor shall be eared for by their own neighborhoods. See Leonard’s
English Poor Relief, p. 55.

A law of settlement was first introduced into English Parliamen-
tary statutes in the reign of Charles II (13 and 14, Car. II, ¢. 12),
but this statute simply embodied in positive enactment what had long
been English custom. See Leonard’s English Poor Relief, pp. 107,
109.

129 Laws of the Territory of Wisconsin, 1836-1838, pp. 178-181.
130 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, pp. 58-60.
131 Code of 1851, pp. 124, 127.

132 See the so-called ‘‘ Black Code’’, the code proposed oF the Com-
mission in 1896, Secs. 9, 11, pp. 437-443.

138 Code of 1897, Secs. 2224-1, and 2226.

184 Code of 1851, Sec. 808-1; Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. III,
p. 1832; and Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, p. 58.
358 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

185 Code of 1851, Sec. 808-1; Laws of Iowa, 1864, Ch. 40; Code of
1878, Sec. 1352-1; and Code of 1897, Sec. 2224-1.

136 Code of 1851, Sec. 808-3; Report of the Code Commission,
1873, Title XI, Sec. 23-3; Code of 1873, Sec. 1352-3; and Code of
1897, Sec. 2224-3._

187 Code of 1851, Sec. 808-4, 808-5.

138 See Report of the Code Commission, 1873, Title XI, Sec. 23-4;
and Code of 1851, Sec. 808-4.

139 Code of 1851, Sec. 808-6; Code of 1878, Sec. 1352-6; and Code
of 1897, Sec. 2224-6.

140 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, p. 58.

141 Code of 1851, Sec. 808-7; Code of 1873, Sec. 1352-7; and Code
of 1897, Sec. 2224-7.

142 Code of 1851, Sec. 809; Code of 1873, Sec. 1353; and Code of
1897, See. 2224.

143 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, p. 58.
144 Code of 1851, Sec. 813.

145 Code of 1851, Sec. 814.

146 Code of 1851, Sees. 815-818.

147 Code of 1878, Secs. 1357-1360.

148 The codifiers made it three days, but the legislature changed
the number to fifteen. See ‘‘Black Code’’, 1896, pp. 437-443.

149 Code of 1897, Sec. 2228. The Code Commissioners had pro-
posed ten days as the term within which notices must be filed with the
district court.— See ‘‘ Black Code’’, 1896, pp. 437-443.

150 Aschrott and Preston-Thomas’s The English Poor Law Sys-
tem, pp. 9-13.

CHAPTER VII
131 Code of 1851, Secs. 812-847.

152 Revision of 1860, Sec. 1354; Laws of Iowa, 1868, p. 114; Code
of 1878, Sec. 1333; and Code of 1897, Sec. 2218.

158 Code of 1878, Sec. 1343; and Code of 1851, Sec. 803.
NOTES AND REFERENCES 359

154 Code of 1873, Sec. 1348; and Code of 1851, Sec. 804.
185 Code of 1897, Secs. 2219, 2222, 2098.

186 Code of 1873, Sec. 1354; Code of 1897, Secs. 2225-2227; and
Code of 1851, Sees. 811-814.

157 Laws of Iowa, 1868, pp. 130, 131; Code of 1873, Sees. 1330-
1382; and Code of 1897, Secs. 2227, 2228, 2235.
158 Code of 1897, Sec. 2230.

159 Code of 1897, Secs. 2230, 2231. This was a modification of the
provisions found in the Code of 1873, Sec. 1361, and in the enact-
ments of the Sixteenth General Assembly, Ch. 26, and of the Seven-
teenth General Assembly, Ch. 37.

160 Code of 1897, Sec. 2234. This was a modification of the Code
of 1873, by the incorporation of the provisions of the act approved on
April 10, 1888.— Laws of Iowa, 1888, p. 137. It is interesting to
note that the Code here differs slightly from the recommendations of
the Code Commission of 1896. See the ‘‘Black Code’’, 1896, pp.
437-443, Sec. 20.

161 Code of 1897, See. 2239.

162 Code of 1897, Sec. 2240; and Code of 1873, Sec. 1371.

163 Code of 1897, Sec. 2241. See also Code of 1878, Sec. 1372.
164 Code of 1897, Sec. 2245; and Code of 1873, Sec. 1379.

165 Code of 1897, Sec. 2234.

166 Code of 1878, Secs. 1357, 1359.

167 Code of 1897, Sec. 2228.

168 Code of 1851, Sec. 814. Doubtless he had many more duties
than the one mentioned in the Code would indicate, but if he had, it
was because of his close relations with the county judge and because
he was a kind of subordinate of the court.

169 Code of 1878, Secs. 1348, 1348, 1359; and Report of the Code
Commission, 1873, Title XI, Secs. 19, 25.

170 Code of 1851, Secs. 789, 797, 799, 800, 802, 803, 813, 814, 830-
843, 845, 846.

171 Report of the Code Commission, 1873, Title XI, Sec. 43. In
360 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

1875 fifty-three counties of the State had poorhouses. See Iowa
Legislative Documents, 1876, Vol. II, No. 21, p. 25.

172 Code of 1851, See. 790.
173 Revision of 1860, Sec. 1358.
174 Code of 1878, Sec. 1333.
175 Code of 18738, See. 1343.

176 Code of 1851, Sec. 826; Code of 1873, Sec. 1370; and Code of
1897, See. 2239.

177 See p. 4.

178 See the writer’s paper on The County Homes of Iowa, in the
Proceedings of the Thirteenth Iowa State Conference of Charities and
Correction, 1911, p. 41.

179 Code of 1851, Sec. 827; Code of 1873, Sec. 1371; and Code of
1897, Sec. 2240.

180 Code of 1851, Sec. 834; Code of 1878, Sec. 1374; and Code of
1897, See. 2243. Where the title of steward was obtained by the
code-makers of 1851 is not known.

181 Code of 1851, Sec. 837; and Revision of 1860, Secs. 1403-1405.

182 Code of 1851, Sec. 834, 835, 836; Code of 1873, Secs. 1374,
1375; and Code of 1897, Sees. 2243, 2244.

188 Code of 1878, Sec. 1376. According to the Code of 1851 and
the Revision of 1860 the proceeds from the labor of paupers received
into the poorhouse were to be so appropriated.

184 See the writer’s paper on The County Homes of Iowa, in the
Proceedings of the Thirteenth Iowa State Conference of Charities and
Correction, 1911, p. 46, for the sentiments of some poorhouse stewards
of Iowa.

:

CHAPTER VIII

185 See above p. 14. See also Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, Vol. I,
pp. 513-515.

186 See above pp. 51, 54, 65.

187 Code of 1851, Sees. 789, 795, 799-802, 813, 837; Revision of
1860, Secs. 1381, 1403-1405; and Code of 1897, Secs. 2227, 2244.
NOTES AND REFERENCES 361

188 Code of 1851, Sec. 814; and Revision of 1860, Sec. 1382.

189 Code of 1851, Sec. 819; Revision of 1860, Sec. 1387; Code of
1873, Sec. 1364; and Code of 1897, See. 2233.

190 Code of 1851, Sec. 827; Revision of 1860, Sec. 1395; Code of
1873, See. 1871; and Code of 1897, Sec. 2240.

191 Code of 1851, Secs. 820, 821, 823.
192 Code of 1851, Sec. 838.

193 Code of 1851, Sec. 846.

194 Code of 1878, Secs. 1344, 1361.
195 Code of 1873, Sec. 1364.

196 Code of 1878, Sec. 1366.

187 Code of 1878, See. 1365.

198 Code of 1878, Sec. 1377.

199 Code of 1873, Sec. 1368.

200 Code of 1897, Secs. 2216, 2218, 2219, 2220, 2226, 2227, 2230,
2234, 2235, 2236, 2240, 2244, 2251; and Report of the Code Commis-
sion, 1896, p. 65, Sec. 15.

201 See Aschrott and Preston-Thomas’s The English Poor-Law
System, p. 6.

202 See above, pp. 3, 4.

203 See above, p. 51.

204 See note 58, above, and p. 65.

205 Code of 1851, Secs. 824, 827.

206 Revision of 1860, Secs. 1392, 1395.

207 Code of 1878, Secs. 1330-1382.

208 Report of the Code Commission, 1873, Title XI, See. 39.
209 Report of the Code Commission, 1873, Title XI, Sec. 32.
210 Code of 1873, Sec. 1361.

211 Code of 1897, Sec. 2230; and Report of the Code Commission,
1896, pp. 64, 65, Title XII, See. 15.
3862 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

CHAPTER IX

212 See Ashrott and Preston-Thomas’s The English Poor-Law Sys-
tem, pp. 7, 15, 16.

218 The first suggestion concerning a workhouse for the able-bodied
is to be found -in a pamphlet published in 1646, entitled Stanley’s
Remedy. An ordinance was passed in London in 1647 providing for a
corporation to establish a workhouse. One was established at Black-
friars and another at Minories about 1655. Sir Matthew Hale advo-
eated their establishment in 1683 and Thomas Firman in 1687. Un-
der special act of Parliament one was established at Bristol in 1697,
at Worcester in 1703, and at Plymouth and other places in 1707. The
general introduction of institutions of this character was authorized
by an act 9 George I, c. 7 of 1723. See Aschrott and Preston-Thom-
as’s The English Poor-Law System, pp. 15, 16; and Gray’s A History
of English Philanthropy, pp. 72, 73.

214 See above, p. 56.
215 Revision of 1860, See. 1354.

216 Laws of Iowa, 1858, Ch. 158, Sec. 81; and Revision of 1860, Sec.
1111.

217 Code of 1878, Sec. 538.
218 Report of the Code Commission, 1873, Title XI, Ch. I, See. 43.
219 Report of the Code Commission, 1873, Title XI, Ch. I, Sec. 32.

220 The inconsistency is even more striking when one compares the
last part of See. 538, giving the city council the authority ‘‘to pro-
vide for the distribution of out-door relief to the poor’’, and See.
1361, giving the supervisors the power to appoint in cities of the first
or second class an overseer of the poor to attend to the outdoor relief.
One can not but feel from the remarks of the Code Commission on
the latter section that it expresses their real intent in the matter and
that the former section was but a survival which escaped elimination
by an oversight. See Code of 1873, Secs. 538, 1361; and Report of
the Code Commission, 1873, Title XI, Ch. I, Sec. 32.

221 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, pp. 83-85.

222 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, pp. 83-85; and Code
of 1851, Secs. 828-847.
\
NOTES AND REFERENCES 363

223 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, pp. 83 ff; and Code
of 1851, Sees. 834-837.

224 Code of 1873, Sec. 1376.

225 Code of 1873, Sec. 1374.

226 Code of 1897, Secs. 2243-2246,
227 Code of 1878, Sec. 1376.

228 A striking example of this attitude is furnished in a letter to
the writer by a steward of a ‘‘county home’’ of Iowa in reply to a
questionaire sent out for the purpose of gathering information con-
cerning the poorhouses of Iowa. The writer of the letter wrote upon
a letterhead which was graced with a cut which showed chiefly barns,
sheds, and yards with the poorhouse itself partly hidden by some
trees, and with an advertisement of ‘‘Barred Plymouth Rock chick-
ens’? and ‘‘standard bred poland-china hogs’’. Moreover, he said in
his letter that during his administration this farm had built up a
great reputation for its fine chickens and hogs. There was not a word
as to the nature of the house for the inmates, or of the provisions
for their eare, of how happy they were there, or of whether the poor-
house was a place to which sick or friendless or old people were glad
to come. There was nothing about the reputation of the poorhouse
as a real ‘‘ecounty home’’. See the Proceedings of the Thirteenth
Iowa State Conference of Charities and Correction, 1911, p. 46.

229 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, pp. 83-85.

230 Code of 1851, Secs. 820, 837, 838; and Revision of 1860, Sec.
1405.

231 Code of 18738, Secs. 1375, 1377; and Code of 1897, Sec. 2244.
232 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, p. 85, See. 11.

283 Code of 1851, Sec. 840; Revision of 1860, Sec. 1408; Code of
1878, Sec. 1379; and Code of 1897, Sec. 2245.

234 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, p. 84, Sec. 7.

235 Code of 1851, Sec. 839; and Revision of 1860, Sec. 1407.
236 Code of 1878, Sec. 1378.

237 Report of the Code Commission, 1896, pp. 65, 93.

238 Laws of Iowa, 1878, Ch. 166; and Code of 1897, Sec. 2249.
364 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

239 Laws of Iowa, 1866, p. 83.

240 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1874, pp. 61, 67, 68,
107, 108, 120, 131, 132, 137, 272. No less than fifteen such petitions
were presented to the legislature in 1874.

241 Laws of Iowa, 1876, Ch. 94.

242 Governor Gear in his first biennial message (January 13, 1880)
said that on October 1, 1879, there were 26 girls and 44 boys over
five years of age in the poorhouses in sixteen counties of the State—
Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of Iowa,
Vol. V, pp. 37-39.

Two years later Governor Gear reported that there were 85 children
under five years of age, 54 between five and ten years, and 28 between
ten and fifteen years of age, a total of 167, in Iowa poorhouses.—
See Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, p. 124. See Vol. V, p. 340 for a statement by Gover-
nor Sherman.

In 1911 the writer found twenty-one children in thirteen ‘‘ county
homes’’. It should be added that most of these were less than two
years old. See the Proceedings of the Thirteenth Iowa State Confer-
ence of Charities and Correction, 1911, p. 42.

243 For details concerning the care of dependent children see
above, Chap. XI.

244 Code of 1851, Sec. 837; and Revision of 1860, Sec. 1405. One
must remember that in the latter Code instead of the word ‘‘judge’’
one should read ‘‘board of supervisors’’.

245 See above, p. 7.

246 Laws of Iowa, 1868, Ch. 95, Sec. 2; Code of 1878, Sec. 1362;
Laws of Iowa, 1878, Ch. 37; and Code of 1897, Sec. 2231. The code
commission of 1896 had provided only for all Union soldiers, their
widows and families, but the legislature made the law include former
members of the navy also.— See the ‘‘ Black Code’’, 1896, pp. 437-443,
See. 16. '

247 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, p. 85, Sec. 13.

248 Code of 1851, Sec. 844; Revision of 1860, Sec. 1412; and Code
of 1878, Sec. 1381.

249 Code of 1897, Sec. 2247.
NOTES AND REFERENCES 365

250 Report of the Visiting Committee to the Governor, November
30, 1875, in the Iowa Legislative Docwments, 1876, Vol. ITI, No. 21,
pp. 16, 17, Appendix pp. 25-27. For the law creating the Visiting
Committee see Laws of Iowa, 1872, Ch. 183.

251 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. IV, p. 157; and Iowa Documents, 1876, Vol. III, No. 21,
p. 8. Governor Carpenter in his first biennial message (January 23,
1874) stated that the original bill providing for a visiting committee
for the insane asylums, passed on April 23,1872, had ‘‘elicited a live-
ly discussion’’, and that when finally passed into law it was with some
reluctance that he had signed it. He added, ‘‘I believe, however, the
report of the committee will vindicate the wisdom of the law.’’—
Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of Iowa,
Vol. IV, p. 72.

252 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Towa, Vol. V, p. 159. At this time, according to Governor Gear, there
were 1304 persons either in poorhouses or outside of them who were
receiving public relief in Iowa.

283 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Lowa, Vol. VI, p. 353.

254 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VII, pp. 21-23, 38-40.

255 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VII, pp. 145, 146.

256 Doubtless the report of the Healy Investigating Committee on
State Institutions, appointed by the Senate two years before, giv-
ing the results of a rather searching investigation of the various State
institutions and pointing out the economic wastes which were oc-
curring under the separate boards of trustees, had much to do with
the creation of this Board of Control. For this report, see Journal of
the Senate, 1898, pp. 109-179.

257 Laws of Iowa, 1900, Ch. 144. A joint resolution for a commis-
sion of three to investigate poorhouses in which insane were kept had
been proposed in the Senate in 1898. — Journal of the Senate, 1898,
pp. 899, 900, 978. But when the Board of Control act was enacted a
substitute resolution was passed giving this work to the new Board.
366 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

CHAPTER X

258 See above Chapter XI, p. 220, for the details.

259 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1839-1840, pp. 83, 84; and Laws
of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, pp. 58, 59, Sec. 6.

260 See above, Ch. VII, p. 140.
261 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1839-1840, p. 83, Sec. 3.
262 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1841-1842, pp. 58, 59,

268 Code of 1851, Secs. 825-827; Revision of 1860, Sees. 1393-1395;
Code of 1878, Secs. 1369-1371; and Code of 1897, Secs. 2238-2240.

264 In the Territorial law of 1840 alone was provision made for the
care of such persons without proceedings to have the county of legal
settlement pay for the temporary relief. See Laws of the Territory
of Iowa, 1839-1840, pp. 83, 84, Sees. 5, 6, 7; Laws of the Territory of
Iowa, 1841-1842, p. 59, Sees. 7-10; Code of 1851, Secs. 814, 824;
Revision of 1860, Secs. 1379, 1392; Code of 1873, Secs. 1354, 1357;
and Code of 1897, Sees. 2225, 2229.

265 Code of 1851, Sec. 822; and Revision of 1860, Sec. 1390.

266 Code of 1873, Sec. 1367; and Code of 1897, Secs. 2230, 2234,
2236.

267 See above, pp. 175, 278-284.
268 Laws of Iowa, 1868, pp. 130, 131.
269 Code of 1897, See. 2231.

270 Laws of Iowa, 1864, p. 99. The details of this act and those
amendatory thereto have been discussed in Chapter XTIT.

271 At least that was the case in 1911 when the writer made an in-
vestigation of the cost of poor relief in Iowa. See the writer’s paper
on The County Homes of Iowa, in the Proceedings of the Thirteenth
Iowa State Conference of Charities and Correction, 1911, p. 44.

272 The Development of Public Charities and Correction in the
State of Indiana, 1910, p. 125.
CHAPTER XI

273 Laws of Michigan Eatended over the Territory of Wisconsin by
the Organic Act, pp. 94-96 (bound with the Laws of First Legislative
NOTES AND REFERENCES 367

Session of the Territory of Wisconsin) ; and Laws of the Territory of
Lowa, 1839-1840, Ch. 24, pp. 29-31.

274 Code of 1851, Ch. 49, and Sec. 788.
276 Revision of 1860, Ch. 58, Sec. 1420.
276 Code of 1878, Sees. 4721, 4722.

277 See the case of State vs. Shoemaker, 62 Iowa 343, cited by
McClain in his Code of 1888, under See. 6113.

278 See pp. 187-189.

279 See Governor Stone’s second biennial message, January 14,
1868, in Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors
of Iowa, Vol. III, p. 104. The one at Cedar Falls was established,
with five orphans, on September 28, 1865, in an old building built for
a hotel.— See Memorial in Relation to the Iowa Orphans’ Home, p.
35, in the Iowa Legislative Documents, 1868, Vol. II. The Davenport
Home had been established earlier.

280 Laws of Iowa, 1866, p. 84.

281 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. III, p. 104. The branch at Glenwood was opened in No-
vember, 1866, because the others were located so far from the western
part of the State-—— Report of Iowa Soldiers Orphans’ Home, p. 6, in
the Iowa Legislative Documents, 1868, Vol. II.

282 Laws of Iowa, 1866, pp. 85, 86.

283 See reports in Iowa Legislative Documents, 1868, Vol. II; and
Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of Iowa,
Vol. III, pp. 416, 417.

284 Laws of Iowa, 1868, Ch. 66, Sec. 7; and Code of 1878, Sec.
1634.

285 Governor Merrill’s first biennial message, in Shambaugh’s
Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of Iowa, Vol. III, pp.
289-291. The rapid increase in the number of inmates in the institu-
tions after the State assumed charge of them indicates a tendency to
commit to an institution in the first burst of enthusiasm over a new
measure children who had been cared for otherwise up to that time.

286 Laws of Iowa, 1874 (Private), pp. 70, 71.
287 Laws of Iowa, 1876, Ch. 94.
368 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

288 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1874, pp. 371, 506,
532, 555, 556.

289 He says that while on November 1, 1873, there were 508 chil-
dren in the three Homes, on November 1, 1876, there were but 298.—
Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of Iowa,
Vol. IV, pp. 158, 159.

290 Laws of Iowa, 1876, Ch. 94. See Governor Drake’s biennial
message, January 11, 1898, in Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclama-
tions of the Governors of Iowa, Vol. VII, p. 138.

291 Iowa Legislative Docwments, 1872, Vol. II, No. 19, p. 6.

292 The fluctuations in the number of soldiers’ orphans may be
seen from the following table:

 

 

 

CEDAR | DAVEN-| GLEN- Perec SoLpIERS’ | CouNTY
Date AND INDIGENT :
Fauus | PoRT | wooD ORPHANS | ORPHANS
ORPHANS

1866 175 349 8 532

1867 280 541 27 848

1869 300 405 68 773

1871 288 310 120 718

1873 256 154 98 508 ;
1875 189 109 298

1877 139 180 41
1879 92 130 38
1881 76 169 93
1883 68 218 150
1885 47 280 , 233
1887 42 293 \ 251
1889 88 370 282
1891 300 198 202
1893 413 213 200
1895 458 248 210
1897 487 297 190
1899 445 260 185
1901 439 265 174
1903 491 271 220
1905 444 195 249
1906 491 195 296
1908 501 138 363
1910 554 89 465

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
NOTES AND REFERENCES

369

298 The number of pension claims, pensioners, and disbursements,

1891-1905, are shown in the following table:

 

 

 

 

Fiscau | Totau No. |No.oFr PENSIONERS ON THE ROLL
YEaR | oF ORIGINAL PaIp AS

Envine | Crams | ryyapipg| W2OWS) | onan PENSIONS

JUNE 30 | ALLOWED TC.
1891..... 156,486 | 536,821 | 139,339 | 676,160 |$117,312,690.50
1892..... 224,047 703,242 | 172,826 | 876,068 | 139,394,147.11
1893..... 121,630 | 759,706 | 206,306 | 966,012 | 156,906,637.94
1894..... 39,085 754,382 | 215,162 | 909,544 | 139,986,726.17
1895..... 39,185 750,951 | 219,567 | 970,524 | 139,812,294.30
1896..... 40,374 747,967 | 222,557 | 970,678 | 138,220,704.46
1897..... 50,101 | 746,829 | 229,185 | 976,014 | 139,949,717.35
1898..... 52,648 760,853 232,861 993,714 | 144,651,879.80
1899..... 37,077 753,451 | 238,068 | 991,519 | 138,355,052.95
1900..... 40,645 751,864 | 241,674 | 993,529 | 138,462,130.65
1901..... 44,868 | 747,999 | 249,736 | 997,735 | 138,531,483.84
1902..... 40,173 738,809 | 260,687 | 999,446 | 137,504,267.99
1903..... 40,136 | 728,732 | 267,813 | 996,545 | 187,759,653.71
1904..... 44,296 720,315 | 274,447 | 994,762 | 141,093,571.49
1905..... 50,027 717,158 | 281,283 | 998,441 | 141,142,861.33

 

 

 

 

 

 

— The World Almanac, 1912, p. 174.

294 Laws of Iowa, 1898, Ch. 118.

295 First Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Institu-
tions, 1899, p. 106.

296 Laws of Iowa, 1906, Ch. 126.
297 Laws of Iowa, 1906, Ch. 127.
298 Laws of Iowa, 1906, Ch. 181.
299 Laws of Iowa, 1911, Ch. 138.

300 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1874, pp. 61, 67, 68,
80, 107, 108, 120, 131, 132, 137, 272.

801 There were at least thirteen presented. — Journal of the Senate,
1874, pp. 20, 42, 58, 72, 101, 125, 132, 149, 206, 207.

302 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. IV, p. 59.
370 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

808 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. IV, pp. 158, 159.

304 Laws of Iowa, 1876, Ch. 94.

305 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, pp. 37, 38.

806 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, pp. 39, 40.

807 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, p. 124.

308 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, p. 286.

309 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, p. 340.

810 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VII, p. 138.

$11 First Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Insti-
tutions, 1899, pp. 106, 116.

812 Second Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Insti-
tutions, 1901, pp. 68, 69.

3138 Laws of Iowa, 1904, Ch. 106, Sec. 2; and Supplement to the ,
Code, 1907, Sec. 2692.

814 Seventh Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Insti-
tutions, 1910, pp. 39, 40. See also the Eighth Biennial Report, 1912,
p. 40.

815 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 229. By reference to the table given
in note 292, the reason will be apparent.

316 Governor’s Message, p. 23, in Iowa Legislative Documents,
1906, Vol. I.

817 Proceedings of the Thirteenth Iowa State Conference of Chari-
ties and Correction, 1911, p. 42; and Eighth Biennial Report of the
Board of Control of State Institutions, 1912, p. 558. The latter gives
the number under fifteen years of age as twenty-seven in eleven coun-
ties, June 30, 1912.

318 Laws of Iowa, 1847-1848, p. 95.
NOTES AND REFERENCES 371

819 Laws of Iowa, 1872, Ch. 159.

820 Laws of Iowa, 1878, Ch. 176.

321 Laws of Iowa, 1902, Ch. 133.

322 Code of 1851, Sec. 839.

823 Code of 1851, Sec. 1519.

824 Revision of 1860, Secs. 1407, 2576.

325 Code of 1873, Secs. 1378, 2283; and Code of 1897, Sec. 3234.

326 Laws of Iowa, 1868, Ch. 66, Sec. 7; and Code of 1878, See.
1634.

327 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VI, pp. 314, 315.

828 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VI, pp. 368, 369.

829 Laws of Iowa, 1906, Ch. 181, Sec. 2; and Supplement to the
Code, 1907, See. 2692-b.

330 Laws of Iowa, 1904, Ch. 11.
331 Laws of Iowa, 1909, Ch. 14.
332 Laws of Iowa, 1909, Ch. 13.
338 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 271.
334 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 31.

CHAPTER XII
335 Laws of Iowa, 1860, Ch. 161, in Revision of 1860. See Sec.
1491.
336 Revision of 1860, Sec. 1442.
337 Laws of Iowa, 1866, Ch. 132.
338 Jowa Legislative Documents, 1874, Vol. II, No. 18-a, pp. 17, 18.
339 Iowa Legislative Documents, 1876, Vol. III, No. 21, p. 17.

340 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. IV, p. 159.

341 Laws of Iowa, 1876, Ch. 152.
3872 ‘POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

342 Laws of Iowa, 1880, Ch. 164; and Shambaugh’s Messages and
Proclamations of the Governors of Iowa, Vol. V, p. 127.

343 Laws of Iowa, 1882, Ch. 40.

844 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VII, p. 35.

845 Code of 1897, Sec. 2739.

846 First Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Insti-
tutions, 1899, p. 107.

347 Laws of Iowa, 1902, Ch. 118.
348 Laws of Iowa, 1909, Ch. 173.

349 Laws of Iowa, 1911, Ch. 129. This law, as far as it affected
criminals, was declared unconstitutional by the United States District
Court for the Southern District of Iowa in June, 1914.— The Regis-
ter and Leader (Des Moines), June 25, 1914.

350 Laws of Iowa, 1913, House Joint Resolution No. 16.
351 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1838-1839, pp. 275, 276.
352 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1840-1841, Ch. 61, pp. 49-52.

358 Code of 1851, Ch. 50, pp. 134-136; Revision of 1860, Sec. 1442.
The law of March 23, 1858 (Laws of Iowa, 1858, Ch. 141), put the
matter in the hands of the probate court. See the Revision of 1860,
Sec. 1449. In the Code of 1878, Secs. 1395-1445, the county insanity
commissioners had appeared.

354 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. I, p. 453.

355 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. II, pp. 87-91. Governor Grimes said that the General As-
sembly four years before had voted to devote the proceeds of the
saline lands of the State to the establishment of an insane asylum.

356 Parish’s A Study in Administration, pp. 243, 245, 247.
857 Laws of Iowa, 1858, Ch. 141, Sec. 60.

358 Laws of Iowa, 1858, Ch. 141, Secs. 26, 30, 60. The codifiers of
1860 were uncertain as to whether these provisions were still the law
of the State or not, since this act was probably repealed by the Eighth
NOTES AND REFERENCES 373

General Assembly in Ch. 161. See note to the Revision of 1860, p.
235.

859 Revision of 1860, Secs 1442, 4485.
360 Revision of 1860, Secs. 1479, 1488, 1495.

361 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. II, p. 287.

362 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. II, p. 286.

368 Laws of Iowa, 1868, Ch. 179.

364 Parish’s A Study in Administration, p. 247; and Fourth Bi-
ennial Report of the Superintendent of the Iowa Hospital for the In-
sane, pp. 34-36, in the Iowa Legislative Documents, 1868, Vol. IT.

365 Laws of Iowa, 1870, Ch. 109, p. 121.
366 Code of 1873, Secs. 1403, 1426.
367 Iowa Legislative Documents, 1872, No. 15, p. 12.

368 Report of the State Visiting Committee for the Iowa Hospitals
for Insane made to the Governor, November 30, 1875, in the Iowa
Legislative Documents, 1876, Vol. III, No. 21, pp. 15, 16, 17.

369 Iowa Legislative Documents, 1880, Vol. III, No. 26, pp. 4, 5.

370 First Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Insti-
tutions, 1899, pp. 122-128.

811 Iowa Legislative Documents, 1880, Vol. III, No. 26, pp. 4, 5.
From the report of the Visiting Committee it would appear that the
Board of Control was quite too charitable in its judgment of the
county authorities twenty years before. They do not appear from
these figures quite as virtuous as the Board would make them appear.

372 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VI, p. 112; and Report of the Investigation Relative to
the Methods of Business Records, Accounts and Vouchers of State In-
stitutions, by J. W. Rich to the Governor of Iowa, Des Moines, 1890,
printed by order of the Governor.

373 Code of 1897, Sec. 2271.
374 Iowa Legislative Documents, 1876, Vol. III, No. 21, pp. 16, 17.
3874 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

375 Second Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State In-
stitutions, 1901, p. 68.

376 First Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Institu-
tions, 1899, pp. 125-128.

The Board of Control in 1903 reported after noting the number of
insane present in county institutions that ‘‘in few, if any, of the
county and private institutions are the inmates so well cared for as
they would be if in the state hospitals. This fact should be sufficient
to prevent the construction of new county institutions for the in-
sane and is a strong argument in favor of closing those already in
existence.’’— Third Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State
Institutions, 103, p. 28. The following figures will indicate the extent
to which the practice of sending incurable insane to county and pri-
vate institutions had gone:

NuMBER OF INSANE IN County INSTITUTIONS

June 30, 1899 . 3 7 : is . 7 . . . 991

June 30, 1901 . 3 Fi a 2 ‘ 7 2 ‘ j 971

June 30, 1903 . , ‘ ‘ . - . : . : 904
NouMBeER oF County INSTITUTIONS FOR INSANE

1900 . ‘ ‘ : . - 7 s ‘: : : 52

1901 . = ‘ 5 _ : 7 < : é ‘ é 54

1902 . 2 ‘ 3 2 j a 5 : ‘ ‘ 5 55

1903 . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

NUMBER OF PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS CARING FoR INSANE

June 30,1901 . - é 3 . . < ‘ . 7 4
June 30, 1903 . é < ‘ . 7 ‘ A 5 ‘ 4
NUMBER IN PRIvATE INSTITUTIONS
June 30, 1899 . - 5 . z . - ; : 384
June 30, 1901 . . 6 . ‘ : - ‘ ‘ ; 433
June 30, 1903 . 3 - ‘ % a . 7 : 474

In 1900-1901 there were fifty-two county institutions in which in-
sane were kept and four private institutions. In twelve additional
counties there were kept people whom the stewards regarded as in-
sane but who had never been so adjudged. That remained practical-
ly the situation in 1912. There were in these institutions the follow-
ing numbers of insane:
NOTES AND REFERENCES 375

June 30, 1899 ‘ g : A ‘ 2 3 : 1375
June 30, 1900 ee. Ge ee Gn ie cts om - 2808
June 30, 1901 - ‘ 3 A , : é i ‘ 1404

June 30, 1911 5 1551

See Second Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State In-
stitutions, 1901, p. 56; and Eighth Biennial Report of the Board of
Control of State Institutions, 1912, pp. 546-564.

377 Laws of Iowa, 1909, Ch. 26, Sec. 16.

378 One wonders whether the law providing for the inspection and
regulation of county poorhouses containing insane persons by the
Board of Control has not had much to do in leading counties to segre-
gate the insane from the other paupers so that the Board of Control’s
inspection and regulation would apply only to the part of the insti-
tutions devoted to the insane rather than to the entire poorhouse.

379 Iowa Legislative Documents, 1876, Vol. III, No. 21, pp. 21, 22.

380 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. IV, p. 159.

381 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, pp. 47, 48.

382 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, p. 132.

383 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, p. 288.

384 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VII, pp. 30, 31.

385 Code of 1897, Sec. 2308.

386 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VII, p. 145.

387 Laws of Iowa, 1900, Ch. 144; Supplement to the Code, 1907,
Sec. 2727-a58-66; Second Biennial Report of the Board of Control of
State Institutions, 1901, pp. 55, 56; and Third Biennial Report of
the Board of Control of State Institutions, 1903, p. 28.

388 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 235.

389 Laws of Iowa, 1886, Ch. 47; and Code of 1897, Sec. 2283.
376 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

390 Laws of Iowa, 1907, Ch. 118,
391 Laws of Iowa, 1892, Ch. 24.

392 Laws of Iowa, 1904, Ch. 78; Supplement to the Code, 1907, Sec.
2308-a; and Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 183. In New York this is cared
for by the Department of State, Alien and Indian Poor of the State
Board of Charities. — See Forty-fourth Annual Report of the State
Board of Charities of the State of New York, 1911, Vol. I, pp. 154-
156.

393 Laws of Iowa, 1906, Ch. 92, Sec. 1.

394 Laws of Iowa, 1911, Ch. 98.

395 Code of 1851, Ch. 73; Laws of Iowa, 1848-1849, Ch. 121, p. 148.
396 Laws of Iowa, 1854-1855, Ch. 87.

897 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. TI, pp. 338, 339. Besides this institution there were at
this time in existence in the State of Iowa only the Asylum for the
Blind and the Insane Asylum.

398 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1868, p. 155.
399 Laws of Iowa, 1868, Ch. 107.

400 Laws of Iowa, 1868, Ch. 106.

401 Code of 1897, Sec. 2739.

402 Laws of Iowa, 1848-1849, Ch. 121; Code of 1851, Ch. 73.

408 Laws of Iowa, 1852-1853, p. 47. The name was changed to the
‘¢Tnstitution for the Education of the Blind’’ by an act approved on
January 22, 1855. — Laws of Iowa, 1854-1855, p. 81. It was again
changed to the ‘‘Iowa College for the Blind’’ by an act approved on
April 6, 1872. — Laws of Iowa, 1872 (private), p. 45.

404 Laws of Iowa, 1854-1855, Ch. 56.
405 Laws of Iowa, 1866, Ch. 43, See. 7.
406 House Journal, 1868, pp. 239, 321.

407 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamation of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VI, p. 145.

408 Laws of Iowa, 1890, Ch. 53; and Laws of Iowa, 1900, Ch. 103,
See. 1.
NOTES AND REFERENCES 377

409 Code of 1851, Ch. 73; and Code of 1897, Sec. 2739.
410 Laws of Iowa, 1911, Ch. 141.

411 Laws of Michigan in force in the Territory of Wisconsin, 1838,
pp. 208-210. This law was repealed on August 30, 1840.

412 Code of 1878, Secs. 2272, 2273; and Code of 1897, Sec. 3219.

#13 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. IV, p. 159.

414 Laws of Iowa, 1902, Ch. 93, Sees. 1, 2, 5. Third Biennial Re-
port of the Board of Control of State Institutions, 1903, pp. 34-36.

415 Laws of Iowa, 1904, Ch. 80.
416 Laws of Iowa, 1904, Ch. 80, See. 10.

417 Laws of Iowa, 1906, Ch. 94. The supervisors each year were
required to estimate the amount necessary for this purpose and levy
a special tax therefor. This fund was not to be used for any other
purpose. If, however, no special tax was levied for this purpose, the -
amount was to be paid out of the general county fund.

418 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 184.

419 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VII, p. 32.

420 First Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Insti-
tutions, 1899, p. 119.

421 Third Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Institu-
tions, 1903, p. 40.

422 Biennial Message of B. F. Carroll, January, 1911, p. 26, in the
Iowa Legislative Documents, 1911, Vol. I.

423 Laws of Iowa, 1911, Ch. 129.
424 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 236.

CHAPTER XIII

425 See above, p. 175.

428 Laws of Iowa, 1888, Ch. 105; Laws of Iowa, 1892, Ch. 69, Sec.
1; Laws of Iowa, 1904, Ch. 17, See. 2; and Laws of Iowa, 1909, Chs.
3878 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

30, 31. These acts are simply examples of a series of acts passed at
various times. For instance, an act was passed on April 7, 1884,
which first provided for the burial of soldiers, sailors and marines of
the United States who served during the War, and limited the funeral
expenses to thirty-five dollars. Laws of Iowa, 1884, Ch. 178. The
Code of 1897, Sec. 433, provided that burial of these classes was not
to be in that part of the cemetery used exclusively for paupers.

427 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, p. 375.

428 Laws of Iowa, 1886, Ch. 58.

429 Laws of Iowa, 1892, Ch. 95. The Code of 1897, Sec. 2606, add-
ed the limitation that their wives and widows were to be admitted
only if they had become the wives of soldiers, sailors, or marines be-
fore 1885. In 1906 the Thirty-first General Assembly amended this
provision so that a widow of an honorably discharged soldier, sailor,
or marine who had become a widow before 1885, but who subsequent
to that date had married another could be admitted— Laws of Iowa,
1906, Ch. 119,

430 Laws of Iowa, 1900, Ch. 92.

431 Fourth Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Insti-
tutions, 1905, pp. 52, 53.

432 Laws of Iowa, 1907, Ch. 145. By an act approved on April 6,
1892, the county from which a soldier had been sent was made liable
for his support in the Hospital for the Insane should he become in-
sane. — Laws of Iowa, 1892, Ch. 24.

438 Laws of Iowa, 1909, Ch. 164.
434 Laws of Iowa, 1909, Ch. 166.
435 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 16.

436 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 220.

CHAPTER XIV

487 See the Proceedings of the Thirteenth Iowa State Conference of
Charities and Correction, 1911, p. 43. In forty-five out of eighty-
seven county homes reported to the writer in 1911, the doctor visited
NOTES AND REFERENCES 3879

only when called; in twenty-four he visited once a week unless called
oftener; in four of them, semi-weekly; in one, every two weeks; in
three, monthly; in one, quarterly; and in one, ‘‘frequently’’.

438 Laws of Iowa, 1909, Ch. 26. This act was approved on April 6.
439 Laws of Iowa, 1906, Ch. 120.

440 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 40.

441 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 238.

CHAPTER XV

442 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1838, pp. 198, 201, 207,
216.

443 Laws of the Territory of Iowa, 1838-1839, pp. 455, 456.
444 Code of 1851, Ch. 208, p. 462.
445 Revision of 1860, Ch. 185; and Code of 1878, Secs. 4130-4144.

446 Laws of Iowa, 1876, Ch. 69; McClain’s Code of 1888, Sees. 5527,
5528.

447 Laws of Iowa, 1890, Ch. 43, Sec. 2.

CHAPTER XVI

448 Iowa Legislative Documents, 1874, Vol. II, No. 31.

449 Laws of Iowa, 1874 (Private), pp. 11, 12. This bill was pre-
ceeded in the Senate by Senate File No. 123, proposing to loan these
settlers money. — See Journal of the Senate, 1874, pp. 124, 141, 162,
167.

450 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Lowa, Vol. VI, p. 419.

CHAPTER XVII
451 Laws of Iowa, 1872, Ch. 183.

452 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. IV, pp. 72-74. The Governor in this message criticised
some official who objected to the appointment of this committee.
Doubtless he refers to the report of Dr. Mark Ranney, the Superin-
tendent of the Mt. Pleasant Hospital, who in his report had criticised
380 POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

the law. Governor Carpenter in his message accused him of using
coarse epithets about the legislature and the committee.

In Dr. Ranney’s report, however, there are to be found no coarse
epithets applied to either of these authorities, but a straightforward
argument against the provisions of the act which took out of the
hands of the superintendent the right to limit letter-writing of the
inmates to their friends and lessened the control of the superin-
tendent over the patients in the hospital. — See Iowa Legislative Doc-
uments, 1874, Vol. II, No. 17-a, especially pp. 27-31.

\
453 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1874, Index, H. F.,
No. 219.

454 Iowa Legislative Documents, 1876, Vol. IT, No. 21, p. 8.

455 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. IV, p. 157.

456 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, pp. 18, 19.

457 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, pp. 63-66, 68, 69.

458 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. V, p. 159.

459 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Lowa, Vol. VI, pp. 303, 304.

460 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VI, p. 353.

461 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VII, pp. 38-40.

462 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VII, pp. 21-23.

463 Shambaugh’s Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of
Iowa, Vol. VII, pp. 145, 146, 153, 154. One wonders whether these
reactionary views of Republican Governors just following a Demo-
eratic regime, were rooted in scientific or political considerations.

464 Journal of the Senate, 1898, pp. 109-179. The committee said:
“‘Tf we thought the legislature competent to remedy the defects,
abuses, and evils presented in our report, by enactments, applicable
NOTES AND REFERENCES 381

to each institution, there would be much merit in suggesting specific
changes. Entertaining the opinion, however, that the major part of
our criticisms refers to abuses inhering in the trustee system, a thor-
ough measure of reform is the only remedy. We attempted with some
care to prepare a list of proposed statutory amendments, but on re-
flection it was ascertained that the greater number of such amend-
ments can properly form a part of a measure creating a central or
supervisory board. Many other of such amendments will not be re-
quired if such board is established. The disease is organie and too
deep seated for the use of palliatives.

. . . . . . . . . . . .

“*Much of the discussion regarding the merits of state or county
care of the insane will be unnecessary under a more economical man-
agement which will reduce the per capita allowance for support pur-
poses. The failure of the state to show a reduction in the cost of
support of the inmates, though it is evident that such reduction should
be had in the last seven years, may be taken as one reason why many
counties are building asylums to house their insane. Thoroughly
convinee the people and members of boards of supervisors that the per
capita allowance for insane is not greater than is required and this
question of county care will solve itself, for all must grant that the
state hospital is the proper place to either cure or care for the in-
sane.’? — Journal of the Senate, 1898, pp. 171, 173.

Relative to the statements of the Governors that special boards of
trustees produced experts on the work of the institutions, the com-
mittee said:

‘* As a general proposition, it must be said that a great number of
these trustees do not display the familiarity with the institution, or
knowledge of the manner in which its business is conducted, to enable
them to intelligently participate in a careful or economical manage-
ment thereof. As our report indicates, many of the trustees betrayed
in their examination before the committee a want of that information
respecting the institution which might be supposed would be known to
any citizen. There are some exceptions to this rule. The committee
met two-thirds of all the trustees. Less than one-third of this num-
ber gave the required time and attention, or evinced the possession
of information sufficient to give valuable counsel, to say nothing of
actively participating in, or directing a business involving annually
the expenditure of hundreds of thousands of dollars. As a body, the
382. POOR RELIEF LEGISLATION IN IOWA

trustees and regents are men of intelligence and integrity, who have
been successful in their several lines of business. A man may be a
success in his own business, yet this very fact and the multiplicity
of his private affairs prevents him as trustee from giving the neces-
sary time to the performance of the state’s business. Through neg-
ligence and an indisposition to study, or to familiarize themselves
with the government of the institution, they have ceased, in many
cases, to be factors in the management. The superintendents or sub-
ordinates do the business that the law expects and requires to be done
by the trustees. Iowa is undoubtedly receiving the judgment and
experience of superintendents and other employes in the management
of its affairs rather than the judgment and experience of the trustees,
who are charged with the execution of the trust. The selection of a
citizen living on the eastern border of the state as a trustee of an
institution located on the western border is often had. Such selec-
tion does not tend to promote the public service.’’— See Journal of
the Senate, 1898, p. 175.

485 Journal of the Senate, 1898, pp. 899, 900.
466 Journal of the Senate, 1898, pp. 923, 978, 979.

467 Laws of 1898, pp. 62-76. See also reprint of the act in First
Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Institutions, 1899,
pp. 1-17.

468 See above, pp. 251-254.

469 First Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Institu-
tions, 1899, pp. 123, 126.

470 Laws of Iowa, 1900, Ch. 144.
471 Laws of Iowa, 1902, Ch. 133.

472 Laws of Iowa, 1902, Ch. 93, Sec. 1. The next General Assembly
further strengthened its control over this institution. — Laws of Iowa,
1904, Ch. 80.

478 Laws of Iowa, 1904, Ch. 11, Sec. 14.

474 Laws of Iowa, 1906, Ch. 181, Sec. 1

475 Laws of Iowa, 1906, Ch. 92, Sec. 1.

476 Laws of Iowa, 1909, Ch. 180, act approved on April 8, 1909.
NOTES AND REFERENCES 383
477 Biennial Message of B. F. Carroll, 1911, pp. 29-31, in the Iowa
Legislative Documents, 1911, Vol. I.

478 Laws of Iowa, 1911, Ch. 141. This act was approved on April
6th.

479 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 235.
480 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Ch. 236.
481 Laws of Iowa, 1913, Chs. 220, 232.

482 Second Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State Institu-
tions, 1901, p. 56.

CHAPTER XVIII

483 Highth Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State In-
stitutions, 1912, p. 556.

484 Highth Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State In-
stitutions, 1912, pp. 556-558.

485 Highth Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State In-
stitutions, 1912, pp. 558, 559.

486 Highth Biennial Report of the Board of Control of State In-
stitutions, 1912, p. 554.
INDEX
INDEX

Accounts, uniform system of, recom-
mended, 303

Admission to poorhouse, 57, 69, 145,
146, 147, 169, 170

Adoption of children, provisions rel-
ative to, 204, 205, 213, 222, 223,
225, 226, 322

Agents, State, care of poor by, 45, 49,
50; duties of, 204, 205; provision
for, 223; appointment of, 309

Alienists, 330

Alms, collectors of, 290

Andrew, orphan asylum at, 218, 219

Apprentices, 11, 58, 220, 221; legal
settlement of, 16, 54, 67, 119, 120
(see also Children)

Apprenticeship, law relative to, 172

Appropriations, securing of, for State
institutions, 302; lack of continuity
of purpose in, 302; limitation on
making of, 303

Assessors, enumeration of soldiers and
marines by, 95; enumeration of
soldiers’ orphans by, 198

Associated charities, 154, 315

Associations for caring for children,
State supervision of, 219, 220, 309

Babbitt, L. W., 354

Bastards, law relative to legal settle-
ment of, 29; provisions for care of,
195-197 (see also Illegitimate Chil-
dren)

Beggars, 290 :

Belgium, farm colonies for vagrants
in, 292

Bequests, receiving of, 4, 5, 6, 56, 68

Biggs, Mr., 53

Bills, auditing of, 303

Blackfriars (England), 362

Blacks, legal settlement denied to, 8,

16, 53, 54, 61, 67; right of gaining
settlement given to, 118

Blind, number of, in Iowa, 241, 270;
provisions for care of, 269-271; re-
porting of names of, 271; number
of, in poorhouses, 320; present
methods of caring for, 323

Blind, College for, 213, 214, 323,
876; establishment of, 269; legisla-
tion relative to, 269-271; placing
of, under Board of Control, 306;
placing of, under Board of Educa-
tion, 310

Blind, Industrial Home for Adult,
establishment of, 270; abandonment
of, 271; placing of, under Board of
Control, 306

Board of Charities, bill providing for,
297; establishment of, recommend-
ed, 297, 298; reference to, 304,
812; provision for, in Indiana, 332

Board of Control, supervision over
eounty institutions given to, 112;
creation of, 181, 208, 212; super-
vision of care of insane by, 181, 255,
259-261, 308, 312, 318, 316; ref-
erence to, 216, 225, 230, 231, 247,
258, 271, 272, 283, 322, 323, 324,
825, 327, 328, 331, 365, 375; ad-
vantages of supervision of outdoor
relief by, 191, 192; recommenda-
tions of, 208, 204, 212, 213, 238,
254, 276; State agents appointed
by, 204; placing out of children
supervised by, 205; report of, 214,
215, 248, 251; supervision of pri-
vate orphan asylums by, 219, 220;
evil conditions in poorhouses point-
ed out by, 251-254; responsibility
of, for care of non-resident insane,
264; College for Blind removed

387
388

from control of, 271; Soldiers’
Home placed under control of, 281;
establishment of, recommended,
298, 299; report in favor of estab-
lishment of, 801-305; act creating,
306, 307; additional powers given
to, 309-311; criticism of, 310; sug-
gestions concerning supervision by,
331-334

Board of Education, State, College for
Blind placed under control of, 271,
310

Boies, Horace, recommendations of,
180, 222, 223, 299; proclamation
of, 295

Bounties, giving of, to volunteers, 94

Bridges, building of, 72

Bristol (England), 362

British, surrender of Michigan Terri-
tory by, 24

Brothers, liability of, for support of
relatives, 24, 95; omission of, from
list of relatives liable, 45

Brown County (Wisconsin), 346

Browning, Milton D., 349, 350

Calamity, special relief for victims of,
293-295

California, 80

Carpenter, C. C., recommendations of,
180, 201, 202, 206, 207, 235, 256,
272; reference to, 296, 297, 380

Carroll, B. F., 276; recommendation
of, 310

Cedar Falls, branch of soldiers’ or-
phans’ home at, 198; abandonment
of soldiers’ orphans’ home at, 202;
reference to, 203; number of or-
phans in home at, 368

Charitable institutions, investigation
of, 249, 250; visitation of, 297;
supervision over, recommended,
298; report of Healy committee
concerning, 300-305; placing of,
under Board of Control, 306, 307

Charitable purposes, regulation of
solicitation of funds for, 311, 312

Charity workers, 154, 155

Chase’s Statutes of Ohio, 19, 69

INDEX

Cherokee,
at, 273

Chickasaw County, 111

Children, apprenticing of, 4; deser-
tion of, 5; binding out of, 6, 11,
18, 22, 28, 26, 32, 36, 41, 45, 58,
69, 102, 109, 137, 172, 220, 221;
liability of, for support of parents,
17, 82, 50, 81, 321; absence of
provision for, 67; reference to, 95,
829; tuition for education of poor,
105; neglect of, 112; law relative
to settlement of, 119, 120; keeping
of, in poorhouses, 172-174, 209-
217; provisions for care of normal,
195-232; provisions for care of il-
legitimate, 195-197; provisions for
eare of orphan, 197-220; adoption
of, 204, 205, 213, 222, 223, 225,
226; placing out of, on contract,
204; agents for finding homes for,
204, 205, 223, 309; summary of
State care of normal, 216, 217;
care of, in private institutions, 217-
220; State control of associations
for caring for, 219, 220; care of
dependent, outside of institutions,
220-230; relation of juvenile court
to care of, 224-226; definition of
dependent or neglected, 224; insti-
tutions made parties to adoption of,
225; relation of contributory de-
pendency law to care of, 226-228;
change in law relative to support
of, by parents, 228, 229; relation
of mother’s pension law to care of,
229, 230; summary of methods of
earing for dependent, 230-232,
322; provision for care of feeble-
minded, 233-239; liability of, for
support of insane parents, 240; ef-
fect of State control of care of, 265,
266; homes for, placed under
Board of Control, 809; care of, in
homes, 320; supervision over care
of, 324; suggested changes in sys-
tem of caring for, 327, 328 (see
also Orphans)

Chronic insane, proposals for State

department for inebriates
INDEX

hospital for, 255-258; movement
for county asylums for, 258

Circuit court, power given to, 97;
reference to, 101, 122, 135; fune-
tions of, in poor relief, 128, 129

Cities, incorporation of, 72; appoint-
ment of overseers in, 101, 105, 132,
152; reference to, 108; legislation
relative to infirmaries in, 161-164

City council, powers of, 97, 98, 132;
power taken from, 101; reference
to, 152; powers of, relative to in-
firmary, 161-164

City infirmary, legislation relative to,
161-164

Civil War, poor relief legislation dur-
ing period of, 92-99; legislation oc-
casioned by, 118, 160, 173, 174,
176, 187, 188, 244, 279, 281, 283;
eare of orphans of soldiers of, 197-
205; care of dependents caused by,
293

Clarinda, opening of insane hospital
at, 248

Clark, Dan E., acknowledgment to, xi

Cleaves, Margaret A., report of, 180,
298

Olerk of court, functions of, in poor
relief, 102, 135

Cleveland (Ohio), 33; Cooley Farms
at, 291, 330

Cochran, William J., 349, 350

Code commissioners, list of, in 1851,
75; sources of legislation adopted
by, 78-80; work of, on Code of
1878, 99-101; work of, on Code of
1897, 106-109

Code of 1851, character of, 75; ori-
gin of sections on poor relief in,
75, 76, 78-80; provisions of, rela-
tive to poor relief, 76-88; compari-
son of sections of, with New York
law, 80-88; reference to, 97, 99,
100, 103, 123, 126, 128, 129, 130,
134, 135, 136, 188, 139, 141, 145,
146, 147, 151, 157, 167, 171, 172,
175, 186, 240; law of settlement
in, 118, 119, 120; provisions of,
relative to removal of non-resident
paupers, 121, 122; provisions of,

389

relative to poorhouses, 158-160;
provisions of, relative to directors
of poorhouse, 164-166; provisions
of, relative to outdoor relief, 187;
provisions of, relative to illegiti-
mate children, 196; provisions of,
relative to binding out children,
221; provisions of, relative to deaf
and dumb, 266; provisions of,
relative to care of blind, 269; pro-
visions of, relative to vagrants, 290;
table showing origin of sections of,
337-339

Oode of 1873, 75, 123, 129, 130, 134,
138, 189, 140, 142, 145, 146, 147,
148, 149, 151, 152, 162, 163, 167,
168, 171, 172, 175, 176, 250; pro-
visions of, relative to poor relief,
99-104; excellent character of pro-
visions of, 103, 104; law of settle-
ment in, 118, 119; provisions of,
relative to removal of non-resident
paupers, 122, 123; provisions of,
relative to outdoor relief, 187; pro-
visions of, relative to illegitimate
children, 196; provisions of, rela
tive to binding out children, 221;
provisions of, relative to vagrants,
290

Code of 1897, 75, 123, 129, 130, 132,
138, 184, 140, 145, 147, 148, 149,
152, 171, 172, 175, 250, 258; pro-
visions of, relative to poor relief,
106-110; provisions of, relative to
outdoor relief, 187, 188; provisions
of, relative to binding out children,
221; provisions of, relative to care
of blind, 271

Code Supplement of 1907, 309

Cole, C. C., 198

Colony for Epileptics, recommenda-
tions concerning, 275, 276; estab-
lishment of, 276, 277; placing of,
under Board of Control, 311; ref-
erence to, 324

Conference of Charities and Correc-
tion, National, 180, 298

Constables, duties of, 28, 30, 46, 52,
54, 121, 290

Constitution of 1846, provision of, 73
390

Consumptives, special hospital for, at
Glenwood, 239

Contracts, care of poor by, 4, 22, 45,
49, 55, 183, 184, 185-187; pro-
visions relative to, 22; letting of,
28, 27; limitation on time of, 67

Contractors, rules for government of,
25; supervision over, 78, 103, 133,
139, 140, 145; bonding of, 102;
functions of, 140, 141; changes in
law relative to, 185-187

Contributory dependency, law on sub-
ject of, 226-228, 322; administra-
tion of law relative to, 231, 232

Convicts, resolution relative to, 89

Cooley Farms, 291, 380

Correction, house of, 33, 34

Correctional institutions,
tion of, 249, 250

Cotton, A. R., 354

Council Bluffs, school for deaf and
dumb located at, 267; reference to,
323

Counties, 3; poorhouses in, 7; fail-
ure of, to build poorhouses, 8; pro-
visions of Ohio law relative to poor-
houses in, 9, 10; making of, units
of relief, 28; position of, as units
of relief, 42; penalty for bringing
paupers into, 42, 46; organization
of, 72; care of families of soldiers
by, 93-99; payment of cost of sup-
porting poor in, 104; retention of,
as units of relief, 117; poor relief
officials in, 126-143; care of sol-
diers’ orphans by, 198, 199; sup-
port of soldiers’ orphans charged
to, 202, 203; result of charging sup-
port of orphans to, 208-214; fail-
ure of, to send orphans to Home,
211, 212; reduction of cost to, of
support of orphans, 214, 215, 216;
eare of indigent idiots by, 233, 234;
responsibility of, for support of
feeble-minded children, 236, 237;
cost of support of insane paid by,
248, 244; sending of insane pa-
tients back to, 245, 247, 248, 310,
311; building of insane asylums by,
248; care of insane by, 248, 249;

investiga-

INDEX

eost of support of insane by, 249;
investigation of care of insane by,
249, 250; recommendations rela-
tive to care of insane by, 254;
methods of caring for insane in,
255; number of insane persons in,
256, 257, 258, 374, 375; super-
vision over care of insane by, 259-
261; results of care of insane by,
261-266; slowness of, to send in-
ebriates to hospital, 274; levy of
taxes by, for support of soldiers’
families, 278, 279; expenses of
medical attendance paid by, 285;
care of tuberculosis patients by, 285,
288; variations in amounts expend-
ed in, 325, 326; comparison of care
of insane by State and by, 333, 334

County auditor, 12, 122, 131, 132;
functions of, in poor relief, 134,
185

County board of charities, 332, 333

County clerk, children bound out by,
221; reference to, 243

County commissioners, duties trans-
ferred to, 5; reference to, 6, 11,
14, 21, 23, 27, 41, 42, 44, 45, 50,
52, 55, 65, 67, 73, 165, 166, 175,
196; powers of, relative to poor-
houses, 9, 10; levy of taxes by, 17,
32; removal of non-resident paupers
by, 30; children bound out by, 32;
duties of, relative to non-resident
paupers, 45, 46; powers and duties
of, in poor relief, 47-50, 56, 57, 58,
59, 64, 68, 69; responsibility of,
for care of poor, 51; management
of poorhouse by, 158; admission to
poorhouse by, 169; organization of
boards of, 346

County court, 103; functions of, in
poor relief, 126-128; outdoor relief
by, 187; authority of, in care of in-
sane, 240, 241; names of defectives
reported by, 271 (see also County
judge)

County doctors, character of, 285;
reference to, 288; visits of, at coun-
ty homes, 378, 379

Qounty homes, name of poorhouses
INDEX

changed to, 111; number of, in
Iowa, 819; need of prohibiting
keeping of children in, 328; sug-
gested changes in relation to, 329-
331; visits of doctor at, 378, 379

County hospitals, special room for in-
sane in, 254; provision for estab-
lishment of, 285; number of, estab-
lished, 286

County insane fund, law relative to,
258, 259

County judge, functions of, in poor
relief, 77-79, 82-88, 126-128; feel-
ing against, 89; superseding of, by
supervisors, 91, 92; warning to de-
part issued by, 121; duties of, in
removing non-resident paupers,
122; reference to, 131, 146, 165,
166, 196; appointment of directors
by, 136; spy appointed by, 140;
part of, in management of poor-
house, 159; admission to poorhouse
by, 170; children bound out by,
221; authority of, in care of in-
sane, 242 (see also County court)

County judge system, origin of, 79,
80; abolition of, 92, 128

County superintendent, deaf and
dumb persons reported by, 267,
268; names of blind persons re-
ported by, 271

County supervisors (see Supervisors)

County treasurer, 58

Court of common pleas, 6

Court of quarter sessions, overseers
appointed by, 3, 4; duties trans-
ferred from, 5; reference to, 22,
27; abolition of, 23; binding out
of children by, 32; taxes levied by,
82

Court of probate, 240

Courts, functions of, in poor relief, 4,
126-131; functions of, under Code
of 1851, 77-79, 82-88; inefficiency
of supervision of poor relief by,
189, 190; practices permitted by,
215 (see circuit courts, county
courts, district courts)

Crawford County (Wisconsin), 319,
346

391

Crime, 112

Cummins, Albert B., recommendation
of, 216

Custodial department, establishment

of, at Knoxville, 273, 274

Dakota, 263

Davenport, 173, 180, 222, 298, 322;
Mercy Hospital near, 179; location
of Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home at,
198; Soldiers’ Orphans’ Homes con-
solidated at, 202; number of or-
phans in home at, 203, 368; his-
tory of Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home at,
203-217

Deaf, number of, in Iowa, 241; pro-
visions for care of, 266-269; report-
ing of names of, 271; number of,
in poorhouses, 320; present meth-
ods of caring for, 823; reference
to, 329

Deaf, School for, 213, 310; establish-
ment of, 266; history of, 267-269;
placing of, under Board of Control,
306; admission to, 311, 323

Defectives, 195, 329; provisions for
eare of, 233-277; number of, in
Iowa, 241; effect of State control of
care of, 265, 266; number of, in
poorhouses, 320

Dependents, abandonment of, 32; be-
ginning of legislation for special
classes of, 97; care of special
classes of, 195-292; effect of State
control of care of, 265, 266

Desertion, law relative to, 5, 23, 33,
86, 85-88, 118, 119; procedure in
compelling relief in cases of, 129,
180; seizure of estates in cases of,
137, 148; law relative to, recom-
mended, 216

Des Moines County, act relative to
poorhouse in, 73, 74, 349-351; pop-
ulation of, in 1836, 346

Detroit (Michigan), 34, 35, 37, 38

Dipsomaniacs, diagnosis and _ treat-
ment of, 272

Directors of poor, 21, 24, 25, 28, 32,
37

Directors of poorhouse, 8, 13, 15, 17,
892

18, 25, 27, 36, 55, 68, 73, 74, 78,
82, 85, 86, 92, 122, 126, 145, 147,
159, 167, 171; powers and duties
of, 9, 10, 57, 58, 59, 64, 65, 136-
188, 158, 164-166; change in num-
ber of, 11; oath of office for, 11;
property held by, 11; care of poor
centralized in, 12; children bound
out by, 18, 172, 221; compensation
of, 59, 69; recommendation of
abolition of, 101; warning to de-
part issued by, 121; appointment
of, 128; omission of provision for,
138; admission to poorhouse by,
169, 170; care of insane by, 245

Discharge from poorhouse, 17, 58, 59,
69, 170-172

Disorderly persons, 290

District court, 55, 122, 123, 147, 148,
220, 221, 228; functions of, in poor
relief, 129; jurisdiction of, 224,
226-228; mothers’ pension law ad-
ministered by, 229; jurisdiction of,
in cases of vagrancy, 289, 290

District infirmary, advantages of,
329-331

District judges, 27, 324, 325; levy of
taxes by, 32; ineffectiveness of
supervision of poor relief by, 189,
190

Divorces, 71

Doctors, prices charged to county by,
102

Drake, Francis M., 181; statement by,
203, 211, 212; recommendations
of, 259, 300

Drunkards, appointment of guardians
for, 272; reference to, 290 (see
also Inebriates)

Dubuque County, population of, in
1836, 346

Dudley, Charles, 354

Dumb, number of, in Iowa, 241; pro-
visions for care of, 266-269; re-
porting of names of, 271; number
of, in poorhouses, 320; present
methods of caring for, 323; refer-
ence to, 329

Economic motives, influence of, 261-
266, 277

INDEX

Educational institutions, question of
placing of, under Board of Control,
805; placing of, under Board of
Control, 306; placing of, under
Board of Education, 310

Elberfeld-Hamburg system, 154, 162

Elizabeth, laws of, 5, 168, 171

Emancipation Proclamation, 202

Emmet County, 319

England, 117, 150, 157, 171; work-
houses in, 362

Epileptics, provisions for care of, 275-
277; recommendation concerning
colony for, 275, 276; number of, in
Iowa, 275, 276; establishment of
colony for, 276, 277; provision for
‘unsexing of, 276; number of, in
poorhouses, 320; methods of caring
for, 328, 324; reference to, 329

Escheated property, holding of, for
eare of poor, 11

Europe, treatment of vagrants in, 291,
292

Executive Council, 307

Fairview Township (Jones County),
74, 217

Fakers, 290

Family desertion law, recommendation
of, 216

Farming out, system of, 8, 18, 15, 18,
25, 36, 43, 66, 67, 77, 131

Father, liability of, for support of
children, 17, 32, 50, 81, 321; aban-
donment of dependents by, 32; seiz-
ure of estate of, 137, 148; support
of illegitimate children by, 196,
197; liability of, for support of in-
sane, 240

Feeble-minded, provisions for care of,
233-239; provision for performing
vasectomy on, 238; summary of
legislation relative to, 239; effect
of State control of care of, 265,
266; number of, in poorhouses,
820; methods of caring for, 322,
823; reference to, 329

Feeble-minded Children, Institution
for, 213, 299; establishment of,
233, 285, 236; admission to, 236,
237, 238, 239; cost of transporta-
INDEX

tion to, 236, 237; special hospital
at, 239; care of epileptics in, 275;
placing of, under Board of Control,
306; commitment to, 823

Ferries, establishment of, 72

Field codes, 80

Fines, use of, for support of poor, 31

Firman, Thomas, 362

Flax, work of poor on, 4, 9

Fortune-tellers, 290

Fullinwider, Samuel, 349

Funds, intermingling of, 301; regu-
lation of solicitation of, 811, 312

Funeral expenses, 278, 279

Gallaher, Ruth, acknowledgment to, xi

Gallaudet, Professor, 266

Garrett, John M., 354

Gear, John H., recommendations of,
180, 236, 256, 257, 297, 298;
statements by, 208-211, 364, 365

Germany, 154, 162

Girls, special cottage for,
wood, 239

Glenwood, branch of soldiers’ or-
phans’ home at, 198, 201; abandon-
ment of soldiers’ orphans’ home at,
202; reference to, 203, 323, 367;
use made of orphan’s home build-
ings at, 235, 257; history of In-
stitution for Feeble-minded at, 235-
239; suggestion for use of build-
ings at, 256, 272; number of or-
phans in home at, 368

Governor and Judges, levy of taxes by,
82

Grand Army post, 280

Grand jurors, 290

Grandchildren, liability of, for sup-
port of grandparents, 24, 32, 81,
240, 321; omission of, from list
of relatives liable, 45

Grandfather, liability of, for support
of relatives, 17, 32, 81; omission
of, from list of relatives liable, 45

Grandmother, liability of, for support
of relatives, 17, 32; omission of,
from list of relatives liable, 45

Grandparents, liability of, for support
of grandchildren, 24, 240, 321

at Glen-

393

Grants, receiving of, 4, 5

Grasshopper scourge, relief of victims
of, 293-295

Green Bay (Wisconsin), 345

Grimes, James W., information fur-
nished by, 241; reference to, 372

Guardians, consent of, to adoption of
children, 204, 213; law relative to
contributory dependency of, 226-
228; support of feeble-minded chil-
dren by, 236, 237; management of
estates of insane persons by, 240;
consent of, to removal of insane,
260, 311; appointment of, for
drunkards, 272

Guardianship, provision for, 225

Hale, Matthew, 362

Hammond, William G., part of code
written by, 100

Hamilton, Horace, 354

Health regulations, 112

Healy, Thomas D., 305

Healy Investigating Committee, report
of, concerning State institutions,
300-305, 365

Hebard, Alfred, 349

Hemp, work of poor on, 4, 9

Hempstead, Stephen, 75; recommen-
dation of, 241

Henry VIII, 117

Hepner, Mr., 347

Highways, work of paupers on, 105,
108, 109, 148

Holland, farm colonies for vagrants
in, 292

Homes, relief of poor in, 6, 7, 13, 14,
77, 154, 174, 175, 183-192, 320,
321; relief of families of soldiers
in, 197; care of orphans in, 199,
200; adoption of children into, 204,
205, 222, 223; agents for finding
of, 204, 205; variations in amounts
spent for poor relief in, 325, 326

Homestead, 109

House of refuge, 221

Housing problems, 112

Howe, Mr. 266

Husband, abandonment of depend-
ents by, 32; law relative to deser-
394

tion of, 85-88; seizure of estate of,
137, 148; responsibility of, for edu-
eation of children, 229

Ida County, 319

Idiots, care of, 43, 233-239

Illegitimate children, law relative to
settlement of, 119; provisions for
eare of, 195-197, 322

Illinois, 263, 304

Imbeciles, provisions for care of, 233-
239

Immigration, relation of, to pauper-
ism, 91

Independence, 234; establishment of
insane hospital at, 245; depart-
ment for inebriates at, 273

Indiana, experience of, 113; refer-
ence to, 177, 191, 326; State super-
vision in, 190, 191, 331; outdoor
relief in, 332

Indiana, Territory of, 20

Industrial neglect, 112

Industrial Schools, placing of, under
Board of Control, 306, 307; State
agents for, 309

Industrial training, provision for, 200

Inebriates, departments for, at insane
hospitals, 272, 273; provisions for
care of, 272-275

Inebriates, State Hospital for, com-
mitment to, 227; establishment of,
271, 273; legislation relative to,
273-275: placing of, under Board
of Control, 309

Infirmary (city), legislation relative
to, 161-164

Ingalls, Mr., 198

Insane, supervision of care of, by
Board of Control, 112, 181, 259-
261, 812, 318, 316; separate coun-
ty building for care of, 178; agita-
tion for hospitals for, 241, 242;
number of, in Iowa, 241, 374, 375;
responsibility of counties for sup-
port of, 243, 244; evils in care of,
in poorhouses, 246, 247, 249, 250,
251-254; return of, to counties,
247, 248, 310, 811; care of, by
counties, 248, 249; cost of support

INDEX

of, to counties, 249; separation of
paupers from, 251; recommenda-
tions of Board relative to care of,
254; special room for, in county
hospitals, 254; complicated system
of caring for indigent, 255; move-
ments for special care of, 255-261;
proposals for State hospital for
chronic, 255-258; number of, in
county institutions, 256, 257, 258,
319, 320; consent to removal of,
260; economic motives in determin-
ing methods of caring for, 261-266;
support of, who had no legal settle-
ment, 262, 263, 264; effect of State
control of care of, 265, 266; in-
spection of institutions for, recom-
mended, 299, 300; cost of support
of, by different methods, 302, 303;
resolutions providing for investiga-
tion of care of, 305, 306; super-
vision over care of, given to Board
of Control, 308; care of non-resi-
dent, 309; present methods ot car-
ing for, 323; advantages of district
infirmary in care of, 330; sugges-
tions relative to care of, 333, 334
(see also Insane paupers)

Insane, Clarinda Hospital for, open-
ing of, 248

Insane, Independence Hospital for,
234; establishment of, 245

Insane, Mt. Pleasant Hospital for, es-
tablishment of, 242; crowded con-
dition of, 244-246

Insane, hospitals for, care of idiots 1n,
233, 234; departments for inebri-
ates at, 272, 273; care of epileptics
in, 275; creation of visiting com-
mittee for, 296; placing of, under
Board of Control, 306

Insane asylums (county) building of,
248; investigation of conditions in,
249, 250; evil conditions in, 251-
254; recommendations relative to,
254; movement for, for chronic in-
sane, 258; supervision of Board of
Control over, 259-261, 308, 312,
313, 316; improvement in, 265,
266; reference to, 323, 333
INDEX 395

Insane paupers, care of, 21, 44; pro-
vision for care of, in Michigan Ter-
ritory; 387; history of legislation
relative to care of, 240-266; pro-
visions for, during Territorial peri-
od, 240; provisions of Code of 1851
relative to, 240; legislation relative
to, from 1851 to 1860, 240-243;
provisions of Revision of 1860 rel-
ative to, 243, 244; legislation rel-
ative to, from 1860 to 1914, 245-
255; movements in favor of special
care of, 255-261; reasons for abuses
in care of, 261-266 (see also In-
sane) Jackson, Frank D., recommendations

Insanity, commissioners of, 255, 261, of, 180, 181, 237, 288, 258, 262,
262, 308, 310, 311, 323 263, 275; arguments of, against

Intemperance, poverty caused by, 45 board of control, 299, 300

Iowa, origins of poor relief legisla- Jackson County, 178; orphan asylum
tion in, 3; poor relief legislation in, in, 218, 219
1846 to 1914, 71-113; resolution Jails, examination of, 180; confine-

parison of laws of Ohio and, 59-63;
inadaptibility of Ohio law to, 63,
64, 65; act of 1844 of, 65; act of
1845 of, 65; summary of poor re-
lief legislation of, 65-70; reasons
for adoption of Ohio laws in, 69

Iowa City, school for deaf and dumb
at, 267

Iowa country, Michigan's jurisdiction
over, 20; application of poor relief
legislation in, 39, 40; population
of, 346

Iowa County (Wisconsin), 346

concerning manual labor school in,
74; legislation relative to poor-
houses in, 157-182; history of out-
door relief in, 183-192; establish-
ment of soldiers’ orphans’ homes in,
197, 198; summary of care of nor-

ment of insane in, 241, 242, 244,
245, 246, 255, 256; investigation
of conditions in, 249; commitment
of vagrants to, 289; recommenda-
tion concerning inspection of, 297,
299; supervision over, recommend-

mal children in, 216, 217; sum-
mary of methods of caring for de-
pendent children in, 230-232; num-
ber of defectives in, 241; present
system of caring for indigent in-
sane in, 255; number of blind in,
270; number of epileptics in, 275,
276; special relief for victims of
calamity in, 293-295; summary of
present system of poor relief in,
319-326; suggested changes in sys-
tem of poor relief in, 327-334;

ed, 298; reference to, 299

Johnson, Benjamin W., 354

Jones County, 74; memorial for man-
ual labor school in, 217, 218

Judges, 214, 232 (see also county
judge and district judges)

Justices of the peace, functions of, in
poor relief, 4, 8, 14, 17, 18, 21, 22,
27, 28, 30, 36, 46, 290

Juvenile court 110; care of dependent
children by, 224-226

Juvenile court law, 113; change in,
number of insane in, 374, 375 228; administration of, 231, 232;

Iowa, Territory of, 3, 79, 140, 144, power of Board of Control under,
150, 196; first poor law of, 9, 44- 309
52; second poorhouse law of, 13; Juvenile detention home, 227
models for laws of, 19; Wisconsin
poor law adopted in, 40; poor re-
lief legislation in, 44-70; Wiscon-
sin law in force in, 44; comparison
of laws of Wisconsin and, 47-50;
laws of 1842 of, 53; outdoor relief
law of 1842 of, 53-56, 59-61; com-

Kansas, 304

Kasson, John A., 354, 355

Kirkwood, Samuel J., recommenda-
tions of, 92, 98, 94, 244; public
appeal of, 94

Knoxville, 227; establishment of
396 INDEX

home for blind at, 270; home for
blind at, turned into Hospital for
Inebriates, 271; establishment of
Hospital for Inebriates at, 273

Larrabee, William, 249; recommenda-
tions of, 270

Lee County, act relative to poorhouse
in, 73, 88, 89, 849-351; reference
to, 106

Legislative Assembly, 44, 51

Legislature, special acts of, 71, 72

Linn County, 74, 217

Local government, change in scheme
of, 27

London (England), 362

Louisiana, 19

Lucas, Robert, 44, 69, 346

Lunatics (see Insane)

Lyon County, relief of victims of
grasshopper scourge in, 293-295

McClain, Emlin, statement by, 79, 80

McGugin, Professor, letter from, 241

McIntyre, R. A., 206

Manual labor school, resolution con-
cerning, 74, 217, 218

Marines, enumeration of, 95; refer-
ence to, 132, 195, 324; provisions
for care of families of, 176, 320;
admission of orphans of, to Home,
204; provisions for care of depend-
ent, 278-284; funeral expenses of,
278; funeral expenses of wives of,
279; parents of, admitted to Home,
281, 282

Married women, liability of, for sup-
port of children, 45; law relative to
legal settlement of, 54, 67, 118, 119

Marshal of Territory, contracts let by,
22, 27, 36

Marshalltown, establishment of sol-
diers’ home at, 279

Mason, Charles, 75, 80

Massachusetts, 276

Matrons of poorhouse, average salary
of, 320

Medical attendance, 98, 102, 133,
285-288; introduction of free, 99;

excess charges for, 105; examina-
tion of claims for, 105

Merriam, Frank F., 305

Merrill, Joseph H., 356

Merrill, Samuel, recommendations of,
199, 200

Michigan, Territory of, 3, 9, 39, 43,
50, 51, 57, 63, 64, 69, 72, 76, 77,
78, 79, 88, 120, 159, 196, 337,
838, 339; law of 1830 of, 9, 25,
26; poor relief legislation in, 20-
88; origin of early laws of, 20;
number of poor laws in, 20, 21;
analysis of poor laws of, 21; first
poor law of, 21, 22; law of 1809
of, 22, 42; law of 1817 of, 22;
law of 1827 of, 22, 23; law of 1818
of, 23; law of 1820 of, 23, 40;
law of 1824 of, 23; law of 1825 of,
28, 24, 40, 42; law of 1829 of, 24,
25; law of 1833 of, 26, 27, 40, 41;
topical analysis of poor laws of, 27-
87; methods of caring for poor in,
36, 37; character of poor relief
legislation of, 37, 38; acts of, re-
pealed, 52

Milwaukee County (Wisconsin), 346

Minories (England), 362

Minors (see Children)

Minnesota, 263

Misdemeanants, workhouse for, 330

Misdemeanants’ farm colony, 291

Missouri, 263

Morgan, Mr., 347

Mothers, liability of, for support of
children, 17, 32, 50, 81, 321; seiz-
ure of estate of, 137, 148; sum
paid to, for support of illegitimate
child, 196; payment of money to,
for support of children, 199; lia-
bility of, for support of insane, 240

Mothers’ pensions, law relative to, 113,
229, 230, 320, 321, 322, 328

Mt. Pleasant, 235; establishment of
insane hospital at, 242; crowded
condition of insane hospital at, 244-
246; department for inebriates at,
273

Mulattoes, legal settlement denied to,
INDEX

8, 16, 58, 54, 61, 67; right of
gaining settlement given to, 118
Muscatine County, 351

Nebraska, 263, 304

New Jersey, 21, 276

New York, relation of Oode of 1851
to statutes of, 79, 80; comparison
of laws of Iowa and, 80-88; refer-
ence to, 120, 179, 202, 207, 246,
264, 276, 304; tramp farm colony
in, 291

Non-resident paupers, removal of, 30,
52, 55, 56, 58, 69, 78, 103, 108,
120-123, 126, 131, 151, 184; law
relative to, 45, 46; care of, 66, 67,
68

Northwest Territory, poor relief legis-
lation in, 3-19; first poor relief law
of, 3, 4; act of 1795 of, 4, 5, 8, 9,
17; act of 1799 of, 5; review of
poor relief legislation in, 13-19; ref-
erence to, 19, 38, 50, 66, 78, 79,
88, 120, 140, 150, 337, 338; au-
thority of Governor and Judges of,
20

Northwestern Iowa, relief of victims
of grasshopper scourge in, 293-295

Nurses, admission of army, to sol-
diers’ home, 282; character of, em-
ployed by counties, 288

Nye, Judge, 353

Oakdale, Tuberculosis Sanitorium at,
286

O’Brien County, relief of victims of
grasshopper scourge in, 293-295

Ohio, poor relief legislation in early,
3-19; act of 1805 of, 5, 6; codi-
fication of poor laws of, 6; law of
1816 of, 7, 8, 9-11; law of 1829
of, 7, 11, 12; law of 1831 of, 8,
12, 13; law of 1827 of, 11; law of
1834 of, 18; review of poor relief
legislation in, 13-19; influence of
laws of, 19; laws borrowed from,
20, 53, 66, 74; reference to, 22,
25, 35, 38, 40, 41, 43, 50, 76, 77,
78, 79, 88, 117, 118, 120, 121,

397

141, 144, 150, 157, 159, 183, 276,
337, 338, 339; comparison of laws
of Iowa and, 59-63; lack of adapta-
tion of law of, to Iowa, 63, 64, 65;
reasons for adoption of laws of, 69

Old Northwest (see Northwest Terri-
tory)

Old people, care of, 821

Ordinance of 1787, 20

Orphan asylum, resolution concerning,
74

Orphans, 104; provisions for care of,
173, 174, 206-220; provisions for
care of soldiers’, 197-205; opening
of Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home to any,
202; summary of State care of,
216, 217; care of, outside of insti-
tutions, 220-230; adoption of, into
families, 222, 223; summary of
methods of caring for, 230-232;
care of, in homes, 320; suggested
changes in system of caring for,
327, 328; number of, in institu-
tions, 8368 (see also Children)

Orphans’ homes, history of private, in
Iowa, 217-220; State control of
private, 219, 220, 225

Osceola County, relief of victims of
grasshopper scourge in, 293-295;
reference to, 319

Outdoor relief, 7, 36, 50, 97, 98, 102;
act of 1842 relative to, 53-56, 59-
61; rules relative to, 108; control
of, by supervisors, 132-134; func-
tions of township trustees in, 145-
150; administration of, by over-
seers, 150-156; provision for, in
cities, 161-164; history of, in Iowa,
183-192; need of State supervision
of, 189-192, 314, 315, 316; fea-
tures of, with reference to children,
220-2380; inefficiency in, 314-316;
authorities concerned with, 324;
variations in amounts expended for,
825, 826; suggestions relative to,
832, 333 (see also Out-relief)

Out-relief, provision for, in money, 36,
87; act of 1842 relative to, 53-56,
59-61; reference to, 77; authority
398

of supervisors in, 101; effect of un-
systematic, 112 (see also outdoor
relief) i

Overseers of poor, appointment of, 3,
4; powers and duties of, 4, 5, 8, 9,
14, 15, 54, 55, 56, 105, 150-156;
reference to, 6, 12, 21, 22, 25, 27,
28, 30, 31, 54, 67, 102, 103, 104,
144, 149, 184, 186, 191, 192, 196,
229, 240, 316, 321, 324, 325, 332;
compensation of, 6; release of, from
duties, 11; levy of taxes by, 17;
children bound out by, 18; removal
of non-resident paupers by, 30;
provision for, in Iowa, 51, 52;
duties of, given to trustees, 65; ap-
pointment of, in cities, 101, 105,
132, 162; review of expenditures
of, 109, 110; warning to depart is-
sued by, 121; absence of, as sep-
arate officials, 151; reappearance
of, 152; work of, in cities, 152-156;
character of, 153, 154, 315; care
of insane by, 245

Parents, liability of, for support of
children, 24, 45, 95; consent of, to
adoption of children, 204, 213;
willingness of, to send children to
Home, 214, 215; half of cost of
supporting children paid by, 215;
expense of care of child to be borne
by, 225; law relative to contrib-
utory dependency of, 226-228;
change in law relative to support
of children by, 228, 229; support
of feeble-minded children by, 236,
237

Pauperism, relation of immigration to,
91; relation of, to other problems,
112

Paupers, removal of non-resident, 5,
12, 15, 22, 29, 30, 48, 46, 52, 55,
56, 69, 78, 103, 120-128, 126, 131,
151, 184; liability for support of,
5; support of, by relatives, 17, 22,
28, 24, 26, 31, 32, 38, 36, 37, 40,
41, 43, 45, 47, 48, 50, 67, 77, 81-
88, 97, 101, 102, 103, 129, 1387,
146, 147, 148, 184, 261, 321;

INDEX

method of calling attention to, 22;
penalties for bringing of, into Ter-
ritory, 22, 31; contracts for care of,
23; residence acquired by, in Mich-
igan Territory, 24; fine for refusal
to receive, 31; procedure in case of
non-resident, 41; penalty for bring-
ing of, into county, 42, 46; care of
non-resident, 45, 66, 67, 68, 108;
resolution against bringing of, into
United States, 89; labor required
of, 105, 108, 109, 148; apprecia-
tion of scientific treatment of, 112;
procedure in compelling support of,
by relatives, 129, 130; provisions
for care of insane, 240-266; sep-
aration of insane from, 251 (see
also Poor)

Penal institutions, supervision over,
recommended, 298, 299; report of
Healy committee concerning, 300-
305; placing of, under Board of
Control, 8306, 307

Penitentiaries, placing of,
Board of Control, 307

Pennsylvania, law adopted from, 4,
16, 50, 150, 157, 246, 276, 337,
338

Pension fund, origin of, 96

Pension money, restrictions on use of,
280, 281, 282, 284

Pensioners, number of, 369

Pensions, amount paid as, 369

Phillips, Brannock, 355

Plymouth (England), 362

Politicians, efforts of, in behalf of
soldiers, 96, 97

Polk County, 250

Pomeroy, relief of victims of tornado
at, 295

Poor, care of, by contract, 4, 55, 185-
187; farming out care of, 5, 8, 13,
15, 18, 25, 36, 48, 66, 67, 77, 181;
relief of, in homes, 6, 7, 14, 77,
154 174, 175, 320, 821; care of,
in poorhouse, 7; methods of caring
for, in Ohio, 18, 14; authorities for
relief of, 14, 15; fines placed in
fund for support of, 81; care of, in
poorhouses in Territory of Mich-

under
INDEX 399

igan, 33-36; methods of caring for,
in Michigan Territory, 36, 37;
methods of caring for, in Wisconsin
Territory, 42, 43; methods of car-
ing for, in Territory of Iowa, 49,
50; methods of caring for, in act of
1842, 54, 55; record of expense of
caring for, 56; expenses of caring
for, 65; methods of caring for, in
Code of 1851, 77; payment of cost
of support of, 104; recovery of cost
of support of, 107, 108; supervision
over contractors for support of, 139,
140; care of, by contractors, 140,
141; history of outdoor relief of,
183-192; classification of, 195; pro-
vision for medical attendance for,
285-288; variations in amount
spent for relief of, 325, 326 (see
also Paupers)

Poor farm, act relative to, in Lee
County, 89; receipts of, to be used
for poorhouse, 102; management
of, 142, 143; use of proceeds from,
168, 169; growing importance of,
168, 169; farmer for, 329

Poor relief, first law relative to, in

Northwest Territory, 3, 4; duties
of overseers in, 4, 5; centralization
in, 6, 7, 12, 78, 110, 111, 112,
134; mixed township and county
system of, 23, 28; hierarchy of au-
thorities in, 64, 65; retrogression
in methods of, 77; lack of interest
in, 90, 91; examination of claims
for, 105; control of, centered in
supervisors, 108, 109; effect of
emphasis on law of settlement in,
124, 125; functions of county of-
ficials in, 126-143; functions of
township officials in, 144-156; lines
of reform in, 155, 156; State con-
trol of, 296-316, 324, 325; need of
State supervision of, 313-316; sum-
mary of present system of, 319-
326; agencies concerned with, 325;
need of greater centralization in,
325, 326; suggested changes in sys-
tem of, 327-334; number of persons
receiving, 365

Poor relief legislation, history of, in

Northwest Territory and _ early
Ohio, 3-19; origins of, in Iowa, 3;
history of, in Michigan Territory,
20-38; history of, in Wisconsin
Territory, 39-43; history of, in
Territory of Iowa, 44-70; history
of, in Iowa from 1846 to 1914, 71-
113; features of, from 1846 to 1851,
73-75; features of, in Code of
1851, 76-88; features of, from 1851
to 1860, 88-91; features of, in Re-
vision of 1860, 91, 92; features of,
from 1860 to 1878, 92-99; features
of, in Code of 1878, 99-104; fea-
tures of, from 1873 to 1897, 104-
106; features of, in Oode of 1897,
106-110; features of, since 1897,
110-113; special phases of, 115-
192; provisions of, relative to poor-
houses, 157-182 :

Poorhouses, law for care of poor in,

7; failure of plan to care for all
poor in, 8; absence of provision
for, in Ohio, 8; provisions for, in
Ohio law of 1816, 9-11; binding
out of children in, 11, 221; ex-
penses of bringing paupers to, 12;
relief by means of, 18, 18; care of
non-resident poor in, 13; discharge
from, 17, 58, 59, 69, 170-172;
management of, 18, 131, 132, 136-
138, 141-148, 164-169; building of,
by townships, 25; Michigan law
relative to, 25, 26, 33-36; first
Towa law relative to, 46, 52; law
of 1842 relative to, 56-59, 61-63;
funds for erection of, 56, 57; ad-
mission to, 57, 69, 145, 146, 147,
169, 170; inspection of, 58, 65, 68;
expenses of maintaining, 58, 59,
104; analysis of early laws relative
to, 68, 69; acts relative to, in Lee
and Des Moines Counties, 73, 74;
attitude toward, 89, 90; character
of, 90; relief of paupers outside of,
98; receipts of poor farm to be
used for, 102; tuition for educa-
tion of children in, 105; discre-

tionary power of sending persons
* £
400

to, 108; change of name of, 111;
authority of county judges in erec-
tion of, 127, 128; contracts for
building of, 131; history of legis-
lation relative to, 157-182; keeping
of children in, 172-174, 209-217,
322; relief by, as only method,
174-176; support of, 176-178; cen-
tralized control of, 178-182; evil
conditions in, 178, 179, 246, 247,
251-254; examination of, 180; agi-
tation for State supervision of,
180, 181; absence of, in early
Towa, 183; reference to, 185, 186,
187, 299; support of soldiers’ or-
phans in, 203; advantages of or-
phan’s home over, 206; care of
idiots in, 233; keeping of insane in,
241, 242, 245, 246, 248, 251, 256,
823; beginning of agitation against
eare of insane in, 245; investiga-
tion of conditions in, 249, 250;
separation of insane from paupers
in, 251; supervision of insane in,
by Board of Control, 255, 259-261,
808, 3812, 313, 316; reaction
against abuses in care of insane in,
255-261; contrast between ‘asylums
and, 265, 266; care of epileptics
in, 275, 276; families of soldiers
not to be sent to, 278; medical at-
tendance in, 285; vagrants in, 291;
supervision over, recommended,
297, 298, 299, 300; resolution pro-
viding for investigation of, 305,
306; need of State supervision of,
313, 314, 316; character of author-
ities of, 313, 314; number of, in
Iowa, 319; summary of present
system of, 8319, 320; number of in-
mates of, 319, 320; number of de-
fectives in, 320; sending of feeble-
minded to, 322; keeping of blind
in, 323; epileptics in, 323, 324;
need of prohibiting keeping of chil-
dren in, 328; suggested changes in
relation to, 329-831; suggestions
relative to State supervision over,
331
Porter, Mr., 53

INDEX

Porter, Claude R., 305

Pottawattamie County, legalizing act
relative to, 89; trouble in, over
poorhouse, 352, 353

Poverty; laws aimed at removal of
causes of, 110, 113; relation of, to
other problems, 112; problem of
relief of, 112

Poweshiek County, 99

Primary relief authorities, 14, 15, 21,
22, 27, 28, 50, 67, 77

Private institutions, care of children
in, 217-220

Probate judge, 242

Prostitutes, 290

Ranney, Mark, report of, 244-246,
379, 380

Reform Schools, State, support of or-
phans in, 203, 211, 212

Reformatory institutions, placing of,
under Board of Control, 306, 307

Relatives, support of paupers by, 17,
22, 23, 24, 26, 31, 32, 33, 36, 37,
40, 41, 48, 45, 47, 48, 50, 67, 77,
81-88, 97, 101, 102, 103, 129, 137,
146, 147, 148, 184, 261, 321; pro-
cedure in compelling relief by, 129,
130; support of insane persons by,
240; consent of, to removal of in-
sane, 260, 311; relief of, from sup-
port of old soldiers, 283, 284; re-
sponsibility of, for support of tuber-
culosis patients, 287

Residence (see Settlement)

Revision of 1860, 75, 80, 99, 100,
101, 138, 141, 145, 147, 151, 171,
175, 196, 233, 240; provisions of,
relative to poor relief, 91, 92; pro-
visions of, relative to poorhouses,
160, 172; provisions of, relative
to binding out children, 221; pro-
visions of, relative to insane, 243,
244; provisions of, relative to
vagrants, 290

Reynolds, A., report of, 234, 235

Rhode Island, 304

Rich, Joseph W., investigation made
by, 249, 250

Road taxes, 29
INDEX

Sailors, provisions for care of fam-
ilies of, 176, 320; admission of or-
phans of, to Home, 204; provi-
sions for care of dependent, 278-
284; funeral expenses of, 278;
funeral expenses of wives of, 279;
parents of, admitted to Home, 281,
282; reference to, 324

School districts, tuition for education
of paupers paid to, 105

School fund, 95

Scott County, legalizing act relative
to, 89; reference to, 178, 179, 251

Secondary relief authorities, 14, 15,
22, 27, 28

Servants, legal settlement of, 16, 54,
58, 67, 119, 120

Settlement, legal, law relative to, 5,
6, 15, 24, 29, 30, 42, 59, 60, 66,
67, 78, 184; period required to
gain, 7, 8, 108, 109; blacks and
mulattoes prohibited from gaining,
8, 53, 54, 61; changes in law of,
in Ohio, 16; introduction of terms
of, 22; change in law of, 22; pro-
visions of law of 1842 relative to,
54; simplification of law of, 103;
historical account of law of, 117-
125; changes of emphasis in law
of, 123, 124; unfortunate features
of law of, 124, 125; application of
law of, in case of insane, 262, 263,
164 (see also Non-resident paupers)

Shambaugh, Benj. F., editor’s introduc-
tion by, vii; acknowledgment to, x

Sherman, Buren R., recommendations
of, 174, 211, 257, 279

Sheriff, contracts let by, 22, 27; ref-
erence to, 23, 103, 262, 290; care
of insane paupers by, 37, 242;
functions of, in poor relief, 138,
139, 146

Sick, care of, 12, 43, 46, 50, 51, 59,
285-288, 321, 324

Sioux County, relief of victims of
grasshopper scourge in, 293-295

Sisters, liability of, for support of
relatives, 24, 95; omission of, from
list of relatives liable, 45

401

Slaves, removal of, 23, 80; settlement
denied to, 29

Social legislation, growth of, 110

Soldiers, exemption of, from laws rel-
ative to paupers, 92; payment of,
by State, 93; legislation relative to
care of families of, 93-99, 104, 175,
176, 187, 188, 189, 278-284, 312,
320; enumeration of, 95; effect of
legislation concerning support of
families of, 96, 97; reference to,
103, 132, 195, 324; provisions for
care of orphans of, 197-205; sec-
ond families of, 208; provisions
for care of dependent, 278-284;
funeral expenses of, 278; funeral
expenses of wives of, 279; parents
of, admitted to Home, 281, 282;
number of orphans of, 368

Soldiers’ county orphan fund, 198

Soldiers’ Home, 178, 188, 262, 324;
establishment of, 279; legislation
relative to, 279-284; effect of, on
inmates, 288, 284; placing of, un-
der Board of Control, 306; admis-
sion to, 311

Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home, 173, 188,
222, 223, 267, 324, 327, 328;
history of, 197-217; first president
of, 198; control of, assumed by
State, 198; opening of, to all or-
phans, 202; placing of, under
Board of Control, 203, 306; part of
cost of support of orphans in, paid
by State, 214-216; attitude of par-
ents and officials toward, 214, 215;
summary of history of, 216, 217;
State agents for, 309; sending of
children to, 322

Soldiers’ orphans’ homes, establish-
ment of, in Iowa, 198; adoption
of children from, 199, 200; educa-
tion of children in, 200, 201; con-
solidation of, 201, 202

Soldiers’ relief commission, 279

Soldiers’ relief fund, 95, 188, 189,
278, 279; character of, 97

South Dakota, 304

Spanish-American War, 283
402

Special charter cities, overseers of
poor in, 105

Special legislation, 71, 72

Spy, functions of, 139, 140; provi-
sion for, 186

State, agitation for supervision of
poorhouses by, 180, 181; need of
supervision of outdoor relief by,
189-192, 314, 815, 316; recom-
mendation of support of orphans
at expense of, 211; part of cost of
support of orphans paid by, 214,
215, 216; summary of care of nor-
mal children by, 216, 217; advan-
tages of care of insane by, 265; ef-
fect of control of care of depend-
ents by, 265, 266; care of deaf and
dumb by, 266-269; care of blind
by, 269-271; care of inebriates by,
272-275; care of epileptics by, 272-
275; care of soldiers, sailors, and
marines by, 278-284; care of sick
by, 285-288; relief of victims of
calamity by, 293-295; control of
poor relief by, 296-316, 324, 325;
need of supervision of poorhouses
by, 318, 314, 316; suggestions rel-
ative to supervision by, 331-334;
suggestions relative to care of in-
sane by, 333, 334

State Auditor, 294, 295

State institutions, investigation of
management of 300-305; _ ineffi-
ciency in management of, by sep-
arate boards, 303, 304; placing of,
under Board of Control, 306, 307

States, adoption of laws from orig-
inal, 20

Steward of poor farm, 325

Steward of poorhouse, creation of
position of, 78; powers and duties
of, 141, 142, 1438, 166-169; charac-
ter of, 142, 148; reference to, 165;
change in functions of, 168, 169;
average salary of, 320; suggestions
relative to, 329 (see also Superin-
tendent of poorhouse)

Stone, John Y., 355

Story County, 99

Streets, labor of paupers on, 109, 148

INDEX

Superintendent of poorhouse, appoint-
ment of, 10; duties of, 10; admis-
sion to poorhouse by, 12, 13; ref-
erence to, 15, 17, 18, 64, 68, 165,
170, 171; powers and duties of, 57,
141, 142, 158, 166-169; change of
name of, 78 (see also Steward)

Superintendent of Public Instruction,
names of defectives reported to,
271 .

Superior courts, jurisdiction of, as
juvenile court, 228

Supervisors, County Board of, 23, 25,
27, 28, 36, 102, 103, 104, 105,
130, 131, 145, 146, 147, 153, 156,
160, 161, 196, 212, 214, 229, 234,
302, 310, 311, 316, 323, 324, 333;
county judge superseded by, 91, 92;
power of, to raise funds for sup-
port of soldiers’ families, 93-96,
98; power taken from, 97; taxes
levied by, 104, 111, 177, 198, 199,
258; claims for poor relief exam-
ined by, 105, 149; acts of, legal-
ized, 106; rules relative to out-
door relief made by, 108; control
of poor relief centered in, 108,
109, 110; review of expenditures
by, 109, 110; order for removal
issued by, 122; powers of county
judge given to, 129; functions of,
in poor relief, 131-134, 325; pow-
ers of directors given to, 138; ad-
mission to poorhouse by, 170; out-
door relief by, 187, 188; care of
soldiers’ orphans determined by,
208, 209, 210, 211; children
bound out by, 221; certificate of,
necessary to admission to soldiers’
home, 281; working of vagrants by,
290; control of poorhouses by, 319,
320

Supplies, restrictions relative to pur-
chase of, 102, 108, 147, 148; con-
tract for furnishing of, 109; lack
of uniformity in purchase of, 301;
purchasing of, 310

Supreme Court of Michigan Territory,
30

Swamp land funds, 89, 94, 352
INDEX

Switzerland, farm colony for vagrants
in, 292

Taxes, levy of, for care of poor, 4, 6,
7, 9, 14, 17, 29, 31, 32, 59, 104,
105, 106, 111, 176-178, 190, 191;
levy of, for poorhouses, 9, 68, 69;
levy of, for support of soldiers’
families, 94, 95, 96, 188, 189, 278,
279; levy of, for soldiers’ orphans,
198, 199; levy of, for care of in-
sane, 258; levy of, for State insti-
tutions, 308

Temporary relief, 42, 55, 66

Thread, work of poor on, 4, 9

Township clerk, 28, 54, 121

Township treasurer, 24, 25, 28

Township trustees, powers given to, 6,
7; reference to, 10, 11, 12, 51, 57,
65, 67, 81, 82, 84, 86, 122, 126,
127, 128, 129, 130, 131, 182, 136,
137, 152, 153, 159, 165, 166, 184,
192, 321, 324, 325; powers and
duties of, 14, 15, 54, 56, 77, 78,
98, 101, 102; levy of taxes by, 17;
duties of overseers given to, 65,
151; review of expenditures of 109,
110; warning to depart issued by,
121; order for removal issued by,
122; approval of bills of, 181;
supervision over outdoor relief giv-
en by, 132-134; functions of, in
poor relief, 144-150; decreasing
importance of, in poor relief, 149,

150; admission to poorhouse by,
169, 170
Townships, creation of, 3, 72; re-

moval of paupers from, 5; incor-
poration of, 5; warning to depart
from, 6; poorhouses in, 7, 25; fail-
ure of, to build poorhouses, 8; pro-
vision of Ohio law relative to poor-
houses in, 10, 11; repeal of pro-
vision for poorhouses in, 12, 26;
levy of taxes by, 17; making of,
units of relief, 23, 28, 29, 67;
share of, in cost of maintaining
poorhouse, 26; making of, units of
settlement, 117; functions of offi-
cials of, in poor relief, 144-156

403

Tramp, definition of, 291; presence
of, in poorhouse, 291

Treaty of London, 24

Trusdell, Mr., 354 t

Trustees, powers and duties of, 105

Tuberculosis, care of persons affected
with, 285-288; advantages of dis-
trict plan, in care of, 330, 331

Tuberculosis Sanitorium, State, estab-
lishment of, 286; department for
advanced cases at, 286, 287, 288

Tufts, Mr., 206

Unit of relief, 21, 22, 28, 27, 28, 29,
42, 67, 117

United States, resolution
bringing paupers to, 89

against

Vagrants, legislation relative to, 289-
292; farm colonies for, 292

Vasectomy, provision for, 238, 276

Venue, change of, 78

Vermont, 22, 29

Vice, 112

Villages, incorporation of, 72

Vinton, 323

Virginia, county court system of, 79

Visiting Committee, investigation by,
178-180, 248, 249; suggestion of
enlargement of powers of, 180, 181,
299, 300; report of, 235, 246, 247,
256; law establishing, 296; recom-
mendations of, 297; reference to,
299, 303

Volunteers, bounties to, 94

Wapello County, 106

Warning to depart, 16, 43, 46, 52, 54,
66, 78, 121, 122, 126, 131, 145

Wayne County (Michigan), law rel-
ative to poorhouse in, 33-35, 344

Widows, abandonment of dependents
by, 32; relief of soldiers’, 197

Widows’ pensions, 188, 189, 229, 230

Wife, responsibility of, for support
of children, 95, 101; responsibility
of, for education of children, 229

Wilson, George M., bill introduced by,
296, 297

Wilson, Thomas S., 354
404 a

Wisconsin, 263, 266, 304

Wisconsin, Territory of, 3, 9, 20, 50,
51, 63, 64, 66, 69, 70, 72, 79, 117,
120, 121, 140, 150, 159, 196, 337,
338, 345; poor relief legislation in,
39-43; act of, adopted in Iowa, 44;
comparison of laws of Iowa and,
47-50; acts of, repealed, 52

INDEX

Women, condition of insane, in poor-
houses, 251-253

Woodward, William G., 75

Worcester (England), 362

Work test, 291

Workhouses, 9, 46, 330, 362

Workmen’s compensation act,
113

112,
 

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