EUGENICS SOCIETY.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1206, 15 August 1911, Page 7

EUGENICS SOCIETY.

' TWO INTERESTING PAPERS. At the meeting of the Eugenics Society last evening, Professor Kirk presiding, a paper was read by Mr. R. H. Pojie, who attended by permission of the Minister for Education, describing the work that is being carried on under the direction of the Education Department for the care and upbringing of children whose circumstances or disabilities necessitate their having special oversight or training. The classes of children moro particularly dealt with were those who were of feeble mind, but who were capable of being improved, and these who were under State guardianship through tbeir having come under the operation of tho Industrial Schools Act. Reference was made, however, to infants who are placed by their parents in licensed foster-homes. Mr. Pope said it is unquestionable that in the great majority of cases the children in these licensed homes received intelligent motherly care, and often they become tho object of the foster-parent's strong affection. During the past three and a half years. 630 orders had been made by magistrates for the adoption of children. The paper concluded with an assurance that the expenditure of public money on' the education and training of industrial schoolchildren was bringing in a fine return by converting prospective ineflicients into good citizens. A discussion followed in which Dr. Hay, Dr. Mason, Mrs. A. R. Atkinson, ana the chairman took part. Appreciation was expressed of the work being done by the Education Department, ana of the clear and sympathetic statement made by Mr. Pope. A paper by Mr. A. Field was also read, suggesting that persons obtaining marriage licenses should be compelled to undergo medical examination. The object of the examination would not be to prevent the physically and mentally unfit from marrying, but to obtain definite data for the whole community, and to save people from unknowingly rushing | into marriages with persons suffering from disease. Ono of the results, probably the most important result that | would bo achieved, would bo that in a few j generations an absolutely reliable body of fact would be accumulated, and it would We possible to determine ' whether legislative guidance or control was desirable. Tho writer deprecated any attempt at such control in the present state of onr knowledge. . Dr. Izard, Mr. T. King, Dr. Mason, and Dr. Platts-Mills did not think the proposal a practicable one. though thc.v welcomed tho paper as one dealing with a matter that was well within the scopo of the society's work. The chairman sided with Mr. Field in thinking that such a plan as was proposed would be in its* main features desirablo if it could be carried into effcct. Dr. Platts-Mills pointed out that, for men, the ceriifiootesas t(> fitness for militarv servico would in time render such certificates as Mr. Field contemplated unnecessary as a basis for statistical information.