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It will be seen that the allowance on the standard benefit is
3/- per week per child. With the rents demanded here, such an
allowance is much below the required standard, and it is estimated
that it should be nearer 7/- per week per child. An additional
benefit of 1/- per week per child would cost £1,250,000 per annum,
so that to cover the full requirement would cost £5,000,000 a year,
which could not be obtained from the Insurance funds. If the
additional benefit were given in the case of the children of the
unemployed, it would also have to be extended to the children of
many employed families, because even under present conditions,
the case of the employed man with a large family is no better than
that of the unemployed; in many instances it is worse. It is
common experience that the large families are usually found among
the unskilled and the lowest-paid workers. The larger the family
the worse off are its members, because wages are not based upon
the number of children to be fed. We have recently come across
the following which are given as instances of the hardships which
must result. A motor-driver with wife and seven children earned
40/- a week and paid 16/- rent.
Husband in the navy, four children, navy allowance 45 /-, rent 20/-.
Porter, four children, stated to be earning 40/- a week, with three
children, paying 21/- a week rent.
These cases represent a large class in which the crux of the
problem lies in the poverty of the overcrowded families. They
cannot afford high rent. Their poverty has forced them into small
dwellings and shuts off their escape. With growing families overcrowding
becomes inevitable and increasing cost of nutrition puts
increase of rent out of the question. Owing to the proximity of
industries, the demand for houses here exceeds the supply and forces
up the rents, and unless some system is devised for assessing a fair
rent apart from the demand, the conditions are likely to continue
As far as the children are concerned we have no option at present
but to supply free milk to the families of the unemployed, and
frequently also to those who are fully employed. These matters
are more directly within the domain of the Maternity and Child
Welfare Committee and the Education Committee and are being
dealt with by these Committees. With free milk, free school meals
and charitable and philanthropic means, the hunger of children in