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Show A New Federal Aid The present world-wide depression depres-sion has caused a number of governments gov-ernments to adopt a definite program pro-gram for the aid of the unemployed. unem-ployed. In England the so-called "dole" has undoubtedly saved that country from terrific social disturbances; dis-turbances; some even go far enough to say, from revolution. The present unemployment situation situ-ation in the United States has caused considerable discussion of the need for some constructive method to avoid similar distressful conditions in the future. One of the concrete (proposals now being put forward comes from Senator Couzens, Republican of Michigan, who suggests that the Federal Government offer a cooperative plan to the states for unemployment' unemploy-ment' insurance and old-age pensions. pen-sions. Senator Couzens does not think that the Federal Government can institute such a plan alone, because cf constitutional prohibitions; but chinks that it would be legal for he government to offer to aid states which did. He points out that the Federal Government has already stimulated the building of roads by such an offer, and recitee other instances of federal encouragement. encour-agement. "In the same way," he says, "we would initiate unemployment unemploy-ment insurance. There are plenty of precedents for the Federal Government's Gov-ernment's saying to the State 'If you will establish unemployment insurance, we will contribute to the cause.' "I am not at all disturbed at the effort to discredit the 'dole.' We have a great many stand-patters and reactionaries who have used the kept press to try to make out that there is something terrible, I obnoxibus, unthinkable about the dole. When the so-called British dole was initiated none could forsee that system difficult to operate. However, none of the critics have the years of depression that made offered a substitute for preventing starvation. "I am convinced, as I always have been, that private charity could not be depended upon for relief. re-lief. I have always felt that there should be no private charity except ex-cept as an educaticnal measure. Private charity, for instance, took the initiative in establishing playgrounds play-grounds for children, and in demonstrating demon-strating the benefits of physical examination of children in school, until they were taken over by Gcvernmen agencies." |