despair. In 1868 there were 2257 children in the county poor-houses. In 1875 the "Children's Law" was enacted. By it children were excluded from the county poorhouses and were to be placed in sectarian or private asylums of the religion of the parents at the expense of the public. The law did not control the manner of admission nor the discharges from these asylums, and these institutions were soon overcrowded and new ones established. One sectarian institution has had, for many years, an average of about 3000 children on hand, the public paying about $300,000 yearly for their support. For this asylum and in all others there was no judicial finding as to the child's dependence and each institution retained children as they willed. Under this régime child dependence rapidly increased. The average yearly increase of the population in New York the past ten years has been 38 per cent., while the increase of dependent and delinquent children has been 96 per cent. October 1, 1893, there were 29,909 dependent children in private and sectarian institutions, and there was paid that year, for their support, by the public, $2,439,216. These facts were so alarming that the recent constitutional convention considered seriously the question of prohibiting the extending of public aid to private and sectarian asylums. But the system was not directly disturbed. The provision was adopted by which the whole matter was put in the hands of the State Board of Charities. This board is authorized to establish regulations concerning admissions and discharges. This board will no doubt greatly better the condition and yet will deal with these institutions with the liberal spirit which has so long accompanied child saving in New York.
California is another striking example. In 1890 the population of this state was 1,208,130. December 31, 1895 there were in private and sectarian asylums in that state and in a few county hospitals 5409 dependent children, and for the year ending then there had been paid by the public for their support $312,217.11. These figures are official and recently from the comptroller of the state. Serious efforts have been made to better this condition but so far with little encouragement. The influences of the asy-
