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156 CHILDREN OF THE EMPIRE 'ONLY THE FLOWER OF THE FLOCK' 157 I consider this home responsible for a good deal of the odium that now attaches to child immigration in this country'. Maria Rye had just retired and had handed over her work to the Church of England 'Waifs and Strays' Society who had suspended the work of the agency. His report is short and sharp. As a result of my inquiries it appeared quite evident that the work had not been properly handled in the past and that some radical change would be necessary before it could be considered satisfactory from a Canadian standpoint. The arrangements - if there could be said to be arrangements - for the supervision of the children after going to foster homes and situations were far from adequate. Miss Rye, during the period in which she was engaged in this work, did not make any effort to have the children personally visited after leaving her care, and she is credited with the statement that the other homes were going to an unnecessary expense in maintaining a staff of visitors. The agreement in use did not seem sufficient to fully protect the children, and altogether the work gave evidence of poor management in the past. No formal agreement had been entered into between the Home and those receiving the children beyond signing the application form; no personal visitations were made after the child left the Shelter, and the correspondence between the child and the Home has always been of the most meagre character. The consequent danger is that the child soon realizes the lack of interest that is manifested in its welfare and the foster-parents see that they are not likely to be interfered with if they overwork and otherwise take advantage of their young charges. These four thousand children have gone to all parts of Ontario, but probably a large proportion find homes in the Niagara district.21 in their new homes it is likely that good result will follow the work of this agency. Kelso seemed to be hedging his bets when it came to reporting on Annie Macpherson's work, now being carried on in Canada by her nephew William Merry. It was now clearly impossible for Annie to visit all her children as she had done in the past, even though Kelso dutifully noted the fact that 'it has always been the policy of Miss Macpherson to personally visit each child yearly'. He ends his report, While it would be impossible to say just what proportion of these children have turned out well, in the absence of evidence to the contrary it is fair to assume that a reasonable proportion, at least, have grown up to worthily discharge the duties and responsibilities of citizenship With increased care in selection and closer supervision Kelso did not visit Louisa Birt's Home at Knowlton but simply printed a letter he had received from the Chairman of the Sheltering Homes concerning the management of the work. He did call at Marchmont and talked with Annie's old friend Ellen Wallace and her husband. Again in the report on Marchmont there is the same questioning tone, as though Kelso is not really satisfied that all is well, yet cannot put his finger on what is wrong: 'It is much easier to trace those who have done well than those who have turned out badly, since the latter wander away and are lost sight of, but the earnest contention of Mr and Mrs Wrallace is that the proportion of those who have utterly failed is a remarkably small proportion of those assisted.' Later on in the report he almost seems to be asking for confirmation that all is well. 'I have invariably heard the Marchmont Home and its work spoken of in terms of the highest respect, and surely if in all tnese years poor work was being carried on extensively the matter would have attracted the attention and adverse comment of leading citizens!' (The exclamation mark is Kelso's.) The Marchmont children came from three sources, the Manchester Boys' and Girls' Refuges founded by Mr Leonard Shaw, the Saltcoats Orphanage in Glasgow and the Canadian Emigration Home in Bristol. Shaw was only one of several workers among the children who were totally opposed to the Ontario Act and saw it as a threat to their work. None opposed it so strongly as William Quarrier from Scotland. In vain Kelso pointed out that the act was to protect children from ill-usage and neglect as well as to protect Canada from undesirable immigrants. Quarrier saw it as completely unacceptable and in a furious letter to the Globe he made known his feelings. On March 3ist of this year there was put on the statute book of Canada, a law for regulating the immigration into Ontario of certain classes of children which is anti-British in enactments and alien in its character. It lays hold on a voluntary Christian work supported by British money and puts it under the control of a Government which does not contribute one cent toward its keep. It prohibits any philanthropic individual or society from bringing into Ontario a child under