Teleprinter message from Joe Horan to Jack Molloy (London)
(345/96) (Serial No. 3145)

Orphans are causing me a considerable amount of worry these days. We are getting a large number of applications for passports to enable children (mostly illegitimate) to be brought to U.S.A. for adoption.

U.S. Consulate General here, in period 1/7/1949 - 30/9/50 granted 140 visas to such children, i.e. an average of 10 per month.

I interviewed recently one adopting parent who is the wife of an American airman stationed in G.B. and gathered from her that this country enjoys quite a reputation, among the personnel of these U.S. air-bases in Britain, as a place where one can get children for adoption without much difficulty. (The language is mine, not hers) She told me that she did not attempt to look for a child in G.B. since it was common gossip in her camp that so much red tape attended the getting of a child in G.B. to be taken to America for adoption that it was not worth the trouble to go looking for one. (In this case the language is hers, not mine)

As you probably know there is a 'market', pour ainsi dire, for children in U.S.A., where adoption is common and it seems that the demand exceeds the supply. As a result there are in some states shady institutions known as 'baby farms' which specialise in collecting children and giving them to adopting parents for a consideration. There are also of course, genuine honest-to-God institutions run or supervised by the state authorities, from which people may get children to adopt. But it seems that these institutions insist on putting the adopting parents to a lot of formalities before they can finally adopt the child according to law. Hence the 'baby farms' can do business, since they are only concerned with making money.

Anyway, the idea seems to have got abroad that an orphan can be had here for the asking.

According to U.S. Displaced Persons Act as amended recently special non-quota immigration visas are now being given to orphans from nearly all European countries who are being taken to U.S.A. for adoption not merely by individuals but also by public and private agencies approved by the U.S. Displaced Persons Commission. This looks as if a veritable trade in orphans were beginning.

As a matter of interest I should like to know what requirements must be satisfied in G.B. before a passport is given to an orphan (or child) who is being taken out of the country for adoption.