America's most wanted welfare plan

The children "don't want to fail," he says. "They are doing what mamma wants."

Social Security claims that coaching is not widespread, and federal investigators, thwarted by privacy laws, have been unable to document its dimensions.

As for Ms. Watson, she says that no such thing happened.

There is a single hint of it in the records, an allegation that George, now 14, wasn't trying "to the best of his ability" on a 1991 IQ test.

"I ain't never told any of 'em to act crazy and get some money," says Ms. Watson.

"Social Security will send you to their own doctor. They're not fooled because those doctors read your mind. They know what you can do and not do.

"I have people come up to me and say, 'Why are you getting all those 'crazy checks?'

"I say, 'You don't have to be crazy. It's a mental benefit. You can have some kind of sickness.'"

Uncertain statistics

Although "crazy checks" are an ingrained part of the culture and economy of this poor town, there is a question of how many young people really get the money.

Social Security checked a list of 515 pupils who attended Southside Elementary last year and said that 56 of them were getting SSI benefits, out of 116 who had ap-plied.

Mr. Bell, the principal, scoffs at those figures. He says that half the pupils have applied, including 120 in the past school year alone. And, he believes many are collecting checks.

At 44, Rosie Watson wears the years heavily. She was reared in this flat expanse of farm country, where jobs are few and the population is leaving.

She is polite and matter-of-fact as she talks with her visitor from her living room sofa in a house that lacks a telephone but has two police scanners -- "That's so I know what's going on."

"What's going on" includes violence and crime that make Lake Providence, with a population of 8,000, a microcosm of what is going on in many towns across America.

"I was born and raised here and this town has really gone down," Ms. Watson says.

When she was growing up, "it was nice," she said. "Now, it's

terrible. All the stuff going on now -- drugs and stuff, purse snatchings, stealing checks from the mail -- wasn't going on then. That's why I have a post office box."

As soon as she extracts the nine checks from that box, she cashes them. She gives the full amount to Sam, 21, and Cary, 22, the father of two children who has moved out of the house since being awarded benefits. The remaining funds are used for the other children and household expenses.

Most of the money goes for the children, to "see that they have what's needed," Ms. Watson says. "With what's left, I pay bills and buy food."

One "need" is $120 allowances for George, 14, David, 17, Willie, 18, and Danny, 19.

"Being the age they is and being out there with their little girlfriends, they need the money," she said.

Ms. Watson pulls a wad of bills and monthly payment books from her purse. Loans cost her more than $1,300. She says they include payments for various household purchases, furniture, washing machine and storm repairs.

There are bills for cable television, utilities and insurance policies. She spends $400 a month on food, which is supplemented by a backyard garden.

There is no requirement that the SSI money be spent to overcome a child's disability. Indeed, there is no requirement that a parent demonstrate that the disability requires added expenses.

Ms. Watson frankly says that she has none. One thing that probably makes that easier is the fact that each member of the Watson family on SSI automatically gets Medicaid for health care, a benefit that is potentially worth as much as the SSI payments.

The only expense she mentions for Oleaner is a $20-a-month allowance.

A shy, friendly child, Oleaner sits next to her mother on the sofa. She plays with a teddy bear, proudly shows off her boom box and occasionally sucks her thumb.

She goes to the kitchen and returns with a tin plate of canned meat and crackers. Settling onto another sofa in front of the television, she prays silently before eating lunch.

She is Ms. Watson's only daughter. Her mother, aware of the high teen pregnancy rate here, is protective, trying not to let her out of her sight.

While their presence on the SSI rolls is evidence that Ms. Watson has looked out for the well-being of her children, she also has had to work hard for herself.

Her pursuit of benefits took 11 years, longest in the family. She applied five times before finally convincing Social Security that she is disabled.

Her persistence is reflected in the shifting array of physical complaints she claimed. In 1974, it was high blood pressure, heart trouble and bad nerves that prevented her from working.

In 1975: anemia, dizziness, nerves and bad kidneys. In 1976: low blood pressure and heart problems.

In 1984 she blamed stomach problems, epilepsy and sinus trouble and the following year it was epilepsy again, along with fibroid tumors and "female problems."