Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1882-07-02


the same fearful statistics of the
mortality Of children under Eve
years of age, as compared with
the death list of all persons over
that age. The figures are so out
of proportion that it is impossible,
1t would seem, to escape the con
clusion that there must be some.
thing radically wrong in onr treat
ment of children. Take, for in
stance, the mortuary report for
the last week, which is bnt . fair
specimen, 40 the death. lists for
the summers of 1879 win yer.
tify. There died, last week, in
our city, altogether $50 persons.
OF this number, 144-that il,
more than one.half-were chill.
dren under five years of age. Of
these Ia, again, lie were infants
under one year, % between one
and two years, and 5 between two
and five years. These figures
would, furthermore, seem to show
that in proportion as our children
are mere babies, we treat them
more irrationally. A further
comparison of the tables of our
summer deaths, wereit necessary,
would show, further, that the hot
ter the summer is the greater is
the disproportion between infants
aud adults. Now, what can be
the reason? The notion that
children die in such large num-
bers because they are teething, is
because infants under
one year, who fill nearly one.half
the above mortuary list, are not
given to teething; and because
teething is in itself not an mn
operation. Besides,
doctors almost invariably assign
as the cause of the death of these
infants, what is usually called
summer complaint, which means
diarrhea diseases. Why, then,
should these diseases affect little
children so much more powerfully
than persons who are sufficiently
advanced in age to crawl or walk
out of doors, romp in the streets,
go into the parks-in short, to
escape the confinement of close,
ill>ventilated rooms, and enjoy,
out doors, the fresh air of God?
The answer lies in the question;
though, be it preached summer
after summer, it will be forgotten
long before a year has turned
around.
No sooner is a baby born, than
the fond mother and foolish ia
Their order all the windows and
window shutters of the baby's
room Dramatically closed, so that
the child may have no possible
chance of drawing in a breath of
fresh air, which, nevertheless, is
even more essential than its
mothers milk. It is brought up
in an atmosphere so surcharged
with poison from the exhalation
Of its own and other bodies, that
it is real marvel that baby chill
iren survive at all in sum mer
time. In winter, the CRATE or
stove furnishes at least some ven>
tilation. When the infant is
considered old enough to be sub.
nitted to the light of day, it is
still confined to its miserable room,
Ind there are few mothers daring
enough, in the face of the most
cruel superstition, to send their
infant children out of the house
INTO the fresh air. Yet that is
precisely what they need. And
not only fresh air, but also change
If air. Any man Of experience
must have felt the recuperative
power of air of another locality.
Why do we 60 to Lafayette or
my other park? Because We inn
nediately experience the benefit
If a change of atmosphere. Are,
hen, the infants not human be-
ngs as VIC are? Indeed, they
reed the strengthening power of
resi- air far more than we do,
or they have not the nervous en-
,rgy which, in older persons, il
he most active combatant Of
disease. list. Louis Globe DEM