Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1891-09-21
WITH A HEALTH DOCTOR.
EARLY MORNING SCENES IN TESt-
MGNr HOUSE DISTRICTS.

live on Deesysd Fruit aud Noutish.
nsnt That II worse-Dsadiy Smells
Abound and How They Are Corrected.
Twenty minutes IN ono Of the districts
Of the summer corps OF tho beard of
health will enable any ono 10 obtain an
idea Of how the tenement house people
live Imagine that you have accepted
IN invitation 20 spend twenty minutes
with one of the summer doctors.
II Is hot August day, : o'clock In tho
morning. Tho air even NJ this early hour
g. stiaing. Arc you surprised to and
life aHtir hcrci Komombcr you are In
the midst Of tho poor people, who begin
their days labor NJ o o'clock. Entering
our district, nothing escapes our eyes.
SEQ this stand on tho corner piled up
with fruit. beautiful TO behold. suggest
ing garden In the tropics But what
Is that odori And this wee nowsboy--
what does he want 10 buyi
Curiosity to fco what tho child Il 60
ing 10 buy, also our duty impoling us
TO discover tho cause OF tho odor, hold
u moment. We fco that he buys two
peaches for u cent. aud then for tho first
time notice that tho luscious heaps con-
tist Of piles VI docaying fruit thrown
protniscuously togcthcr--rotten pears,
bananas and peaohce this rotten fruit
selling at two and three for cent. We
mildly accost the owner aud tell him
such fruit Is not wholesome. II ought to
BE- thrown away.
He doesn't caro-" about tho unwholo-
toinoncss OF the stuff We thon shog
our badge and make him throw It away
We pass on thinking that We have saved
the lives Of many children, IN ounce Of
prevention being better than a pound OF
cure.
Pushing our way we proceed. II IS
really pushing our way, for the street Is
lined with mothers, each holding baby
ia her arms, with another dragging on
20 her skirts Some arc sitting on tho
ntoops. some in tho areas and otheB on
the curbstoneai In fact they are all over.
Suddenly We hear pitiful wall from q
little baby. We know what that means
lit means that the baby Is thinty. Tho
mother also thinks aho knows sho
gives Il tho breast The poor baby, after
oluiching IL eagerly and taking many
swallows, releases II and again cries that
same pitiful. forlorn wall.
nIEssrD WATER.
Can any ono DO ignorant that nothing
can quench thirst hut waterl Mil. Is u
poor substitute. Hero 10 n chance o.
give private lecture, and presently We
are telling tho mother that tho baby
needs water To quench its thirst; tho hot
weather makcs Il sweat good deal, II
loses great deal Of water and NO needs
n great deal. A passing Ice wagon fur
nishes a scrap Of ice. II does ono good
To SEQ how eagerly baby sucks II. This
mother lives In house where there arc
fifteen other mothoru. and asking her 10
tell the Others, We walk away feeling
sure before night all these babies will be
drinking water. We have told her 10
boil tho winter. put It on leo and then
give II 10 tho baby 10 drink
Looking upland down tho street we
zee that II Is very dirty. Going over TO
investigate pile Of dirt, We SEQ ON it's
uphill side u pool Of etagnant water
which Is almost green. Given hot
August day, peck Of garbage and the
universal dust, and we have a germ
breeding ccnior Tho people inhnlo this
air all day and all night
Looking around We zee tho houses that
need us inost--dirty, filthy houses. No
wonder tho people camp out In the streets
all day-yes, and all night. We SEQ
group OF mothers aud children standing
at hall door. They mako room for us
to pass. We stop TO speak 10 them.
Noticing weary, white faced girl Of
about twenty years, and seeing child
clinging TO her dress, We nsk hor about
tho baby, then about herself. She tells
rs that the baby IA year aud n half old.
ttill nursing. Asking her n she does not
know that babies should DO woaned at
nine months, tho answer we receive Is,
yes, that she knows, but It does not hurt
It and II saves tho cost Of buying milk
for the baby, for thoy are very poor.
DEATH ~ liIr CELLAR.
Out In theynrd we notice child nbou.
three years old, with an old mans face
this face being Characteristic OF rick
etts, that disease now becoming no COM
mon among poor people, This little one
Is busy eating an apple skowered on u
stick and eating II ns N It were It's on.
tire breakfast not dessert or any relish,
but It's whole meal. In contrast 10 this
ono and other dirty children. three clean
children attracted attention, and what a
contrast
Our twenty minutes Is almost mp. but
we can hardly tear ourselves away from
thus gypsylike encmnpment. A last look
Rt them forces a smile. a. we sec a Ger
man housefrau with her basket Of lunch,
blanket and knitting. She has evidently
come from an upper story to spend tho
day on the sidewalk, In tho hall wo
meet pleasant faced, moth,rly woman;
she is evidently the janitress We asl;
her about the number Of families Ia tho
house, children plumbing, sickness, etc,
We notice distinct odor Ia the hall.
Wen try the cellar. She lights rs down
there, and answers glihly all our ques-
tons We are really ashamed to have
suspected anything wrong Ia tho cellar,
but the odor isa danger signal. which
tays. Take heed, dangerl"
We look around tic cellar; an clean
and dry. We ere just going 10 leave
when We see a relieved look IN her face.
and suspocting at once something wiong,
begin 10 pry about from end To end.
Knocking on one end OF the wall we find
II not solid, but boarded up. We pull
one Of the boards ont and discover the
the cause Of TIE odor There lies uu nm.
uHYVrRVFHn laNa.t fsIHls a. I....