The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1901-10-07

classes: 1-Those who are the subjects
of contagious disease and who must be
excluded from school for the benefit OF
the other children. 2-Those who are
suffering from non-contagious, though
perhaps severe and disabling disease, or
who are mentally or physically below
the normal standard.
THE question of excluding children
affected with pulmonary tuberculosis
has arisen. For the child's own sake
as well as to protect others, we ADVISE
the exclusion of such children. To pro
tect the healthy from the dangers or
contagion is hardly more important
than to improve the condition of those
who are more or less defective physi-
cally. Often they may be advised OF
the measures necessary to make y m
healthy and vigorous and to greatly
Improve their capacity for pleasant
and profitable study. At my sugges-
ton the teacher often writes a note to
the parents explaining the conditions
found and the Importance of treat
ment. The improvement Of mind and
body that is later observed in these
children is remarkable.
Another very important subject
which is brought to our attention daily
is that of imperfect vision, with its re-
sultant evils of eye-strain, habitual
headache and nervous debility. Such
cases are very frequent. When there
is no visible lesion, we roughly test
the child's ability to read printed mat
ter or figures on the blackboard at
normal distances, and if this is not
easily done, or if there is habitual
headaches without other obvious cause
we have the parents advised to take
such children to an oculist for expert
q n tn to-, 2 H.
pital clinics where, l am sorry to say,
they are sometimes turned over to
young and incompetent assistants, and
return to school wearing improper
glasses, and without relief from their
unpleasant symptoms. The labor of ex-
aiming so many cases of errors Of
refraction proves tedious and uninter-
esting to the older and ADLER ocuists of
the hospital staff. Certainly great good
could be accomplished by having a
competent oculist make a systematic
examination at the school, once at
least, of all the children in the gram
mar school grade. The Boston Board
of Health has not yet been able to see
its way to having this service per-
formed.
Much has been done in giving ad-
vice to individual pupils on the sub
ect of proper clothing, food, exercise
and cleanliness. Inspectors are some
times invited to address the teachers
of their schools on such subjects, and
sometimes mothers of younger children
have been present to hear such adj
dresses
"A great and salutary lesson in per-
sonal cleanliness, and one long re-
membered, was taught the children a
few years ago when a systematic in
SnpptinI, Of ba Of oil
the school children in Boston, for the
purpose of discovering pedicuH capitis
One-half of all the children were found
to be infected, more or less, with these
parasites, in some cases to a very dis
graceful extent. In one of my primary
schools where the pupils were nearly
all children of ignorant foreigners re-
Gently arrived from the cold country"
nine-tenths of all the children We're
found to be infected. The need of pro-
per treatment was so urgent that an
exception was made in this one in
stance to the rule forbiddng the Civ
ing of prescriptions, and each infected
child was given printed directions to
buy and properly use a goodly supply
of crude petroleum. Those who were
found on subsequent examination to
have neglected this advice were
promptly excluded from school until
they returned clean. Some heartburn
ing was occasioned among the mothers
and children of the better class who
were taken by surprise at our diagnos-
is, but we heard much more Of COM
mendation than of criticism. Some
amusing incidents occurred. One small
boy ignorant of the object of the ex-
animation told his mother on return
| ing home that the doctor had exam
lined his head and had told the teacher
there was nothing in it." The fond
mother at once entered a violent pro-
! test against having her young hopeful
| put into a class with idiots.
Shower baths have been put into
the Easements of some of the recently
constructed school buildings, and chill
dren are now allowed and sometimes
requested to make a systematic use OF
| them during school hours.