The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-01
THE MIXING UP OF BABIES.
AN EPISODE IN THE KINGSTON
AVENUE HOSPITAL.
The Facts Seem TO Show That Tags Are
Not So Certain Ms Mothers I'm the Mat
ter or Distinguishing lnfants--The
Matter Talked over I'm Niddlsh.


Mrs. Beckie Bass of SIS Norfolk street
md Mrs. Annie Adler OF 3S Columbia street
both have babies, both babies are eight
months old both got the measles at the
uame time, both were arrested for the Of
fence and both sentenced to the Kingston
avenue, Brooklyn, contagious diseases hos
ptal until such time as the doctors there
were ready to certify that they had reformed
and would go and measle no more.
1t was four weeks ago yesterday that
Raby Bass and Baby Adler went to the hos
initial. All babies may look alike to mere
man, but each OF the mothers Of these two
babies saw points Of superiority in her par
+icular offspring which made it preposter-
oils 10 her mind that anybody with eyes
IN his head could mistake it for any other
baby in the world.
To begin with, Baby Adler had two small
white shoe pegs in the mathematical centre
Of his mouth and in his upper jaw, which
ANYBODY who knew anything knew were
very handsome teeth and which gave him
a particularly animated and engaging
expression when he smiled, On the other
hand Charles Nathan Bass, aged eight
months, had only one shoe peg and that
in the lower jaw, 1t being notorious, as
Mrs Bass was ready to explain, that it was
a distinct disadvantage in babies to 60 in
for teeth at too premature an age.
On these pegs hangs the key that opened
the door to explanations which the hospital
doctors are even now not quite through
making. When the babies were admitted,
instead of noting the allowance of pegs
each baby had and noticing the other
distinctly individual expressions in each
baby's face, which were as plain as pike
staff to their mothers. the nurses simply
pinned tags on the babies, one tag bearing
the name Bass and the other the name
Adler.
This was all right and no complications
arose until two weeks ago. when Mrs. Bass,
having been notified that her baby was
cured, called at the hospital TO get it, A
baby was produced bearing the Bass tag,
but having two pegs in its upper jaw in
stead OF one in its lower
Furthermore it was not Mrs. Bass baby,
as anybody who wasn't stone blind ought to
know, 80 Mrs. Bass said with much vehe-
mence and volubility. In her excitement,
however, she spoke In Yiddish which neither
doctors nor nurses understood. The few
English words she knew went clean out Of
ner MEMORY Ill leT lnulSnaJlOn.
All the doctors could make out was that
the trouble somehow hung on, the allow
ance OF shoe pegs in the baby's mouth. Not
feeling personal responsibility for this they
insisted that Mrs Bass take her baby and go.
She says the attendants pushed her gently
toward the door. She protested and con-
tinued to protest, but in the end she found
herself outside the hospital with some
body elses baby In her arms.
Sha ia a eapafhla woman aha daf.ar-
mined to go home and hold the spare baby
Ia pawn until her own was restored to her.
That came about yesterday.
Mrs. Adler was the cause OF it. She.
too, went to the hospital, having been
notified Of her babys cure, and baby
with only one shoe peg to his name, was
presented to her In lieu OF the baby with
planted In his upper jaw. Mrs. Adler was
furious. She, too, is handicapped by hay
ing Yiddish as her native tongue and only
small amount OF English to illuminate
the Yiddish. But that made no difference.
She made scene. She would not be sup
toward the street door was OF no avail.
Then light began to dawn on the hospital
attendants. They remembered the violent
objection Mrs. Bass had made to accepting a
two-peg baby in lieu Ola one-peg baby.
The baby rendered to Mrs Adler was duly
Jagged with an Adler name. But II was
clear there was mess OF it somehow. In
the history Of the hospital baby had never
been mislaid. Neither had there ever been
baby mix-up, Yet 1t began to look as
though Baby Bass and Baby Adler had been
mistagged or misplaced in some way.
Mrs. Adler was advised to go to Mrs. Bass
and compare babies. This she did yesterday
afternoon and she and Mrs. Bass made
simultaneous dive at each other, snatching
and surrendering baby at the same mo-
ment
Baby Adler favored the company with an
exhibition Of both his pegs. Baby Bass
put up vociferous demand for nourish-
rnent Mrs. Bass and Mrs. Adler assisted
by the entire Adler family of four. con-
versed simultaneously in the Yiddish Ian
guage. When they were not congratulating
each other on the untangling OF the baby
mi1-up they were expressing their opinion
OF the hospital authorities. The opinion
was not favorable.
DR.. Carroll of the hospital declined to dis
cuss the matter last evening until he re-
ceved authority from DR.. Raymond, Of
the health Office to do so. When this au-
thority came he said that the trouble all
arose from putting Bass label on an Adler
baby and vice versa. How this accident
came about he did not know. He did know,
however, that it had never occurred before
IN the history Of the hospital and was not