New-York tribune., 1905-08-28
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20 ;A2GAIAS'
PLEA TO SAVE THE CHILDREN.

'I really think" said the Conscientious Woman,
that the women of America should feel deeply
concerned over the proofs of suicide that have
been produced
Tn what way?" queried the Observant Woman.
why. in the statistical proofs that the race is
not sustaining itself by it's birth rate"
That doesn't trouble me at ALL" said the Observ-
ant Woman dryly. Instead OF our not having all
the births we need we have more than we deserve"
''What do you mean?" said the Conscientious
Woman in a startled way.
Il quoting from good authority" said the OBJ
servant Woman. II. G. Wells. in his book Man
kind in the Making says that out of every one
thousand children of untainted blood and good
mental and moral possibilities that are born In
England one hundred die annually through INSULT
cient food insufficient good air and insufficient at
tention. He says that the plain and simple truth
is that we still unfit to be trusted with rising
birth rate; that there still births than our
civilization can look after This being the case.
don't want society turning to with the implica-
ton that 1 ought 10 be increasing the birth rate.
Let it save all the children that born to It be-
fore it calls for more"
But you know that's impossible" said the Con-
scientious Woman with a slightly shocked express
sion. You know some children must die"
Probably" said the Observant Woman. Through
diseases that medical science does not understand
or through being stamped with incurabe constitu-
tional weaknesses for other But that is
not dying through insufficient food and air starved
and choked to death, in short. Mr. Wells takes
the infant death rate in Rutland the shire in which
II is the lowest, and compares 1t with that OF
Lancashire the worst shire in England. In Rut-
land the infant mortality is 103 in the 1000. In
Lancashire it is 274 Now, unless assume. :.
says Mr.. Wells, that the children born in Lanca-
shire inherently weaker or more diseased than
those of Rutland and there is not the shadow of a
reason for so believing, must believe that 1el
children in every 1000 in Lancashire killed by
the conditions into which they are born. More
than twenty-One thousand babies died needlessly
an n little
souls are born says he, amid tears and sunering
ey gd gam r bey Ss and cry t9 fr food for
air; they fight their ptiful little battle Tor hte
against the cruelest odds. and they are beaten
'One-tenth the children born sound die OF the
conditions Mr Wells declares But not more more thb an
one-fourth OF all the chlidren born in n EngdG & @ ne
asserts, have such SURROUNDINGS as VIII give tnG eI
gent These Conditions are very simple. as he
gives them: clean, light, airy room, plentl1u
and clothes and well fed contented mother. who
is able to give her time TO the child for the o hFTf a
the children born in England have these simple
still women admonished and lectured because
they don't bring more children into the wqrluc @ ~
sclentious Woman bewilderedly. 49, o,..-,,. ~
In the years 1899 and 1900 1,6S4 young cnilaren
cases the accident happened because there was no no
freguard TO the CRATE. law compelling all
Gmard in every domicile rented would have
Vented race suicide TO the extent OF I429 lives IN
..B1t England isn't America" protested the Con-
scientious Woman -. - -. -..,,,, b.Ip
Iass infants a year England II is only because
she isn't quite old said the Observant woman
'she is hurryng along to catch up Just as last Iast
as She can. Look at how the new Tenement House
law was fought and fought for years before .o ~ u
Gould be got through. Look how few devoted
souls have TO work and plead and toll TO get and
enforce child labor laws. Look at the way New
work CITY let's people go on living IN the Lung
I51ock stamping children with tuberculosis IN their
ladies instead of pulling the old ramshackles
down Look at the foul tenement houses bIack
cellars and vile garrets where mothers ana chlidren
are doing sweatshop work. . -, -
''But how is II to be prevented? SAID the Con-
scentious Woman again. despairingly.
IT don't know" said the Observant Woman cool-
ly "I am not a sociological expert But untlI our
fants they needn't come around blaming mo ior
race suicide"