The Idaho Springs siftings-news., 1905-07-08
CHILDREN GO HUNGRY
PUPILS WHO SUFFER IN SCHOOL
More Than Sixty Thousand In New
York City Underfed.-Aeitation for
PUBIC Lunch for School Children.

/ N Wy neutrality-suspicious. lot
Public Lunch for School Children.
New York City is wrought up. or
| should be, over the various investiga-
tions being made as to the underfeed-
| ins OF children. Robert Hunter esti-
mates that there are from 10000 to TO-
| ooo school children in that city who
sufteF from want of food.
/ ms was regarded as an extrava-
gant estimate at first, and even yet no
| entirely reliable investigation has been
maae. but such as has been attempted
moFe than bears out Mr.. Hunters
cialin. John Spargo, for the Independ-
en-, has been making careful inquiries
ahd securing investigation from teach
ers, hospital workers and others in q
position to know the real situation.
Some Of the facts disclosed are appall-
ms yet he insists that the same con-
ditions exist in all other large centers
| The inquiries by teachers are rarely
mat IN such way that the full truth
car be secured. Children are sensitive
an the shame of poverty is great even
IN the young. Only the most tactful
| car elicit anything like the complete
| situation. while some teachers can Sc
cur no information whatever. Yet
| exea with the inadequate data sup
| plied by such inquiries the reports
showed seventeen per cent. Of the chill
dren to have been underfed. In one
class Of forty-three children present no
les than thirteen had had no break
fast while twelve had had very little.
T.. Miss Wheeler OF the Babies Hospital
!, gises underfeeding as the major cause
OF ali ailments treated in the hospital.
Some OF this is improper feeding. due
sometimes TO ignorance, more often to
tbs inability to purchase milk and
1 wholesome food. A classification OF
the cases entered in the Babies Hos
pitaI In single day-sixteen in num-
Derives eight cases due to absolute
undefteeding, fye to improper feeding
AM only three in which these causes
die not appear as primary factors.
AT one large dispensary where they
treated more than 1000 children last
year ! was told that quite fifty per
cent Of all the cases were due, wholly
or IN part. to underfeeding or improper
feeling. Taking only the absolutely
underfed. the registrar told me that
thirty three and ohe-third per cent.
would be a conservative estimate.
Fifty per cent. underfed was the esti.
mate Of the superintendent OF another
Of the large dispensaries.
| Apart from the underfeeding df-
fectly due to poverty. the neglect OF
children by mothers who must go from
home 10 work is an important cause.
Children are often given few pennies
| by such mothers for their lunch and
they have no idea OF spending them
wisely for anything nourIshing.
The result OF such impoyerishment
/ OF the system as comes from all forms
OF poor nutrition is intellectual and
moral as well as physical. Teachers
Of special classes Tor detectives find II
utterly impossible to maze any pro-
gress until the children are fed, and
habiLnai undertaking in infants and
children leads to defective mentality.
4 The moral result is also serious.
/ This IL form OF race suicide" more
| serious than a decreased birth rate IL
/ is not strange that there is an agita-
! ton for public provision of lunch for
sehool children. Al least that much
should be done to protect society from
the evils of an ill-deyeloped, badly.
nourished citizenship.
Mr.. Spargo suggests that IL is time
TO prevent a starylng-out process as
a method OF having the fittest survive.
10 make as many as possible 1T to
! survive Is the better basis for civilized
/ statesmanship." News.