New-York tribune., 1906-11-04
For UrdernouriSbed Children.
Homes % Teach Women
o Wholesome

The visiting teacher of cooking and dietetics
Is the latest attempt to solve the problem of
the undernourished New York school child
About q month ago the Association for Improv-
ing the Condition of the Poor decided 10 place
In the field such teacher whose business 1t
would be TO go 10 homes where the children were
known 10 be underfed and teach the mothers
how 10 do the best in feeding their families.
The malnutrition OF school children has been a
pressing question ever since Robert Hunter first
startled New York with his statistics concern
ing the so-caIled "breakfastless" children Of the
city, and the urgency Of the situation has be-
come only more apparent with the closer study
given TO ft by the committee on physical welfare
Of school children. But how TO meet the need?
The charity breakfast had not covered it-had
not touched II, even The further the Associa-
fion for Improving the Condition Of the Poor
went in its analysis of the phenomenon the
more apparent IT became that the underfed
child was part OF the bigger problem of the
nnderfed family. the underfed family itself
was the centre Of a hundred social and economic
conditions To help the child it was essential
so touch the family. So that is the raison
d'etre for the visiting teacher OF cooking.
day with Miss winifred s. Gibbs. Of Roch-
ester who has been engaged to do this pioneer
work. is like a page from some pathetic story
Of the tenements. Fresh from varied teaching
experience that has comprehended normal
school. evening schools women's reformatory
and city hospital Miss Gibbs admits frankly
that what she is doing at present Is an expert
ment
NOW. there is Mrs. x. our first case this
morning" she said 10 The Tribune reporter, as
they struck out for that terra incognita of shoe
factories. piano warehouses, gashouses, tumble
Gown shops and shanties which borders on the
foairo NETae4
children reported by the visiting physician to
be very an@mic. have never been here before
Maybe IL won't seem worth while TO go again.
We shall have to see. These Introductory calls
require the Treatest tact. You can't go to one
OF these We nen and say. My dear madam,
your children reported TO be badly run
down, due TO improper feeding You'd either
make them blazing mad or else you'd scare
them off,"
Mrs. * lank woman, with the face of a
worn out madonna, found TO live In a per
1ectly dreadful place-three dark closets and a
front room, which, although giving directly
upon the sidewalk, was n a state of deem tv-i
Hight AT in the afternoon.
The children are all right, so far as she knows
What do they have for breakfast? A bun and
Tea; but sometimes they don't want ANYTHING 10
eGt-Just drink a little tea And at noon ,
Wei generally she sends out for five cents
worth Of cooked ham and makes it into sand
witches, and they have that with more tea. For
dinner she boils potatoes and fries a steak with
onions. or maybe brois It.
Yes she drinks lots Of tea herself-too much.
people have told her. She knows tea is bad for
the children but hasn't anything else to give
Them No. she wouldn't mind" being taupbt a
few things about buying~and cooking. etc.
More encouraging than its predecessor WAS the
can which the teacher and the reporter next
'heoe on Mrs W. the mother of four chill
oren reported by the school physician as ane.mic
-Ars W had expressed the wish TO cater more
wisely ior her four weeds Of youngsters so the
cooking teacher lost time in PLANNING ou+ .
few sample menus on the basis of II cents n
oay per capita. mot that you couldn't live on
less than that" she hastened TO add ..but there
would be so little variety to a IO-cent schedule
mat you would probably all get tired Of #
and refuse TO eat. and be worse off than Won
now.
OI course you un[---sJand." began the
teacher, that by feeding the family We don't
mean just hlling them up. on the other hand