New-York tribune., 1906-07-13
"pEATE RATES FOR ALL AGES Ac-
coRDING TO NATINgTlEs OF
PARENTS OF DECEASED"

The figures concerning mortality among children
under I've years of age IA this city published in
the monthly bulletin of the State Department Of
Ezsalth 6oV the month Of May were the subject OF
much discussion among doctors yesterday. Accord
:ng % The statistics. the total number of deaths
among Children under ave years of age was 2lOs
n HSsw York City. while IN the rest Of the state it
vas only So.
The table STiuted prepared by Dr.. William
Il Gullsoy, register oS records OF the Department
u6 Eeal1t- About - per cent Of the deaths from
elazrhaA troubles ere among children. and they
are largely responsible for the high death rate Of
susuntss Tns great majority Of deaths from diar-
-hcr2l troubles take place among the offspring Of
1ore.n born parents who. IN general do not speak
zhs E1gliEh language and who are usually more
or Iezs ignorant OF hygiene This class forms a
large percentage OS the total population OF the city,
yale 1t does not figure 70 great extent in the
upstate population. The figures are for 1905
.I1 you eliminate from the table," DR.. Guilfoy
sz6 yesterday. the figures Of those OF Italian Rus
slsr. Austrian and Bohemian psEentase. who usual
TY rd difficulty in acquiring our language the rate
for 61atas from 6iRrrhceal troubles. OF which at
ieast 50 per cant children, drops TO about LIB
psr cent rate that compares navOrahly with any
serre city"
Explaining tho comparatively large percentage Of
fzRths of children OF parents born in the United
States. Dr. GuilfOy said that In his opinion IL
bsosuse American born mothers were generally op-
posed 20 nursing their children They do not care
10 give their social pleasures, their shopping
positions snd other enjoyments." he declared alt
might Be said that though Italian mothers usually
nurse their Offspring the infant mortality Of the
race here Is much larger. That Is but italian
women wiu give solid food. fruit, too. TO
infants less than year old. and that accounts for
large proportion Of the deaths. Then. too, they
sse usually crowded into close quarters, and hy-
slenic conditions are almost universally bad"
Now. with all this foreignborn non-Enslish
speaking population crowded into tenements, often
ignorant OF the care OF children denied fresh air.
fresh milk. etc. IL is manifestly unfair make any
comparison with the death rate Of the rest of the
state. which includes all the country districts. the
zplendidly healthy country of Lawrence. Orange.
Sullivan Warren and other counties. Each year
our death rate grows less, and will continue
grow less as knowledge is disseminated among the
more ignorant classes
Dr. L. z. La Betra, one OF the consulting ply
sicisns of the Babies Hospital, in street.
said:
Conditions OF every kind are so absolutely diff
published in the State Health DEPARTMENT buIe-
ain OF relatively little value. There many
more uncertain One of these factors is of course,
the milk supply; another is the ignorance of the
MoheTs OF the poorer class or foregnborn citizens;
still another is the crowded condition OF certain
sections OF the city, where most OF these deaths
But large as infant mortality undoubtedly is that
IS not the aspect Of the situation which should be
dVyeiL on most haSner shouA0 we rejoice IN the
splendid progress that has been made in reducing
The infant death rate IN recent years: Twenty
Les. This wonderful gain Is due to the great edu-
20 the many fresh air movements, 70 the new tene-
snent house Law, To the work done by the Depart
ment of Health, nurses in schools and tenements
As for the figures quoted they are unfair be-
city, and the resulting complications with pneu-
snonia largely accountable for the excessive
from measles. as against is this Year and s5S
deaths from pneumonia. as against 10S9 this year.