The Washington herald., 1908-06-23
: 1rl II .r-~1

E.'.'..1 II T.v--S -
An Appalling ,li,s. s;-so IN infant mor,as-
fly comes with the hot summer months.
Realizing this, New York City has inaug-
urated a sweeping campaign that will
bring material relief 70 the situation and
be lesson TO other municipalities Of less
progressive spirit. II viii set. With Chi
cago and other large cities, a lesson IN
decreasing the needless loss Of life among
the infants OF this country. In nine large
cities Of the United States 800 out OF every
1000 babies die before they reach the age
OF one year New York City alone lost
I74S7 last year. The chances for each
newborn babe 10 live for one week are
less only 10 those of man OF ninety
years. and the chances for II 20 live a
year are less only than those OF man o.
eighty. According TO DR.. Winters, OF
Cornell Medical College. one-third OF all
children born do not reach three months
in age. Among the States the mortality
OF babies under a year ranges from 27Ag
per thousand in the District of Columbia
10 121.1 per thousand In Michigan. OF 1OC
large cities, Charleston. with her great
negro population. was found 10 lead in
infant mortality with A9.5 out OF every
thousand born there. and Los Angeles
came last with 175 per thousand
Bearing these striking and pitiful facts
in mind, the nation is awakening to the
need Of some concerted action that will
protect babies until they are old enough
70 Withstand most childhood ailments
The majority Of diseases Of babies come
from lack Of nutrition. from indigestible
foods. and from contagious diseases
brought IN milk. The greatest mortality
IS among the babies Of factory women.
They mus; he left at home all day and be
fed on artificial foods. The great effor;
IS now being made by physicians to have
mothers feed their babies at their breast
II this were done the death rate would be
reduced one-third or one-half and the sick
list fOur-hfths. France, In her great ef-
fort TO reverse conditions that have made
her death rate greater than her birth
rate. has instituted IN many instances
the practice Of setting aside retiring rooms
in factories where mothers may nurse
their babies at regular intervals without
loss Of pay.
In the first year OF It's life every child
consumes 500 quarts Of milk The present
educational campaign is to so interest
mothers that they will either feed thely
babies themselves or secure the best pos
sibie milk for this use II is this question
of pure milk that IS so big. for where
from 10 to Il per cent Of breast-fed babies
die gE1L NOR cant % ,-+faot,1r.. e. tor-f--
meet an early death To get pure milk
means a plan Of general education that
VIII extend from the homes Of the 1900. 90,
people whose dairies prepare the milk "a
the homes Of the So000000 people who
consume II. Last fall thirty-five experts
met in Washington 10 talk the matter
over, and decided that milk 70 be accept
able must show no more than 10000 bac-
terra 10 the cubic centimeter. Store milk
has been found 10 have 5000 70 100, Og
bacteria 10 twenty drops. To render the
babies share Of this milk pure and a.
gestIble is the problem of the medical and
philanthropic people Of this country.
New York City uses 400. 100000 quarts OF
the annual output OF the dairies and SO
far has science taken hold there that 25
per cent OF the total milk supply of the
city IS pasteurized. Because Of this work
on the part Of New York philanthropists
led by Nathan Straus and his seventeen
milk stations, the decrease IN infant NOR
tality has been marked. There are enough
babies in New York City 10 keep these
seventeen depOts and as many more busy
al the year around. About 2501O babies
are born I'm New York each summer. and
until the establishment Of the Straus
depOts. where 2000 are fed daily. the death
rate for children under Eve years old was
962 per thousand for all the year and 1856.
per thousand IN the summer. Now Il Is
slightly over 90 per Thousand al the wear
and 81 per thousand in the summer.
The present New York movement rep
resents a combination Of physicians. work
ers from city hospitals, charitable and
municipal organizations. nurseries and
diet kitchens who find an urgent need foI
their aiding the city health department
They have been working as separate and
Independent organizations for the past
few years. Now they mean 10 work as
an entire body. securing better results
from cooperation. More than eighty
nurses viii be installed for the summer
work and these will hunt out all the ba-
bies that have been born since April ]
and Will give the mothers the necessary
instructions in properly feeding, dressing
and caring Tor them. A volunteer corps
Of physicians, numbering about sixty. will
be formed.
New York philanthropy led the world In
the establishing OF milk depots where
modified or pasteurized milk could be fur
nished the babies Of the poor. DR.. Henry
Koplik reported in 1880 that he had opened
a laboratory at Eastern Dispensary, New
York City. some time before. and later he
continued this at the Good Samaritan
Dispensary. Hamburg opened milk dis
pensaries In 1889 and Paris in 1892. In lS9;
Nathan Straus began commendable
charity by establishing free milk dispen-
saries in New York City. a movement
that was recommended as a worldwide
policy at the second international pure
milk congress at Brussels last fall If
teen years after the first experiment had
been made Now from Mr.. Straus labo-
ratories or depots about 100000 bottles
and L22J,0o0 glasses Of milk are distribut-
ed every season.
Only three municipalities are on record
as bearing the expense Of their milk de-
pots. Rochester. n. Y. started the work
in 1897, and now supports five through
July and August keeping a trained nurse
on the farm and one at each diqr,a, eo ~