New-York tribune., 1908-01-13
o,r NAY THE MONEY GOES.


Superintendent Maxwells plea for the estao-
lishnent of n bureau of hygiene uhoer tne
Board of Education if put. into effect would
furnish a pertinent illustration of the way III
which tho present lack of system in the city
government leads 10 a duplication OF employees
with practically similar functions and Indicates
how Notwithstanding rigid economy large
sums annually 60 to waste Mr. MaxWeli says;
This 1.-THE proposed bureau of hyglenel shoula
be established under the control ot tfie boafo ~
Education and not under the Department oi
Health II should consist of corps OF physi-
clans and nurses under the direction OF hleui
cal expert skilled in the diseases oi cniluleil aiu
should be clothed with power not only 10 ilahe
,,h,-sicaI examinations but to prosecute parents
who fail place their children in proper piiAsi
cal condition to profit by the work OF 'he Sc"o"i'
Obviously corps of physicians ana nurses
under the direction of medical expert Wo"id
be a considerable establishment. involving a
handsome round sum of annual expense thouGh
not. of course tremendous amount for a city
whose budget is nearly S150O00O00. The spe-
ciaIist skilled in chiIdren's diseases would be
an exnert in such ailments rs adenoids. enlarged
tonsils malnutrition and all the other trouhleS
which modern science recognizes as causes that
refard the children'S progress in school ana
diminish their usefulness and happiness IN
"after life" 1t seems at first thought to be
Iaudable purpose, with which there should nc
general sympathy, for ii is realized tha' the
school system is placing the city more and more
in the relation of benevolent parent 10 the
school children But is it desirable TO create
bureau of hygiene under the Board of Educa-
tion indenendent of the Board of Health? The
LATTER board already has a considerable stan or
phvsicians and nurses engaged in the inspection
of schools Their duties are described IN the
report of the Charter Revision Commission as
''the systematic inspection of school children
especialIv with reference to "communcabie dls-
eases" Treatment is provided in school for the
less serious contagious diseases of the eye and
skin Severer diseases are isolated. They give
',1hysicaI examination to children ana houIE
parents when treatment is needed. They vac
ctnate children. The report does not make it
clear how many of The one hundred and ten
nhyscians in this division of contagious diseases
in Manhattan devote their lime TO these duties.
hut there are in the schools of this borough
thirty three nurses. including TWO district
nurses and one supervising nurse. engaged IN
watching over the health Of children, especially
with reference to communicable diseases IN
the whole city we believe there are now about
seventy such nurses
It is not proposed by Dr. Maxwell 10 take the
examination of children for contagious diseases
ont Of the hands of the Health Department.
Indeed. if would be unwise to do So and proba-
blv impossble without considerable changes IN
The law On the other hand. the Health De
partment we believe. feels that it has not
sufficient force TO inspect school children Tor
adenods visual defects malnutritipn, enlarged
tonsiIs and the other conditions which DR. MAX
we'll thinks il necessary TO guard against; that
| il is not paid 10 do that work or charged Win
| that duty Therefore. the proposal is to create
another independent bureau of physicians and
| nurses 70 examine the children for non-con-
| tapious diseases An inspector from the Board
| of Health would look into Il childS throat Tor
symDtoms of diphtheria. but would omit TO no'e
whether the tOnSils were normal or not An
| insnector from the Board of Education would
follow with ali examination of the same throat
for enlarged tonsils adPnoids. being careful.
Of course not TO intrude upon the province OF
| the dinhtheria expert. One examiner would
| look at the child'S eyes for trachoma and an
! other for nearsightedness. each from different
| dnnartment and each carefully keeping within
| his own field Over each of these bureaus there
| would be expensive specialists and supervisors
! and district managers.
| That is typical of the --ay in which New
| York is governed and il explains how vast sums
| are honestly and stupidity wasted. The same
| sort of duplication of plant exists everywhere
| throughout the city government. and nobody has
| oyer taken hold of the situation with enough
capacfty To grasp this sorry scheme of things
| entire and enough force and courage to shat
| fer il 10 bits This duplication of medical in
| snpction in the schools would be much like that
which was disclosed in the care Of the streets
under the honest but incapable Aheam. One
set of inspectors employed to look for and
| report upon defects in the parements and an
| other 10 keep eye on street iucumbrances n
| man looking for a crack in the pavement could
not by any chance be expected to see the pio'k-
ing of q street by ten tons of brick. or rice
| nd q matters
| Iudicrous. a separate lot of Inspectors in the
| Street Cleaning Department went about looking
TO sec if the pavements were kept clean These
| last were 50 precccuped with their speciality
| that they could not he expected to see chasm
| in the pavement or an accumulation of building
| material in the street aS high Il house.