Arizona republican., 1910-11-24
Conditions That Need In-
 mediate Attention HANDS OF THE TRUSTEES
They Are Tied by the Lack of Funds from Effectively Handling the Situation. Matter Has Been Placed Before City Council.

The following copy of report t., the trustees of the Phoenix school dis trict by Superintendent J. D. I,oper and addressed by the trustees to the city council, a copy of which has been placed in it's hands. is self-explanatory and demands the careful consideration of all readers:
 November 21, 1910. Board of Trustees, Phoenix Arizona
 Gentleman-The school physician. Dr H. K. Beauchamp, has completed an examination of the pupils of vour schools, with the following results Children examined by him, 1771. Ont of this number he pronounced sixty of them having pronounced cases of tra homa; that 1,026 are affected with conjunctivitis. while 745 were found to have normal conditions so far as the eyes were concerned
 Many of. the children who have con junctivitis have it in such acute form that their parents have been advised that treatment was necessary. The sixty children who have trachoma were by your instructions, excluded from s'NAippi- nave ldu llle lTudTI OIIlCeT visit the homes of these sixty children and he reports that eighteen of the sixty have had some sort of treatment. some having treatment by physicians. while others have gone to the drug store and are treating themselves by the use of eye washes. etc. That forty two Of the sixty have not consulted physician or taken treatment in any shape. Three parents have called at my office and stated that they were unable to have their children treated These were sent to the board of super Visors and, I suppose. were sent to the county physician. From our investiga- tion I am led to believe that a very large percentage of those that have not secured treatment are financially unable to do so.
 The conditions so far as trachoma is concerned seems to be fully as bad as It was one year ago. It seems to me that something should be done bv somebody to better this condition. not only in the school but in the communi- ty. The loss from attendance of these sixty children means a loss to the dis trlct for the coming year of more than two thousand dollars in vour apnro- priation. Your district is not only los ing financially. but these children are losing the advantages offered them bv the public schools.
 l have gone into this question in a small way with both the mayor of Phoenix and members of the board of supervisors, thinking that perhaps these two bodies might be induced to co-operate with you gentlemen in plan ming some way by which these children unable to receive treatment might have the attention they so badly need
 Respectfully submitted.
 JOHN D.sLOPER.
 Superintendent
 November 23. 1910 To the Mayor and Common Council. | Phoenix. Arizona: Gentlemen-We have in our hands a | report Ca copy of which we enclOse) | rom the superintendent of the Phoenix | public schools relative to trachOma | Knowing that trachoma exists to some | extent among the people of this com ! and that it is a disease that. | without attention, spreads, the board of | trustees employed a physician last year | o examine the children in the schools | If the district and instructed the su- ! to exclude any children | having trachOma from school until such | me as their eyes were treated and a certificate obtained from the school | physician. During the year 1909-1910 nOre than fifty cases were found and | IS we have no means at our hands to oh oI t1s 'btain treatment, we could only send hem home and advise the parents to rave the eyes of their children treated. During the year not more than 15 per ent of the children excluded returned O school. At the opening of school in september this year, the same phy- ician was employed and the same in tructiOns given. except that we have made an effort this year to ascertain ow many of those sent home are be- ng treated, and we find from the re- ort of the superintendent, fully 70 er cent have had no treatment and hat a large majority of these are financially unable to procure proper reatment
 The board believes that conditions as ct forth in the superintendents report re of such seriousness as to demand ttention from somebody, or bodies hat some ways and means may be pro- ided to procure treatment for such as re unable to procure the same. The chool board having no appropriation nat will meet this emergency. and be- ewing that it is a matter that vitally fleets both the city and county. we six that meeting of the three bodies the board Of supervisors, the city Duncil, and board of trustees) be held t the earliest convenient date to give ls matter consideration.
 Very respectfully,
 SIMS ELY,
 President