The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-04-04
THE BABY CROP
IS THE GREATEST
Years Estimate Is Twice Size
of Corn Product.
VALUE rs 100000, 900
VALUE rs s5,OOO,O0O,OOO
Distribution of Births shows Western
States Lead-Average Fam
lily Is Steadily Grow
ing Smaller.

King Corn Is not really king. In spite
of the agricultural statisticians, the corn
crop is not Uncle Sans greatest. Figured
on cash basis of dollars and cents even.
1t must give place to the countrys one
greatest and most essential product, that
is the baby crop. Based on the latest fig
ures compiled by a Boston economist, the
baby crop for 1910 will be worth the enor-
nous sum of $4SS7, 900, 900. Even figured
on the basis of former valuations, now
acknowledged to be too low, the figure
would amount to nearly $1,3O000O,000
Nor are these figures fanciful or based
on sentimental values. They represent
as nearly as possible the economic value
to the United States. based on potential
productive capacity, of the 2,250000 babies
which 1t is estimated will constitute this
years crop. According to the latest fig
ures the value of each new conner is 1882
a pound or s21.72 for the average six
pound youngster. giving a total value of
nearly $500, 100000, or nearly three times
that of the corn crop.
Data More Interesting.
Detailed information concerning the
baby crop, its distribution, variation in
different localities and the like, while
naturally not SO complete as similar data
covering the corn crop, is far more inter
esting As might be expected, New York,
because of its greater population, pro-
dueed the greatest number of babies of
any one state last year with 200,S65, or
nearly one-tenth of the total. 1t was not,
however. the leading state If the increase
in babies to each 1000 of the population
be taken into account. Figured in this
basis North Dakota heads the list with
36.5 births, closely followed by Utah with
49, Oklahoma with 1871. and Texas with
1928 AT the other end of the list comes
Maine with 176 and New Hampshire
with Is.
| New England states, the figures show
that the proportionate increase over the
preceding decade was greater there than
| in any other group of states. In general
terms, however, the figures indicate that
the west is the best territory for babies.
just as 1t is the biggest corn producer.
No hard and fast rule can be laid down
because of the seemingly unexplainable
discrepancies which occur as for in
stance. in the case of West Virginia and
Virginia. The excess of the birth rate
over the death rate in the former Is 2S.4
per 1000 population, while in the latter 1t
Is only T.
Perhaps the most anamolous feature
concerning the baby crop is that while it
continues to increase. the size of the av-
erage family is decreasing. In 1870 the
number of persons constituting an av-
erage family was 81 persons. In 1880 it
had decreased to 8; in 1890 to 40, and in
1910 TO Al. HOW lnen uDtS lIt DdbN Cipp
continue to increase?
Conserving Baby Crop.
Undoubtedly Uncle Sam is conserving
his baby crop. The birth rates In Italy,
Hungary and Austria, for example, are
all higher than in this country, but the
excess of births over deaths is far lower
little more than one-half, indeed, of the
figures here. In a word, Uncle Sam Is
saving his babies, and the manner In
which he is doing 1t is one of the most
remarkable stories of progress ever writ
ten.
An increasing baby crop is an economic
necessity, and many of the benefits OF
animal experimentation are therefore
most directly appreciated through their
protection of children. But here agai-l
an analogy may be drawn between the
baby crop and the corn crop. In neither
instance is 1t a question of a single crop
1t is the future which counts and makes
the necessity of considering coming crops
paramount. Improvement in the general
health of parents means healthier babies
and 1t Is for this reason that all over
the country research is being carried on
looking toward the mastering of diseases
not alone peculiar to infancy, but affect
ing all ages.