Los Angeles herald., 1910-09-06

per cent less than the general death
rate among babies throughout the city.
The Boston Milk and Baby Hygiene
association cared for about one-tenth
of the Boston baby population last
summer, and points with pride to the
fact that the death rate during the
worst months of the year was nearly
33 1-3 per cent lower among those
babies than among the other nine
tenths not reached by the milk sta
tions.
MILK DEPOTS LEGION
The number of infants milk depots
in other parts of the world is legion.
There are more than a hundred in the
French provinces. They are to be
found in every corner of the universe,
from Antwerp and st. Petersburg in
the north of Europe to Algiers in At
rica on the other side of the hemis-
phere and from Toronto to Buenos
Ayres on this side of the globe.
Spurred to the study of means of
preventing infant mortality by de-
clining birth rate and a very heavy
death rate, France was not only the
leader in undertakings designed to re-
duce the infant death rate, but was
the first country to call an interna-
tional conference on the subject. The
two years later the international or
ganization met in Brussels. The third
International Congress on Prevention
of Infant Mortality will be held in
September, 1911, in Berlin, under the
patronage of the German empress. ON
the invitation of the secretary general
of the Berlin congress the American
Association for Study and Prevention
of Infant Mortality will arrange for
the adequate representation or Amefl-
can undertakings.
England, like Germany, has taken up
the subject with characteristic thor
oughneSs. A year after the French
congress had attracted the attention OF
foreign governments to methods en-
ployed in France a national conference
was held in London under the patron
age Of the king and queen. A second
conference, also under royal patronage,
took place in 1908. The first conference
of the sort in this country was held
last November at Yale university by
the American Academy of Medicine,
and the American Association for
Study and Prevention of Infant Nor
tality was organized as a result of this
meeting. The association has estab-
lished headquarters in Baltimore, from
which it's campaign of education has
been directed.
SUMMER OF 1910 BLACK
The heavy mortality among babies
during the present summer has brought
the problem into special prominence.
One statistician, after comparing this
seasons infant death rate with that or
other years, remarked that 1t would go
down in history as "the black summer
Of 1910"
But black as the record has benin
New York alone in one week 1913 little
lives were swept out of existence-it
would have been much worse If it were
not for the work done by the babies
life saving stations throughout the
In addition to what has been
done by visiting nurses and private
in the maintenance OF
babies clinics and consultations, and
IN securing supplies Of pure, clean milk
for the babies who are artificially red,
a number of health departments, no
Eably those of New York, Philadelphia
and Chicago, have carried on care1uIly
organized campaigns of prevention.
EARLY last spring the work was be-
nun by conferences held by the health |
department officers with representa- |
ives of all the agencies which deal
With either the mother or baby, and |
lefinite plans of action were mapped |
,ut. Physicians, health inspectors and |
listing nurses were assigned TO cover |
ertain districts; lifesaving crews |
we're stationed at milk dispensaries
nd babies clinics; the cooperation of
treet cleaning gangs was secured;
nd recreation piers, floating hospitals,
ent hospitals, on roofs or in vacant
DTS, were opened in an organized ef-
ort to keep the babies we'll
In consequence of the work done in
ONE of it's crowded districts. Philadel-
hia was able to show very conVinc-
ng results. During the last week OF
uiy when the heat was especially in
ense, though the general rate of in
ant mortality was so per cent higher
han for the corresponding week or
asst year, in the four districts upon
which special effort was concentrated
he increase was only per cent.
EDUCATE MOTHERS
One of the features of these cam
aigns of prevention has been the edu-
alton of the mothers in the essentials
f infant hygiene and infant FEEDING.
md this plan of education has includ-
d not only the actual mothers or the
abies of the tenements, but the thou
ands of little foster mothers who are
Iterally their sisters and brothers
.eepers. Lessons and practical demon
trations on live babies of the best
yays to feed and bathe and care for
heir little charges were given in the
ublic schools late in the spring by
hysicians and trained nurses, and
opffruad during fha hot daVS of the