The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-08-06
CONSERVATION OF HUMAN LIFE
By WILLIAM JAY sCHIEFFELIN

Exclusive service The Survey Press
 Bureau) Sickness and death, it has been com puted, cost the nation $3,000, 900, 900 annual ly, if the value of the labor lost as their result is capitalized. The fact that most of this sum may be saved by proper hy gienic measures as we'll as humane con- sideration~ led to the formation of the Committee of One Hundred on National Health, to prolong human lives and to foster efficiency, health and happiness. To aid in its work the committee organ ized an American Health league with many thousand members to disseminate health information and to bring about needed health legislation.
 The nation is awakening to the import ance of the health situation and the press ahs aided the work of the committee. Thousands of articles and editorials on public health questions have appeared based on information we have furnished. The following editorial from the New York Journal is an example:
 Tn the United States every year there are 1,3O0OO0 deaths. Among these only a few are due to old age. which will be. barring accidents, the only cause of death when human beings become really civilized and intelligent.
 ''Of the 1,3O0, 600 deaths every year ESQ., coo are due to preventabe causes.
 "Thirty-five thousand are killed by ty- phoid alone. And remember thatstyphoid fever is caused always and only by the swallowing of filth in food or in water.
 Tn addition to the 35.00O that die. of typhoid in our country every year, about 100000 get typhoid and are cured. We have plenty of money and plenty of good doctors. And when we have eaten the filthy food or have drunken the dirty water, we spend money and intelligence to get we'll
 sTt is a pity that some money and some intelligence, including preventive meas- ures by the doctors and efforts of the health departments could not be used to prevent the disease instead of being de- voted entirely to curing it'
 Prof. Irving Fisher, the chairman of the committee, has justly pointed out that life insurance companies can, by taking steps to reduce mortality, decrease the cost of insurance for policy holders far more than by pairing salaries. Realizing this the .-,tropolitan Life Insurance com pany has established a consumptive san-
 
 atorium. It has engaged visiting nurses to cooperate with visiting nurses assc- citations in certain cities to care for It's s>ed-ridden policy holdarst 1t has sstab- iished health magazine to distribute tlealth literature among it's policy hold CTS, available to 100000 readers, or one sixth of the population in the United States; and it has endorsed in several ways and on several occasions the move ment for A National Department of Health.
 The Providence Life Assurance society, the New York Life Insurance company, and others are doing practical educative wOk in prolonging human lives.
 The fraternaI societies have also en- tered the campaign. Their journal. The Western Review, now has department especially devoted to the public health. Fraternal insurance companies have es- tablished sanatoria. and have attempted ip other ways to lengthen lives and de-, crease death claims.
 Health insurance. one, of the youngest forms of insura nee. has made begln-