The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1911-07-13

Liverpool, and other cities, show thai
children's tuberculosis is easily pre-
ventable by the use of pure pasteur-
lied milk. Highly important in this
connection, as we'll as In others, IS
is TO- safeguard against the pollution
of the water supply of the city.
About one-third of the children at
tending school are from n to two
years behind their proper class. 1t
is regarded as a conservative state
ment to say that from one-third to
two thirds of all school children need
medical treatment. A large proper
ton of school children are underfed,
or i~gnorantly fed. bringing about what
is termed as malnutritution which, in
turn, causes maramus, rachitis or
ricketts, ScOrbutis or "Scurvey' and
predisposes the little ones to other
less acute, but more chronic disor-
ders, such as colds and indigestion.
Aside from these diseases as such,
are those which are peculiar in some
respect to the ordinary occupations.
Almost every trade carries, as its boon
~yompaniont some dire penalty
Whether it be the monotony of work
wreckinE the nervous system, the
strain upon certain organs or parts
of the body. insanitary conditions of
the place of employment, or the ma
terial handled, the men and women
and children who do the work of the
world receive their daily bread wet
ted by their life blood.
This may be seen from the follow
ing table, showing the death rate per
thousand in various walks of life:
Merchantile and trading.... 12.1
Clerical and official. ....... 13.5
frOIGSSlOnHl a.. DS
LaborinS and servant ...... 2O.2
Among the diseases of occupation
are those due to gases, vapors, dust,
fumes; high temperature; working in
caissons and compressed air; dimi-
finished atmosphere; CHEMICALS; ex-
plosives and tie gases evolved; met
alic poisons; mining; parasites and
HETEROGENEOUS; generation and use
of electricity and electric welding;
increasing the pace and fatigue.
1t is said that I'VE send to hospital
or the graveyard one worker every
! minute in the year And the rea-
son for this. aside from those which
are part and PARCEL of the occupa-
ton itself. are thus put briefly by an
other physician: The ordinary work.
inGman works two or three hours too
much every day. Nearly every man
! o'Si ND Ill1EoCll, IdhcS 1ISuINclenC
rest and recreation, and, worst Of all,
cuts Off his normal portion of sleep.
The great plague OF the age is
tuberculosis, the white massacre. 1t
is distinctly a disease Of the poor.
Nearly all very poor people in the
cities have it at one time or another,
and onc-third Of those who get it,
die OF it. An expert has said: In
practical life there is great affinity
betwee starvation and tuberculosis.
Not only is starvation the bottom up
on which tuberculosis rests; a recent
investigation in DesMoines shows
that one-third of he pauperism is
due to that disease. This, despite the
fact that tuberculosis is hardly here
ditary, easily durable, and still more
readily ~prcventablc.
starvation, close kin Of Tuberculosis
is expresses itself in modern housing
among the poor. For example, in
New York City 10000 buildings,
holdings 5000, 600 people, are so CON
structed as to be a menace to the
community in case of fire. About
$4,000 rooms are without windows.
And the man who cites these figures
says: Only after thirty-four years
'of effort have we arrived at. an adc-
j, quate method of insuring proper light
n ventilation in tenement houses"
AS an illustration of how quickly
disease may be prevented or cured,
II may be mentioned that the Japan
csc decreased their dysentery cases
from 12.o52 in the Chiness War to
o.o24 in the Russian war, their holera
cases from 1867 to none their
malaria case from Al 734 to 1857 al
tho their army in the Russian War
was three times the size of that in
the Chinese war.
Enough has been given to show
that social diseases sap the health
and life of the working people par
tlcularly, that these diseases could be
easily avoided. and that their record
VIII be closed and blotted in the
chronicle of civilization along with
the great plaques of the past. oucs
cverty and its attending ills are
wiped cut.
I'ut mech can be done, ere1 now.
10" .A.- ;'tOIil' it IN 90 done
1cS'. 9. J large measure .pon the
lhnuence exercised by working reo-
pie over Legislative odles As BEGIN
nlngs in the right direction, the ef-
1orts of Socialists in municipalities
must be spoken of first of all. For
to the community belongs the ask Of |
On fprt n1 ~ -, irt r,t too -~~:- - l