Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1912-09-23
Congress Of Hygiene and De-
biography Holding Conyen-
ton at Washington.
5000 DELEGATES ATTEND
rom ALL OVER WORLD
President Taft Makes Enthusi-
astic Address on Americas
Progress in Sanitary Reform.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 2s.-Wel-
coined by President Taft and at
tended by some 5000 delegates from
all parts of the world, the fifteenth
International congress on hygiene
and demography convened today. 1t
was the first time in sixty years of
existence the congress has met in
the United States.
United to free the human race of
disease, these warriors for a new and
wider form of freedom gathered for
their exchange of greetings In Me-
mortal Continental Hall. To Presi-
dent Taft's greeting brief replies
we're made by the heads of the dele
cations from each of the thirty
three countries represented. This
was followed by al address by DR..
Max Rubner, of the Emperor Fred
erick William University, Berlin,
president of the permanent interna-
tional commission of the congress.
Immediately after the morning ses-
sion the congress was prepared to
start in on a long series of lectures
and discussions which will continue
throughout the week. Scheduled for
today were discussions on the hy-
giene of infancy and childhood, the
physiology and pathology of work
and fatigue, bacillus carriers and the
Importance of flies and other insects
as carriers of infectious diseases, the
Importance of shellfish, particularly
oysters, in relation to infectious dis.
ease; the control of disease in the
..~. Al. ,.A oF haoDJt,l eHtx. 49,
the development Of vital statistics in
the United States.
A garden party at the White
House scheduled for the afternoon
was expected to be the first of d
series of entertainments arranged for
the social side of the congress-. In
addition to the 1900 delegates, many
of whom have wives and daughters
accompanying them, visitors at
tracted to Washington by the con-
gress have brought the toal number
of guests here up to probably $1,000.
The exhibition hall, in which are
displays showing what the nation,
States, cities and private social bet
torment conditions were doing to i'm
prove the health of the people, was
thrpnged all day with visitors.
We need to develop under govern
mental auspices a bureau or a de-
partment, In which the funds of the
government shall be expended for re-
search of every kind useful in the
practise and enforcement of hygiene
and preventive medicine said Presi-
lent Taft in delivering his address of
welcome.
Referring to the subject of tropical
hygiene President Taft said:
"Our responsibilities in Cuba, Porte
Rico and the Philippines, and now OF
the Isthmus of Panama. have SO en-
larged our knowledge of the posi-
bilities of successful sanitation tina;
If the Spanish War resulted in moth
ing else 1t was worth greatly more
than its cost in this useful develop
ment of one of the most important
functions that modern government
has to discharge, as well as In max.
Ing clear the need of an additional
branch of general education in tht
matter of hygiene Of the home anc
the individual.
when we first went into the
tropics our purpose "a to make tina
region habitable for white people. We
have demonstrated that as a posi-
bility. Now We have gone beyond
the mere provision for those who
come from the temperate zone, ant
we are engaged in developing tht
tropical races into a strength of body
and freedom from disease that they
have never had before.
"It is very certain that but fol
those discoveries the construction oil
the Panama canal which now since
1904 has been going on with giani
strides, and which will be completed
within a year, would have been i'm
possible"