Evening star., 1912-09-15
District Health Exhibit
At Congress on Hygiene
Sidghts Washington Brought Out Red
Blding-Exibit Open Public Tomorrow Night Death
Rates Distict-Inant Mortality the of Babies
Treatment Of Contagious Disease Patients.

place where they may readily consudt it.
directions.
There IL another placard containing the
addresses Of free dispensaries and mill
stations for babies, as we'll as a couple o,
the best recipes for barley water. The
free disDensaries are shown to total thir.
teen. OF which six are in the NORTHWEST
section, three in the southwest, two in the
southeast. and two In the northeast: while
the milk stations, which are scattered
over the city generally, are eight in num-
ber.
Z
Aside from the educational work, the
direct medical assistance given to mothers
among the poor is also explained in de-
tail Here the health department works
In cooperation with the Instructive Visit
ing Nurse Society, charitable organiza-
tion which employees eighteen nurses
three OF whom were assigned about a
year ago 70 the work Of preventing infant
mortality. AS the health department ex-
hbits make clear all births reported by
midwfves. or attendants other than
licensed physicians and all births report
ed from alley dwellings. are referred by
the health department to this society
which Immediately details a nurse to visit
the case. Regular visits are made, the
mother receiving special instruction In
the feeding and hygiene Of her baby.
At the end Of q year. II the baby IL
In good health and OF normal develop.
ment. the visits are discontinued; other.
wise the nurse keeps on with her minis
trations till they ara no longer required
AS q result OF their first years work, just
concluded. the society's representatives
have made 1885 visits in the interest
Of preventing infant mortality. Babies
to the number Of 2451 were treated, OF
whom S41 were discharged. and 1,155 are
cases were either lost track Of or termi-
mated in the death Of the baby, or else
were taken out Of the society's field by
the removal Of the families to other cities.
The health departments exhibit
further shows that the Instructive Wis
iting Nurse Society has shed much light
on the relation that the manner of
feeding the baby bears to the chances
which the little one has of surviving
his first year. The society's records,
as given in DIR. Murray's charts. indi-
cate that among the white babies of
nourished in the natural manner Is
Eli per cent, while of the bottle-fed
the mortality is 8.16 per cent The
corresponding percentages for colored
Other features OF that part of the ex-
hibit showing the work done locally
for the prevention of infant mortality
include photographs OF the Instructive
Visiting Nurse Society's little patients,
number Of model layettes and sew
offer suggestions for mothers. such as
a homemade babys ice chest, made out
of an old box.
-.
The health departments exhibit also
devotes much attention to the general
work Of lowering the Districts death
rate For all ages and both races the
mortality rate in 1890 was 1881: it
rose during 1891. and in 1892 touched its
high point, of 1886. since when it has
declined to the present figure OF 1880.
In 1900 the average age at which death
overlook the Washingtonian was
thirty-four years. eight months and
twenty nine days; 1t Is now forty one
years, one month and sixteen days.
Considering the figures separately for
each race, the white citizen Of the Dis
trict is shown by DR.. Murray to have died
in 1900 At the average ago OF thirty-nine
years, two months and eleven days. while
o.
six months and three days. The CORES
ponding figures for the colored Washing
t~nian at the beginning and end Of the
decade are twenty-five years. three
months and twenty-six days. and thirty
three years. three months and eleven
days. Thus the white man in the Dis
trict has prospect OF living about four
teen years longer than the colored one.
and this greater longevity appears to be
nnQnfttv
period covered by DR.. Murray's re-
searches
That the colored population Of the Capt.
tai city IL shorter-lived than the white
condition due not alone to poverty: and
he adduces novel proof for his assertion
by investigating race mortality among
those dwelling respectively on the streets
and those whose homes front upon alleys
In 1909. the latest year for which figures
are available, the colored street dwellers
had a death rate Of 1854 per Thousand,
AGAINST q death rate among their white
neighbors Of 14.73. The colored and
white dwellers on the alleys, however.
showed corresponding figures for the
same year Of 31.94 and 1890 respectively.
"a
Thus, DR.. Murray points out, the death
rate among the white street dwellers and
and IN each case Is materially lower than
the death rate among the colored citi-
gems who live In the same respective en-
vironments. Hence, as the alleys are
places Of residence for the poor Of both
races, he concludes that the greater mors
tality among the colored race cannot be
due solely to poverty. for II 1t were the
white alley dwellers would show higher
death rate than those who live on the
streets.
Taking up the deaths from given dis
eases, DR.. Murray's charts show that
among the population as a whole the