Evening star., 1913-12-03

/ the Qeatn rate Tor whites. tne
death rate for the District generally IL
to be regarded a consequence or ths
race composition OF the population. ana
| not OF any relative unwholesomeness
or conditions of life.
| Nowhere does the heavy mortality
| that falls upon the colored race show
more conspicuously than with respect
| TO tuberculosis and infant mortality.
| in 1872 from tuberculosis OF the lungs
| was 100 per 100000: that for the col
| ored people was 426. or more than
three and one half times as great The
number OF deaths among white tnfants
| during the first year of life was 42s.
| equivalent to 80 out Of every 1000 re-
| corded births; among colored infants.
4G2. equivalent to 20S per LOCO.
| Ii Ii be true. as is probably the case,
| that the colored race is more than usu-
| ally susceptible to tuberculosis. IL fol-
lows that the District OF Columbia
I! should make more than usually good
provision for caring for patients suf-
| fering from that disease. and not be
| contented with merely drifting along
| Dispensary and sanitarium facilities
and provision for home instruction and
nursing in appropriate cases are badly
| needed. Moreover provision must Ne
| made whereby the willfully or negli-
gently dangerous consumptive patient
| can be kept under restraint LONG
enough to prevent him from being a
| menace to the community. A bill 10
now pending before Congress Is. 1887
\ enforced
| of dangerous consumptives. and 1t IL
recommended that action be taken to
further its enactment. Provision has
| been made a. small scale for con-
| sumptives In the early stages OF the
| disease-sanitariurn provision. It might
| be called; but such provision should be
| extended and made more attractive In
| order to accommodate larger numbers
| OF patients and to hold. them longer
| than is now possible. Efforts are be-
ing made through private agencies to
maintain dispensarfes for the accommo-
| dation of tubercular patients. and TO
provide nursing and instruction for
| such patients In their homes, but such
| efforts are not nearly adequate to meet
| the demands OF the situation. II il
| recommended that the government
| adopt a definite policy with respect 20
the suppression of tuberculosis, alonS
! the lines laid down above, and that IL
| make adequate provision to carry that
| policy to its logical end.
\ The diminution of the death rate among
! infants in the first year of life. whether
among white or colored people. depends
upon the adequate instruction OF mothers
| both before and after the arrival OF the
baby. and upon the provision for mothers
| and babies of pure air. proper homes and
good food. AS most important steps
4 toward these ends are the establishment
| of corps of visiting nurses, TO supple
ment the corps already established
| through private charity. the provision or
proper food for infants. and for mothers
| if need be- in appropriate cases. and the
| establishment of day nurseries. 1t 10
| recommended that steps be taken toward
these ends.
new factor appeared in the mortality
! lists of the District of Columbia In 1917
pellagra The first case of this disease OF
local origin ever known to have occurred
| was recorded during this year. Other
| cases have been recordeS since. The
| Commissioners have, therefore. promul-
gated a regulation requiring all cases OF
1 nell tn he q health
| Ger, with a view to their proper invest.
| cation. Such investigations as have been
made. however, have terminated, as have
similar Investigations the world over IN
| no satisfactory conclusion as to the origin
| of the disease or as to the reason Tor fta
appearance at the present time
Births.
( The live births recorded during the
| calendar year 1912 numbered 1.O0a. equiv.
| alent to a birth rate of 19SJ. which 10
| slightly lower than the rate for 1911.
Still births in 1912 numbered sol, while
in 1911 they numbered Je4. the corre-
spending still-birth rates being i42 ana
4 A. respectively. Taking births and
| still births together the natality was 2l3
per thousand, which, IL will be noted, 10
considerably in excess Of the death rate
/ The natality for the white population
| was 1862; that for the colored population,
I 257; and the corresponding oeath
! rates were 14.1S and 2S.S9. there was
/ during the year. as during other recent
years. a tendency for the local white
population to increase by its natural in
4 crement and for the colored race to di-
i minish. Such increase as occurred In the
colored population during the year men,
| toned was the result of immigration and
not of births
/ OF ali children whose births We're
recorded both live-born and still
! horn 154 or 1913 per cent, were IL
legitimate: of white births. ll2. or 23
4 per cent and of colored births. 5I4, or
| 227 per cent. The figures are below
4 the actual facts. since in SO instances
the color of the illegitimate child is
| not stated in the record, and these
/ cases are not included in the above
! computations. The ages OF the mothers
at the time of the birth or these Ia
| legitimate children were stated In ~
| instances as sixteen years and under.
| and in 500 instances as more than SIX
/ teen wears and less than twenty-one
4 wears AL of the first group represents
under the code cases of either rape
punishable by Imprisonment for not less
i than five or more than thirty years. or
| possibly even by capital punishment,
and the latter group represents or fol-
lows cases OF seduction, punishable oy
Imprisonment for not exceeding three
| years or by a fine of not exceeding
| 5000 or by both.
4 The number of cases of rape and
/ duction covered by these reports repre-
| sents of course, only the cases IN whicn
/ births have occurred and been reported
| The cases i'm which no Such coiSe-
| auences have followed are undoubtedly
| even more numerous Together they tell
| a story of the girlhood life of the Dis
! trict that calls for some remedy, If
anv can be found. And in this connec-
i tion il is worth considering whether
| something might not be accomplished
nv recurring reports of all births of IL
lepitimate children to women less than
jtwentv-one years of age. or at least
ALI births of such children to girls
sixteen wears old and under. TO show
| the usual data concerning the parents
| of the child, in so far as aScertainable
One objection to the making of such
| reports might be removed by providing
| that they should not be open to the
public, but even under such circum-
| stances it would doubtless be necessary
| to provide stringent penalties in order
| to insure that they should be made
With such reports il might be possible
| to bring the father of the child to pun
ishment and to require him to provide for
the support of the child. In view. too. of
the motives that exist for the destruction
OF such ;llegitimate children. either by
! act of omission or by commission. and the
inability i'm any event of the youthful
mothers of such children to care for them
; properly. some provision might we'll be
made for the continued supervision Of
such infants either through guardians
willing to assume responsibility for them.
or else through the official agents OF the
board of chldren's guardians.
Communicable Diseases.
Reportable cases of communicable dis