The farmer and mechanic., 1913-01-07

In the timely and constructive edi-
torial entitled A Program of Con-
structive Legislation" which appeared
in The News and Observer of Decem-
ber twelfth. health legislation is en-
phasized as one Of the pressing needs
o. our State. 1t is pointed out that
the particular health legislation need
ed is "a thorough going system of reg
istering births, deaths and disc ses.
Without sucn legislation the State
is fighting preventable disease. its foe
that annually claims 30 900 human
lives. in ambush. We blaze away here
a little, there little, While the shafts
of death fall thick amongst us, COM
| ing we know not whence. When
surgeon ruSheS into a railroad wreck.
/ he wisely attends first to those whose
! lives are in the greatest danger. 4
health department should do likewise.
1t should direct it's life-SaNir@ eff
/ forts into those places where its work
| IS most demanded-by what'-ky high
| death rates. Where are such places
| II North Carolina What section of
cur State, what county is sickest? Or.
tc recast that question, what cections
of the State or what counties of the
state nave the nlSneSt Oedtn rae ifotti
all causes: What county has the
highest tuberculous death rate? In
| what county is typhoid fever most
! rife? IL what counties are deaths OF
children from the contagious most
frequent, or, in other words, IN what
counties are proper quarantine laws
most needed? No man knows nor
can know, without registration law
the answer to these vital questions
!
disease Of unknown location IN the
body polite, is like a doctor treating
patient with a complication of dis
ca ses, knowing Teither which organ
is most involvet0<T which Of the
SrOup Of diseases \ hOuld treat first
Another reason + = regiStra tiOI
! law: AS the first step ard sDirltua
salvation is recognitio. r. ones sins
, so the first step toward ~<ctary sal
| vation is the recognition b.tet'e sicl
: town or county of its sickne. o 1t i
cha. ia acteristic Of communities 1.itl
, death rates far in excess Of the I
, age that they do not know that the,
? are sick. Therefore, the health Off
! GERS first duty in treating a sick com
8 munity or county is to restore con
t sciOusneSS. The restoration OF Sani
tary consciousness is effected through
: the registration law as follows: !
a chart is prepared, displayed, and.
> necessary, published, showing IN tn
7 parallel columns the total number O
: deaths annually per 900 of the pop
Il ulation and the number of deaths an
8 rually per loco of the popuiatio
n from the more important preyentabl
diseases Of the sick community an
q the average community. The facts C
u the chart may not start to ferment g
: once, but sooner or later they wi
break into the editorial sanctum, the
: will even invade the holy precincts c
: the pulpit, they will get into teacher
!, meetings. break out in schools, pei
- wade and eventually move the Sic
O community or county. Such state
- nent Of unhealthfulness based dpo
n urdeniable facts is necessary To 81
r. cure the interest and cooperation
n the population Of sick community {
Is county Only a registration law ca
" furnish the facts necessary for sue
r. sa nitary awakening and repentance
n Yet another and even a more in
r portant reason than those given t,
IN registering births and deaths in \or'
Id Carolina: Under present COnditl onS
L. this State, with no registration
r births and deaths. neither the peop
Of nor their State Board of Health cs
a. do or know what Is being accoaplisl
IN ed with the public funds expended
o. health work. This Oughk not to be :
For, in the very nature of tn cas-
a that department OF government co
Id cerned directly with human life. no
or withstanding the fact that the pri
ne ciples on which it operates are coz
IN riex and difficult Of mental grasp,
70 more than any other department
iH government subject to the 0Ontrol
the people. A good citizen 10y not