Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1914-01-30
Ten THOUSAND DEAD
CHILDREN.

Ten thousand dead children, Think
of it, If all these little corpses
could be seen at once, the sight would
be appalling. The statement is made
that ten thousand children
are killed every year in this country
by whooping cough. This will be sur
prising to many people, for scarcely
any one regards the ailmcnt as dan
gerous or even serious.
Little or no effort was made in the
homes years ago to either keep it out
of the family or to prevent its spread
ing after it got Il hold. Consequently
every child, and some times the
grown folks, would have the disease.
Mothers used to say that the child
rem had just as we'll have it and be
done with it. Hence, failing to APP
prcciate the seriousness of the malady
no effort was made to ward it off.
The children went to school an d
church as usual, slept together in the
same room, and often in the same
bed, and, of course, the disease spread
We recall several schools in which it
seemed that nearly all the children
had the cough. When one would start
that seemed to start others, and pres
emily there was such barking and
whooping as you never heard. When
the time came to cough there was
nothing TO do but to cough, and the
kid would grab Il tree, or fence, or
just any old thing that was handy,
and hold on until it was all over and
then 20 on about his play or work.
Few of these children failed, so far
as we recall, to pull through all right
When the disease attacked an infant
the case was more serious. In the
country few people ever thought OF
sending for physician. Some sim.
pie tea, honey, onion juice, or some
thing of the kind, was all that was
thought to be necessary. cts got
to run it's course" mother would say
and she let it run. Perhaps as manN
children died then as now, but Their,
was no way then of knowing. Tn,
little fellows We're laid away and II,
report made by anybody to any boar,
of health, for the reason that Their,
was no board of health.
Now the big doctors say that Their,
is no need that child should die o
whooping cough, because there Shout
be no whooping cough to do tn
killing. 1t can be prevented stape
out. It's spread can he prevente,
easily. a recent bulletin says tina
whooping cough is not highly con
tagious. at is spread only by clos
contact, such as kissing or nhalin
the spray which is thrown off i
coughing"
Then, of course, the treatment
plain. Keep the child isolated fror
other children. Let your neighbor
know that your child has the disease
and warn other children away. Don
allow your children to mingle wit
children who are known to be infect
ed. Keep them from school ano
church. In short, says this bulletin
"Do to other mothers children as yo
would that those childrens mothe
would do unto YOU" The Colder
Rule holds good here as everywhere
There is always danger of pneu
monia in such cases, and better sen,
for physician. About all he will d,
will be to do nothing much, but re
commend good fresh air and a plent,
Of it, and good nourishing food.
This is an important subject. Their
are cases Of whooping cough in thi
county nigh. now. Remember, 0
al children Of one year old and unde
~hn have tne disease, twenty-seve
o0c II eyery on hundred die. Be
tween one and two years, fourteen
one hundred die. Between two an
five only a small number die, an
over five the majority is still smalle
Ihere IS no reason at all, howeve
why the disease should kill sing
child of any age.
The same as to measles. Twel,
thousand children die of Measles
thousand month---in this count,
every year. This disease can be DR.
vented just as easily as the othe
Neglect, carelessness and ignoran
are the handmaidens of death AZ
destruction to thousands and thou
ands of children in this country eve,
year. Whooping cough, scarlet feve
measles, diptheria---all these attac
ing and killing thousands and thou
ands of babies and children ever
year, is simply shameful and awfr
and could be so easily prevented. W