The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-04-30
MANY FLOCK TO HEAR
OF TWILIGHT SLEEP
Wives Greatly Interested in
Doctors Defence Of the
Method.
WOMEN NOT "TIRED OF IT."

PHYSICIANS skilled in twilight sleep
childbirth talked to 400 mothers and ex-
,,ctart mothers IN the ballroom OF the
Hotel McAlpin Yesterday afternoon. The
meeting was held under the auspices OF
the Twilight Sleep Association. and the
speakers came before the lay public in
defence of the "dammerschlsf."
Mrs Percy Richards, Just returned
from tour as far west as Kansas City.
reported that the Western women were
strongly in favor OF twilight sleep that
they we're insisting on having the treat
ment and that they told their doctors
they would come to New York for it
n they couldn't receive It at home. The
threat had generally succeeded. she said.
Mrs. Mary Ware bennett, first vice
president OF the association, said that
there was grave danger of the treat
ment being discontinued because many
doctors refuse to give II. and because
hospital STATS are too small to admins.
ter II. She said:
Flood Of Letters From Women.
THE doctors may say that they are
women are not. as is proved by the tre-
mendous influx Of letters which come to
us daily from women in all parts OF the
country"
Or. John o. Polak OF the Long Island
College Hospital, a defender of twilight,
sieep, said that the greatest danger Is
In the people who half know It," doc
tors who study a few cases and then
think they know all about II.
ut is from these sources that acci-
dents arise" said DIR. Polak. and twi-
light sleep will not be practised until
they have permanent s,affs in the hos
pitfalls absolutely trained and competent
10 give it,"
Or. Polsk took up the reports which
have been spread about blue babies
and insanity resulting from twilight
sleep. He called them exaggerated and
said that twilight sleep does not produce
insanity any more than ether and
chloroform do.
"You do not call the temporary enec'
of an anestretic insanity even though II
tends to make the patient delirous for a
few hours" he said. 81 hasten TO add
that l never had a case of insanity arise
from the giving OF the treatment. and d
blue baby never resulted under my
treatment. When these cases occur they
are due to the giving of too much NOR
phlne or to some obstetrical difficulty fol
which scopoamine is not remotely re-
sponsibe"
woman Physician Defends II.
Dr. Eliza Taylor Ransom, superintend
ent of the Twilight Sleep Maternity Hos
pital in Boston. said that professional
ethics made her sick" She said tha
no doctor ought TO be allowed TO ad
minister scopolamine without the proper
Instruction and a certificate. She added
Every hospital should have "a twi
.grt sleep course and ii should he :
part OF u young doctors training, as
hone 1t will be in the course OF time
There has been too much scare abou
blue babies | use twilight sleep en-
'lrely in ms hospital and / have neve
seen blue baby yet. There Is only ont
hing responsible for blue babies an'
that is too much morphine. A patien
should never receive more than one
eighth of a grain Of this drug"
Or. Ransom cited the maximum dos
Of each drug which she believes can b.
administered safely. II is one-eightf o
one-siNteenth of grain of morphine
one one hundred-and-fiftieth to on
,wo-hundredth of a grain OF scopola
mine and one-half of grain o
narcophcp.
There came inquiries from mothers a
the meeting as to TIE cost OF the treat
ment, and they were told that the mini
mum cost in hospitals was s55, bu
that in most cases 1t was more ex
yensive.