Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1915-02-05
POVERTY CAUSES
 INFANTS DEATHS
First Report of Children's s Bureau Shows One Out of
 Eight Babies Die.

The children's bureau of the de- partnlent of labor has issued the first report in it's study of infant mortality in the United States.
 The report emphasizes the fact that this is only the first item In a proposed extended inquiry. While it carefully avoids conclusions, certain conditions are pointed out as coin cident with a high infant death rate in the one city under consideration.
 It finds that the infant death rate varied in different parts of the same city, In the poorest section, where sanitary conditions were at their worst, the rate was 271 per thousand babies, or more than five times that of the choice residert:ai section of the city.
 The deaths of the banies investi- gated were in inverse proportion to the earnings of their fathers. Fables whose fathers earned less than $1O a week died at tle rate of 256 per thousand. Those whose fathers earned $25 Or more a week died at the rate of 84 per thousand
 The report shows that artificial ly-fed babies died at much more rapid rate than breast-fed babies. Hi the earliest months of the baby's life exclusive breast-feeding appears to be the only safe method. Only 46.G cables per thousand died under one year of age when breast fed for at least three months. as against 165.S per thousand who died when fed exclusively on artificial food up to the age of three months.
 Where mothers were employed a larger part of the time in heavy work babies died at a much more rapid rate. In one group of 1J mothers whose babies al: died, 15 had been keeping lodgers. an ardous oc cupation among the foreign women, where the wife without extra charge often washes and irons for the lodg CTS and buys and prepares their food. The city bears it's share of re- sponsibility for infant deaths. A high rate of infant deaths was found , in coincidence with neglected streets and insanitary housing. The report shows for 135 miles of streets and allay> only Al miles of sewers and 36 outlets, only GA per cent of the streets paved, and but il per cent. of the alleys. In houses where water had to be carried in from out doors, the infant death rate was 19S per thousand, as against 11s pe- thousand where water was piped lnt) the house.
 These findings are based on re- port as to infant mortality conditions in Johnstown, Pa. Other cities now being studied are Manchester, N. H.. Brockton, Mass, and Saginaw, Mich.
 The city of Johnstown was chosen as the first town to be studied be. cause of its interest as type of town in which there are no large indus tries employing women. and be- cause its size and it's good birth registration permitted study with the limited staff which the Bureau could at first assign to the work.
 In her letter submitting the Johns town report to the secretary of La bor, Miss Julia c. Lathrop, Chief of the children's bureau, states that the subject of infant morality was chosen for the first field inquiry because of its profound importance in our na- tional life. According to an estimate of the United States census bureau at least 300,000 babies die annually ia this country, which means approx imately one baby out of every eight under one year of age. Leading sanitarians say that if proper meas ures of hygiene and sanitation were observed this number could be indefi- < nitely reduced. The ,children's bureau is trying to learn the conditions of life most favorfsle for American babies.
 Every mother of Johnstown baby born in 1911 was visited by women agents of the children's bureau and informss.0n obtained about the fami- ly surroundings of the baby, how his father earns the money necessary for his care, and how much he earns Whether his mother works outside the home and how heavy her work is within the home, whether the city