Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-05-08

city you can send your cook to the
board OF health for a physical exami-
nation. and competent physicians will
certify whether or not she ought to
be handling your food. Montclnir has
taken tho Ina step in stcrilizing the
dinner table. h whole nation is
protected BY the pure food law. That
applies to the factory. a good many
cities inspect people who handle com
mupity milk and similar easily con-
taminatcd products. That applies to
the retailer. 1t remained for Montclair
to step into the. kitchen.
Note that in Montclair the ordinance
does not say that you must have your
cook examined. Montclair does not go
quite so far as yet. AS a result. the
board OF health has not been overrun
with servants applying for certificates.
indicating that the respect which the
mistress Of the kitchen inspires In her
employers is no less hero than else
where. The now plan. however, has
only been in operation for n short time,
and indications are that It's effects will
be more widespread in the future than
they have been UP to now.
Any housewife will testify that it is
n delicate matter to approach a cook
that you have been employing for years
and order her to apply at the town hall
for n searching physical examination
and return with a certificate showing
that there Is nothing the matter with
her. The plan. however, is intended to
apply 10 two special classes OF cases
rather than to cooks and nursemaids in
general. These two classes arc the new
servant and the suspected servant.
Even In MontclaIr, people have been
known to lose their servants. In such
instances. the usual practice is to go
to some employment bureau In New
ark or New York to select new ones.
When n woman employs a servant
through such n source. she usually
knows very little about the new acuui-
%sition, and it is n considerable salts
faction to be able TO get expert tcsti-
mony at least to tho fact that the girl
is healthy. Moreover. 1t il Il great
deal easier TO explain to a new servant
when you arc hiring her that she will
have to be examined rs part OF the
contract than to make a similar propo-
sition to one who has heen managing
your kitchen for years.
h system is even more welcome ne
applied to suspected cases. Instances
are common where n cook or nurse girl
is apparently aillng. and yet II is i'm
possible to find out the exact trouble.
Sometimes It is some simple and COM
paratively harmless ailment that the
girl is afraid to divulge through iGnor-
ancc. In other cases she may be suf-
rering from some really dangerous dis
ease which She keeps concealed
through fear of losing her position.
\ case Of the latter kind occurred
hero recently, and was partly instru-
mental in having tho new ordinance
passed. 1t was that OF n family maid
who had the care Of small children.
She was obviously sick, and consulted
a physician frequently, but her mis-
tress was unable TO find out the trouble.
The girl put her off with and
-.-a -.,a -yhI1a thn nhtefNinp
In the case. when privately consulted,
was in no position to shed any light
without violating the ethics of his pro-
f~ession. What he knew about the ser
want had OF course been dtvulSed under
the seal of professional secrecy. Later
IT came out through other channels that
the girl was suffering from n grave and
infectious chronic disease, and she was
promptly discharged.
A somewhat similar case, which oc-
CURED here, was that of n nurse girl,
who was III with tuberculosis. Strange
ly enough, the real nature of her all
ment was never suspected until it was
far advanced-so far advanced that
She died six weeks after losing her
position. OF course she had been taxi
| ing care of the children long after
the plague had firm hold Of her sys-
tenn. Such hidden chronic cases would
be impossible under a compulsory In
| spectIon system, and ever under the
present arrangement. which leaves 1t
| optional with the employer whether
she has her servants Examine or not.
it Is her own fault II she allows a
source Of infection to threaten her
home and the remedy is always within
reach.
The servant inspection system here
is the outgrowth Of an ordinance by
which every individual engaged in the
commercial handling of food products
in Montclair has to be examined every
three months. This in turn grew out
of the milk inspection system, which
is In force over practically the whole
country. Montclair's foo inspection
many features of interest to anyone
who follows the increasing supervi-
sion the community is exercising over
the life of the Individual.
Montclalr is in n peculiarly favor
able situation for municipal expert
ments. 1t is largely a commuters
town. most of the men, with the OK
ception OF a few thousand foreign
/ born laborers, go down to New York
every morning for the days work.
Also, Montclair is about fifty minutes
from the ferries and the Hudson Tube,
which means that 1t is wei! over an
hour from most Of the Office buildings,
which, In turn. indicates hat Mont
clair commuters are Of tho class that
does not have to punch a time clock
ut S a.. h. In other words, It is n
prosperous town, with none OF the
mated voters, of dollar politics gener-
| ally. It can go In for progressive NUM-
4 aipaI legislation without regard tex