The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1918-04-05
Land Where Babies Never Die
Give the Children the Right Start and the Rest Also
solutely Certain.
- ~ Or. r. TRU0Y KING
Worlds Foremost Baby Saving
Expert.

When the menace to our national ex-
istence which described in my pre-
ceding article first set me at work
seeking a remedy ! realized that the
crux Of the problem lay in the health
Of our babies.
Special study and an intimate inter
est in farm and garden crops had long
since taught me that everything de-
ponds upon the care of the young plant.
II the nursery is good-if the seed has
the right start. if the tender young
plant is given proper care-a sturdy
crop is sure under reasonable condi-
tions as to soil and climate. The
stock raiser will tell you the same
thing. The prenatal period. and the
first four or five months of the calf's
life after birth, determine the whole
future: and the best after-care and at
tention will fail to make good beast
out Of one that has been badly treated
before and Immediately after birth. But
with a healthy, we'll cared for young
animal you are sure Of fit and val
liable member of the herd-such ami
mails can fend for themselves for the
rest of their lives and neither defect of
growth nor disease will be feared.
The same thing is true of babies.
Give them the right start and the rest
in practically certain. But the knowl-
edge which the world was becoming
wise enough to apply to agriculture ana
stock raising had hardly been applied
at all in connection with this most val
liable crop in the world--our babies.
When about II years ago | began
publicly to proclaim these truths
throughout New Zealand I was often
met with the assertion that we need
not take the situation SO seriously IN
our country. We already had one OF
the lowest child death rates in the
world. Let other countries where in
FAINT mortality was high take up the
problem. / was told. 1t need not worry
us here But, answered. no child
death rate can be too low, and ! added
that any death rate at all over per
cent is too high.
And my plea was that a widely ar
fused knowledge and recognition OF IN
FAINT requirements and maternal duties
would save our country at least one
life a day. This figure has proved to
be much under the mark. But out OIL
New Zealand's then population OF l.
900. 900 surely the saving of even one
life, a day was well worth while.
Gradually the most able and earnest
neople of the community rallied to our
cause. Lord and Lady Plunket, LORD
plunket then being governor OF Ne"
Zealand, lent us their hearty support
issuing a pamphlet in which they APP
pealed to all classes to join in the So
ciety's work for the. sake Of women
and children for the advancement OF
the Dominion, and for the honor o'
the empire"
Thus our Society for the Health OF
Women and Children was launched
Lady Plunket identified herself WITT
the cause in the most whole hearted
and practical way, giving lectures
demonstrations and personal help te
mothers and babies. In appreciation
of her work the nurses of the society
are still known as "Plunket nurses,
and the short title of our Royal New
Zealand Society for the Health ol
Women and Children is simply tht
"Plunket Society,"
From the start it was essentially
volunteer organization, but the society
soon received the cordial support ant
cooperation of the government and O.
the municipalities who, for instance
granted us the use of rooms in public
buildings for our meetings and for tn
use Of our nurses. The government
also saw that they had free passag'
over the railways and street car lines
AS government official as well a!
president of the society ! served as
sort of inspector general. linking thu
two together. In recognition OF tn
society's vital services to the com
munity, the government soon began u
grant it small subsidies towards tn
salaries and expenses of the nurses
and in the course of the last ~ years
these subsidies have grown from
modest IS per cent on the volunteer