The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1919-06-27

at home, ignorant Of all things concerning her
new land, while the father and children became
Americans.
"Widowed fathers" are a new problem since
the influenza epidemic robbed thousands Oh MONIES
Of the mother and homemaker.
Almost any woman can make a hOIns for her
children, given the dollars and cents TO buy bread
and butter and shoes; but it takes SO. rnuch more
than dollars and cents to enable a father to- make
a home. Women engaged in administering moth
ers' pensions funds and other forms OF welfare
work have found that funds were totally made
quate to solve the problem Of the father left q
widower with several small children.
Many men whose wives were stricken during
the epidemic are hardworking, hOme-lOving IA
Tiers, who cling to the children with a tenderness
that is heartbreaking. 1t is our mission to find
homes for the children near enough so that the
father can see them every day and keep closely in
touch with their little affairs. The father can
often pay for the children's board. 1t Is the extra
things that women must do for the children that
make 1t impossible for him to keep them at home.
The milk problem alone is large enough and
complex enough to keep thousands Of women
busy. 1t is stated that for every American man
who fell on the battleields Of Europe nine Of our
babies have died. These are the startling figures
of the bureau Of child hygiene. The war period
total was $50 900, against our casualty list OF 3d.
600.
Of every three deaths one is of a child under
three years. DR.. 8. Josephine Baker, director OF
the bureau of hygiene of the New York city board
of health, frankly brands us as a nation careless
of human life, and figures fasten her charge on US.
But the experience Of the New York Diet Kitchen
association (and no doubt Of other kindred
groups) has been that when these facts are really
brought to our consciousness helpful response Is
immediate. That this response falls so far short
of the need can only mean that the full weight OF
such figures is not visualized as 1t should be.
If the horror Of a huge cityful Of little slaugh-
tered baby bodies were really brought home to the
parent heart Of our great-hearted nation it would
quicken TO one mighty effort the determination
that such things should no longer be.
DR.. Harvey Wiley, long head Of the national bu
reau of health. says Of the workers for child con-
servation that they are "in the very front line
trenches Of humanity. on duty without rest, fight
ing against terrific odds, but as certain Of ultimate
victory as the forces Of the allies were against
the devastating Hun"
Can 1t be possible that our charity must have
the perspective Of distance7 It would seem 80. for
no unusual difficulty was found In financing with
American money Ave milk stations In London re-
Gently. Yet figures showed that while the per-
centage Of malnutrition among London babies was
~ per cent, that of New York babies during the
same period was q per cent. A speaker lately re.
marked that "New York needs to be three to five
thousand miles from itself In order to be aroused
IN n sense of its crying media"