Omaha daily bee., 1919-12-03
WOMEN WILL AID
IN CAMP AICN ON
SOCIAL DISEASE
Major Louis Hough Speaks
On Public Health at
Women's Club
Meeting.

II HdtiOH wants " SUI NiNC, II
must make campaign against
the social Diseases said Mai.
Louis Hough of the national
public health, service. speaking be-
fore the OMAHA Woman's club Mon
! day afternoon at the Y. w. {. A..
"Phe nation that makes the health
Of its boys and girls safe will have
worthy people. If it fails in this,
it will go down as nations before us
have gone.
Congress is helping in the fight"
assured the speaker, "On July g,
1918, it appropriated Sal 600, 900 to as
sist the states in combating and con-
trolling of these diseases. The states
are back of it too. Nebraska has
appropriated $4,000 to meet the
congressional fund available for this
state and there is now a venereal
disease bureau at Lincoln with Dr.
P. III. Bartholomew in charge. We
must have the help of women in
order to be successful in our ef-
forts.
Nebraska Clean State.
These Diseases" according to
Major Hough, through neglect and
false modesty, have carried on their
slaughter of our present and the flu
ture generation unchecked and I'M
controlled.
Nebraska is one of the cleanest
states in the union, one OF the
healthiest, and you want to keep it
so. But there is disease here and
-wc are going to fight it, utilizing
the University of Nebraska, which
has venereal disease clinic in Oma-
ha, and also Creighton college. We
want to make the world a good
place for posterity as we'll as place
safe for democracy. The campaign.
to be waged here will include clinics
and detention home for those who
are unable or unwilling to care for
themselves, and social workers as
we'll.
Proved in Examinations.
Statistics show that 80 per cent
of the millions examined for war
service, were found physically unfit,
and the largest per cent of these
were due to venereal disease. No
other disease, except measles, ex-
ceeds it in number of victims. 1t
is stimated that 100000 of our
population in this country is af-
fected with syphilis, and five times
this number, with gonorrhea. Sixty
per cent of the 100000 boys who
mature annually contract one or
both of these diseases before they
are IS years of age, and 80 per cent
of these infect their wives. Con-
ditions in Germany are as bad; Rus
STA is worse, and other. countries
about the same as the United
States.
"These diseases have done more
to degenerate and depopulate the
world than all 1.-THE wars and all the
other diseases combined. In 20 per
1 cent of the abdominal operations
Z upon women, where pus is found
!. excluding .appendicitus-the COMO
cocci germs are present. Eighty
per cent of the blindness in the
young is due to this germ and 80
per cent of all blindness in the
world is due to the same cause. 1t
produces sterility. rheumatism-and
divorce. Syphilis is the only
In its full virulence, and its
hereditary effects are appalling; its
victims largely fill the feeble
minded homes. Locomotor ataxia
and paresis and ocular paralysis are
! almost always due to this disease.
And 90 per cent OF its victims are
innocent ones"
Will Aid in Campaign.
This was the last meeting of the
Omaha Woman's club-or any de-
partment of the club, until further
notice. The large auditorium was
not opened and the somewhat small
Ter gatherings than usual assembled
in the north parlor adjoining the
lobby. Following Major Hough's
talk, the club. through motion Of
Mrs. CT W. Hayes, pledged itself
to aid DR.. ]. +. Edwards. city health
physician, in the work of his depart
inents so far as possible. DR.. Ed
wards, who presented Major Hough,
said that mo health commissioner
can go very far with his work with
out the women back of him"
President John w. Gamble of the
Chamber of Commerce, speaking
for the civics committee, Mrs. F..
II. Cole, chairman, declared that
I'VE men seem to have made quite
mess of things, and we are evil
IDENTIFY in situation where it will
take strenuous measures and a
great deal of help to get us out We
hope you women will aid in cx-
Treating rs" Mr.. Gamble dis
cussed the big economic problems of
the present day all over the world
and approached their solution with
history of the past in mind. His
view is an optimistic one, for, in
his opinion, the burdens, though
heavy, can be borne, and America
will have the biggest part in car
rying them.
After ALL" he concluded, prog
less consists largely In elimination.
Remove restriction and throw off
restraint and you enlarge liberty.
Get rid OF superiority and you re-
duce cost. Reduce cost and you
gain economy. Gain economy and
you are capable of bearing burden
that otherwise could not have been
borne
Mayor Ed 2. Smith spoke briefly,
urging action rather than theorizing
in the present day. Mrs. M. D.
Cameron spoke on the plan of CO.
operation among club women in the
thrift movement.
Among the visitors at the Mop-
day club meeting was Mrs. George
Abel Of Lincoln, daughter of the
president, Mrs. c. L. Hempel.