Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1920-12-14
FIRST LEGISLATION
SOUGHT BY WOMEN
IS FOR The HOME
BY DAVID LAWRENCE
Gcasrd Wire Service to The Journal. }
1000

Copyright, 1920
WASHINGTON, Dec. 11.-Wher
the American woman left chez
place in the home" on election day
she paved the way for the adoption
of piece of Legislation that will dc
more for the home perhaps than any
one law in American history.
Early next week congress will con
slider the first legislative propose.
made by the women of America since
universal suffrage was granted. MOI
only have the women done the I'M
precedented thing of asking for g
relatively insignificant appropriation
have pointed out how that four mil
lion dollars can be of as much OF
more benefit to the American nation
as any other four million dollars in
the whole federal budget Of four bill
lion dollars.
Briefly. the women ask that the
federal government, in cooperation
with the states of the union, shall
educate youn5 mothers in the mater
nifty period so that they will not only
always have the proper knowledge OF
hygiene before and after the birth
of their children but in needy cases
nurses and physicians shall be ready
to come to their aid instantly. Not
only have some pitiful cases of neg
lect in country districts especially
IN
who have investigated these ques.
tons, but statistics show that Ameri-
ca lost two hundred and fifty thou
sand infants last year or a total OF
twenty thousand a month, most OF
whom might have been saved by
proper attention. Indede, in 1918
twenty-three thousand mothers died
from causes that could have been
prevented. Fully eighty per cent OF
The causes investigated in different
cases show that lack of care was the
principal reason for death.
Industrial Legislation
America has been far behind in
this kind of social legislation. The
United States stands fourteenth in
the list of civilized countries which
have taken up the problem. New
Zealand which has had woman suf-
frage longer than any other country
stands at the top of the list and has
greatly reduced her infant mortality
Great Britain also has been in the
front rank in this movement.
The heppard-ToWner bill prepar-
ed by Senator Sheppard, of Texas, a
Democrat, and Representative Town
er. of Iowa, Republican, would ap-
propriate two million dollars at first
but with provision to increase it an
nually till it reaches four million
dollars and the states of the union
would be asked to appropriate dollar
for dollar in the same way that the
federal government ard the states
have co-operated in building roads
1t is not compulsory-a state may
decline to cooperate but probably
not many Of them will refuse.
Senate committee on public health
has reported the bill favorably and
Senator Kenyon, who has charge of
the agricultural bill being discussed
in the senate, has promised to give
way for consideration of the Towner-
Sheppard measure so that it will get
prompt attention. The women insist
that unless they get action this ses-
sion, preferably next week. there will
not be another opportunity to get
the matter before various state leg
islatures until 1928, as some of them
meet only once every two years. ana
usually during January and Febru-
airy, SO that postponement of this
subject until the extra session of
congress in the spring would be hurt
full to the cause. The women leaders
declare that 100000 deaths is too
much to allow delay-it is three
times the number of casualties on
the American battle front during the