The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-09-09
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
Information Bureau
frederic ,. HASKIN. Dresses.
Washington. D. O.
THEY GROW BIG OUT WEST

Washington d. c., Sept SIS the
justly celebrated climate of California
breeding a race of giants on the
! Pacific coast? The scientists of the
Children's Bureau in Washington
think that it is, although with true
scientific caution they qualify their
opinion with perhaps. At any rate.
it is certainly true that, age for age,
the school children of California are
considerably taller and heavier than
the run Of school children. OF the
country over; and the experts in
Washington can find no better ex-
PLANTATION of the phenomenon than
Ethat of favorable climate.
The discovery that California chill
| dren, and there is nothing in the
record to indicate that the same
| would not be true of children OF
cally superior to American children
as a whole, was the most notable
revelation made in the study of school
children during the "Children.s
Year" as the year 1913 was called.
In that twelve-months some 100000
/ old and under, were weighed and
measured under the supervision OF the
Childen's Bureau. No study OF
human growth on such scale had
country. The records have now
undergone analysis by the Govern
ment statisticians and their conclu-
sions are of great practical interest
The tabulations show that Cali
| fornia children are two-fifths Of an
inch taller and quarters of a
| pound heavier than children or the
| same age the country over. These
quantities by themselves seem small.
but as averages they are large. They
are so large that it is probable that an
observant traveller, going directly into
| California from the East, could with
l his own eyes notice that the Pacific
Coast children are bigger than those
in the rest of the country.
American Bred Are Largest
CaIifornia's showing is the more re-
markable because of the large per
centage of Italians among the school
children weighed and measured there.
The italians, these statistics demon
strate. are below the general stature
and weight averages. Children OF
Scandinavian parents in the United
States are considerably, and those of
German parentage somewhat, above
the national averages in weight and
height; yet the percentage, OF chill
dren of these stalwart nationahties is
exceedingly low in California. But
with no racial reason for large stature
in -California-on the contrary. with
an adequate racial reason to account
for stature lower than average-the
California children nevertheless
proved to be as much bigger and
heavier than the American average
as are the children of pure Scandal
navian blood.
1t is evident therefore that, so far
as the children are concerned, Cali
4 fornia is breeding a race of people as
large as the Swedes, Norwegians, and
Danes. The scientists do not attempt
to account absolutely for this fact.
They suggest favorable climate as a
possible cause. They also suggest an
other reason which may commend it,
self even more strongly to the biologist
namely, the principle of selection in
the parents. The human stock of
California is pioneer stock. The
pioneer is a person of superior cour-
age and initiative. 1t is reasonable to
connect courage and initiative with
rugged health and health with SUI
stock of California may be regarded
as physically select.
Iowa furnished an interesting study
II for the scientists in that the percent
higher than in any district studied.
Less than 20 per cent of the children
examined had fore:gn-born parents.
In New York City it was just the re-
verse, less than % per cent of the
children examined having native par
ents. The Iowa children wero slightly
above the national average in height
and slightly below it in weight. New
York children averaged more than
half an inch shorter than average
American children OF the same ages.
The New York children were weighed
in their underclothing and so the
scientists have made no attempt to
compare their weights with those of
other children. On the average, New
York children are nearly an inch
shorter than those of California.
Children Thrive in the Country
Whatever satisfaction the cities OF
; America may take in their low death
rates as compared with the rural
} death rate, it is shown by this study
: that the country is more favorable
Rural children measured in 1913 av-
eraged one-quarter Of an inch taller
and nearly one-quarter of q pound
heavier than city children.
, Colored children averaged shorter
and lighter than white children. The
weight and statute deficiencies in col
. ored children. however, occurred only
in the younger ages. From age four
on, colored children proved to be, if
anything, a little taller and heavier
than white ones The reason for this
may be that the high child mortality
among negroes kills off the stunted
and starved victims of poor nutrition
and leaves at age four and onward
only the vigorous survivors who COM
II pare fayorably with white children in
stature. Or it may be a negro racial
characteristic to grow slowly the first
three years of life and then to gain
weight and height at an accelerated
|; rate as compared with growth OF
whites.
The less serious physical defects to
which children are subject-adenoids
; enlarged or diseased tonsils, or bad
/ teeth-seemed to have no great effect
upon height and weight, altho chill.
dren SO afflicted were shorter and
lighter than the average. Rickets
and malnutrition, however, were
shown by marked deficiencies, malnu-
triton resulting in children an inch
land one-third below average height
and nearly three and one-half pounds
below average weight.
. In thousands of American homes
, DR.. Emmett Hollis books on the rear
ing of children are the standard text
books of the nursery. 1t may be OF
/ comfort to parents whose children fail
, to come up to Doctor Hollis weight