The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1923-08-23
MOTHERS AND CHILD
REN'S CONFERENCE



house in Blackfoot for four days this
week, closing Thursday evening. 1t
was conducted by the state depart
ment of public welfare, under direc-
ton of DR.. F. w. Almond, assisted
by Miss Edith Chaffee and local
physicians, nurses and representa-
tives of the civic organizations that
have to do with relief work.
1t was conducted for the benefit of
mothers and children, who for vari-
GUS reasons have not gone to practic-
ing physicians or to hospitals for
examinations and advice. Those
who live in rural districts where
there is no physician usually accept
the service 1T these clinics. The
state pays the cost of them, and the
individuals receive the service free,
and ut the hands of persons who are
disinterested from q business stand
point No operations are performed,
hut people are advised carefully as
to what 10, wrong and what is con-
sidered the best course to take.
Sometimes operations seem neces-
sary, and sometimes q change of
habits or diet is the important thing
to be done.
The things that are wrong with
peoples bodies are their own private
affairs, and are not generally con
sidered proper news for physicians
to give to the press, or for the press
to give to the public without the
consent of the individual affected, so
that hospital news and clinic news
is usually either suppressed or as in
instances of this kind, given In
generalities that inform the public
without revealing the identity of the
persons. Some very sad cases cam'
to light at the Blackfoot clinic, and
DR.. Almond says 1t is about the same
in other parts of the state. AS
rule. the women and children are the
victims of most ailments and the
greatest sufferers. Farmers wives
have more hardships than the wives
of men living in towns and villages,
and 1t too often appears that the
man, being strong and Injured to
hardships, has not correct apprecia-
ton of the sensitiveness and weak
ness of women and children and fails
or neglects to do the best ways or to
provide against damaging things.
1t is unfortunate that much of the
education and training of the boy il;
in the direction of making him a.
hardy as possible and leading him to
ignore pain and difficulties as in
training for football and many other
things, and overlooking to teach
them that girls and women are less
hardy Dairy men have an endless
task teaching men and boys that a |
dairy COW is sensitive and must be
given the gentlest of treatment. II
she is to be sufficiently delicate and
sensitive to operate the powers of
creation, and to manufacture milk in.
quantity, she cannot also be suf-
tough and hardy to be cuffed
around like a football. If she is to
be the mother and guardian of infant
creatures and bring them thru their
ender years from the embryo up to
she must needs be tender
Ind gentle and sheltered from ex-
remes and hardship and all violence, /:
10Th physical and mental.
The same principle holds true with
mothers, only in more marked de-
rec, and men as rule do not ap- ,
'reciate these things until they have !
earned them by sad experience. ..
hey have not been taught, or hav-
ng been taught, they do not cOmpre-
end the seriousness and realities of
! until plumbers have been made
nd suffering brought on. In too !
lany instances, real injury starts
18th mental conditions, harsh words $
oppressed spirits, Encouragement,
ollowed by physical troubles made Il
orse by the mental conditions, t
hen love and sympathy and rest d
light tide over to good health. r
DR.. Almond says that one of the t
orst sources of broken health and o
lffering among women and children .
the failure of the mother to take n
osolute rest following birth of p
lid. In some cases, the young y
other becomes ambitious to get up
Id move about or go about her q
,usework as soon as she can, and VI
a few days under such cOndi- tt
)ns, she lays the foundation for S,
future misery, that de-
lops so slowly she does not realize 10
len 1t started, nor can anyone ever tr
store her. Taking up homework n
len the child is five or six days old, n,
d doing heavy work such as wash v
g when it is ten days old, are n,
tai things in the household not
silly noticed at the time, but paid r,
r very dearly in future years. II
She who is the mother Of several or
ildren in few years, however bt
'ong and healthy she was, is under al
strain that admits of no extremes re-
heavy work or prolonged work or II
rdship or mental suffering arising h.
I'm unhappy domestic relations tn
thout breaking down in some de- pr
ee and often there is complete col hf
)se OF body or mind. The man "a
es not usually comprehend these nr
Ings, especially IL he is one who ch
s never been sick himself. If he ha
es not know what illness is, he 81,
~ be almost as a color blind per- w,
q trying to judge of colors or nv
nd person being told that the light Sc
too bright and that 1t is distress "a
:. He simply cannot understand ut
ose things, any more than an av
limo can understand the need OF to
litation in our cities where the
ather is hot and meat spoils over So
hit if not kept cool. If parents or to
nobody could only teach the young -