The Connecticut labor news., 1923-05-04
INFANT MORTALITY
 AND LOW WAGES

In survey of conditions surround ing infant life, made by the Children's s Bureau of the U. $. Department of Labor, infant mortality in Gary, Ind, was found to have a close relation with economic and civic factors such as low income, poor housing and san itation, and lack of public welfare activity. This survey forms the ninth and latest in a series of field inquiries covering various types of cOmmun- ities. According to the report just issued, Gary was chosen for study as representing a city in which the basic industry was steel manufacturing and which had large and diverse foreign born population. The study of infant mortality under these conditions was considered to possess additional in terest on account of Gary's newness and rapid growth.
 Building was little regulated by city ordinance or state law during the early period of growth, the report says. While the development of hous- ing by a subsidiary land company ot the steel corporation has "resulted for the most part in Well-built and at tractive residence areas" the demand for accommodations "has consistently exceeded the supply of desirable quarters, many temporary makeshltt structures have continued Tn use and the condemnation and abandonment of unfit dwellings has been retarded" The company early adopted the policy of renting it's houses only to Amer icanized workmen, leaving the fore ign-born laborer to house himself and his family as best he could" The result has been to concentrate the foreign-born population in certain sections of the city having poorer housing, less development and exten- sion of sewers and water mains and other measures of municipal sanita- ton, and consequently much higher infant death rate than the sections developed by the land company. The rate in the former districts was, 14I.2 per 1000 births; in the latter, 900,
 An increase of infant mortality with fall in the earnings of the faith CTS or chief bfeadwinners was again demonstrated, as in the preceding studies. For the year of the Gary study, when the chief breadwinners'l earnings amounted to at least $I,85o' the infant death rate was 8o,4; when the earnings were between $I.o5o and $I.85o the rate, increased to I27.I, and when the earnings fell below $I,o5o the rate rose to 1878. More than a fourth of the babies of native white mothers but less than one in twelve of those having foreign-born mothers were in families whose chief bread winner earned $I,85o or more.
 At the time of, the study certain districts of the city embodied many of the conditions of pioneer life, the report states. Squatter's rights on land might be purchased for a yearly fee of one or two dollars and a shack put up, pieced together with scraps of boards and tin cans. Not only these buildings but many regularly constructed houses were without city water or sewer connection. More than one house on lot, crowded rooms, and other housing evils existed because neither state nor city regu- lations applied to one-family dwell- ings. The city health officer was in adequately salaried and served only on part time. One food and milk in spector and one nurse giving educa tional service to mothers were em- ployed by the city, but additional in spectors and nurses would have filled a large need, the report indicates. Comparatively little infant-welfare work was being done by private agen- cies.