Evening star., 1927-10-01

Suggestions that maternity hospi-
tails generally adopt foot-printing or
some other certain method of ldentl-
fication have followed the sensational
Cleveland controversy over three
Smith babies. In this instance there
were two boys and a girl, and one OF
the mothers who was given glft III
sisted there had been a mlx-up ana
that the boy was hers. she carrleu
her plea to court, but lost.
The DAYTON Daily News observes
that "tbere are men still living VINO
s1snect that they are the lost Charley
Ross" and asks, "Why can't tney
nroye it? The scientist VINO Welshs
the farthest star IS ne Scl
unable to prove that the little iaoy lll
Mrs. Sam Smiths arms IS or Is noo
the daughter of Mrs. Sam Smlth
Sa;enca e,aG Shall not have the title of
So1onoon Till il cam The Brooklyn
nai1v Eagle thinks hospitals may
"baye to come to stenciling the name
of each child on it's person IN IN
6e,;h1o ink: that certainly modern
science ought to be able TO devise
some scheme for obviating doubt IKE
that in the Cleveland case.
at is well that hospitals are re-
sorting to foot-printing and other sys-
tems that will establish the identity
of children" says the portsmouth
Dailv Times. while the Reno Evening
Gazette favors a permanent ldenti-
fvinr mark. The Worcester evening
Gazette, referring to the plan OF re-
cording fingerprints OF the motner
and the prints Of the soles OF the
babv's feet on the same caro- de-
clares: Maternity hospitals Whlcn
adopt this or some other fooiprool
method will do much to maintain pub
lie confidence where it is needed and
relieve the most distressing kiiio "a
parental anxiety
x X X X
"widespread interest in the case
is natural" says the Hartford Times,
"and comes from the suspicion
almost every mother has that her
baby will exchange tags with some
other infant and thus be handed over
to other delighted parents. AS
matter of fact, the chances are almost
nil that such a thing can happen,
and in this case in Cleveland IL
seems unlikely that the mothers
s1snicions have much basis in fact.
The Ann Arbor TimesNews advises
that 1.-The best thing that the Smiths
can do is to thrust the hnSer!ns
doubt out of their minds ana give
the baby girl all the affection tney
are capable of offering to any chlio-
No doubt they will be rewarded for
that attitude in due time Ihe re-
ward may come in the form OF
sudden realization that Baby Smith
is beginning to look very much like
pa or ma"
"It was not the court which gave
neace to the mothers troubled SOUL
in the opinion of the Chattanoosa
Times. "That came after the de-
cision. when the month-old baby Slrl
crink1ed it's nose and gurgled ana
cooed it's way into the heart or Mrs.
Smith. Once again it was demon
strated that "a little child shall lead
them" The Elkhart Truth remarks
that "there are thousand little tricks
of manner and speech and action ana
endless play of sympathy ana tenu-
ency and likes and dislikes that
weave the little pilgrim into the fann-
ilv and show his absolute right 10
belong there"
cat the beginning of Dickens.
famous romance, David Copperfieid'
Aunt Betsy Trotwood took umbrage
because little David wasn't girl,
recalls the Syracuse Herald. "1et
she lived long enough to rejoice over
natures wiser mandate. Perhaps
similar experience, with the conditions
reversed, may await Mrs. Sam Smith.
The st. Paul Pioneer-Press remarks:
''It Is a mistake that has happened
many times, probably, before ana
since little Buttercup in 'Pinafore
confessed how she mixed those pa
bies up In Owen Wister's story. |
The Virginian,' there was a mixing |
of babies that was not so innocent. |
Crowns and kingdoms have been based |
on the identity of babies"
X y X X
eff the mothers whose babies We're. |
or were not, mixed in the Cleveland |
hospital had been of markedly differ
ent races" says the Springfield Re
publican, "the task of the doctors
would have been comparatively easy,
but, even the white boy and the |
in Mark Twain's 'Pudd' nhead |
Wilson stayed mixed till manhood, In |
spite of marked family traits, until /
Pudd'nhead identified them by their |
finger prints" The Manchester Union
holds that "never can the woman
dispel doubt, and as soon
as the child is old enough to under-s
stand the story, some playmates will
tell it, no matter what injunctions are
laid upon them, and the poor little