The Detroit tribune. (Detroit, Mich.) 1935-1966, 1936-11-07
MRS.
SC u,lerSays
The StOrk That Lays The Golden
Eggs


Up in Canada, an ironic bachelor
died a decade ago and left half a
million dollars to the mother who
would produce the greatest number
of little Canadians in the next ten
years. Since then, many mother
has broken down under the strain
of stork competition. The first of
November is the marathons dead
line.
Why all of this new interest of
Capitalist countries in multiple
births, triplets, bankruptcies, quin-
tuplets? The root of the matter is
the actual general decline in popu-
lation in Western nations.
America reached the peak of its
birthrate in 1921, the year that
beckoned three million little ones
from the Infinite But it will never
happen again 1t came right after
the World War as reaction to the
feeling that we had conquered, that
we were a great, expanding empire.
That was before we had to pay the
war debts. Since then, what with
two depressions, several droughts
and prospects of new, unwanted
wars, the birthrate has steadily de-
clined. If it keeps on, thirty years
hence will see the start of a per-
manent depression from which
We'll never recover.
More Babies, More Industry
When we are unable to maintain
our present level of population
no more building on a large scale
will be possible Real estate which
has been raising in value here
since 1920, will constatly decline
So will all other industry, includ-
ing farming, teaching, medicine and
law. But between now and this
disastrous date probably lies our
period of greatest building eXpan-
sion. Those three million 1921 in
fants are growing up and will soon
be married and demand homes of
their own. SO all We wicked land
spectators get your profits soon or
never.
The City's To Blame
Cities have always been blamed |
for every major evil. Now, accord
ing to o. E. Baker, U. S. Depart
ment of Agriculture, cities are to
blame for a falling birthrate. In
the city, children are an economic
liability not an asset. On the farm,
children pay for their keep from
an early age. So with the industri-
alization of all western countries
has come the steady birth decline.
Europe of course, suffers far
more from this trend than We She
Is more urbaniZed. Italy puts a tax
IN bachelors, pays for the honey
noon and offers bonuses for bah
es. Germany has a marriage loan
md all kinds of state privileges for
arge families. But these are
,rutches and have not actually in
,reased their birthrates a lot.
What would do it Immediately
would be a rising standard of liv-
ng Human like animals respond
% a greater food supply by i'm
natural increase. What is
he only country in the world to-
lay with a rising standard of liv-
ing? Soviet Russia, Fascism's
bugaboo! Russia has the largest
and only steadily rising birthrate
anywhere. The Fascists know that
Time is on the side of the Rus
slams; hence, their haste for war.
It's now or never for them, too.
Hope: A Midwife
What else has Russia they hav-
en't? Hope. A future for the de-
of their culture If it
we're fear of war alone which
populations, as some ex-
Derts say, Russia with two enc
mics, Germany and Japan, snarl-
ng at her from either side, would
be blighted. But Russia is as we
were in our war with England in
1912. She is fearless because her
future is unlimited now. She has
room to expand.
In Allahabad, India, sextuplets
we're recently born to poor wo-
man of the most depressed class.
One died but the other five are do
ing we'll But they will never rival
the Dionnes. They will not become
the shrine of a whole continent, the
ideal of whole culture. The Pow
ers That BeTdo mot desire to en-
courage the darker folk of the
world to increase. 1t is too danger
Gus. In the long run, over period
Of centuries, it is the nations of
the most people who survive chow
ever wretchedly).
Aframericas' Birthrate Lowest