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Of the total infantile deaths 60 were investigated with the
following results:—
4 were found to have occurred in 1 roomed tenements.
33 ,, ,, 2 ,,
16 ,, yy 3 ,,
7 in tenements with more than three rooms.
In 23 instances the children had been nursed by the mother; in 22,
hand-fed; in 13, partly nursed and partly hand-fed; while two infants,
owing to prematurity of birth, &c., had been unable to take food.
Diarrhoea.—Of the 7 deaths from Diarrhoea, 6 were investigated,
and it was found that all had been entirely hand-fed.
Enteritis. — The 3 deaths from Enteritis were investigated, and it
was found that 1 was nursed and 2 hand-fed.
Tubercular Diseases. - Of the 6 deaths of infants from tubercular
disease, 2 were investigated; both were breast-fed, in one case there
was a history of consumption in the family.
Marasmus, Debility, &c.—Of the 13 infantile deaths from Marasmus,
Debility, &c., 9 were investigated; 4 infants had been hand-fed,
4 had been partly hand-fed and partly nursed, and only 1 had been
entirely nursed, a twin infant whose mother was quite insufficiently
nourished through extreme poverty.
An inspection was made of the sanitary condition of the dwellings,
and in 23 instances defects were discovered and dealt with. One case of
overcrowding was found and remedied.
The lack of any suitable place for the storage of milk and other
food is still a striking feature in the majority of tenements visited.
The question of infantile mortality is one which has come into
considerable prominence during recent years, and consequently receives
more attention from all direetions than was previously the case.
Probably the decline in the birth-rate has been a factor in bringing
about this result, but quite apart from that, it has long been apparent to
all students that although the death rate of children under one year of
age varied from time to time, influenced by such causes as the variations
in climatic conditions, the rise and fall of subsoil water, or the prevalence
of zymotic diseases, yet even in the most favourable seasons it has always
been higher than should have been the case, had proper care and