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58
1906]
These are facts and figures that must give cause for thought, for they
indicate strongly and with no uncertain voice that the maternal breast milk is
the one and only food, except where the mother's state of health prevents, on
which to rear an infant. It is clear, from the information that was obtained,
that in the larger number of cases the mother was able to suckle her progeny,
for it showed that her health was
Good in 151, or 68.6 per cent., of the cases.
Moderate in 24, or 10.9 „ „
Bad „ 37, or 16.8 „ „
Not stated,, 8, or 3.7 „ „
220 100.0
Why, then, did not the mothers with good and moderate health rear their
children? It is difficult to say; but whatever the cause, they have evidently
forgotten that their first duty is to the helpless infant they have brought into
the world, and that every consideration should be subservient to this end.
The Infantile Mortality in the various parts of the borough was as
follows:—
Deaths
under
one year.
Births.
Deaths
per 1,000
Births.
Tufnell -
91
...
746
122
Upper Holloway-
111
...
1,061
105
Tollington
95
...
747
127
Lower Holloway -
173
...
1,118
155
Highbury
128
...
1,348
95
Barnsbury
232
...
1,679
138
South-East Islington
253
...
1,960
129
The Borough
1,083
...
8,659
125
•
...
-
-
It will be noticed that the death-rate was least in those districts where
the social scale was highest, and highest where the social scale was lowest, thus
supporting the statement that ignorance is a large factor in the causation of
infantile deaths.