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appointed in 1912, but the suggestion that an infant milk depot
should be established was not adopted. The two Health Visitors
were employed almost entirely in home visiting, and the numbers
were so large, and the staff so small, that the home visiting was
largely confined to selected cases, and consisted mainly of "first
visits," regular visitation for the purpose of instruction being
possible.
In 1913 a "baby class" was begun, meeting once a week in
the Town Hall. This was really of course an infant clinic, at
which the Medical Officer of Health acted as Medical Officer. The
average weekly attendance for the year was 15. There had
previously been established in 1908 the Farncombe Street School
for Mothers, which, by the year 1914, had four branches, while in
the same year (1914), the Princess Club School for Mothers was
opened, and a second weekly municipal "baby class" was begun
in Rotherhithe.
In 1915, there were altogether two municipal and four voluntary
baby clinics held every week, the voluntary clinics being held
at Princes Street, West Lane, the Central Hall and the Princess
Club, and the municipal centres being at the Bermondsey Town
Hall and the Lady Gomm Dispensary. The Medical Officer of
Health repeatedly advocated the extension of this work, and the
appointment of additional staff. Two additional Health Visitors
were appointed in January 1917, making a total of four municipal
Health Visitors.
In 1918 the Maternity and Child Welfare Act was passed. In
December 1919, a sub-committee of the Public Health Committee
was appointed to deal with maternity and child welfare matters;
prior to this date the Public Health Committee had controlled the
work, and it was not until 1920 that an independent Maternity
and Child Welfare Committee was appointed. In 1920 the
Salomon's Centre was established by the authorities of Guy's
Hospital, and in this year the Medical Officer of Health submitted
a report in which he recommended the appointment of a
whole-time lady Medical Officer, four additional Health Visitors,