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108
the homes of the more generally enlightened parents that the visits
are most welcomed; the more ignorant parents have first to be im
pressed with the importance of proper infant rearing; they have necessarily
lower ideals, to raise which is often verv uphill work. Still,
they learn slowly and the results are often very encouraging.”
Miss Aldridge gives below a few of the conditions which she has
found, to illustrate the necessity of these visits:—
(1) A baby aged 3 months fed entirely on barley-water from a
filthy bottle. The child was very exhausted and cried incessantly.
The home was very dirty and the children were
neglected and insufficiently clothed.
(2) A baby aged 6 months. Father at home with no work;
mother out at work; the child encouraged to sleep during
the day by being given opium. The child was discovered
on a very hot day smothered with flies and sound asleep,
having previously been given a bottle of milk containing
opium.
(3) Twin babies delicate from birth and hand-fed. They were
given unsuitable food from a very dirty bottle. The
children were insufficiently .clothed and were found to be in
a very dirty and neglected condition; and their state of
health was very unsatisfactory.
The Infant Weighing Machine, purchased at the end of 1910,
proved of great value throughout last year. Seventy-one infants were
brought to be weighed and the scale was used on 341 occasions. The
weight of each child is recorded on a card, which the mother is
allowed to take home with her; and great interest is shown by the
mothers in the children's progress. Foster-parents also bring the
children under their charge to be weighed, as they consider a good
weekly gain recorded on the card is proof to the parents that the child
is well cared for.