DR. F. E. FREMANTLE'S PAPER 49 



in 1906 and 1908 the President of the Local 

 Government Board presided over National Con- 

 ferences on Infant Mortality ; in 1907 Lord Robert 

 Cecil's Bill for the Notification of Births became law ; 

 in 1908 there followed the Children Act; and an 

 immensity of voluntary and official effort, both local 

 and national, in our own and other English-speaking 

 countries, has already effected an astonishing reduc- 

 tion of the rate of infant mortality. In this country 

 the rate has been reduced in fifteen years from 150 to 

 95. Every year 50,000 infants are saved that would 

 have died fifteen years ago. 



In this campaign the action of the State has been 

 suggested in the inspiring addresses of our President 

 at our National Conferences of 1906 and 1908. 



Apart from parental sobriety and other matters, 

 mainly questions for the individual, he dwelt on the 

 influence of medical inspection of school children ; 

 on school feeding in certain areas ; on the Children 

 Bill ; on the purity of children's food ; on milk depots, 

 and on that Milk Bill which he hoped to pass in 1908, 

 but which, alas, has not been passed yet. For the 

 health of the mothers he referred to the prohibition 

 of night work for women, to the Laundries Act, to 

 the Notification of Births Act, and to the Health 

 Visitors Bill. He advised us to concentrate on the 

 mother. We have done so, and a salvage of 50,000 

 infants every year is the result. 



Importance of Inquiry. Perhaps most important 

 of all has been the inquiry, inaugurated by his depart- 

 ment, into the causes and distribution of infant 

 mortality. The first-fruits of this inquiry were given 

 to the world in Dr. Newsholme's report on infant 

 and child mortality in 1910; a second report has 

 just been issued. 1 May I suggest as a subject for 



1 "Second Annual Report on Infant and Child Mortality in 

 England and Wales." (Cd. 6909.) Wyman and Sons. 



