DR. CHAS. A. HODGETTS' PAPER 61 



work directly into the home, and maintain for this 

 purpose an efficient staff of medical and lay officers 

 whose duty it would be to inspect and report upon 

 the physical condition of the inmates as well as the 

 sanitary state of the cubical contents of all homes, 

 and at the same time render such sanitary aid as may 

 be found necessary. 



In addition to this health work in the home, it 

 is equally essential that local health authorities be 

 charged with : The supervision and instruction of 

 mothers on the care of babies ; the establishment 

 and operation of milk stations ; the supervision and 

 control of midwives ; the supervision and control 

 of all institutional work having for its object the 

 care of the infant and child ; the regulation and 

 oversight of child labour ; the oversight and regu- 

 lation of all industrial work carried on within the 

 home. 



It may be contended that this important sanitary 

 invasion usurps the sanctity of the home ; but, under 

 modern conditions, truly no man or woman lives to 

 himself or herself, and the nation has a right to 

 protect the life and prevent disease and disability 

 amongst those constituting its most valuable asset. 



It is also the duty of the State to provide for, or 

 assist in providing for, the oversight and, in many 

 cases, the care of the infant the more so that it is 

 now its function to control the education of the child, or 

 maintain an oversight of the factories and workshops 

 in which a portion of our adult population spend 

 about eight hours every working day. The perpetuity 

 and prosperity of a nation, as well as its morale, 

 depend upon the physical standard of its people, 

 coupled with the high standard of home environment ; 

 and this can be best secured by beginning with the 

 care of babies in the homes in which they are cradled, 

 and many improperly provided for in pre-natal days, 

 as indeed from birth, until they reach the school age. 



