AUTHORITIES' RESPONSIBILITIES : DISCUSSION 99 



ill** 



hand, even though they showed a marked reduction in the 

 mortality rate. One could, however, be absolutely sure of 

 this, that wherever good solid work was being done there 

 must also be a result for the better. 



Dr. S. G. MOORE (Huddersfield) said that perhaps Cleve- 

 land might surmount their statistical difficulty in this way 

 they might not be able to know the number of births per 

 annum, but they had excellent census returns made periodi- 

 cally, and by calculating the death-rate of infants per 

 thousand of population, and making a comparison with 

 other places, they could at once put themselves in the 

 position of making a comparison between their existing 

 infant mortality rate and preceding rates, and they could 

 also establish some comparison with other places. 



Dr. CHALMERS (Glasgow) said he would not detain them 

 more than a moment or two, but he thought it well to make 

 a reference to one part of the subject that they had wholly 

 left out. They had discussed the responsibilities of the 

 Central Government, and they had discussed the responsi- 

 bilities of local authorities, but they had not discussed the 

 responsibilities of the parents. He put the problem in that 

 way because of this they had a Notification of Births Act, 

 which brought to them pretty early knowledge regarding 

 the birth of a child. But the condition of the law at the 

 moment was, he believed, such that if a father had neglected 

 his wife the law could take no action in the matter; in other 

 words in this matter it was not a crime to neglect a woman 

 who was about to become a mother. The law stepped in 

 directly the child was born, and if the child were living the 

 law could then prosecute the father for failing to provide 

 for the wants of his child. They wanted co-ordination in 

 some way they wanted more power, they needed the law 

 altered in that matter. There was another sense in which 

 they wanted co-ordination. The Notification of Births Act 

 gave them knowledge of the children who were born, but 

 it did not go any further. If an illegitimate child were born 

 that child passed out of the knowledge of the authority 

 altogether, if it went under the care of the Parochial Board 

 or the Unions. There was co-ordination wanted there. 

 There was too much splitting up of responsibility in regard 

 to this work of looking after children among the various 

 authorities, and in his opinion they needed the authorities 

 to be co-ordinated, and in that way they would do better 

 work. 



Councillor IRVING (Burnley) said he came from that very 

 wicked, very foolish, or very ignorant community, Burnley. 



