MlLK SUPPLY: DISCUSSION 238 



of view of fat, &c. She might say that the little discs which 

 the inspectors used were kept in the City Hall in albums, 

 plainly showing the dirt on them, and if any farmer came 

 and complained because his milk was sent back he was 

 shown the disc which was taken from the can. 



Mrs. J. KINGSWELL (Portsmouth) said she wanted to ask 

 whether any of the doctors present could tell her whether 

 in the event of a mother being unable to suckle her children 

 they should be given pure milk as it came from the cow 

 or whether it should be diluted. 



Dr. CHALMERS (Glasgow) said that personally he had 

 been hoping that some medical man who was practising 

 would answer that question, but, failing anyone else, he 

 would like to say that in his view it was well to dilute cow's 

 milk for the feeding of infants, not because there was too 

 much fat in it, but because it contained too much glucose. 

 In the text-books they found the advice that very young 

 children should be fed with two parts of water to one of 

 milk, with cream added to make up the deficiency in the 

 fat. That recommendation still held, but Mrs. Kingswell 

 was perfectly right in saying that now and again they got 

 children who did very well indeed on pure milk, and that 

 raised another question entirely. Speaking broadly, he did 

 not think it would be good advice generally to recommend 

 that babies be fed on whole milk, although it undoubtedly 

 was a fact that some babies under given conditions would 

 do well on it. 



Mr. BROADBEXT (Huddersfield) said he did not think they 

 would like to separate without giving an expression of 

 thanks to the Countess of Aberdeen for the grace with 

 which she had presided over their deliberations that morn- 

 ing, and more particularly for the most interesting address 

 which Her Excellency gave them with regard to the supply 

 of milk in the rural districts in Ireland. (Hear, hear.) He 

 would look forward with the greatest pleasure and interest 

 to the report to which Her Excellency had referred, because 

 the lack of milk in rural districts was one of the growing 

 evils all over our own country and they would all be 

 interested in learning the result of the careful observations 

 which had been made in Ireland in this connection. In this 

 way Ireland was leading, as it had led in the matter of the 

 crusade against consumption, and if Ireland could teach 

 them any lessons in this respect it would but add another 

 debt of obligation to the many which they owed to Lady 

 Aberdeen for what she had done already in the direction 

 of health culture. 



The meeting then terminated. 



16 



