THE MILK SITUATION IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. 427 



visits were made to the dispensary 5 new cases and 3 return visits. Eight 

 visits, while not many, was considered a fair start. The sign attracted atten- 

 tion during this time and the people became acquainted with the fact that 

 clean and pure milk would be dispensed at a low rate 1 cent a feeding and 

 that treatment and medicine were equally reasonable, namely, 10 cents for 

 either. During May the attendance showed some improvement, 26 new patients 

 coming, with 37 return visits. During this month 6 infants were for one reason 

 or another put upon modified milk. But in June the attendance took a big^ 

 jump, 55 new cases being treated, with 127 return visits, and 12 more infants 

 put on milk. The confidence in the success of the institution rose proportion- 

 ally, but it was not until the returns for July were in, showing a total at- 

 tendance of 25161 new cases and 190 return visits that the organization began 

 to realize that its early doubts and fears were unfounded and that the dis- 

 pensary was really making a success. The succeeding two months only served 

 to confirm this. August gave a total attendance of 214 47 new cases and 167 

 return visits and September, 239 67 new cases and 172 return visits. 



But with the phenomenal and unprecedented success came the realization of 

 new duties and new responsibilities. It was discovered that while the dispen- 

 sary had had as its object the curing or relieving of suffering in sick children, 

 the prevention of disease amongst them, and the education of their parents in 

 matters pertaining to infant hygiene and infant feeding, it was not only ful- 

 filling these objects, but was capable of and actually was performing functions 

 which, if not of greater, were at least of equal, importance. Through this 

 channel many people were brought to Neighborhood House who had never been 

 there before, to become acquainted with and take advantage of its many oppor- 

 tunities. Also, people in other sections of the city were awakening to the fact 

 that infant life in this Capital City had long been neglected and allowed to go- 

 to waste, and many were beginning to see the necessity of remedying this 

 neglect and putting a stop to the waste. And with all this came a still greater 

 realization, that of the weakness of the dispensary organization. With these 

 many problems to meet and solve came the necessity for help. The P. E. O. 

 organization in this city seemed to be the ideal organization to shoulder this 

 greater work, because it seemed that their ideals stood more for work of this 

 kind than those of any other organization. An appeal was therefore made to- 

 them. 



It was received with the same enthusiasm and generosity with which all 

 other appeals had been received, with the result that an organization was 

 formed to carry forward and expand the work the smaller organization had 

 begun. This organization began work October 1. It absorbed the parent 

 organization and invited to join with it the Washington Diet Kitchen, the 

 Instructive Visiting Nurses' Association, the Associated Charities, and 

 Neighborhood House. May it have success. The work it has to do is 

 immense, but every success obtained is worth many times the effort that will 

 be put forth. The educational work is especially important, for lack of 

 knowledge is at the bottom of many of the evils that children suffer, lack 

 of knowledge of what constitutes proper food, proper clothing, and proper 

 hygiene, many sad cases of epilepsy and hysteria being traceable directly 

 to neglect of this latter. 



This report would be incomplete did it not deal with a few, a very few, 

 statistics. 



From ihe middle of April, when it was first opened, until the 1st of October, 

 when it passed into the hands of the new organization, a period of five and 

 one-half months, there were treated in the dispensary 261 infants and children. 

 The total of return visits made to the dispensary was 696. The total attend- 

 ance, 957. Three deaths occurred, making the death rate a little over 1 per 

 cent. Search of the health-office records showed a total death rate in 1907 

 in southwest Washington of children of 10 years of age or under to be 50. 

 During this year, 1908, only 29 children have died in the southwest, 10 years 

 of age or under, although this year was considered one of the most fatal 

 to children that we have ever experienced. May not the dispensary through 

 its furnishing of clean pure milk take some credit to itself for this tremendous 

 reduction in mortality? 



Forty-one babies received modified milk. 



The cost of equipping and running the dispensary for the five months was 

 about $400. 



These figures demand no comment; they speak for themselves. 



