2
THE
CHEM AW A
AM ERICAN
I should like to get the feeling I have upon this question into the
conscience and aspirations of every Indian Service em ployee until there
shall prevail a sort of righteous passion to see th at every In d ian
child has a fair chance to live.
T here is som ething fundam ental here:
W e cannot solve the In d ian problem w ith o u t In d ian s. W e cannot
educate th eir children unless they are kept alive.
All our In d ian schools, reservations, individual allotm ents, and ac
cum ulated incomes tend pathetically tow ards a wasted altruism if m ain
tained and conserved for a w ith erin g , decadent people.
If vye have an In d ian policy w orthy of the nam e, its goal m ust be an
en d u rin g and stu rd y race, tru e to the noblest of its original instincts
and virtues and loyally sym pathetic w ith our social and national life; a
body of efficient citizens blending th eir unique poise and powers w ith
the keen and sleepless vigor of the w hite m an.
W e m ust, therefore, renew daily our w arfare against the arch foe of
efficiency—d isease.
W e m ust begin at the rig h t place— not only w ith the in fan t at its
m o th er’s breast, but w ith th e unborn generation.
T h e new cam paign for health in which I would enlist you is first of
all Save the Babies!
Statistics startle us w ith the fact th a t approxim ately three-fifths of
the In d ian in fan ts die before the age of five years.
Of w hat use to this m ournful m ortality are our splendidly equipped
schools?
I earnestly call upon every Indian Bureau em ployee to help reduce
this frightful percentage! S u p erin ten d en ts, T eachers, Physicians,
M atrons, N urses, everyone can do som ething bv in stru ctio n or exam ple,
the physician w ith his science, the nurse w ith her train ed skill, the
m atron w ith her m otherly solicitude, all of us by personal hygiene, clean
liness, and sobriety.
\ \ ith this idea upperm ost, all em ployees whose d u ties bring them in
touch w ith Indian families m ust w ork in closest harm ony for su rro u n d
ing the expectant Indian m other w ith favorable health conditions before
and after ch ild -b irth . T h e sanitation of the hom es of such women
should have special atten tio n and no baby allowed to be born into an
environm ent g erm in atin g disease, if prevention is available.
T h e sim plest rules of m otherhood applied under intelligent and
friendly direction would save most of th e Indian babies who annually
fill untim ely graves.
I w ant to send th is safety, as far as possible, into every hom e of an
Indian m other, w hether th a t home be a tepee, a ten t, a log house w ith
d irt floors or a m ore com fortable abode.