mouth becomes the host of disease producing bacteria, as for example in pyorrhea, tonsilitis, diphtheria, typhoid-fever, pneumonia, etc., that the individual is liable to systemic infection. There are thousands of people in every large city suffering from some form of mouth infection. How frequently we find people who are complaining of rheumatism, la grippe, malaise, etc., and upon investigation we find the causative factors in the mouth.

It must be borne in mind that it is not always the amount of pus present in

mouth infections which causes the most disastrous results. For example, we have seen many persons afflicted with arthritis due to a pus pocket about the root of the tooth; and in others where a small abscess at the apex of the root of a tooth was the seat of the trouble and in others, large quantities of pus were found without any apparent inconvenience to the individual, which proves conclusively that there are two reasons for this, first, the resistence of the person, second, the virulence of the infecting organism.

Oral Hygiene vs. Infant Mortality. It is my firm belief that infant mortality is superinduced in many cases by the unhygienic condition of the mouths and

Unsightly scar due to poulticing face.

in our clinics. Mrs. L., age twenty-four years, of Jewish nationality, was seen in the clinic in October, 1913. About the second month of gestation the patient complained of pain in her teeth and gums. This continued thruout pregnancy. During this period she often threatened suicide as her condition was well nigh intollerable. She often stated that she had wisht to "go by the gas pipe," meaning that she wisht to end it all. She could not masticate her food and it would not be a surprise if she should become a subject of systemic infection.

Three weeks after giving birth to her child she applied at the clinic. She could scarcely walk across the room, barely able to lift her feet from the floor. The objective symptoms were sepsis, anemia and a stoical attitude toward her surroundings.

An examination of her teeth and

No. 3.

Scar on point of chin due to poulticing face, was treated by her physician, who removed some healthy bone near the roots of the lower incisor teeth, this did not effect a cure. After opening up the tooth antiseptic applications were made to the fistula and the parts healed rapidly.

mouth revealed two exposed pulps which gave her great pain, three putrescent pulps, two alveolar abscesses and sev-eral badly broken down roots combined with inflamed gums, and pus covering the teeth of both jaws. Pressure on the upper gums would cause a quantity of pus to drop from the teeth, and the lower jaw was equally as bad. It was impossible for her to eat solid food during

Imagine a mother nursing her child, whose blood is permeated by pus-producing bacteria and whose milk supply must necessarily be poison to the child.

When the mother's condition was discovered, word was sent to the Mothers' Clinic, where the baby was being treated, advising weaning the baby and giving a history of the case, for it had not occurred to those in attendance to look at the condition of the mother's mouth. The baby is now as well as the mother.

Is it not fair to presume that infant mortality as well as the mortality of the mothers is increased by these conditions? The writer is of the belief that these conditions are factors in infant mortality especially among those born of foreign parentage in this country. Had these conditions occurred during the heated term it might have caused the death of the child as well as that of the mother.

To accentuate this woman's troubles her husband was confined to his bed with tuberculosis. So with ignorance, pain and poverty it was indeed a pitiful case.

The results obtained in clinic work of this kind is gratifying to all concerned for we know we are saving human lives and in many cases taking away part at least, of the burden of these poor unfortunates. The expressions of gratitude from some of the people in the clinic make the work easier.

To successfully launch a campaign for Oral Hygiene it is first necessary to in

sional men of the city, not forgetting the Women's Clubs. While these are basic principles to be observed in formulating a campaign, each town will present certain conditions peculiar to itself which must be studied and carefully worked out.

Page articles might be published daily relative to Oral Hygiene, but I believe a visit to a few of the clinics by the city fathers would result in more tangible results than any other way. We may tell of septic conditions, exposed and aching pulps, unclean mouths, abscesses, diseased jaws, etc., but one demonstration

Marion-after operation.

Jaw removed from median line to articulation.

Poulticing the face in case of blind abscess the indirect cause of this disfiguration. This case could not have been operated on intraorally, hence the scar.

Health organizations have but lately devoted any attention to Oral Hygiene but great changes have recently taken place. Health Boards, hospitals, social centers and other charitable institutions have awakened and clinics are being rapidly established thruout the country. The recognition of this work is being felt to such an extent that liberal amounts of money are being appropriated by individuals, municipalities and our

Grace Hospital furnished us a room and we, with funds raised from among our own members, equipped it. Several of the younger dentists offered their services on Saturdays, and for three years this little philanthrophy continued, while we kept our enthusiasm alive with one thought, that this was the nucleus, the first impulse toward a larger movement in Oral Hygiene which would ultimately include all the school children in our fast growing city. The clinic was a success; hundreds came, and at the end of three years another was established in

Israel, one year after operation, is in excellent health and is a regular attendant at school. Had this case not been discovered early it would no doubt have caused his death.

Owing to the favorable impression made, $5,000 was included in the Health Board budget; the local oral hygiene committee still possest a fund of several hundred dollars-enough to do the thing it needed most-to inaugurate a campaign for the spreading of sentiment in favor of this work, a sentiment whose existence was already being felt.

We still had to make sure that the city authorities would allow the appropriation for Oral Hygiene asked for in

the Health Board budget. We approached the newspapers, and to their great aid I have alluded. Immediately following upon their editorials we sent out five hundred petitions calling attention to the suffering caused to helpless children from neglect to their teeth and to irremediable results upon their general health if allowed to continue. These were sent

No. 6.

Ankylosis, following scarlet fever, age 8 years. Has not been operated on, due to his absence from city. Discovered by Dental Inspector in school.

to dentists, to the women's clubs who are active in behalf of progressive measures, and circulated thru the stores and factories. In a month we had secured twenty thousand signatures. I shall not bore you with the details of our efforts for bringing to bear upon the aldermen and estimators every possible pressure, so that they would not refuse the five thousand; they did not refuse, but allowed the entire sum.

Now we began to direct our energies ascertaining just how this money could be used to the greatest possible good to the children of our city. We referred

to well known authorities on mouth hygiene and found from such men as Ebersole and Evans that there should be at least one dental inspection each year, and the balance applied to clinics.

July 1st, 1913, with a precedent and a record of service to point to, we felt safe in asking for an appropriation of eight instead of five thousand dollars. It was granted. We were in this way enabled to employ two additional inspectors and establish two new clinics.

This year we realized that the former appropriation was insufficient for the volume of work presenting itself, and in the spring of 1914 the Board of Health included in its budget an appropriation of twenty thousand dollars to carry on this work which was allowed, thanks to a practical demonstration in presenting several children who showed that surgical interference was necessary to effect a cure of conditions which might have been prevented if taken in time. Owing to this appeal the estimators readily saw the necessity of this work and the money was unanimously allowed.

With this money we will engage one Chief Dental Inspector whose duty it will be to supervise and direct all inspectors and operators in the clinics. He will also be known as Chief Lecturer and will deliver twenty lectures per month, 180 per year. He will be furnished an automobile in order to expedite his work. His salary will be one thousand dollars per year and he will devote one half of his time to this work; five school inspectors will each receive fifty dollars a month for half time. Ten clinics will be operated at a cost of approximately fifteen thousand dollars for salaries. Five nurses and five girls will assist at the clinics.

All lectures are illustrated by lantern slides. When possible, photographs are taken of interesting cases, both before and after treatment, and preserved as a matter of record.

Weekly reports of all inspections and