Physical education has been introduced into certain schools and has led to increased attendance, easier study, improved discipline, promoted intellectual progress and facilitated the translation of moral ideals into right behavior.

Attention to physical conditions has shown that many so-called mental defectives are not mentally defective but suffer from physical impediments subject to correction after diagnoses. The sooner these handicaps are removed the better.

The Fess-Copper Bill of the U. S. Congress aims to see that in all States the physical welfare of the child shall be as carefully conserved as its mental progress. Federal aid is to be given States which undertake physical training. This aid takes the form of training and compensating teachers. Thirty-two States have already taken steps in the matter.

Railway Accidents

We are informed that there is in the United States a death by accident every seven minutes. Many occur on the railroads. In the five years preceding December 31, 1921, there were 846,732 railway casualties-12,780 employees killed and 715,222 injured; 1,479 passengers were killed and 35,529 injured; and 25,046 other persons were killed and 56,676 injured! ! !

Many safety committees are being formed to induce the formation of safe habits. This is done by education.

"If a man always does that which he knows to be right," says C. E. Hill, safety agent of the N.Y.C.R.R., in The Nation's Health, "takes the

course and follows the method he knows to be safe, the problem would not be serious."

Bad and careless habits are hard to change-it takes much patience, and continuous teaching. The work must be begun with children when habits are forming. As time goes on improvements will be certain to take place, and accidents will be the exception rather than the rule.

Along with education comes

supervision.

Bosses have great opportunities-they can preach and practise safety. Safety must be made part of the day's work. It must be installed in the hearts and minds of foremen.

School Windows

In order that school children may be turned from the source of light (usually in the sidewall) seats are now made rhomboidal in shape, thus turning the normal line of the pupils' vision 22.5 degrees from the centre line of the aisle. This protects from the window and desk top-glare.

and National Hygiene

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Selected Articles

CONTROL OF DIPHTHERIA

The Public Health News of the State Department of Health of New Jersey, says: that "toxin-antitoxin mixture will protect susceptible persons from diphtheria, and the Schick test will show accurately those who are naturally immune or have been immunized against the disease. These two measures of proven efficacy make it possible for the individual to be protected if he will. Just as vaccine will protect the individual from smallpox, but only general vaccination will protect the community from the disease, so it is with diphtheria immunization." The great problem now is to educate the public to the facts of diphtheria immunization, for the reason that there are no laws that will permit of compulsory immunization. There are further elements in the community. which in the name of personal liberty use their influence in the direction of opposing this education. It is a little difficult to deal with such persons. They are somewhat like the man who, led to the edge of the canyon at Niagara, shuts his eyes. and insists that there are no falls, and that there cannot be any, even with their roar filling his ears. They might, apparently, take another of the attitudes opposed to inoculation, and with good reason, oppose the enormous expenditure of public funds for the police. A man can protect himself from burglars by making a strong house, putting in electric alarms and buying a huge watchdog; he need not fear being held up if he will wear a bullet-proof vest, buy and practise with a revolver and cultivate that keenness of observation which is the hold-up man's first ally; he may avoid the on-rushing automobile, which demands so much of the money of the city to regulate, by going through alleyways, keeping out of congested sections and developing alertness of vision and mind, and speed in action.

Most of us will agree, however, that the policeman is a necessary adjunct to our kind of civilization and conduces to a better expenditure of our time than if we had to cultivate

a

aboriginal methods of self-protection, and so does inoculation. Aboriginal methods of self-protection in disease have everywhere proved to be a failure. Until the health officer as means of co-ordinating individual effort appeared on the scene, plagues swept over even more highly civilized sections of the earth, unhindered and unchecked. The regulation of individual health, as a part of community health and by public health officers, has banished the old, familiar plagues from every place, save those that will not take precautions. California, with its recent runs of smallpox, and Canada, with the disease endemic in many localities, contrasted with Massachusetts and New York and England are examples direct to the point. The real solicitude of the latter commonwealths lies in the care of imported cases which may reach groups of citizens who through the carelessness resulting from long freedom from danger have permitted their defences to become weakened.

In diphtheria the lesson to learn is that a malady which till recently has taken a heavy toll in human lives is now understood. A means exists whereby to select those who are susceptible to the disease, and a means has been discovered by which to make most of these susceptible persons immune. What two principles could be simpler and together be more complete? It is the story of the Schick test and the subsequent immunization. If generally adopted, diphtheria would become as rare as is smallpox to-day in the communities taking precautions. Boston is doing well in its work against diphtheria, it has a thoroughly organized department, actively engaged with school children and with others if they wish it. New Jersey presents in its Public Health News for April a most valuable statement on the subject, which is available on the asking. No one need be uninformed, unless he really prefers to remain ignorant.

COMPULSORY DENTAL WORK IN SCHOOLS

In connection with the question of the right of the municipal authorities to take what measures they may deem essential for the health of the community, the position taken in the dental clinics of Trondhjem, Norway, is interesting. The clinic was established in 1910, at about the same time that dental work was first taken up in the schools of this country by Dr. Potter and his allies. A recent statement, noted in public health reports, informs us that all the eight grades in the public schools are under treatment. The population of the