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Show r. oo V . " F WHERE THE CHILDREN p: - ARE HUNGRY. -7; ' . i pt Thexo are distressing conditions j ' among the people of Belgium, accord-, accord-, ing to Dr. William Palmer Lucas, who : K. has returned to this country after ) three months' study of the Belgian ?' f situation. Dr. Lucas is now in Call- y fornia, organizing aid. He appeals to the American peo- ' K pie for the babies of Belgium who k-. 5' are receiving insufficient nutrition i. i ' for growing children. The effects of j; I malnutrition on the children of Bel- gium are shown most markedly in the V f ' increase ,of tuberculosis. The vitality - ! and resistance of the industrial and j. ; minor commercial classes has been $j$.v;V lowered hy their months of subsist-' subsist-' ! ence on the communal soup, and the jStfr increase in tuberculosis appears to be Bp" , f , mainly a factor of the lowered vitality Rflt '" due td underfeeding. Dr. Mine of hi'. ; . '. Lockern states that none of the chilli. chil-li. .- dren of the working and middle class ic , t es in his community had escaped gan- r "v p glinary congestion, which indicates :' h, a field ready for tubercular infec- ly 1. tion' R Te general tendency of the Bel- f . f ( ' gian race toward debility was an- other striking fact noted. Not only I j IT are the adult workers suffering, but U the inafnts born now show a marked decrease in size over those born be- -'; j fore the war. Many appear to be pre- f: ' ;i f mature, and almost all are puny and V,V, :.j ' debilitated this despite the fact that over 130 canteens are maintained where nursing and espoctant mothers are given a supplemental meal of soup, meat and pudding for two months before the child is born and during the nursing poriod. "Among the adults this condition is not so serious," said Dr. Lucas. "You can starve a dog and ho'll be all right when you feed him up again; but if you starve a puppy he'll never attain his full size." The gain of these babies, which should bo 180 grammes weekly, is 60 grammes. There are 1,500,000 children in Bel-gium Bel-gium and 500,000 In France receiving community soup, and they need a supplemental lunch. It has been suggested that the school children of the United States might share their lunches with theBe distressed dis-tressed little ones of Europe. Will the boys and girls of Ogden do something for the hungry boys and girls of Belgium and France? Wo would be pleased to get an expression ex-pression from our young people. Write the Standard on this subject. nn |