COMPULSORY ATTENTION TO CHILDREN’S TEETH.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 771, 10 December 1886, Page 4

COMPULSORY ATTENTION TO CHILDREN’S TEETH.

The prevalence of caries of the teeth amongst so large a majority of the units that comprise civilized communities, and the consequent pain and inconvenience entailed, and, perhaps unconsciously, the absence of those pleasures attending a good digestion which makes up so large a part of individual happiness, have induced the public to interest itself in the pathology and treatment, especially prophylactic, of these organs. Now, if we wish to get at the root of the evil we must commence our treatment with the deciduous teeth. Many patients—nay, even medical practitioners—ask, What is the use of preserving teeth which have only to serve their purpose for a time, and which nature will replace ? If a surgeon were asked what is the use of provisional callus in a case of fracture his answer would be readily formulated, and just such an answer is applicable to the teeth. We will run over just a few of the points that may result from disease and its neglect. First, with regard to the child’s health. With decayed tebth, and often, in addition, chronic gumboils, the little sufferer is kept awake at night and his digestion affected by inability to masticate his food, and more so by swallowing the fetid discharged from the abscesses. As a consequence the child becomes weak and puny, and so the already developing permanent teeth suffer from the constitutional disturbance. Supposing each tooth as it becomes the seat of pain is extracted, then the masticatory power is greatly enfeebled, and, moreover, it has been shown that where many deciduous teeth have been removed, especially in the case of the canines, the jaw does not develop as rapidly as it should do, and consequently, when the permsnent teeth erupt, some take their position inside and some outside the arch, which irregularity is a potent predisposing cause of caries, apart from its unsightliness. Again, take for instance a very common case, that of a second temporary molar extensively decayed. The first permanent molar assumes its due position posterior, and the first bicuspid anterior to it. Both these permanent teeth are frequently found affected on the side corresponding with the deciduous tooth, and the disease is undoubtedly due to the infection from decomposing food harbored, by it. Although much more might be said upon this subject, we think that enough has been advanced to show the importance of first teeth with reference to the welfare of their successors, which should, but so often do not, do duty for a lifetime. We believe that nothing short of the periodical examination every six months, and treatment if necessary, of the teeth of children can effectually cope with this evil. At the recent meeting of the British Dental Association, Mr Fisher, of Dundee, read a very able paper, in which he strongly advocated that dental surgeons should be appointed, with sufficient salaries to ensure the possibility of conservative treatment, and not, as heretofore, only extraction, to all public schools, reformatories, industrial and endowed schools, training-ships, &c. He has examined the teeth of a large

number of children attending schools, and found that on an average over 75 per cent, required dental treatment; he also mentions the startling fact that the principal manufacturers in London supply 10,000,000 artificial teeth per annum, showing the enormous"loss of natural teeth amongst the community. There is already a move in the direction of Mr Fisher’s suggestion; as we noticed some time ago, the North Surrey District Schools have appointed a dental surgeon at £6O per annum, aud since then the District School or Upper Norwood has a dental officer. The Metropolitan and City Police Orphanage has had for some years a dental surgeon.—Lancet. SAD STORIES FROM BERLIN. Out of a population of 1,200,000 in Berlin more than 150,000 are receiving- public charity. Many of the working men here openly favor community of wives. Divorces have increased to 15 per cent of the marriages solemnized. The attendance at the churches has decreased to 2 per cent of the adult population, and of 48,"000 funerals last year, nearly 30,000 were performed without any religious ceremonies whatever. Women flock by thousands to the city to obtain employment, and, failing to get what they want, large numbers fall and are lost. This evil has become so great that strenuous efforts are being made to avoid it. The law of consent has already been raised in a similar way as it was done in New York and in England. By such legislative enactment some sort of protection is extended to girls up to the age of eighteen. Lodging--houses and benevolent institutions have been established to aid working women, and a society of ladies has been formed, charged with protecting, sustaining and counselling women up to the age of thirty-five.

CARE OF THE HANDS AND NAILS,

A little ammonia or borax in the water you wash your hands with, and that water just luke warm, will keep the skin clean and soft. A little oatmeal mixed with the water will whiten the hands. Many people use glycerine on their hands when they go to bed, wearing glovesj to keep the bedding clean; but glycerine does not agree with every one. It makes some skins harsh and red. These people should rub their hands with dry oatmeal and wear gloves in bed. The best preparation for the hands at night is white of egg with a grain af alum dissolved in it. Manicures have a fancy name for it, but all can make it and spread it over their hands, and the job is done. They' also make the Roman toilet paste. It is merely white of egg, barley flour and honey. They say it was used by the Romans in olden times. Any way it i 3 a first-rate thing, but it is mean, sticky sort of stuff to use, and don’t do the work any better than oatmeal. The roughest and hardest hands can be made soft and white in a months time by doctoring them a little at bedtime, and all the tools yon need are a nail-brush, a bottle of ammonia, a box of powdered borax and a little tine, white sand to rub the stains off, or a cut of lemon, which will do even tetter, for the acid of the lemon will clean anything. Manicures use acids in the shop, but the lemon is better, and isn’t poisonous, while the acids are.—Herald of Health. , _ “ SPOILING A CHILD.” That domestic atrocity known as * spoiling a child,’ is generally looked upon as a consequence of excessive maternal love ; but if a mother hated her little one, she could scarcely do anything worse. A spoiled child is one of the most unhappy of living crea tures, and generally sickly ; for, besides the physical evils which the indulgence of its undisciplined appetite engenders, its temper preys upon its health. To pamper the little folks in all their whims and caprice* is a parental sin, and one which is always visited upon the unfortunates who have been thus irrationally petted. One of the immediate penalties of the offence is the dislike with which spoiled children are universally regarded. But there are worse consequences than this. The young tyrant is too often developed into the overbearing youth, and the overbearing youth into the unjust and hateful man. Gentleness, kindness and reasonable patience are absolutely essential to the proper management of children. When severity is necessary, it is usually because some error of the past has been unwisely overlooked, or perhaps winked at. In cases of this kind, every blow - that fails on the juvenile offender ought, in strict propriety, to be inflicted on the individual who failed to apply the mild remedy of remonstrance and persuasion in due season. Above all things treat the little ones justly, for their sense of injustice is keen and bitter.

FRUIT AS AN ARTICLE OF FOOD. The person who values health, and who knows a little of the value of fruit, will make it a point to eat it daily, and even, on occasions, to make a meal almost entirely • of it. One cause why young and wholesome fruits are given a bad name is because they are eaten at the wrong end of a meal. After many courses of heavy foods aud strong drinks, a few harmless strawberries are indulged in, and then, when these rich foods and stimulating drinks upset the stomach, the blame is put on to the innocent strawberry. The real place of fruit is at the beginning of a feast, and not at the end. A better plan still is to make a meal of bread and ripe fruit. The best meals to make thus are breakfast, lunch, or early tea. The bread should be brown and dry, and the fruit ripe and raw. Those who want to be cool this warm weather, and who wish to retain their mental clearness all day, cannot do better than lunch off fruit and bread, leaving heavier and solider food until evening. Children may be' given plenty of fruit, and as long as it is ripe no harm will result ; on the contrary, it clears the complexion and skin, and acts as a laxative and a cooler. When children have a half-holiday, and they are in the way at home, you should buy them some fruit and send* them to the nearest park, common, or open space, where they can romp and play, and, instead of sickly, and often poisonous, sweets, they may regale themselves with the fruit you gave them. A picnic party should never depart without a basket of fruit. It is astonishing how exhilarating and enlivening a meal of fruit is, and instead of feeling dull

after it, as you do after ordinary food, von feel stimulated and brightened up. It is hot wise to eat raw fruit too late at night, as this does not digest so easily or so lightly as food we are constantly taking. Fruit is best in the morning. Early fruit-eating is to be commended—it clears the tongue, stimulates gently, and with many it is the cause of regular taxation. Many people a good number of whom are doctors are of opinion that autumnal diarrhoea is due to fruit. This is au idea not borne out by facts. Fruit has the composition of a perfect food, containing all the substances required by the body. Here is the composition of strawberries : Wa * e f 87 per oent. Sugar ' ... 4 „ Free Acid ... ... 1J )( Nitrogen ... $ „ insoluble matter per cent, of which is ash) 7 ~ 100 From this table we cau see that fruit is a perfect food, as it contains everything needed, including water.—Gardening Illustrated. * - '*»'* ‘ ' - - THE BEEF-EATERS OF THE - . WORLD. If there were any soundness in the statistics of P. S. Lamas, who is stated to be an economist of great repute, and who is certainly an industrious cothpiler of figures, the English people can no longer boast to be, or be jeered at as being, the greatest beefeaters of the world. According to the economist's computation, the annual consumption of beef in Europe amounts to 45 pound per head of the population in a year. The Australians consume 150 pounds a man, and the Americans 130 pounds, while the other great continent of Argentine (from which Mr Lamas hails) eats level with Australia. At this rate there must be a very great number of people iu the world who get along without eating beef at all. But the calculations are based on one which is yet more extraordinary—namely, that on the whole globe the total head of cattle is 47,500,000, or about au ox and a half for every one in Great Britain, and none at all for any one else. Still, facts are facts and figures are figures.—St. James’ Gazette. WILD GRASSES FOR HOUSE DECORATION. The different varieties of wild grasses should be much more extensively employed in floral decorations than they are. It. is a good plan to lay in a store of the different varieties for use during the winter months when they cannot be obtained in the fields. In cutting them for this purpose each variety should be tied in separate bunches, and care should be taken that they are not bruised ; if so, when the bunch is opened, each spike will be found to have dried in its crushed position, and its form will thus be quite spoilt, and its value for decorative purposes destroyed. All grasses should be dried in an upright position, particularly those of a drooping character. Oats, while still green, are also very pretty in large arrangements, especially ears of black oats. This variety forms a charming contrast to r ordinary grasses and sedges. The great value of grasses is that, in addition to giving a light appearance to a vase, a large plume of handsome grasses and sedges enables us to dispense with many flowers. Ta some this may be no object, but to many it must be a matter for consideration. The bloom of the ribbon grass has a silver-like lustre in some stages of its growth, whilst in others ife; assumes a rosy-pink tint, which is equally pretty. For a trumpet vase the graceful l drooping oat grass is best adapted. The common horse-tail is also not to be passed! over, as it, like the grasses, forms a addition to floral decorations, and may be found growing in moist places in country l&nes, or on sandbanks by the sea. In Devonshire it is to be found in most lanes„ while about Hythe, in Kent, it is very plentiful along the coast.—Farm and Home<

Mrs H. C. Harris, of Harlem, New York,, fondly shows the work of twenty years in> 8,000 buttons, collected from every quarterof the globe. The work began on a wagerin Portland directly after the war, when people believed there were not more than 999) different kinds of buttons in the world. In less than a year the 999 had been collected, and in four years 5,000 buttons, all different,, many of them beautiful iu design, ancL many brilliant and beautiful in color. Somehave come from old wars and famous battlefields, some from gold mines and poorhouses,. some have been brought half around the world to the collector by sea captains, some from shipwrecks, some just from the button< counters, and some are dignified old buttons, that have seen life in a previous century. It is a marvellous collection, arranged in eight, strings of a thousand buttons each. -