VICTIMS OF HUNGER

Taranaki Daily News, 27 August 1930, Page 3

VICTIMS OF HUNGER

DISTRESS IN AUSTRALIA. ' MELBOURNE WOMAN’S DEATH. Sydney, July 31. The report that a woman had died in hospital in Melbourne as a direct result of hunger, followed close upon, the account of the plight of many children - in’ the poorer quarters of Sydney who . were suffering because they were not receiving enough to eat. Owing to the / enormous number of mert who,are out , of work a serious situation has. teyelopet, and cases of malnutrition among, adults as well as children are far 'too : common; This has resulted in a, great..?, deal-of sickness among’people who have . not displayed sufficient stamina to carry them over the winter, and all the hospitals are overcrowded. ’.. . - . -.;■■■>' . Doctors say that starvation, or semi- .. starvation, is more common among ■adults than among .children. . In doing sb they pay a tribute to the parents, who, they say, will nearly always contrive to feed their children, no matter how poor they may be. The distress in Australia, one • doctor, said, had brought into relief "-the self-sacrificing character of the people of the continent. It was remarkable that so few children y should bo suffering'from- lack of food, / but it was.dreadful to think that* their parents were.- " Babies were not so fortunate" as. their elder brothers and sisters,-said this,doctor, and many * small " babies, drawn from poor quarters, were being, treated, in hospital for starvation. Actually, there was no ', need for any baby to starve, for there were plenty of yhealth centres where babies could receive tm> class of food they required, • but many mothers were content to struggle oh and. give their babies'only what ; they could afford instead of obtaining supplies and milk which would be theirs for the asking. The medical officer in charge of ono, of the big - hospitals in Melbourne said' that malnutrition was common in that city. “The poor people come to the outpatients’ department,” he said, “with pains and aches they are unable to account for. They think they are in need of medicine/' when they really want - food. We are able to give them a cup of tea and some food. Sometimes they are do seriously undernourished that we ‘ admit’ them to -hospital,' but like all hospitals in the metropolitan area wo are short of accommodation.” Poverty among the patients at the Women’s Hospital at Melbourne has been more marked- this year than ever . before. The identity card, in a great number of cases, gives the husband’s occupation as “unemployed.” . Those who are in charge of relief, and Government officials, in both Sydney and Melbourne, say that pride is at the back of much of the suffering that is going on to-day. There are scores' of people who would not accept charity in any. circumstances. T'hey would not go to kitchens that provided food, except as a last resort.