New Hampshire is a small State, but its people have the same interest in advancing the methods of living and the same desire to be abreast of the times that people of other States have. The motives which govern its people are as high minded as in any other State, and a great deal that has been said in regard to the political shortcomings of the State are not in accordance with the facts. The people of New Hampshire became interested in the Christmas stamp idea, and, so far as they were able, have seemingly accomplished a good deal to be proud of. The New Hampshire Federation of Women’s Clubs, through the then president, Mrs. Lorin Webster, took a deep interest in the Christmas stamp campaign of last December, and largely through their efforts we had in bank something over $1,300. Naturally, many people who had helped in selling the stamps felt that they should have a part of the funds for particular cases of tuberculosis in which they were interested, but the officers of the Red Cross took the position that these funds were to be used for general rather than for special work, believing that in the end more good would be accomplished. As there are no tuberculosis societies in the State of any prominence, although one exists in name, we decided to spend this money on rather new lines. We believed that the way to exterminate a disease was to prevent, so far as possible, new cases. To accomplish this end a poster was prepared, which is indicated in the cut, and it has been very generally circulated through the State, being placed in all schools, mills, railway stations and places of public meeting. In the distribution of this poster the Women’s Clubs assisted materially. All together, some 8,000 of these posters have been distributed and requests are coming in continually for additional copies. The poster states in concise language three conspicuous factors or conditions in the campaign against tuberculosis, that the disease is contagious, that it is curable, and that it is preventable. The Boston & Maine Railroad, which operates practically the entire railway mileage in New Hampshire, has taken a deep interest in this matter in that they have placed the placards in all of their stations and have instructed their agents to see that they are not defaced or removed. This assistance has been most helpful. The railway even went further and placed the placards in its stations in other States, for it has a considerable mileage in Massachusetts, Vermont and Maine. The result of this has been that numerous requests have been received from Massachusetts, from people interested in the tuberculosis campaign, for those posters, as they have seen them in the other States. The people in the good commonwealth of Massachusetts have been obliged to confess that they have had to come to New Hampshire for a very important suggestion in this work. The more the writer familiarizes himself with the tuberculosis campaign the more he is impressed that if the disease can be eliminated it must be done by informing practically every citizen of the State how to avoid contracting it, and we believe that what we have accomplished by this poster has been or will prove to be successful.
The superintendent of public instruction in our State, Mr. Morrison, grasped the idea of the importance of this poster early in the campaign, and he prepared a letter to all his subordinates directing them to place the poster in the schools and to see that attention was directed to them by the teachers. Again, Rev. R. E. Thompson, head of the New Hampshire Sunday School organization, felt the importance of this work, and he, too, prepared a circular letter to be sent to 600 superintendents and teachers in the State requesting them to put a placard in all Sunday Schools and direct attention to it. Copies of the poster were sent to the different granges throughout the State. The posters have been printed on cardboard, measuring 19 × 12½, and they cost, with envelopes, about a cent a piece.
In addition to this form of publicity the New Hampshire Branch has prepared two bulletins, one being a reprint of Rev. Elwood Worcester’s article which appeared in the Ladies’ Home Journal for March, 1900, on the class method of treating tuberculosis. This has been circulated gratuitously throughout the State. The conditions seem to be such in our State that in a good many communities the class method ought to accomplish much. Again, we prepared as Bulletin No. 3 an article issued by the Boston Association for the Relief and Control of Tuberculosis, which treats in a very simple manner of the essentials of right living and clean living. This bulletin is also being distributed gratuitously.
So much as indicating how the campaign has been carried on through the assistance of printer’s ink, but we have in addition secured the services of Mrs. Duryea, whose duties are to go about the State and tell of the class method of treating tuberculosis. The method of procedure is that she communicate with the officers of the local Women’s Club, some of the medical men and other prominent citizens, to the end that a meeting will be arranged, and at this meeting she tells of what has been done in Boston at the Massachusetts General Hospital in curing those afflicted with the disease.
We have found, regrettably, that the doctors in some of the smaller communities have not sufficiently studied the apprehension of the disease in its early stages. The State Board of Health has recognized this and is endeavoring to bring before the profession means and suggestions so that all of its members may have the latest word on this subject. The State of New Hampshire has directed, and is about to open for the treatment of patients, a sanitarium situated in the northern central section of the State, but this sanitarium will accommodate very few cases, and for this reason our campaign has been largely to interesting communities in establishing tuberculosis classes.
The death rate from tuberculosis in New Hampshire has decreased materially in the last ten years. It has dropped from considerably over 1 death per 1,000 of population to less than 1 death per 1,000 of population. A study of the report of the State Board of Health shows that the death-rate is higher in proportion to the population in that part of the State nearest the sea than it is in the western or Connecticut valley district.
We feel that we can not as yet consider our work anything more than begun. It is a campaign of education, and when considered from this point of view we feel that we have accomplished a great deal. Unquestionably, a very much larger number of citizens know certain things about tuberculosis than they did six months or a year ago. Everybody must know these facts before the work of publicity is fully accomplished.
We have made an open offer of financial assistance to any tuberculosis class or summer camp that is established, and in the coming years a much larger amount of money can be distributed in this way.