Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VII.djvu/358

 350 FOUNDLING HOSPITAL original endowment has been increased by private donations and by large gifts of the successive czars, and the hospital is now one of the wealthiest landed proprietors in Russia. It forms a little district of its own, near the Fontanka canal, in the best part of St. Peters- burg, covering 28 acres of ground. In imme- diate connection with it is a lying-in hospital. The total number of nurses, physicians, cooks, housekeepers, and other employees is about 6,000. The annual receipt of children num- bers about 6,000. The mortality is greater than in Moscow, which is accounted for by the inferior vigor of the nurses who come from the vicinity of the capital. A great many children die on the way to St. Petersburg, some being brought 1,000 miles, from Siberia and Bessara- bia. One half of Russia sends its surplus of in- fantine population to this institution, and the other half to that of Moscow. The children are given in care of wet nurses for about six weeks, when they are sent into the country until they are six years old. They are then brought back to the institution and educated. In the lying- in hospital connected with the institution the strictest secrecy is maintained. Stringent laws have been passed since 1837, by which the foundlings become the property of the govern- ment, and the hospitals in St. Petersburg and Moscow furnish a constant supply of recruits for the army or navy. These establishments are admirably managed; but those in' the interior of Russia are inferior. The property devoted to the support, maintenance, and education of foundlings in Russia is said to amount to $500,- 000,000. Infanticide and abortion are exceed- ingly rare. The proportion of illegitimate births in the whole Russian empire is a little more than 4 per cent. ; in cities the average is much larger, and in St. Petersburg and Moscow it is from 20 to 35 per cent. China has many foundling hospitals, of which those at Shanghai, Ningpo, Canton, and Hangchow are best known. The regulations governing these institutions com- pare 'favorably with the best of those in Eu- rope. One of the most important charitable institutions of the city of Mexico is the cuna or foundling hospital. It is supported by pri- vate individuals, and the Mexican ladies give it their time and attention. When a child has been about a month in the hospital, it is sent with an Indian nurse to one of the neighbor- ing villages. These nurses are subject to a responsible resident of the village, who guar- antees their good conduct. The mothers of the children often officiate as nurses, and are paid for their services. When weaned the child is returned to the hospital, but generally the chil- dren are adopted by respectable persons. In the foundling hospital of Rio de Janeiro, the boys, who are brought up in the neighboring establishment at Botofogo, are apprenticed to trades, and the girls are educated in the city establishment. At each anniversary men in want of wives attend, and any one whose pro- posals are accepted applies to the managers of the hospital, who inquire into his character. If it proves satisfactory, the marriage is per- mitted, and a small dowry is given from the funds of the hospital. In the United States there are few foundling hospitals except those which have been established and are main- ly supported by private charity. Foundlings are sent to the almshouses, whence in many cases they are farmed out, and no systematic records concerning them are kept. Several states have greatly reduced the number of foundlings coming under their direct charge, by increasing the efficiency of private asylums through grants of money and land. The foundling asylum of the sisters of charity in New York city was established in 1869. In 1870 the legislature authorized the city to grant it a site for a building, and appropriated $100,000 toward its erection, on condition that an equal sum should be raised by voluntary contribution. This amount was obtained, and the building was formally opened in October, 1873. From its commencement in October, 1869, to Oct. 1, 1873, the institution received 5,076 infants, of whom 2,037 have died. A crib was placed in the vestibule every night, and during the first month 29 infants were brought to the house, many of them within three hours of their birth. In every instance except one a slip of paper was left with the child, giving its name and the date of its birth. "Want of sufficient funds and room made it necessary to refuse infants more than three weeks old, and still many have to be boarded out in the city and the surrounding country. The number ad- mitted during the year ending Sept. 30, 1873, was 1,124. The expenses of the asylum for this year were $115,648; of this amount $80,000 were paid to outside nurses, and about $7,000 for rent and repairs. Accommodations are fur- nished for homeless mothers with infants. The infants' hospital in New York, established in 1868, on Randall's island, is under the direction of the department of charities and correction. The number of children in the hospital in 1868, was 1,887, of whom 1,039 died; in 1869, 1,519, of whom 710 died; in 1870, 1,177, of whom 429 died ; in 1871, 1,098, of whom 267 died. While in 1869, of the foundlings proper, 70 '32 per cent, died, and of mothers' children 20*44 per cent., the deaths among the former amount- ed in 1871 to only 38 per cent., and among the latter to only about 12 per cent. The decrease is attributed to the renovation of the hospital building. The difference of the mortality be- tween the mothers' children and the found- lings is caused by the continual want of a suf- ficient number of healthy wet nurses. The present ratio of deaths compares favorably with the usual rate of infant mortality in the city. The nursery and child's hospital in New York was founded in 1854, and has a branch on the north shore of Staten Island. Each has a ly- ing-in department. The number of children received in the entire establishment in 1870 was 447, of whom 128 died ; in 1871 the total