Editorial September 18, 1915 Issue

"Inalienable rights"

Archibald McLellan

According to the Anaconda (Mont.) Standard, a physician, in addressing the state health officers' convention in session with the teachers' summer school at Bozeman, on the subject of the medical inspection of school children, said: "A desirable law on the subject would provide for a thorough physical examination of all public school scholars twice each year, with what might be termed an inspection during each of the other seven months." As an argument in favor of medical inspection, this physician quoted statistics to prove that over 73 per cent of the children examined in certain schools had been classed as defective. What is intended to be accomplished by the "desirable law" advocated by the doctor was quite plainly stated by him in closing his address. He said: "Wouldn't it be fine if we could induce the state of Montana to put our children on the same commercial basis with the hog! Then they could be legally inspected and scientifically treated with preventive and curative methods."

Rather a brilliant prospect, is it not! All of the school children to be put on "the same commercial basis with the hog," and 73 per cent of them treated by methods selected for them by the dominant school of medicine! Fortunately for the long-suffering people, some of the courts are not in favor of making the public schools the vehicle for exploiting medical theories without regard to the rights and desires of parents. We quote the following from a recent decision of the Illinois supreme court, in which Justice Vaughn, speaking in regard to compulsory vaccination, said :—

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