al or physical disease, and especially when the
same weakness exists in both families, it is justly regarded as a duty
by the married pair not to bring children into the world. It may be
contended that men and women with such an inheritance should not
marry, but that is a matter for the decision of the individuals
concerned. It not infrequently happens that marriage has taken place
before they know of the inherited tendency. In such cases clearly the
advice of the family doctor should be given as to the best course to
pursue in order to avoid conception.

The case of the overworked and burdened mother with a large and
increasing family is nearly allied to that of a woman with disease,
though in her case the causes for ill-health are more complicated.

While it is true that ill-health and premature ageing in working women
are the result of many causes, yet where child-bearing still further
injures health it is essential that she should consult her medical
adviser on this point, for she not only needs treatment to restore her
health, but also advice specially suitable to her own case, as to the
best method to avoid conception for the time being, and such advice
will vary according as the disability is temporary or permanent.

It is, happily, as possible for the poor woman to obtain advice in all
matters of health as it is for the rich. The mothers of the country
are in touch everywhere with maternity clinics, where doctors advise
them on all questions of health relating to pregnancy, and treat each
woman as a separate individual.

But the case of the poor working woman overburdened with work which
she cannot accomplish--yet with the added burden of bearing more
children than her more fortunate sisters, deserves some further
consideration.

What is it that prematurely ages so many of these women of the
slums--is it child-bearing alone?

The answer to that is immediately in the negative, for women in
comfortable circumstances may have large families, with no sign of
weariness and dejection. No, the causes of ill-health and debility
are diverse, and to pretend to solve the question by conception
control is a mockery, for it salves the conscience of the community
without really dealing with the question of the disabilities of the
working woman, or the true cause of her excessive fertility.

Ill-health in working-class mothers often has its origin in inherited
weakness and lack of care in childhood. It is further accen