U. S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR CHILDREN'S BUREAU JULIA C. LATHROP, Chief BIRTH REGISTRATION AN AID IN PROTECTING THE LIVES AND RIGHTS Vital statistics the barometer of infant mortality.... Relation of birth registration to education, employment, etc. Birth registration a protection for children at school and at work.. 3 BIRTH REGISTRATION. BIRTH REGISTRATION IN UNITED STATES. Definition and value.-Birth registration means the record in public archives of the births of children. In the civilized countries of Europe it has long been complete. It is, of course, the first item in vital statistics. In the United States birth registration has made progress less rapidly than the other items of a complete system of vital statistics, notably, death registration and the registration of marriages. While the importance of such statistics has been recognized in certain parts of America from colonial days, the country as a whole is still devoid of uniform and complete records of the births of its citizens. This neglect is undoubtedly to be ascribed to the lack of a popular conviction that such records are dignified and valuable. Everybody agrees that it is dignified and valuable to make public record of marriages and deaths. Only a moment's thought is necessary to show that the public record of births is of kindred importance, and for the same reason, to protect individual and property rights. Moreover, as a working expedient it is coming to be regarded as indispensable in the eradication of three great evils which affect the children of the country. There are no more important undertakings at the present day than the reduction of infant mortality, the preservation of the child's right to education, and the abolishing of child labor. In serving all three of these ends birth registration is an indispensable practical aid. BIRTH REGISTRATION AND INFANT MORTALITY. Investigation of infant mortality. The Children's Bureau is especially directed by the law under which it was established to investigate infant mortality, or the deaths of babies under 1 year old. In the effort to comply with the law the bureau is hampered at every step by the limitations created by the imperfect collection of birth statistics in this country. To study infant mortality it is necessary to know how many babies have been born and how many have died before they were 1 year old. In other words, a complete and uniform system of birth registration as well as an accurate system of death registration in any community in which the bureau's |