If they were unavoidable, we should have to
bear with them, but they are not unavoidable, as shown by facts and
figures from other countries where contraceptive information is
available.
In Holland, for instance, where the information concerning
contraceptives has been accessible to the people, through clinics and
pamphlets, since 1881, the general death rate and the infant mortality
rate have fallen until they are the lowest in Europe. Amsterdam and
The Hague have the lowest infant mortality rates of any cities in the
world.
It is good to know that the first of the birth-control clinics of
Holland followed shortly after a thorough and enthusiastic discussion
of the subject at an international medical congress in Amsterdam in
1878. The Dutch Neo-Malthusian League was founded in 1881. The first
birth-control clinic in the world was opened in 1885 by Dr. Aletta
Jacobs in Amsterdam. So great were the results obtained that there has
been a remarkable increase in the wealth, stamina, stature and
longevity of the people, as well as a gradual increase in the
population.
These clinics must not be confused with the white enameled rooms which
we associate with the term in America.
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