ABSTRACT
Artificial feeding was universally accepted to be dangerous to life and, apart from these instances, was normally only employed in cases of necessity, such as where prematurity or congenital deformities made suckling impossible, or when a wet nurse could not be employed because the infant had syphilis. The industrial revolution began in England in the mid-18th century. During the 19th century, although beginning at different times in different regions, many parts of Europe, North America and Australasia became increasingly mechanised and urbanised and, by the end of the first world war, a majority of the people in these continents were living in an industrialised society. Developments in education meant that more and more people, especially women, were able to read, and books, magazines and newspapers became universally available, including those on infant care. Improvements in medicine led to many large hospitals being set up in towns and cities.
