THE CONTROL OF PROSTITUTION AND THE PREVENTION OF THE SPREAD OF VENEREAL DISEASES.

This paper is presented under this double caption because venereal disease and prostitution are inseparable terms, and because the control of prostitution is engrossing the attention of most of the large and many of the smaller communities, solely for the avowed purpose of preventing the spread of venereal diseases. By far the more important of the two questions is that which refers to the prevention of the spread of venereal diseases; whatever preventative measures have thus far been instituted have been largely ineffective in character and have been directed against the chief source of infection, prostitution, with a view of either effecting its suppression or control. History is full of attempts of such manifold nature and character as to conclusively demonstrate that suppression is impossible and control impractical and at best of very doubtful value. I need only refer to a few well-known examples to convince the most skeptical that