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In discussions of the motor development of the infant and child, the statement is made frequently to the effect that the sick child is greatly retarded in progress as compared with the well child. It is an impression which has prevailed for years and which is to be found in many of the standard text-books on pediatrics and child psychology of to-day. In searching the literature carefully, however, one is surprised at the lack of precise information on this subject. There are many communications on the relationship of disease to intelligence, but, as far as can be ascertained, remarkably few investigations have been recorded dealing with the influence of disease on the developmental trend and tempo of motor habits during childhood. For the most part, only cursory reference is made to the problem. Holt and Howland (1) state, for example, that: " The physician is often consulted because of backward muscular development, most frequently because the child is late in walking. General malnutrition, or any severe or prolonged illness, may postpone for several months this or any of the other functions mentioned " (p. 23). Or, to refer to the psychological literature, Curti (2) makes the following brief remark: " Growth of structure or development in function may of course be hindered at any stage or stopped entirely, because of environmental factors-diseases, for example" (p. 87). To be sure, from time to time, observations have been recorded dealing with individual case reports, but no generalizations can be drawn from the data which are given.Recently, Stevenson Smith (3) endeavored to study the problem by using large groups of children in order to ascertain the effect of illness on motor development during the first two years of life. The study was carried out by means of the questionnaire method and was subject, therefore, to the inaccuracies of that mode of investigation. The information was obtained from the parents of some nine hundred VI take great pleasure in thanking Dr. Elizabeth B. Hurlock for her generous cooperation in connection with the preparation of this paper.

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There is probably no group of diseases of infancy and childhood presenting greater difficulties in etiology and diagnosis than that generally referred to as the diarrheal disorders. The voluminous and contradictory literature on the problem serves to emphasize the highly unsatisfactory state of knowledge of the causation and differentiation of the various primary and secondary enteric disturbances. In addition, the multiplicity of potential pathogens inhabiting the gastrointestinal tract and the uncertainty of their isolation by present bacteriologic methods combine to make a most confusing situation. Even more complicated is the problem of the diarrheal disorders which occur during the newborn period of life.Since 1934 we have had under investigation a series of outbreaks of highly fatal diarrhea arising among newborn babies in the nurseries of lying-in hospitals. Our early experiences with the disorder were summarized in a preliminary discussion 1 which gave the essential features of the various outbreaks. The opinion was expressed that we were concerned with a previously unrecognized clinical entity affecting new¬ born infants during their customary period in obstetric nurseries. These conclusions were based on the remarkable similarity in clinical manifestations and in mode of spread of the disorder in the various outbreaks, specificity of the age groups involved, poor response to recognized therapeutic measures, constantly high morbidity and mor¬ tality rates, characteristic lack of pathologic lesions in spite of the clinical severity of the disorder, and uniform failure of bacteriologic, serologie and virus studies to reveal the causative agent.