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INTRODUCTION Reviewing the literature on blood studies one is struck by the comparatively few extensive investigations which have been carried on with the blood of the new-born. The morpohologic variations in hemoglobin and cells have received more consideration than any other phase of the problem. The chemistry of the blood of the new-born has been given little attention. Sedgwick's1findings stand out as the most extensive and illuminating, and Slemon's2investigations on maternal and fetal blood are fundamental, furnishing conclusive evidence of the mechanistic function of the placenta. Coagulation has been given little real attention and except for isolated studies on individual cases of hemorrhages of the new-born few, beside Rodda,3have attempted to analyze the factors entering into this problem. We have, therefore, attempted to bring together all these phases—morphology, chemistry, coagulation and pigment metabolism—into a combined study of the blood of the normal new-born

This report is part of a study which is now being carried on in the pediatric department on the problem of the anemias of infancy and childhood. Many studies have been made in this field but most of the work so far done has reference mainly to the blood picture, studies relating to the differential count of the white blood cells, the study of the red blood cells, their number and fragility and to the percentage of hemoglobin; in many instances the postmortem findings are added to these studies of the cells and hemoglobin. All these studies are valuable and have their place in the problem of the anemias but so far they have led to little more than an unsatisfactory classification of the anemias. Even as regards classification there is much confusion and very little has been ascertained as to the etiology of the various anemias which occur so