The Planters' banner. [volume] (Franklin, Attakapas Co., Lou.) 1849-1872, 1853-09-22

ICfOl, HSIO duu OlS0"u0IC, anu tAa
while. besides, they have often occur
red during the prevalence of an epi
demic, they have had little or no ct
feet in checking its ravages.
In the Repor. of the Board of Health
on the " Sanitary Condition of the City
of New Orleans, during the Year 1916
and the Means of improving it." the
yellow fever which appeared that yeaI
is, as usual in such instruments, declar
ed to have been local in its origin. 1t is
attributed TO our vicinity to swamps
the filth of the streets, the animal and
vegetable matter on the banks of the
river, bad drinking water, the stag.
nant and putrid water in vacant lots,
etc. The Report closes on this part Of
its subject. with the declaration, that
the removal of these knoiVn causes ol
the disease will render New Orleans
as healthy as any city on this continent
from January to December.
Since the year 1916 our city has ex-
perienced great and manifold improve
ments. Miles of square and round
paving have been laid down, where
previously the streets in wet weather
were one continued mud track, more
resembling abandoned and half-flled
canals, than highways. Large spaces
of ground on the river banks, formerly
regarded as special laboratories of pes
thence, are now covered with blocks of
brick stores. Thousands of rotten shan
ties, standing in muddy frog ponds,
have given place to stately edifces,
erected on well filled, paved lots. The
wharves have undergone great i'm
provements, equally favorable to bust
ness and to health. The swamps in
the rear of the city have been deeply
penetrated by number of streets, rem
dering much more efficient our system
of drainage, which has delivered from
stagnant water and rotten vegetation
additional thousands of acres of their
surface. The lapse of time brought
about, in material degree, the recon-
mended beneficial changes, which we
were assured were 10 render our city
perfectly free from yellow fever In
fact, until the present epidemic began to
spead, many of our citizens, misled by
the erroneous views promulgated as to
the causes of the fever, and by the as
surances referred 10, supposed that we
were henceforth 10 enjoy complete
exemption from such visitations. Yet,
in spite of all these ameliorations, in
spite of the facts that the temperature
of this summer has been unusually
low-that We have had more rain than
on any similar occasion, experiencing
as we do, almost daily showers, and, in
consequence of this rain, that the peo.
pie have had a plentiful supply of fresh
drinking water-that the streets have
been cleaner than they were ever
known to be before-that the swamps
are covered with water comparatively
fresh from the heavens, and that the
there is still green and full
of life-iu spite of a combination of
circumstances nearly approaching that
which we were taught TO rega1d as the
one which would give US a complete
exemption from an epidemic, we are
now writhing under the infections of
one, unprecedented for its prevalence
and malignity.
Yellow fever is believed to be dis
ease of modern origin, dating from
about the year 1890. The seeds of this
malady are supposed to have been
brought in that year from the empire
of Siam to Martinique, in squadron of
French men-of-war. The pestilence
spread to the shipping then lying in
Port Royal, and from thence to the
towns of the West Indies. For nearly
a century this disease, which was
known by the name of Nal de Stem, ex-
lsted in the West India islands and
along the coast of Mexico and South
America, and occasionally in all the
principal ports of Europe and America
having commercial intercourse with
The western world After the year
1892 it assumed type more malignant
han ever. in consequence of the intro
luction of pestilential disease into
he West India islands from Boullam,
! projected English colony on the coast
If Africa, by a squadron of English
ships. The disease, which thereafter
epidemically, was long called
Fieure de Boullam, or Bulam fever, and
inally the name yellow fever was
adopted.
From the period of the discovery Of
he western world, until the year 1890,
he Intercourse between Europe aud
he northern parts of the American
continent, and the West Indies and
Mexico, was very great Yet up to the
after period, history makes no mention
If pestilence which, like that in ques-
ion, was harmless to the native or ac-
but fraught with death to the
oreigner or unacclimated. Thence
onward, as this intercourse increased, |
IN examination of facts will show that |
he disease was communicated occa-
ionally, with fearful effects, to nearly
Ill the commercial ports of the world, |
md from these to places adjacent, while |
N the other hand, those cities remote |
rom the sea-board, and otherwise |
,uarded from communication with |
'laces where the infection had a pri-
nary or secondary existence, enjoyed |
n entire exemption from such vista