The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1865-11-23
[Erom the New York Evening Post.l
HOW TO MEET CHOLERA.

~ HO ui5tauL pcrlOu, III Will make It's
appearance on our shores, and hence
at New York. 1t is asserted on good
authority that in all its former vista
tions it has appeared in this country
in about three weeks from its breaking
out in any foreign port having rapid
and direct communication with ports
in this country. However that may
be, it is but too probable that within a
brief period our city is to be the thea
tire Of this much-dreaded epidemic pes
thence. If it ravages New York as it
has ravagcd eastern cities the harvest
of death will be truly terrible. A
great part of the cellar population
fifteen 10 twonty thousand-will bo
swept away, with an enormous per-
centage Of tho five hundred thousand
who live in tenement houses. The
vast and beneficent work which sani-
tary reform could have accomplished
-ofremoving the cellar population
is likely to be summarily effected by
tho incxorable hand of death.
The all important question which
now presses upon us for solution is,
How shall we avert the impending
visitation of this scourge of unclean
cities? We have no timc to theorize
or speculate; we cannot depend upon
the local authorities, they are too busy
with other matters. 1t is certain that
whenever cholera may make its ap-
pearancc, our streets will be reeking
with filth, our damp, dismal cellars
will be crowded TO suffocation with
half nourishcd population; our acres of
tenement houses will be swarming
from cellar to garrett with wretched,
filthy human beings; courts and alleys
will be noisome and pestilential with
overhowing privies and cesspools;
docks and wharfs will be half buried
in decomposing sewage. The ques
ton is, What can be done to save our
people? .r,.. ..
Let us premise the following facts:
Cholera has two stages, premonitory
or mild stage, and a stage Of collapse
which is fatal. The premonitory stage
is ushered in by q mild, painless diar-
rhea, which generally continues for
hours, sometimes for days, before the
stage of collapse sets in. In this pre-
monitory stage the disease is readily
AMI promptly curable by simple rem
cdies, combined with rest in the re-
cumbent position. ALI that is necessa-
ry, therefore, to prevent fatal attack
of cholera is that the patient shall lie
down, keep quiet, and take such rcme-
dies as will relieve the diarrhoa. A
knowledge of these facts led many
English towns in former visitations Of
cholera to organize o body of visitors,
under the direction of o central medical
board, whose duty it was to visit from
house to house, two, three or four times
daily, and inquire in every family for
these cases of diarrhea. Each visitor
carried the proper remedy, and per-
sonally attended to its administration,
and to the confinement of the patient
to his bed.
The result of those organizations
was most happy; in numerous in
stances towns lying in the direct track
of tho disease did not lose single in
habitant by cholera, though thousands
of cases of painless diarrhea were treat
ed. In other instances districts lying
in large towns were covered by these
house to house visitors, and not case
proved fatal, though the districts
around suffered fearful mortality
There is now q general movement in
English towns towards the formation
of these corps of visitors to meet the
exigencies of the present visitation of
cholera. Lord Brougham, Earl Shaftes-
bury, and other prominent statesmen,
recommend thoso organizations in the
strongest terms. .....
Now, to the plan. Let there be or
ganizcd in this city, under an advisory
medical board, corps of visitors,
among whom tho city shall be so dis
tricted that each visitor can SEQ tho
families under his surveillance two or
three times daily. Let the organiza-
tion be effected Immediately, and held
in readiness to be put in operation on
the first appearance of the epidemic
Each visitor should be provided with
the proper remedies, and if not medi-
cal man, be instructed in his duties
In England many Of the visitors were
ladies.
Fortunately it happens that we have
in Now York an organization of med
ical gentlemen not only fully qualified
to undertake this work, but which has
all the requisite machinery thoroughly
organized, and ready to be put in i'm
mediate operation. We allude to tho
Sanitary Bureau of tho citizens' AS
sociation. This body is composed of
tho following eminent physicians
Drs. Joseph NJ. Smith, James Ander-
son, Edward Delafold, Willard Par
ker, Alonzo Clark, Gurdon Buck, Jas.
r. Wood, Charles Henschel, Alfred G
Post, Isaac g. Taylor, John W. Dra-
per, R. Ogden Doremus, Stephen
Smith, Henry D. Bulkley and Elisha
Harris. 1t was this body of gentle
men which organized the corps of in
spectors who, by house-to-house visi-
tation, collected the materials for the
magnificent report on the sanitary
condition of Now York, published re-
Gently by the Association, Tho ma
chinery by which this minute cxami-
nation of the sanitary condition of the
people of this city was effected is, we
believe, still perfect, and capable of