The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1870-06-26
The Quarantine Question-The Duty Of
the Health Onicer.

the Health OMcer.
No one doubts that the duties Of the Health
Officer of the Port are to a great extent two
things, to preserve the public health from the
incursion of contagious diseases arriving here
from foreign ports This is responsibility
from which he cannot be permitted to shrink,
and from which Dr. Carnochan is evidently
not disposed to shrink Next, inasmuch as It
lies in his power to facilitate or obstruct the
commerce of the port according as he fultils
his duty in this particular, of course he is
bound to entertain a reasonable consideration
for the interests Of the merchants and ship
owners, not because they represent a class,
so much as that their interests are Ia mea-
sure Identical with those OF the whole commu-
nifty. In this regard, also, we notice that DR..
Carnochan has been as liberal as the gravity
of his duties permit. But the most serious OF
these duties surely is to keep contagious
diseases outside the city, when they come or
are suspected to come upon the decks or in
the cargoes of vessels which cannot bring
clean bill of health from an infected port.
Some narrow-minded merchants grumble
because they cannot have their ships dis
charged in their own way, whenever and
wherever they please. DR.. Carnochan has
too much experience to permit anything of the
kind. Now, let us see with what good reason
he takes firm stand in behalf of the health Of
the city as against the clamor of individuals.
Since the beginning of the quarantine season,
June /, there has been detained at Lower
Quarantine, arriving here from Rio Janeiro,
where yellow fever RACES, one bark,
the Braziliera, leaving five men in
hospital at Rio, of whom the captain
and one man died. On the voyage
passenger died of the same disease A brig,
the Selma, entered our port after leaving six
of her crew sick in the hospital with
yellow fever at Rio Janeiro, of whom two
died The bark Lord Baltimore also
comes into our waters, leaving four victims Of
yellow fever out of her crew in hospital at Rio.
The bark Foyen also arrives here, having
left two of her crew stricken down by the
fever in hospital. What kind of bills of health
could these vessels bring that would warrant
any honest Health Officer in giving them per-
mits to discharge their cargoes at any of our
docks, no matter how convenient it might be
for few merchants to get their consignments
little easier, and perhaps their goods delivered
little cheaper ? The steamship Weybosset
arrived here from Port au Prince recently !;
her assistant engineer had just died there of
yellow fever before she left the port, and her
captain died on the passage. With these facts
which ought to satisfy dgrind-before us,
together with the official statement that, since
last March, not a single vessel from the ports
of Rio Janeiro or Port all Prince brought a
clean bill of health to our quarantine, how can
we too strongly commend the caution, the
wisdom and the strength of purpose exercised
by DIR. Carnochan in his efforts to protect the
city from the fatal invasion of terrible infec-
tious diseases? Individuals may growl at the
course of the Health Officer, but the public of
this vast metropolis, with its million of souls,
crowded into small compass in this fiercely
hot weather, which threatens even the breed
ing Of disease in our midst, have reason to be
thankful to him for taking measures to exclude
foreign demons of disease, which, with less
firmness than DR.. Carnochan has evinced,
might have crept in among US before now. The
city has clean bill of health" at present, thank
God, and we hope that DR.. Carnochan will help
to keep it so.