The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1873-07-24
SAFETY PLUCKED FROM DANGER.

cholera to the United States will prove
to be a blessing instead Of curse-a
means of safety instead of destruction to
human life-it will certainly be admitted
that our cause for thankfulness to Provi-
deuce is a very good one.
1t is doubtful if there have been in the
whole country this summer i've hundred
deaths from the cholera, and certainly
there have not been one thousand such
deaths. The disease made its appearance
late in the spring at New Orleans, thence
making its way up the Mississippi, thence
along the Ohio, diverging IRON both
those courses to various towns 10 the
South and Southwest As it has always
done, it travelled slowly, lingering at New
Orleans long enough to warn the anthori
ties of the towns which it subsequently,
visited of its approach Those which
needed the warning, and used the pre-
ventive means to render its presence
less fatal, escaped its ravages with little
loss of life. At Memphis and Louisville
it found many victims. but ootoriously
among those who lived in dirt and
breathed an atmosphere poisoned by
filth .
While it was gradually creeping north
ward aud eastward, notably toward New
York and Philadelphia. at which all rail
roads end, the newspapers OF those cities
continued to urge upon the municipal
authorizes the Immediate necessity Tor
placing their highways and byways in a
condition Of absolute cleanliness The
newspapers also urged upon the citizens
the Deeessity of entire personal clean
illness and abstinence from uBTips iruits
and stale vegetables brought IRON dis
taut Southern farms. All this because
that dreadful scourge Of lie, the cholera,
was on its way toward New York and
Philadelphia to deplete their tcemiDg
population What The newspapers urged
to be observed Was observed. New York
is cleaner city to day than il bas been
before for twenty years and Phi'adel
phia is reasonable c'ean, though 1t might,
as regards its cutters, be still less foul
How much human life is dependent
upon clean streets in densely populatc'
cities, we think is pretty clearly demon
strated by the statistics of mortality
which we propose to present 10 our read
ers, taken from the health reports of the
two leading cities Of the country
Last year the cholera was not dreaded
no preparations were made against it,
New York was as dirty city as could
well be imagined, and Philadelphia was
but little cleaner. This year the
cholera was already on its way toward
US, every wise preparation was made to
defeat its ordinarily fatal visitatons
dirt gave way to cleanliness, and rcck
lessness to caution, with these results -
During the week ending Juy 5,h, 1873
the deaths in New York were 6S3 dur
ing the following week, ending July
18th, instant, the deaths reported 10 the
same city were 600 This while the
cholera threatened In the correspond
ing weeks OF last year there were respect
lively 1891 and 1922 deaths That while
10 epidemic threatened, aud no sanitary
care was taken
In Philadelphia, for the week ending
July B, 1873, the deaths were 355 for the
following week, ending July II, instant
the mortality was 1873 This under
cholera threatenings and preventive mea
sures against it.
ln the same city the deaths for week
ending July 6, 1872, were 746 for week
ending July Ii, 1872, the mortality was
$50.
That is, there were during the first two
weeks OF July. 1872, 1910 deaths more in
New York than during the first two
weeks of July, 1873 And in Philadel
phia I45 deaths more during the first hall
of last July than during the first half OF
the present July.
But favorable as are these figures.
made so by precautionary measures on
the part of the Health Boards, they NAV
be made still more favorable if parents
will, by some means or by any means pos
slble, send their little children out OF town
for, says the veteran health authority of
New York, DR.. Harris, "tke furnace OF
thts treeless city destroys young chaaren.'
and that which is true OF New York is
similarly true of Philadelphia. An ex
cursion every day or so to the Park or un
the Delaware or the Schuykill on the
cheap excursion boats is within the reach
OF al most every parent. If they can
afford to send them for several days or
weeks to some old farm house where
board is cheap aud the air and water
pure, let them do it, for there is life for
them, and here death threatens them from
every filthy gutter and noisomc sewer.
What we meant to show, however, was
hat if the health authorities clean the
'ity as fairly every summer under ordi
nary circumstances as they have cleaned
t this summer under extraordinary ones
he death rate may thereby be rendered
Insignificant Inquirer.
At the Institute of Science, held last
in Media, there was an interest.