The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1875-12-26
IN RIVERSIDE HOSPITAL.
Scenes Among the sufferers bv the Terrible |
Contagious Disease some very Practical |
Arguments "a FnvDr Of Vaccination.

scenes Among the sufferers bv the Terrible
C"ntnpioh- Disease some very Prncticai
Arguments "a Fnv"r of Vaccination.
Lat january the abuses in the smallpox
hce'it ton llarkwcu's Isl nj " re- 50 had that
change in the supervision and management
wt- ce'i led upon. 10 taken out of the
hnud- = the Clmntssioners Of Charities aud
Correction, whose du'ics were too muluiudi-
nous t. permit them t. eivc It the needed aitrn
ton. and placed under the control Of the II, ard
OF Health. DR.. James J. Delaney was appoint-
cd Resident Physician, nd numerous reforms
were naucurated. The term SMALLPOX Hos
pital'-in itself terror to the patient no
longer applied, aud 1t named River. de
Hospital IL Is on the southern point Of the
island the windows on three sides commanding
views Of the river. Midway between Charity
and Riverside Hospitals is what Is called the
Halfway House, beyond which persons are not
allowed to pass without special permission. In
this house a sun repor, er was sitting yesterday,
the only other occupants being a careworn
woman, whose face bore an expression Of hope
and 10y to which 1t had clearly long been a
stranger-she bad just been told that her little
daughter was sufii GENTLY recovered to be taken
home bov. who vainly tried to work on the
exuberance Of spirts occasioned by the pros
uect OF an immediate reunion with his sister,
by vanishing aud cracking his fingers ike Ca9ti-
nets and man about thirtN-hve wears OF age,
whose llclred and wttcry eyes, ptllid face. and
nervous p"arint told Of many wears II dissipa-
ton and Indebtedness. The man looked often
aud lOngingly toward the hospital, ana seemed
to auticip tie the hOueless tidings that were
coming t. him. When Or. Delaney entered he
asked. " How Is my little girl. sirf' and hts lius
trembled ~ he received the reply. " Very SICK.
indeed Tn ply tciin added. kindly, " Ia
need not send the enid an. thing more; she
Won't want IT, and the man turned toward
tio wind NV and looked through his teas NJ the
hHlDin- where Ms chiid was dying # IN L-pox.
~ TuE HOSPITAL.
The writer accented an invitation to examine
the hospital. aud accom- Iantrd pv br. -ltncy
entered trc building The ground door is ocru-
picu uv offices. kitchens. llundties. ond @ ucr
Is carried on cntircy 10y Uaid assistants. On tue
SECOND iirur are the ward tn tud out ~ which
Sisters Ot Charity, with crucilN"S hanging to
their waists, were p,ssint. administering To the
". MS Of the SICK aud uvins.
seven OF thee ladies'" said DR.. Delaney
"came here hom Mount -. Ntuccnt wnen tie
hospital passed under the Cuutfpi N the Board
81 ueattn. incy do all the sewing necess AIRY for
tuc iurututi u. ana uursc the patents. II thew
hii no, volunteered TO come mere, we should
have md 90 employ pad nurses dnu obtained
Verv interior service. Thcv ar, not pad any
timing. mon do they cist tfe ci.y cent. Some
col thee better c.a-s ni uatieut~ sre ch rged =
Ntrh r. board aud A'tcrutnrc. md ont 80 { Its
iunu the absolute tctsoto waut- ~ tue Sisters
are supplied. We have lev pid asslstAuts
VINO ar" under the control OF tue laiies flom
81 unit -. ' inCcnf.
the first ward visited cont lined four pa'ients,
All $" siorNngiy dl-hEuryd tina tne VISITOR sup
SEQ tiItlr UNrfN VS. nUftl
Ca, 40, SAID the doctor. "tnrN are all i ciug
wei. and vii soon ae cunyalcs'cnt rhcir faces
VIII tn $50 urei. uut my cNpcuen'c l. that per
SONS OF tueir cla-s, wh1 de- not ma - their con-
dition knoAn uutil the disease has m dc con-
sidcf Die progress. ruly ever ESCAPE without
di.n turcmeGt. When the, are sent mere ia lime
,n scLer lN anic TO cure hrm unmarked out
tur lotions applci are 50 painful that thN
inr tw worst eases have Mt present are In toe
adjoining ward. would you Ike 10 tnemf'
'u Ted 40 one cur."r 90 the room when was
mex VISITED Was a man whose face had lost AL
scl llaNc- - hnw MY. MS textures "rre
irdilN oulitcl"ttd ana ms limos were bound To
IA ira.newor@ 81 Tue Oen VITA cotton clgih,;
for had ne uten at liberty m the vioi"n,e of his
uclifilm be wound lNc inlIfcd himself. lie
tu--ed and strained ~ MS ouds. but more IN
TcrtlcSstts~ than PAIN, Tor he Wa Unconscious.
ht> ewes were almost dcstroSed 10y tne disease.
auI his Wuitc, wtthercd ilp- move 4 conttnIou-iy.
hui nu sound Icd ffoin them. Water VS.
gwen g. iilu every fen MINUTES. ami ca. Il time
bee drank 70 greedly
'lleis almost gone" said the doctor, and
certainly tanno i've until nioruing."
CHAMBERS or DEATH.
Ili- fellow Sufferer 10y on a bed at the other
end 81 the room. lie. too. was denrinus ana
bulnd with cotton bands. lie was much
comparis "a, to be almost convAiescent uis
( &C WAS flushed 10 "a apuplectic nae, Dut he
VS. rot Otherwise uIst-ufej hes appeal
ances. however, were deceptive. for the uans
~un ri.l-. we're VERY nearly . ldci. llcoAtrrnt
n,r4- frh from hi- bio lG-st tiusI lips his ewes
"ete lusu,les-' and ~ mead moved YEARLY.
unD ea7iigN lrOm siue side 0n tue pillow.
iii- ilngs are ulccdins," said DR.. Delaney.
land wien small puN Is accompanied los sucn
he rorttage recovery Is verN rare. lnrrr l. no
nope Tor ninl. and IL hs lives Tor twenty four
hour longer lie has moIo vitality than 1 sup
pose.
The next ward had but one inmate: n widow
hdV 10 luf =. wear. ~ .who.lweek - riier
hae been graceful handsome woman. though
uu uht coLlI have Gttrcttu auS Trace ul cohrli-
ness ia thc dtneurci lac GA the pillow. She
mrut g. herself.
.",ne is ho,,iinr between life and death" sud
the doctor, "wtth tne chances IN favor of deatn."
ihe ward In winch the DIV lay was the last
Gu that side OF the passa-e, ana the Inspection
MS continued alonf The opposite row In the
ur-t room VISITED there were two tcd~, each oc-
rupi-d ny a little girl. One Of the sun -rer. rs
nearly cOnS alescent. Her face ~as flushed aud
awollen, Uut the pretty, chilaisn features were
rtvidY rrassuminl their Old appearance. ana
the doctor SAID she would soon be ablc t. leave
the hospital. Her mother $ [ cnnt.utndlV he
SIDE the bed, Watching her every movement.
she had watched her daughter all through her
illness, aud nau n"t wnoiiv escaped herself she
> Tree from ne disease. but her eyes. a. is nos
uncoin'pC MY tue case. had been an scted, aud
she was al most blind. On the otncT ned WIS "A
gir about three year- old, VINO was evidently 70
leave the hospital sooner than her roommate.
Slc wt- the daughter u tue ui.n IN the Hall
Wy House, ana could not live many hour
longer. There w., Indeed, "A, the father haI
uc'n iuli. 30 use III sending her the luxuries
WITH wuicn he md hitherto supplied her. Her
eyes were closed, hrr nuOs rlgid and she was
not conscious Of sutcrilg or Of pleasure.
Ih"ie we're sixteen ward~ III tne building
proper aud eighty patieuts, including those III
rHr RATE or MORTALITY.
We usually expect an epiaciult duuns the
winter. -ltI Dr. Delaney, lana We are re-
paled ior one now. We have had Us many rs 81
patients here M once; ltst july w hid that
uunte., ANA the cpiacmic wuich broke out IN
the winter ~ 1874 did not abstr until August.
our Gtath rate tntn Was - per cent; how 10 D..
about - per cent. Tue wards are all cunt to
Cunt.iu rlN Deus, but very few 81 them have 50
many "a tuat now. liv far the greater numb T.
Of our Patients are Gcrnans. Here, pointn-
toward tnan IN a wArd Just entered. -" Is 81 e. Sc
! never expected To STE recover. lie was Is tad
rs the man with htmuirha-e Of the lung"
Tue man MAS worn TO mere skin aud bone
but the di-ea g had Egcn v M .sued and ne
getting we'll. lie was In good spir = nd
laughed hs hc -aid, " Yes. cir, had a hard tim
VI a.. Uut tue god treatment gOt SAVED Ia, i"
iNo ue-rges Aad llsO b, Ell rescued from death,
I'D seemed hardly to realize their escape
..carly all the hair hdu fallen from
their heads, and heir scdlps were of duh gray
color lueS Grnned and chuckled when they
heard the doctor say hOW near they mad ueen 10
de III. One after another AL the waids IN the
hospital were visited. ana DIR. Delaney ihen con
Quote tue wrltec TO tha pavilion. Here mere
were seven AHrds and the ventilation WAS mtch
freer than in the adjoining building. The scenes
were not materially different, out there WAS "A
DrLer numuer OF chlldlen-little things sleeping
ia the arms of m theirs, themselves in advanced
stages Of the disease, whose maternal love
seemed TO blind them TO tho horrible dis1gure-
ment OF their Infants, and leave no loom In their