The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1877-04-15
DEDUCTIONS FROM A FALSE BASIS.
How Epidemics Originate In
Large Cities.
OVERCOMING AND UNCLEANLINESS.
The Evils OF Defective Drainage and
Soil Saturation
ENFORCE THE SANITARY LAWS.


The attention OF the people has lately been drawn
10 the condition OF the public health and sanitary
dtion Of the city by the repeated complaints from all
quarters IN relation the oppressive and disgusting
condition Of the sreeta This is due to the accumua.
ton Of refuse fifth and decayne garbage, the emana.
tons from which not alone offensive to tho
OF SMELL bu. also prove to be grave source OF disease
and danger to the health OF the community While
the Department OF Health is not directly responsible
for present dangerous condition OF tho Streets the
Street Cleaning Bureau being charged with the work
oil cleaning them, stil with the ample power and
thorty that the health officials Of this city vested,
IL would be easy matter for them TO remedy
this outrage public decency by compelling The
Street Cleaning Department 10 keep the public thor
oughfarcs in a good condition absolute necessity
for the projection OF the health OF tho community
YGURxa
In recent statement made by tho officials OF the
Health Department attempt made to prove that
In New York the death rate was much lower than In
nearly all tho large cities either IN this country in
Europe. In order TO provo this much TO DO desired
sanitary result the mortality for the past quarter
taken basis for calculating the present yearly death
rate There having been 5000 deaths within this
PERIOD and the population beng estimated at OF 22S
y rate OF mortality OF 222S per 900 obtained for
tho entire year No one is betor than the gen.
,leman who prepared this statement for the Health
Board that Is incorrect q exhibit OF tho
present OF mortality for this city TOR the following
reasons In tho first place, the three months just
passed. have proved to be unusay healthy, thanks 10
the extremely line weather. consequently the past quar-
ter is not just basis calcu-
lalon; secondly, Il is q well known fact that
be easily proved from tho reports OF the Board
OF Health that the excessive doah rate from xymotc
diseases is always from about July TO October. This
IL IN keeping with tho experience OF every physician
In the city The Eleventh ward has death rate Of
from IS to 40 per 1000 yearly ratc during tho heated
term, while IN the winter months the rate seldom
or below 20 20 per 1000. Al page 236 OF the
last Health Report the following statement is made:-
More than half tho Inhabitants are living at such
q disadvantage rospec.s their d0mcile and their
social that they comparatively incapable OF
to tho local causes OF disease and during
The hottest and the codest periods Of the year the
more unhealtniul quarters become excessively peril
Gus TO great numbers OF their residents The special
insalubrity OF these limited districts OF uncieanliness
ovcrcrowdng Is shown by the fact that ch,ldrcn
under i've Of perish ~ the rate Of $50 10 800
per 1000 yearly ratoi during the ten or twelve
From the foregoing extracts from the official
reports II will be at once seen how absurd II is 10
draw any estimate as 10 the annual death rate from
the returns of three months, particularly when the
period selected gives much smaller Of mortality
than either the third fourth quarters Of tho year.
II can hardly disguised that this last statement
OF the Board Of Health has been made order
duce the public TO believe tina. the mortality n this
city Is much less than really that thanks to
the vigilance ana ceaseess activity OF tho Health on
cias. New YORK Of the heathicst cities in the
world
SOURCES OF DIsRAsR
II has been repeatedly urged by the HERALD that
much disease aud that affects this city
is 10 very great extent preventabie provided the
proper means and precautions arc adopted. Recent
reiation to the causes production OF
disease place every sanitary officer charged with the
protection Of puollc health position alone
TO successfully combat disease, but also 10 pre-
vent It's origin. II is we'll recognized and
accepted TACT that the emanatons irom drains and
sewers the uvercrowding OF human beings in build.
Dgs that exclude all possibility oil their enjoying puro
air or light the accumulation vi all kinds oil nsh and
refuse matter IN the Streets particularly in the poorer
quarters Of the CITY, are productive OF the most dan
gcrous ana contagious forms Of disease and that
where such sources oil disease aud danger 10 the
MUMMY exist Il cannot be expected that the mortality
will DO low the sanitary condition favorable TO
health. La this city these great sources OF disease
have existed ior many years Without any attempt
laws that nevor enforced and the publication OF
costly reports on the subject These factors In the
production oil disease are The overcfowding OF ten
ement houses bad house drainage that permits the
poisoning OF the air by emanations from waste and
sewer pipes, and the worse than useless system OF
street sowcring that 10 IN existence nearly all parts
OF the city.
ovRRcRowDlxo OF TRSEMExTs
The overcrowding oil tenemVnts has always proved
Ut the greatest sources oil disease in this CITY, The
mortality arising from this cause. particularly among
young children durng the summer months, reaches TO
nearly seventy i've per cent OF the total death rate
This can be readily understood when consider the
condition OF the atmosphere IN these dwellings a
hot day in July or August the mir loaded with all the
impurities generated by close bodily tact, The ex-
sonous emanatons from detective house drains Tho
effect ot such atmosphere Is TO produce gene raj
blood poisoning. destructive 10 health and c This
poison, as Shakespeare tells u.s.
Whose effect
Holds such enmity with tie blood Of man,
That swift as quicksilver, II courses through
Tue natural gates ana valleys OF the body,
And with a sudden yigor II aoth posset
And curd Ike eager droppings into milk.
The thin aud wholesome brood
Food kept In the poisonous air Of such buildings In
turn becomes rapidly poisonous aud exerIs us de-
slructvc inlueLcv on the heath oil the inhabitants
THIS 10 particularly the case with mix, the principal
food oil young chiidren which, when kept IN u tainted
atmosphere becomes RAPIDLY bad and dangerous to
health u ood In the construction OF tho tenement
houses OF this city little or regard Is paid TO
laiiun or hight Hundreds OF human beings are
crowded together living under conditions that tho
most destructive, both in moral US we'll as physical
point OF Laws have been passed TO remedy this
great source OF epdcmc disease, but effort
made 70 eniorceethem.
In report made TO the sIntcrnationaI Penitentiary
Congress" on the subject or "overcrowding' tho fol
loving occurs
at be said thatS with overcrowding such as
this there rs always disease and Naturally,
habits From the Is 900 tenement houses comes sew
entytnree cent oil the mortality OF our population,
have little doubt much ninety per cent Of
the offences against property ana person. Fov girls