The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-12-31
THE FEVER COMMISSION
THE LINE or lNQUIRY-TEsTIMONY
OF WITNESSES.

OF WITNESSES.
The Sub Yellow Fever Committee, compose,
OF Senators J. B. Eustis, A. J. Paddock an
L. @. O. Lamar. and Representatives r. L. Glib
son and Chas. T. Hooker. met yesterday Ii
parlor 100, Bt. Charles Hotel.
Gen. Gibson called the committee to orde
and moved that Senator Eustis be requested d
take the chair. The motion prevailed.
Surgeon General John M. Woodwork the,
gave q synopsis OF the proceedings of the sub
committee which met at Memphis recently, an,
presented the recommendations as to the lin
Of investigation adopted and submitted by tina
committee.
The points OF inquiry are az follows:
i. The origin. cause and destructive festure
q yellow fever and cholera; whether or no
they are tndigenQus TO any part OF the Unitet
country and the localities from which t he,
H Tn b and tH whs
been owing to Importation.
2. the season OF the rear when and atmos
be adopted 81 WI When thsir IN
PRODUCTION into this country from other local.
ties may be prevented.
ton and spread when once introdaced i IN an,
part q the United States.
8 The I NUMBER Of deaths that have occurred
and the expenditures Of money and injury 't q
business resulting therefrom.
The Memphis committee also made the fol-
LOWING assignment OF experts:
Drs. Bemiss, Green and Chaille, New Orleans
and sogthern Louisiana. .Drs. Mosher and
@ Nes S ossn aa q osps S %ba a @
injected by yellow fever. ,Drs. Cochran. Randle
and SwsariDgton visit tho inland towns, and
Or. Mitchell remains with the Memphis SUB sub.
COMMITTEES.
No action 4 was taken by the committee on the
erabs discussion as to how the work could be
Senator Eustis thought that under the reso-
must be directed to the origin aud spread OF
the fever. and the means OF preventing II.
m interests we're a s wsa by se
epidemic.
Mr.. Gibson inquired how many experts were
worth replied twelve. including himself.
Gen. Hooker thought, that an early report
was necessary to secure Legislation at this SEES.
should direct Its Inquiries 10 questions which
w9nld when A, answered. aid in legislation, :.
mr; Lam mar thought that the committee should
quarantine regulations and Its usefulness In
preventing the INTRODUCTION Of the disease. "
na ally decided dtS to get the testimony Of
T s 1syss fg 70
Eustis and Paddock and Representative Gibson
were appointed q committee to dfaw up a ifst
OF witnesses to be handed to the sergeant-a at
arms,
The committee then took a recess until 1880
Del
The Night session.
At half-past O'Clock last evening the COM
mission met again. Senator Eustis In the chair
and every member present.
Dr. u: q. Holiday was called to the witness
stand. Inc question arose az to whether wit
hhes ~ should be sworn or that their evidence
Gen. Gibson suggested that witnesses should
pc sworn because, however much the commit
bility. the matter was q public one, and as suah
u might be preferable that the witnesses be
MI. Lamar said that there was another rea.
son. and that was that some witnesses might be
called upon to testify whose evidence il might
be necessary to take under oath. and therefore
Thereupon DR.. Holiday was sworn to Tell the
truth. the whole truth and nothing but the
truth. and according to. bis own suggestion, to
understood that much Of his evidence must
naturally be speculative, from hearsay and
Senator Eustis then informed the witness that
mis- committee had been appointed to investi-
gate the origin and spread of the late epidemic.
IN order that they might be enabled to make a
report report TO Congress on the subject OF the pro-
Dr.Holliday asked the chair whether the com. |
n (, had adopted some means Of curtailing |
Gen. Gibson here furnished the chair with a |
series OF written questions which were used to |
certain extent during the session.
written questions was TO obtain facts. but the ex-
animation had scarcely opened than 1t became |
n the United States and throughout the world |
must be discussed
Dr., Holidays examination commenced as
Usual | have been physician in New Orleans
INN ntn al
'een every epidemic. beeinning with that OF
st7; was here during the entire time OF the
epidemic OF 1878. / have no positive means Of
showing how the last epidemic originated. I |
lid not see the first case5 OF fever. and cannot
answer whether they are traceable to one
snos hays
t has not been. SO far, proved to me that there |
las been absolute connection between the two
Ter with the epidemic. I believe that the Emily
3. Souder came from Havana. and that there |
vas an epidemic OF yellow fever at that place
Of those themselves who investigated |
he origin Of the epidemic, must confess that
can establish no connection between that yes
lave presented themselves concerning the trac-
pR OF epidemics everywhere.
From this moment the testimony amounted |
members OF the committee. the physician COM
nittee Of experts and the witness himself-a
Of Interest and which
IS a man who was thoroughly acquainted with |
he subject under discussion and speaker
1f remarkable clearness and readiness. AL |
hough for fully two hours on the stand, he |
never hesitated for a single moment In his an
,wers or in correcting the questions OF his in
errogators.
In brief. DR.. Holiday said that his own theory
Of yellow fever was that 1t was a germ. which
be had adopted because 1t was the only. theory
hat could explain to his mind. as It did to that
Of many other physicians. the contradictions
hat other theories failed to explain. Yellow
lever had been imported here originally. but it |
had now. Its habitat here, and regardless |
of additional inspirations, It needs
velopment. and he compared It to
certain exotic plants that become acclimated |
here. These peculiar conditions could not be /
now determined. In part they consisted OF high |
barometrlc phenomenon. etc..
under which an epidemic would exist. whether
he germ was imported or not. He thought that |
{ would be difficult to explain what this germ |
was. but believed it to be specific living organ
Ism. which the microscope had not. yet dis
covered. but by analogy he must believe In 1t.
ike the discovered germs Of other diseases.
which never vary and produce their like.
In answer to Col; Lamar and Gen. Hooker he
again expressed his reasons for believing In |
he germ theory By saying that 1t explains more