The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1878-08-11

The panic throughout the country we be-
lieVe TO be due in great measure to the fact
that most people imagine the official report ts
given by our Board of Health to be incorrect
They have heard wild stories to the effect that
thousands of persons here are sick and
hundreds are dying daily. Ia all sincerity,
and without reservation of any kind, we can
and do state that these stories are not true.
The reports given by the Board of Health are
| as correct as such reports can possibly be, and
if they err in any respect it certainly is not in
putting the number of cases and of deaths at
lesser figure than they actually are. On the
contrary whenever an error is made it is in re-
porting person as sick of yellow fever who is
| suffering from some other fever. Should the
fever become epidemic the fact will at once be
made known to the world, as there is no dis
position on the part of the physicians or people
of New Orleans to mislead the residents of
other localities.
BOARD OF HEALTH.-This Board met last
Thursday evening and adopted the following
resolutions:
1. ResolJed. That in order to more freely de-
fine the orders and wishes of his board in re-
lation to the proper irrigation of the city for
hygienic purposes, it ia hereby declared that
every mechanical appliance within reach
should be brought into reqnisition so that all
of the guttere, drains ana canals should be
copiously flushed with water from the Missis-
sippi river, and that the irrigation should be
kept up not only for an hour at time, or for
one day, but should be continued night and
day, for a week OF more, to tie end that the
atmosphere may thereby be purified, and the
full benefit of owing water as Q disin feet ant
be thoroughly tested.
2. Whereds, it has been the usual custom for
the New Orleans city contractors to dump gar
bsge and other kinds oftilth on the front levee,
in open lots, and filling up ponds and other
low places with tie same, thereby endanger
ing the health of the city be it
Resolged That the Board of Health recon. |
mend to the City Council that all garbage, |
filth, old rags, etc, shall be taken to certain
convenient places and burned after ssturation |
with coal oil /; and be 1t further
Resolved, T6at the city bs requested to make
arrangements with contractors to carry into !
effect this resolution, and further, to compel |
city contractors to carry out rigidly all con- |
tracts pertaining to cleaning the streets; and |
be it further
Resozred, Taat the City Council be requested |
to have the fresh burnt lime (sent here by j. |
Chicago Railroad scattered over these gar
bage beds at Tivoi Circle, in front of the river
and all other places filled with garbage, and in |
cutters where filth exists,
B. Resolred, That the experience of the board |
so far in the of carbolic acid as q disn fect-
ant and the beneficial results obtained there
from fully justifes the continuation of It's use,
ana Ln6 pre9lOeHO OF Gne DoArQ 10 therefore au-
thoriEed and directed to call upon the city
authorities for such guam ntities as he may deem
necessary for further disinfecting purposes.
From the report of the Sanitary Inspector of
the Fourth District We take this extract:
Yellow fever made it's appearance in two foci
On the twenty fourth cf July. Two areas en-
bracing four squares in each case were imme-
diately disiD footed thoroughly with carbolio
aoid. To the present date there have occurred
twenty eight cases, and in each instance this
method of disinfectiDg the four adjacent
.quares has been carried out. These sreas have
been almost invariably densely packed With
and in but o single instance has
5here occurred . case of yellow fever outside
the premises originally infected. While in
EARS prior to disinfecton the pestilenoe has
marched steadily from house to house and from
quare to square, invading the district with
,he systematic spread of q coDAagration, it iS
low isolated to the original premises above
tated. The general condition of these areas |
,efore dsinfection was awful the>Air redolent
With the fu mes of putrefaction, emansting from
,riVieS and gutterE but the entire changing Of
his condition after disinfection fully accounts, |
n my opinion, for the checking of tAe pesti- ,
ence as legitimate result. am assured by
everal of our ablest observers that the disesse
las become greatly modified in point of malig- |
lAncy. The people obeyiDg the admonitiOus
If the board are manif, sting the utmost in.
crest in the cleansing and dislnfecting of their
,vun ID aaafat. l