The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1878-08-18

the canals, because il it were all pumped on
the action Of the sun on the wet earth woult
prove detrimental to health.
Several hundred barrels of lime from tn,
North and as many more from the gas work.
in this city, have been spread over the dump
ing grounds in various parts of the city and II
the streets around infected localities. Thi,
distribution of lime will continue daily and it i,
estin ated that by next Wednesday ut least two
Thousand barrels will have been disposed OF
in this way. Meanwhile the employees of the
Department, assisted by those of the Survey.
or's office, are actively circulating around town
keeping the contractors up to their work, spy
| ing out whatsoever needs attention and re-
| moving the causes of such complaints from
citizens as are made at the proper offioes.
BOARD OF HEALTH From the proceedings
of this Board, which met Thursday night, we
take the following extract
DR.. Jones offered resolution to the effect
that the quarantine restrictions be raised in
yellow fever in New Orleans.
This resolution met with strenuous opposi.
tion from Dr.. Austin 'If" said he, 1--WE de.
| quarantine. the Board OF Health will lose it's
hold upon the Q larsntine Station and vessels
tainted with the wortt type of yellow fever
will enter the port Of New Orleans with i'm.
The present type Of fever is mild, exceedingly
mild so mild even that there are many cases
which I now treat, and which am ashamed
to qualify and report as yellow. fever. Ever
since 1880 have never seen suoh o light kind
of fever as now exists in New Orleans
think that the Board of Health will do wrong
to pass any such resolution. We ought to
take the example of the Republicans rho in
1870, when there occurred 5S7 deatt s. had the
moral courage to stand firm by making no
such pusillanimous declarations as emb bodied
in this resolution. We should be courageous,
stand our ground, fight the dsesse and never
give up. hope, he concluded, that the board
will take my views under consideration.
DR.. Taney rose and said thai if the fever be
other charitable societies will, instead of send
ing help and means to distant cities and villa
ges. benefit New Orleans aud relieve the dis
tire which reigns among certain class of
The discussion became general, and the re-
ISOLATION of DE-. j ones was notly contested. On
one side it was held that the yellow fever was
not epidemic, as the number of deaths did not
exceed, in o given time, say one week, the
number of other deaths put together. On the
OF Ter side it was maintained that the great
number of cases already known and reported
fully justified the board in declaring the sick
ness epidemic.
DR.. Austin called for the previous question,
and moved that the resolution be laid on the
table.
The resolution was tabled, and the following
substitute offered by DR.. Jones was adopted |:
Resolued that the president of the Board of
Health be authorized to modify the .quaran-
tine regulations in accordance with the pres
ent condition of the city of New Orleane.
At the last meeting of the Council the Ad-
minlstrator of Improvements introduced q
series of resolutions annulling the contracts
for street cleaning and repairing, the preamble
reoiting that the work has not been performed
by the contractors in q satisfactory manner
The Council took no action on the resolutions,
postponing their consideration till next Tues
day.
In communication to the Council, the Al
ministrator calls attention to the general dis
content existing with reference to the working
of the contract system, and asserts that if
placed under the control of his Department the
streets and public places would, within very
short time, be put in satisfactory condition
of cleanliness, while such a result cannot possi-
bly, be anticipated under the present system.
He continues:
In the first place, it would be next to i'm
possible to get contractors to comply with
their obligatlons, even though those obliga-
tions were clearly defined and entirely un-
questionable. Ny department. is charged with
impossible, with the email force ct my COM
mand for that purpose, consisting of only six
teen men, to scrutinize at short intervals all
the streets alleys, crossings, bridges, wings
banquettes, draining canals, levees, highways,
ehell.roads and public places of q city like this.
To do so with Efficiency the ntire police force,
consist Dg of hundreds of men, ought to be
M ade agents of this department. and required
to report for their respective beats each day,
and with strict exactness, all Irregularities
and dt tticiencifs of contractors. 1t might be
sugges ed that they would not do it, which is
very probable, but in default of some assist
spce Of lis kind it has to remsin for the most
part undone.
In this connection, too, we must remember
that the personal interests of the contractor
come into violent and direct conflict with his
obligations. He getsso much money for doing
certain definite work it would cost him say
hundred dollars to nave it we'll done-he
sligtts it and pays fl ty; of course there is
fifty dollars saved, and yet it is not called
theft. In fact, it is hardly rated as disreputa-
BILE by considerable number of our fellow
But the consequence of it all s an
active, incess ant tendency to slight the work