The New Orleans daily Democrat., 1878-11-27
TRACING THE FEVER.
Rpw. guHopprN'e ADDRESS BEFORE TINE
WEALTH CONVENTION,
gwsseu the Fever Commenced I'm New Or
leans and the Course Et Travelled.
TNAw YORK Trihune.

Now York I'ribunel
RICHMOND Nov. 22.-Dr Samuel Chopin
prc4ident of tho State Board of Health
Louisiana, began his address with Il graceF,
and feeling expression OF gratitude on tl
Dart Of the people OF New Orleans and Of hi
State for the material aid go literally ez
tended to the infected districts Of the Sou
by the people of the other States Of the Unio
during the last four months, and said tia
such manifestations Of sympathy and broth
erhood would certainly tend to cement tn
ties which bind all the States Of the Union
and do away with all causes Of estFangcmoh
between the North and the South.
DR.. Chuppn then traced the WORKINGS Q
tho disease from It's earliest appearance 81
New Orleans down to the present time, ail'
showed that 1t was not Indigenous e, 70 houlHi
ana. but was All exotic disease. ii,s algh
ment. based upon facts and fasr inferohce'
from facts. went TO show that yellow fever
could be excluded from this country by the
enforcement of rigid quarantine at every
port, and that such q quarantine had not
heretofore been maintained, especially at New
Orleans
Dr Choppin. however,. did not favor tho
national governments assuming the control
and regulation Of the uuarantine system, but
desired that tho States Of the South partic-
ularly Interested ln~the question should unite
In the establishment Of g uniform system,
which should be regulated and controlled by
each State for itself His chief argument.
besides unconstitutional and legal one against
the Federal governments undertaking to es-
tablish and regulate a national system
was the danger that tho importers and mer-
chants OF the country wo1lld resort to
practices Of deception and corrupt influences
which would have the effect Of rendering the
system completely useless and also Injurious
TO commerce, because quarantine, to be bene-
ficial and effective, must be an absolute pro-
lection against the Introduction of epidemic
disease. DR.. Chopin thought that Now Or
leans had escaped yellow fever frequently by
reason Of the quarantine at tho mouth of the
Mississippi river now existing, but that the
system could be improved aud made more
rigid and effective in States adjacentto I.ouisi-
ana. This could not be done except by hearty
cooperation.
THE Epidemic OF 1878
The first cases Of yellow fevor IN Now Or
leans In 1873 undoubtedly We're two of the
officers of the tennshp Emily Il. Souder
namely, Clark, the pulser. and Elliott. one OF
the engineers. Clark was Ill when the vessel
reached quarantine but managed to pass in
spection as suffering merely from neuralgia
Lately 1t has transpired, through inquiries of
the Yellow Fever Commission, that he boasted
after arrival at New Orleans that he had
'beateu'' the quarantine doctor. Be that as
1t may, lac went ashore sick when the vessel
teaehSd ,,x W., her ,.,,, wharf % on My 23 and
which belong Enthusiastically to yellow fcver,
at house on Claiborne street, near Cont He
was attended beth on board and ashore by
n physician long resident in this city, and
the case at the house where he died showed
that the treatment was moro suitable to yell |
low fever than to any other disease; still u
burial certificate was given of death by
ma!arial fever. This case was not brought to
the notice Of the Board OF Health by any direct
communication, official or otherRlse but from
information received through stleet rumor.
Elliott sckened after his arrival, and WAS
attended by Il private physician, al llF
Doarding-house, until the evening be-
fore bis death, apparently without
suspicion on the part OF any one that he haa
yellow fever Late on the evening Of May 80 /
he was removed to the tIotcl Dcu, where he
died within few hours. A careful post-mor
tenn examination was made by two competent |
physicians, and the body was subsequently, |
inspected by tho speaker. No further time
was lost in making use Of the usual means Of
disinfecton in and around tho houses where
Clark aud Elliott had been sick, and those to |
which they had been removed, No more cases |
followed within the period of their apprehend- !
ed occurrence. and it was supposed that the
Hanger was past.
About the middle of July some cases Of a
strongly suspicious character came to light
on Constance street. near its intersection with
Ierpsichore street, and in fow days all
doubt was removed of their true nature.
About week previouslya young man named
Cohn came to the Touro Intirmary from Gas
uuet street, between Marais and Villere, pre-
senting strong appearances OF yellow fever, |
but he recovered before attention was drawn
to Constance street. and his case was consid-
cred questionable. Within a few days cases
were found near the corner of Front and Girod
streets, where Elliott had sickened; on Bien-
vile, near where Clark had died on Claiborne
street; and case on Robertson street,
near the home of Cohn, who had been
ut the intirmary, not much more
than quarter of o mile from where Clark
where Elliott died. The line of Infection
seems tolerably clear, though long latent,
from Clark to Cohn, and subsequently to the
cases on BienvlIe and Robertson streets; and
also from Elliott, sick in his boarding house,
to the subsequent outbreak at the corner of
Front and Girod; but the outbreak on Con-
stance street was so far from the wharf OF the
Souder fully half II mile, and so long alter
her arrival more than six weeksl that it was
long considered out of question to establish o
connection between them.
Recent Investigations show that some OF
the earliest cases on Constance street occur
red In the family of a Mr. Coven. who is en-
gneer of the tughoat Charlie Wood. This
boat lay at the same wharf occupied by the
Souder immediately after the departure of
the latter for Havana, as stated by Coven
himself at the time of his illness. Mrs.
Wasson, Governs mother-in-law, was sick at
the beginning of July, with symptoms an
swering closely to those observed in yellow
fever, and two weeks later other members Of
the family were known to have yellow fever.
About the same time several children in q
nelgnoorlng 1alnlly named BOlton developed
the same disease; and it has been ascer-
tanned that q colorcd laundress Emma
Watts, living in the yard Of tho Bolton
family, had there done washing for Mrs. Was
son, and hung up her clothes to dry in the
yard Of the Bolton family. About the same
time occurred several cases near by on adja-
cent streets, alleged on lay testimony to have
been yellow fever. The objection naturally
arises that the distance is too great from the
intersection of Front and Girod streets, and
the interval of time too long from Elliott's
case to those on Constance street, for a chain
of evidence to be established between them.
1t must be granted that we should naturally
expect to find intervening cases, both in space
and time; but we are here confronted by no
greater mysteries than we find in other in
fictitious diseases.