Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1878-11-30
RICHMOND, VA.
Some Notes on the Virginia Med
ical Association, the Reunion
of the Army Of Northern Nfr-
ginia, the Health Association


RICHMOND, November %.
The Health Association OF the United
States that has been in session here for
some days, is the third of series OF
quite interesting gatherings that havere-
Gently been held in this city. The other
two were the STATE Medical association and
the Reunion Of tie Army Of Northern Iir-
ginia. admit that it is quite late in the
dav for your correspondent to write
about the last two, but may be even in
this "better late than never"
The Medical Association met in the
hall of the House OF Delegates, and
WAS i'm session for three or
four days. The attendance was
quite respectable as regards numbers,
while the papers read and the discus
sions engaged in were highly credltabie.
While it would be unseemlyy i'll me to
draw ANYTHING like invidious compari-
sons. may say that was particularly
impressed and pleased with the papers
| of Drs ElZey, of Blacksburg, and Clal-
bronze, of Petersburg, read at the open
| ing of the meeting. The theme OF that
of the former was The Physician IN So
ciety: and it was exceedingly gratifying
to hear the strong manly blows that the
reader administered to the tiippant
materialsm of the present day and to
| the unwarranted and unphilosophlc
deductions that are being made by skim
mers from the theory OF evolution that
| has not vet attained higher on the lad
der of induction than the rung OF hypO-
thesis. We sincerely hope that the young
and INSTRUMENTATION OF physicians here
and throughout the State will let none
! of the Doctors good words on this sub
! iect fall to the ground" And, indeed,
| | am glad to be able to say that Tor
the most part the papers and discus
sions from the opening to the close OF
the proceedings had an Enthusiastically
moral and religious ring; nor even
at the banquet, where mlrth and
social glee ran high" did hear single
! fling at things sacred or a syllable that
sayored at all of irreligion or irreyerence.
DIR. Savre, OF New York, noted as the
inventor of "Sayre's Splint" and for his
success in the treatment OF spinal dis
eases, was present at the meeting and
added much to its interest. And GER
| tainlv from the attention, honor, and
kindness paid to him while here he
! had good reason to carry back to the
/ metropolis good report OF the generosl-
! ty of his brethren i'll the profession aud
ofthe hospitality OF 'the Old Dominion
| was much interested too III listen
ing to the speeches at the banquet OF
the annual reunion OF the Army Of
Northern Virginia. Here, if anywhere,
we felt that we should have
an opportunity OF learning the real
feelings of the leaders Of political and
military thought in Virginia with re-
card To- the issues and results OF the
war. Surely if there lurked anywhere
a SullennesS from defeat, or spirit OF
disunion and revenge, it would show
itself at such gathering for such pur-
pose. But am clear to say that |
heard no words uttered evincive OF such
| feeling or spirit Anecdotes OF the war
were told; brave deeds of officers and
men were recounted; the personal and
military characters OF Lee, Jackson,
"Jeb" Stuart, Johnston and others
were warmly eulogized, and the toast,
"To the Confederate Dead" was drunk
standing, and responded to with deep
pathos and eloquence that moved to
tears. But withal no words from any
speaker evoked more laundering APP
plause than when the hope was eX-
! pressed. as it was bv Gov. Holiday,
! that God in His all-wiSc Providence
would make the war, and even the de-
feat of the Southern armies, instrument
tai and efiectual in laying deeper and
| broader in the country the true prin-
ciples of liberty and Of self-gov-
| eminent, and in gathering up
the once scattered fragments OF
the nation and binding them into a
closer, more sympathetic and more
symmetrical "Union." Inpenning this
do not think that | am misrepresent-
ing single speech that was delivered
or the spirit OF one that took an active
and prominent part in this reunion.
observe that YOU have already pub
Hshed quite extensive Geographic re-
ports of the dOings Of the Health AssO-
citation, and therefore | shall not give
any detailed or lengthy account OF them.
The chief subject that engaged the at
tention OF the society here was the vel
| low fever And while it may be true
that there was not much that was really
new brought out on the subject, there
vet were many facts presented and in
auctions formed that seemed to me to
| be valid, that were interesting and in
structive not only to those who are in
tercsted in the practical hygieniCS OF the
country, but also to those who would
grapplc with some of what may be
! called the physicO-theologiC issues
of the day. 1t was, | think, a
very clear induction, formed from
numerous well authenticated facts
and from circumstances clearly
linked together by causal connections,
that the disease is not indigenous to
New Orleans, or indeed to this country.
1t is an importation from the West
Indies, South America, or some other
foreign country. ] believe that this was
speaker on the subject, but by none per-
haps so clearly and cOnclusivcly as by
DR. Chopin, OF New Orleans. This being
so, the Inference followed naturally and
irrcSiStiblv that if we are to be saved
from the fearful peStlIcnce IN the future
Il rigid and absolute quarantine must be
established, say from The first OF April or
of Nav to the first of November, at all
ports into which foreign ships come.
And the Importance and necessity of
this was corroborated by the fact that
when once the disease has entered ii is
practically impossible to use disinfec
tants to prevent its spreading. Fumi-
CATION by sulphur and carbolic acid were
the disiniectantS used, but these could
not be applied with either comfort
or safety to those already seized
with the disease. Hence exclusion
is the only sure preventive. 1t was
clearly showed, too, from carefully gath
cred facts and figures that even in an
economic point OF view it would have
paid New Orleans, or any other city
that was visited by the disease, to have
excluded absolutely all innovations.