The sun., 1879-06-05
Behold | Bring you ridiucs OF Great
joy. which Shalt be t0 All People.


Tho vault from the outhouse wns bare. and
thc'scent was waited through the open windows.
Tho embankment remained The rotten logs
stood above small pools of water that had gath
cred in spots below the level Of tho school
house. The edge Of the brook at tho bridge was
black with sediment from Chrncy's barnyard.
The wut-r however. was limpol and young trout
dnrted unior the bridge as | stepped upon It,
Tue little marsh whore the colt was first hured
was uVerrun with skunk's cabbage and coarse
grass. some rural wis"acre hnd spaded 1t up
in places. and declared tho stench sickcning
So il WAS. but II was the mucky smell peculiar
On further investigation l discovered the
solution OF the pestilencc. Abel +. Carpenter
lives half a mile below the school house Heis nm
honest man, no doubt, but his household lacks
the virtue o; cleanliness. About the first OF
Auril his daughter Emma years old. had the
When school opened Il boy. Eugene. was suffer
ing with 1t. This boy and Charles. IA years old.
attended school on the first day of the term.
Ih.y wore clothing from the infected house.
and spread the disease among the school chill
drrn. IL was undoubtedly aggravated by tho
drppings from ChcneyS barnyHrd. and the
surroundings and situation OF the school house.
some OF tho scholars say that they drank from
the brook back of the school house. II So the
water was impregnated with the sediment
from beneath the building aud possibly from
the outhouse. The disease. thus stimulated.
demic similar to that which proved 30 fatal
near ST. Adams and Ia u little town in New Jer-
in time 1t might have been cured Carpen-
tors oldest boy. caught it on Thursday
after school hnd opened. He had drank
copiousy Of the water from the brook. His
brother and sister who had the diphthera be-
fore the school opened. The father says he
gave him the same treatment rs the other chill
drcn. and he recovered. The medicine was n
patent dlphtheriR remedy" said Mr.. Carpen-
ter. while seated bareiOoted in his unclaan
kitchen. " \ neighbor recommended il when
Emma was first taken sick. in April 1t cured
her ana Eugene When Charles was taken
sick on Thursday there was mons Of IL left in
the house. | trlcgraphed 10 81. Johnsbury for
n bottle. and got II on Friday. Chnrles's breath
smot as bad ~ the breaths OF the rest Of them.
throat was cOnied white. aud he vomied. The
medicine acted rs a laxative, and thoroughly
purged him. His nose hed like the noses OF
the other children. bu. the medicine broke up
the disease. and he got we'll"
Mr.. Carpenter Acknowledged that Eugene at
the disease. but said that he did not return to
school alter the first day. The mischief had
then been done From the statement OF the
mother Of the Aldrich children II is clear that
they were not treated with laXutives. This may
have been the fault OF the physicians. but II
oped in three days after the Carpenter boy at
tended school. The second GrOup OF children
was attacked three DAYS later and "A third group
nine days from the first.
such are The facts concerning this alleged
poisoning. Meantime. tho whole country is
alive with absurd rumOrs. II is asserted the
children have decomposed so quick that one
was buried without coilln. All received plain
mud decent burial. Decomposition was rapid.
but not more 90 than in aggravated cases OF
similar Diseases. The truth Is that the blnme
rests upQn the school trustees whose duty IL is
To- soc that school houses are kent clean and
lure and built on high ground. where the sur
rOundlngs are not unhealthy.