The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-04-20
TIE NEW ORLEANS DEMOCRAT SUNDAY, APRIL 20, 1879


Of It's expenditure. II bank contributes,
as we do, $1,000, let the association remember
that this money Is not the property OF the
bank, but that Of the stockholders. who are
individual members Of society.
| / say the Auxiliary Associ ttion set out by
| assuming title and asserting objects alto
! gether assistant, co cooperative An auxiliary
! is IAN assistant, a helper, confederate The
association proclaimed that they desired 20
| help the City Council and the Board o. Health,
and they have appealed to all the com "a unity
| for the means OF 80 doing. lhey dld noI m
| nounce to the people that the Council and the
board were adopting wrong methods ana
squandeling their means. They did not pro-
claim that thsy had discovered D. tier methods,
or that they could be better trusted Wild we
money of the people. On the contrary they
invited the Council and the board TO meet
them and confer with them, that all might
lcork together-the association being aMrttd'V
Iargue, then that paid medlsa. olG &c at
only q fifth wheel to 9 coach, a. impeachment,
but 1t ID q violation Of the spirit Of the appeal
to the pockets Of the people. la plain Eng
lish 1t is a positive acrong Ana SO WIN re-
gard to every paid officer of the concern. The
function of the association, as proclaimed, is
dssisfa,st-not distinct and independent as to
organic ttion,. objects. Or action. When they
pay double heads of departments and buy
buggies for them with the money begged
they violate their obligations.
! Have this people-have the Auxiliary AS
sociation- thought of what the peculiar,
tho trying functions OF president Of the
Board of Health are where that officer is d
competent, educated, incorruptible gentle
| man in contradistinction to the mere office
holding tool of a political party2 Let us re-
cur to the past year and we may get an
| inkling.
| From 1867 to 1878 there had been no wide
spread epidemic of yellow fever In New Or
| leans; but In several summers OF that inter-
val there had been local infections of the
disease, as once, in a narrow district stretch
| ing across from the river to Congo Square,
and several times In a part Of the Fourth
| District bounded say, by the river, Washing
ton, Magazine and Josephine streets. In
these years the first carbolic acid experiments
Orleans reported that yellow fever had been
stamped out BY carbolc acid. and the ex-
listing Board Of Health picked up the idea.
Yellow fever, true to its history, in those
years, prevailed locally, but the acid
short.sighted philosophers, carbolic acid
did it. In flaming reports the Board
Of Health announced that it had stamped
out the diseased Unfortunately this thing
occurred, as we have seen, several seasons,
and the people were educated to believe that
carbolic acid was our anchor. While the
stamping out experiments were going on
/ rode and walked into the infected districts.
satisfied myself Of the utter fallacy 81 the
/
from door to door In spite Of carbolic acid,
but there was no use in arguing, The Board
of Health were the dupes of the post hoe,
ergo propter hoe philosophy, and what could
/ you expect OF the people who swallowed their
so-called facts.
But yellow fever appeared In 1878 What
was the new Board of Health to do-try car
bolc acid or not try itp Fortunately for
was. Indeed they believed that yellow fever
had been stamped out and they went to
stamping. / closely watched the process,
and I undertake to say they did the work
more Thoroughly than 1t had ever before been
done here But yellow fever marched on.
All of us know how the disease thickened
and how persistently caibolic acid was used,
until denunciation Of both acid and board was
| In every mans mouth.
| Now look. Suppose that board had been
| as skeptical as was: suppose it had closely
investigated and satisfied itself, as l did,
that the facts" of stamping OUT were
scientific Observation-Disclosures OF short
sighted philosophers and suppose 1t had
than preventive or destructive, and we refuse
to use It," aud then suppose the epidemic!
Does anybody believe the president and his
board could have found q roasting place in
New. Orleans? Would their necks have been
safe here?
So much for illustration, and it is only one
phase Of the trouble that surrounds them.
Capacity. gentility, knowledge, social stand
lug, integrity, zeal, self-sacritice-a and
more go for nothing before the insensate howl
Of wOuld-be reformers. The wonderful intri-
cacies and secrets with which God Ia his
establishment OF law has surrounded the his
tory OF d1sease-cauSes are as clear as noon
day to him who has never thought over them,
and only obscure to the modest student!
Wherefore shall we think? 1t Is all in the
cutters, cemeteries and privies. Cover them
up, flush them QUIET roitd tout
Poor vain humanity! 1t strives to forget
everything and to learn nothing. II you tell
the association that there are mountains of
evidence to teach us that yellow fever has no
more relation to filth than has influenza, they
will still harp upon my daughter
Hilary" effort is the demand on the Governor
by the association to remove DR.. Darlington
from the M ississippi river quarantine ground.
Let us look at the matter dispassionately.
1. The condition OF things which resulted
in DR.. CarringtOn's being placed in that posi-
ton was the gravest imaginable. 1t was
demonstrated that an honest man must be in
charge of the station.
2. Let us admit, for the sake of argument,
that DR.. G. was not thoroughly familiar with
yellow fever when on duty, and that he did,
possibly, let the disease slip through.
3. NOW things are changed. Dr.: q. has
unreInitting service has fitted him for his
duties. Shall | 20 on and argue the case ?
No. Ii / were Governor would decline to
remove DR.. Darlington under any popular
c!amor; He is now 'the right man in the
right place" MORE ANON.
THE JUDICIARY. |
To the Editor Of the Democrat: