The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1881-04-07
Dr.. R. W. Mitchell to DR.. Writ Johnston.

State Board of Health:
DoCToR-I am in receipt of your lette
of the nineteenth instant, requesting me
inform you what action will be taken b
the Tennessee Board and other State Board
of Health in the Mississippi Valley" i
view of the fact "that it is not probable til
Louisiana State Board of Health will re
consider its action and accede to the reques
of the Sanitary Council of the Mississippi
Valley, to invite lhe National Board t
place an Inspector at the Mississippi Quar-
antine Station and another at New Or
leans"
I am not informed as to the contemplate.
action of any of the valley States Board
in the premises, and presume this will no
be determined upon until the meeting of tn,
Sanitary Council next month. As you ar,
aware, the Vicksburg Board of Health ha.
formally requested the National Board t.
put in operation the inspection service
between that city and New Orleans by the
fifteenth of May, and has enacted an ordi
nance prohibiting the landing of passengers
or freight from boats arriving from below
after that date, ''unless said boat shall have
a certificate from sanitary officer of the
National Board of HEALTH" etc.
DR.. Thornton, President of the Memphis
Board of Health, says in his annual report,
dated February l, 1881, under the caption,
Quarantine :"
If we are TO be guided in future by the
experience of the past, the subject of quar-
antine cannot be lost sight of, as the pre-
vention of another visitation of yellow fever
to Memphis will in all reasonable proba-
billty depend upon the vigilance exercised
in this direction. While it may be conce-
ded that some summers our atmospheric
condition may be such that the disease
would not prevail if introduced here, it is
impossible to foresee when these conditions
will exist. Therefore, respectfully submit
that the quarantine station on Presidents
Island should be put in commission every
spring by the first or middle of May and
proper surveillance exercised over all
freights and passengers from points south of
this where. there is reason to apprehend
yellow fever may exist. This inspection
should likewise be applied to the railroads
having direct communication between
Memphis and New Orleans. By a study of
official records it is apparent that yellow
fever has prevailed in New Orleans every
summer to a greater or less extent for a
number of years past. In a community
which has become so habituated to its
presence, it does not excite that apprehen-
sion which it would under other circum-
stances, and it is reasonable to assume that
cases occur which do not come under the
observation of the health authorities, es~
pecially if no death is reported as occurring
from the disease. Therefore it is no rehec-
ton upon either the integrity or efficiency
of the health authorities of that city to in
stitute such precautions every year as may
be thought best to guard against the danger
of an importation of the disease from there,
by either freight or passengers. A quaran-
tine observation, with such an inspection
service as proposed, does not materially
interfere with commercial relations between
the two cities to such an extent as to give
just cause for complaint to any one interest
ed in those relations. Aside from what |
conceive to be proper precaution against
an annually recurring danger of infection
from below, such precautions have moral
effect in allayiHg sensitive apprehension of
danger, which this community has just cause
to experience. and give feeling of conf
dence and security which otherwise would
not exist. Influenced by these considera-
tions, on May last, this Board of Health
addressed a communication to the National
Board of Health, asking that an inspector
or inspectors be placed on duty at New
Orleans and such other Southern ports as
might be deemed necessary, whose duty it
should be to supervise the shipment, by
river or rail, of all goods, merchandise,
baggage, ETC., and to advise, by telegram,
this board, through one of its officers in
to be infected or in any way dangerous to
the public health, and that said officer be
requested to promptly notify the board of
the shipment OF such goods This request
was at once complied with, and no goods or
passengers were admitted into Memphis
from points south of Vicksburg without
certificate from one of those inspectors.
On May Is, the quarantine station on
Presidents island was turned over to the
National Board, under whose charge and at
whose expense it was maintained until Oc-
tober l, as late as it was thought necessary.
A similar policy should be inaugurated
next summer, both in regard to river and
rail transportation.
1t may be assumed that the foregoing
sufficiently indicates the future action of
the Tennessee State Board, of which DIR.
Thornton is also q member.
With regard to your remark that you con-
slider it of 1.-THE greatest Importance to us
the valley States for the National Board
to have some supervision, if not absolute
control there" in New Orleans, have only
to say that the board, so far as am advised,
has no wish to exercise supervision or con-
troll there or elsewhere, other than such as
is necessary to enable it intelligently and
efficiently to discharge its duties under the
law. In the present case what is needed for
this purpose, from the Louisiana Board, are
adequate facilities for obtaining the infor-
nation necessary to enable inspectors to
furnish positive and trustworthy certificates
to those who will be required to present the
same in accordance with the Memphis and
Vicksburg ordinances. This is the request
which DR. Gahell, as President of the Beard,
referred in his letter of February 19 to
DR.. Jones,
It should be borne In mind that the Ma
tional Board of Health has nothing to do
with the initiative in these measures. Its
function is limited to cooperating with and
aiding State and local boards in the en-
forcement and execution of their rules and
regulations.
It will comply with the request of the
Vicksburg and Memphis b0ardslfor such CO.
operation and aid to the fullest extent that
the reduced appropriations by Congress will
permit. The difficulty and expense of
maintaining the inspection serFice-which,
by the way, win this season be administered
by instructions direct from Washington
will be materially increased if the Louisi-
ana State Board fails to make 1t practical to
issue certificates Of inspection at New Or
leans. If this cannot be done II may
ne0essltate the primary inspection OF boats
and trains after they have left New Orleans
and, instead of the few minutes detention
- - would suffice if satisfactory New
Orleans certificates we're prese:s ted II would
be necessary to make much more thorough
examination, and, possibly, to detain for
observation in cases of q suspicious charac-
ter.
Such an alternative as this should De
mverted If possible, since it will lead TO all
manner Of vexatious delays and Interrupt
ti0ns, aside from the graver danger Of non
intercourse regulations being enforced BY
States and communities on rumors and i'll
founded reports.
Very truly yours,
R.W. MITCHELL, II. d.
Member National Board of Health
T.l-n C.r...l. 3 aa.as4u that &c me Of