The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1882-08-10
YELLOW FEVER

the possible appearance Of that yellow iiend
that has sometimes carried such deYasta-
ton in his course. BRONZE JouN or yellow
fever. For four summers it has been care
fully guarded against and kept out of the
city where in former times it has done such
havoc, New Orleans. 1t now appears on
the western portion of the gulf coast,
Brownsville, Vera Cruz, etc. DE-. SWEAR.
ISGES, of Austin, has just telegraphed
to the governor Of its virulence at those
points. AT Matamoras the Doctor says an
epidemic Is prevailing. 1t is to be hoped
that all due precautions will be taken TO
prevent the spread of the evil. The Ores
cent City has fortunately escaped thus far,
nor is it unlikely that she will 20 through
the season with equal good fortune The
fearful epidemics of 1853, 1853, 1857, and
1873 were surely enough to entitle that UNI
lucky city to long exemption. With all
the progress that medical science has
made, it has failed to either learn
the nature of that dread disease or
to provide remedy or antiseptic.
Within the past twenty-five years it has
decidedly changed some of its most pre-
dominating characteristics. There was
time when to be among the pincries was
considered sure exemption, no cases ever
having been known to originate there.
Again. before the war it rarely, if ever, at.
tackled the negro. Another peculiarly was
its close and intimate friendship for the
coast and its absence from the interior. All
those things have changed. In 1867 large
number of the colored people were attack
ed, with fatal consequences ensuing. In
1873 the story Of Memphis contradictod
more positively than on prior occasion
the theory that it never found its
residence in the interior. One
most noticeable feature IN the New Orleans
epidemic of four summers ago was its
prevalence in the most clearly, aristocratic
and ordinarily most healthful portion Of
the city, viz: the beautiful first and fourth
districts. In the second and third districts,
where the streets were narrow, where the
m irkcts, with refuse vegetables, meats,
fruits. etc, were giving out apparently I'M
healthy carnations, and where foul close
tenements were numerous, there was less
of the Ever. So, too, of Metaric ridge,
where many places were submerged, and
where the stagnant waters were covered
with bilious, grccnish yellow. Whether
this fatal disease is indigenous to such
places as New Orleans, Memphis, etc, or
whether 1T is imported, has as
yet received no positive answer
Whether it is contagious or not, that is to
say, whether person living and sleeping
in the same room with another one who is
afflicted with it, will contract it, is also an
open question. Often they will and as
often, perhaps, not. SO too, we ARE with
out information as TO whether the germ
theory will apply. live are not mistaken,
the blood of persons suffering from mala-
rial poisons, parasitic organisms, trans
parent, spherical forms provided with line
| iilaments in rapid movement, have Ire
qucnily been detected, supposed to be ami
malcucs. These are said to be quickly
destroyed by solution OF su!phate OF
qui line 1t would seem as II this one step
in the process might lead to additional
light aS the yellow fever is very much like
the malarial in all its symptoms and in
much of its progress. Indeed so near akin
are they in the first three or four days de-
velopmcnt that the most skilled yellow
fever physicians in the early summer, in
yellow fever districts, are puzzled to dis
tinctly tell the real status of the case
What is to be done in all this Ignorance 1
is difficult to say. Are we to wait for somt
accidental discovery, like vaccination pre-
ventativc or, some other curative remedia
like quinine. against the return of chlls ant
lever? Is Impossible that innoculaton 4
produce the fever in mild form is the solu
ton? Indeed, being only n layman, W
might so on with dozens Of suggestion
probably absurd TO the profession
al mind, but 1t would really seer
that disease that brings sue
havoc when once 1t starts on its career,
worthy of the most serious consideration @
the people, the physicians and the govern
ment, Only the other day We saw $500
n by the United States government appr,
> priatod for the purposes OF the nations
board of health, which has its cXis,enc
mainly because of such disease Us the We
, low fever. We saw nearly 10000 900 give
4. to rivers and harbors, In is lavish gene
osity II congress had have offered porto
of either sum, asa sort of premium rpria,
4 to any pers) who should discover pr,
!. vcniatiye against the intrusion into thcs
0 harbors, or remedy for the infections ,
=. that sailor, BRONZE JouN, that now carrie
oil into the port of the Nevermore thou'
ands of lifc's voyagcrs, it might have bee
o that some great boon would have fallen I
: the lap of poor humanity.
a
USES FOR TnE TELEruONw.
Now that 1t is demonstrated that Il,
human voice can he transmitted sewers
A., miles over wire with tho proper hattcri,