Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1883-05-22
AT A CRISIS.
Further News From ths Smallpox
District. 100.
Mercer Bears the Burden Of the Case
Or. Bees Defense Of Or.
Carr, VINO Called II
Chicken Pox.

Yesterday DR.. Reeves received a long let
ter from DR.. Bee, giving further particulars
of the smallpox ravages, in Mercer, Wye
ming and Mcdowell. The letter proceeds:
The smallpox epidemic seems to have
reached crisis in Mercer and Wyoming
counties. The most active measures have
been adopted TO stamp out the disease"
in those two eoupties. Mercer has, so lar
ss.we are informed, done everything that
has been done in furnishing supplies,
nursing and giving medical attention to the
sick of this. Wyoming and Mcdowell coun-
ties. If the authorities OF Wyoming have
given any aid, it has in no way been made
apparent to our board or the suffering
public.
DIR. Brown and the other members
of the local board may have done
good work in vaccinaing the people and in
adopting some sort of system to prevent
the disease from reaching the lower end OF
the county about Oceana. But We are
caring for the sick in the section alluded
to in DR.. Browns letter.
The origin and. Present seat of the dis
ease is abeat eQui. distant from the two
county seats, Princeton and Oeeana. Or.
Gooch, of Summers county, has been en-
pleyed by Mercer, and to take immediate
charge Of and rigidly enforce the qu1ran-
tine, and adopt under the advice of our
local board such sanitary measures as may
be deemed best The doctor is an excl
lent physician, and is doing good Work.
He writes me that he now has nurses
enough, and that in future the death rate
will be much smaller than heretofore.
When the scourge is ended, and we have
time TO look around. will give you de-
tailed history OF the origin Of this disease,
al ;rf in ri m a.
culiarities of the epidemic as may be OF
value in the future treatment OF smallpox.
1t must be unusually malignant, but as to
that the want CT adequate medical aid and
other conditions peculiar to that particular
region ana population may have, and
doubtless has, much 70 do in producing
the large death rare that we are panied to
record.
DR.. Allen H. Carr, so often alluded to in
the REGISTER as TIE physician to whom the
fatal mistake OF the chickenpOx diagnosis
is credited, is not by any means the lgno'
rant empiric that he is called. The De-:
tor is regularly educated phys'c'2n, but
as these people positively denied having
had any chance to contract SMALLPOX, he
yielded to those assurances aud decided
that it might be bad type OF chicken pox.
Carr, like many other physicisls IN this
region, had never trea, I'd or seen case OF
smallpox, ard not wishing to create q
panic, adopted the chicken poS hypY 'cs ;
and became a victim himself to his Owl
too generous credulity. Sucu mistakes
have been mlde, and mas again be
made by older aud more experienced hands
than DR.. Cars.
You can rest assured that we are pro-
foupdly grateful to you for your Kindly
interest," in behalf of our suffering people
| in common with other gentlemen herc
are trying to do our duty, but l feel thank
full for these complimentary notices OF my
poor services to which you so kindly allude
in yoar letter. Your name with our peo
pie j. the very synonym OF devotion to otfi
cial duty and the cause Of humanity.