The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1885-06-18
DIX. SwEARlSGEN TALKS.
INTERVIEWED ON YELLOW FEVER
RoiiiokinE "Reminiscences, hut Logical
observation-disclosures Ia fumi.
Mosquitoss-The Yellow fevar
Germ aud its W.T. ally.


interesting rem inisceuces of the yellow
eyer epidemic of 1878 related bv the
doctor himself, who, II will be remom'
bered, CALAMITY offered his services and
went into the fever stricken districts Of
the Mississippi Valley and labored day
and night amid scenes of suffering and
death without parallel In the history
of this continent. He is blessed with a
most buoyant, sunny disposition which
with rare conversational powers, makes
him one Of the most agreeable OF com
panions.
An untiring student, close observer,
calm, dispassionato reasoner, he
combines to remarkable degree all the
distinguishing traits OF character which
ever adorn the life OF the skilled and
learned physician, and tho successful
practitioner. On this occasion he graphi-
cally depicted the ravages OF the terri-
BILE disease until sick OF IFS horrible,
CHASTITY details he would relate an anec-
dote, which gliding athwart the lurid
background of his story, measureably
alleviating It's horrors ana its sorrows.
"The yellow fever" said the genial
doctor, who was an authority upon the
disease, has national reputation, sis
one of the most tony. high-strunU and
quainted." "Why, sir, when IL is epidemic
and first enters village or city
on its stealthy march of dea h
does 1t commence 8 work OF de,
struction in the slums and squalor? Not
bit OF IL! The first family In the place,
the most careful and clearly is the first
invaded, and the member of that family
supposed to be the least susceptible Is
generally the first stricken down and
usually dies, while the utterly worth
less, no occount loafer nearly always
escapes"
"Iehe sanitation has very little to do
as preventative and check TO the dis
ease?" interrupted The HERALD man.
every little, indeed. .! course
'cleanlines IL next to goliness,' but the
yellow fever germ instinctively abhors
dirt. or course in the densely packed
quarters of city the disease apparently
is more energetic andsits ravages are
great, but it is because OF aggregation.
In the less populated and most c!eanly
districts the disease is just as maIg-
nant, just as deadly and me per ceutof
deaths just as great"
"Does tumigation and disinfectuuts
have beneficial and controlling iutiu-
ence over the progress of the disease?
"No. Fumigation and disintection
are simply OF no avail whatever. 1t is
impossible to kill where there is no life.
4hO yoiioW iONCi t5VAhIt tdrNO ~ 10
something like an egg II has the prop
critics OF life and under certain cOndi-
tions life is infused and made active.
Take dozen fresh laid eggs and fumi-
gate and disinfect them to your hearts
content and still they will hatch. So,
too, with the yellow fever germ. Fumi-
gate 1t, disinfect 1t, do what you will,
and yet when it enters human system
and that system is in proper condition
for it's reception, life will be Infused and
the man falls victim to the lively,
risky, deadly microb which had lain
dormant in the germ until taken up
by his system. Several years
experiment at the Galveston quaran-
tine station. l thought if fumagstion
will kill a yellow fever germ 1t will
surely kill a mosquito. There were mil
lions of them at the station, and they
were so troublesome at night that bars
were utterly useless, ana to prevent
them from actually killing their little
officer. and Mrs. Blunt had to relieve
each other during the night and keep
them from the child. had to use heavy |
domestic for my BART and it fai . to keep
the pests OUT You know 1t Is well
established fact that mosquitoes
can and do inoc9late persons
pests feeding upon a yellow fever pa
tient will give well person the disease |
If he reaches him in time and sue seeds |
in puncturing the skin. Well, l con-
cluded to try fumigation to get rid of
the mosquitoes. There were million
Of them. The ceiling and walls were
literally black with them. had the |
room closed and the fumigating pots |
brought in and for over two hours 1 sub
jected those mosquitoes to the most ter.
ritic fumigation. So intense and ener.
getic had 1t been that 1t was over an
hour after opening the doors before |
could enter the room. When
did so there were the blessed
possible, and seemingly having hugely
enjoyed their ba b OF sulpl u cic fumes.
found about dozen hOary old sinners
on tho floor rubbing their eyes, and
doubtless wishing they had had goggles
during the smoking process, but with
this exception no evil effects were OBJ
able mosquito family. Fumigation, no
matter how powerful, won't Kill Gal
weston mosquito. 1t won't kill yellow
"Does the yellow fever travel" asked
the newspaper man.
~ should say it did; and some times it
displays some very eccentric habits. l
remember little town up In Tennes
see. 1t had but one street, a long
spinal column, as it were, with houses
rather closely built on each side, with a
few struggling ones scattered here and
there off some distance. This street
extended east and west, and just mile
by actual measurement from the furth-
building at which quarantine station
had been established. There were no
intervening houses. A couple OF young
men fleeing from stricken town below
took the fever and were kindly per-
mitted to occupyt his house. Both
died The Ten end nays ct ser thu the s stres
nearest to the infected building haa tue
fever in it. The next morning the next
house, then the one on the opposite side
of the street, then the next and next
until every house, without 2 single ex-
ception, on the street had the fever
yns 0vt f6e s sss OF ds sde and sze o
of 1t only one or two cases
of fever occurred. 1t travels, and the
only thing that will stop it is a rigid
quarantine established at safe distance
from the places to be protected"
care there any other peculiarities con-
nected with the diseaseW
ayes, indeed, lots of them. One of
them is, that on its travels
1t accumulstes fresh energy, and on
leaving one town and entering another
It Is more malicious and malignant and
fairly revels in its dreadful work of
death. For instance, should the fever
break out at Galveston and afterward
reach Houston the latter place would
suffer worse than the first,
ali conditions being equal.
Then should it reach Hampstead it ,
would be still worse and again, at Bren- /,
ham, there would be marked increase !
In its virulence. Another popularity of /.
yellow fever is its explosive quality;