New-York tribune., 1885-09-12
RAGS AND CHOLEkA.
,vpoRrANoE OF DlsINFECTIoN.

SIR Ny attention has just Deeh caiiou W .
communication under the title of Rags ana ohoo,~
IN THE TRIBUNE of the oath inst, so miseaains anu
,r.urht with danger that constrained TO ASK you
M ~ regard for the public health, the privilege OF re-
eating II before the same readers. am the moro in
nea IN make this request Of THE TRIBUNE because VI
its prompt aid few months ago IN puphshihs ny
onulon before the Grand Jury of Kings county or "o
of tho rag dsinfscting depot from Ba'o
to o less dangerous place. rx
In the present attitude Of both cholera ana smapo
p,ber of which diseases is limited by cold weather. 'ne
rh,sct under discussion is exceedingly lmportahs
ona To the public and worthy OF the gravest
ton Your correspondent, III behalf OF tue papoi "
facrurer. Adam Ramage. Of Holyeke' Mass "oue
not only have people peneVe tnoro
danger OF communicating cholera OF S'"e,
infectious diseases By means OF oiu
RAGS but ne would persuade them that ragpiekers ana
other persons engaged u handling such merchana'su
are peculiarly exempt from infectious diseases Vi ~
kinds on the same kind Of testimony that some iu"D
era adduce against any danger from sewer gas because
the snguary competent observers OF diseases WI" o
low that occupation have never detected case OF
tvnhoid fever among themselves And in suessah''a
ton of this opinion Mr. Ramage ventures on re'ie"
cholera in 1882:
When the cholera fairly ragged through England no
ease occnrred In the WyscOmbe Valley, where 'usmy
saIsaea sii sre nsny paper mills In when had the
cholera this country no o ov no fec
on from rags but of cholera occurred a any
the paper mills. ,,...
aolyoke we arc told, now has 10000 inhaoi.an'''
200 Of them engaged in handling rags, " remarRaov
free from contagious diseases. due 10 tue i"o'
that large quantity of chlorine is employed IN inc Pro
cess of preparing these rags for manufacture Oh Pap
Iiow much chlorine according TO Mr.. Ramages estmae
constitutes "a large quantity "
ter OF conjecture. but persons praeticaiV iai.A. M
With IL as disiufectant know 'nn'
a,alt, afartal
10 he eicacous il is thoroughly destructive OF faorc Is
wall as disease germs. But this want of kho"leuso o
the part of Mr. Ramsge In regard to the use oi
4. perfectly consistent with his limited range Vi
walton iu other respects Even Holyoke was not
popuous as IL now is. and, according to an oca aoeu
ment before us. not by any means as exempt from i.
tious disease by rags Mr. Ramage would nave us oo
voi, owovsts According TO the Massachusetts, state
Roard Of Health Report for 1878, PIP. 46S-ioo' In
obedienee to legislative order Of January Il OF 'ho
same year, there is summary OF the cases oi sapo
In Massachusetts 1872 and the first month OF Io'''
together with the supposed cause OF the appearance o
the disease in each 1t is shown tha' oioo cases
ware reported from 81 cities and towns and the only
article of merchandise ono 10 which the source OIL
nfecton was traced was paper held accountable
for 2l cases. And, snguarly as 1t may seem lu the
face OF Mr. Ramages statement, 40 cases dncluding
South Hadley, 81 were SO caused III hopoAo
the largest number from this cause III
any town in the State From the same cause lnere
were in Adams, "a; Fitchburg, %; Cummnglon' ~
Dighton II; Lee. Is; West Springfield. i6; Black
stone TO- and in various other towns from one TO SIX
The exceptional case Of other merchandise was AL
emigrant vessel. Is cases. But this hke HoyoKe I'D
other RESPECTS is but drop in the bucket in com
parison with number Of lives which have been lost
in other places by free trade In infected rags
From paper on rags by Ruusch. OF Holiand' resu
before the Fifth International Congress oil Hygiene az
In uaC I the following.
In 1873 a pillow infected by smallpox patient
caused several OF smallpox 10 appear at Goreen
attacked after having bought some rags from person
who had smallpox. and caused also anew epidemic 10
The origin Of O smallpox epidemic 10 1871 at Heerde
and Epes the medical inspector attiontea r with
smallpox persons we. while working In paper factory
q Maestricht had been hanans ras' or h"d visited
In 1880 dealer in rags conveyed smallpox from
In 1851 the injected rags Gouda caused cpl
deniic at Barendrrcht
After oaulnerating several other epidemics OF small
po1 caused by rags the author of this paper remarks;
Ii would be waste Of time 10 recite all tho cases
where rags aud Infected linen have brought spdemics
And when we look at the report on cholera We are
amazed that its origin and propagauos are always
traced 10 the influence OF clothing dresses and the ai
hc In old garments and rags -,
Thus ragpicker from Amsterdam, where cholera
was raging introduced into the city OF Tiburg In
1866 in a truck-load Of infected clothes l.,
At Drnten a ragpcker was the hrst vicum IN tna'
AT Mearpcn the first attacked with cholera was
IN England, France. Germany etc. the same facts 90
70 pTHTs ne ISL there we're III rag stores II
Marseles, OF which 46 were in one district In ihat
distrc, the nuoer % @ uu thor dI"i@ir while in Isl
cases OF DEATH "a occurred In ragpckers houses or IN
bsuses IN close proximity 10 ragpckers or rag stores
1t would be easy matter TO extend this category by
adding number OF epdelics reported in The NationI
Board of Health Buten. lss0'51, both abroad aud at
home ard others that have been reported from time
to time In medical journals. Forexample Anepdemic at
WATERFOWL n " In 1873, 40 cases OF smallpox caused
by exposure twenty bales OF brought from Cali
fornia sorted by twenty-onc girls in one large room.
seven of whom attacked at about tho same date
The vessel bringing these rags TO New-York was not
ouarantined; the bales stored with many others
which forwarded TO the mills OF another county
or the 40 cases in watertown 13 IA died. Boston
Medical and Surgical Journal This case apty Illus
trates the danger OF commercial from all sources
and the wisdom OF Health Officer Smiths recent action
in recurring rags arriving at this port TO be dsinfected
before permitting them to be landed matter where
the place their destination And that the public may
have due appreciation OF the importance OF this action
attention. invited to the commercial practice OF Eng
land which shows that nasions as well paper
stock merchants do scruple at spreading epidemic
diseases rather in the least cur their business ad
van,ages for the protection OF the public health Many
donbtess still remember with what horror the
alleged act sending infected clothing Into the Federal
upss dnrug the war looked upOn yet England,
cordipg to official authority, is continually permitting
the propagation Of deadly epidemic diseases through
hor ports other nations rather than restrict hsr com
merce In the United states Consular hoPors lot 1854
occur the following:
Tn Consul General MERRITT:
~ BEDFORD SQUARE, London Aug. 10, 1884.
SIR: deem Il right 10 point ont TO you that In my
oniuon the importation OF largo quantities OF rags into
te limited STATES from this Country IL ut present fraugh
with considerable risk. Smallpox is and has been for
some time prevalent in London where quantities OF rags
are collected and shipped TO America aud large qnant
Ties Of Continental rags forwarded To London for
shpent ports Fromm inspection of these
bales OF rags cannot. Of course ascertain whether
tbey contain the germs OF infection not and the
tncafes the shippers not always 10 be depended
upon evidence OF their source. For Instance, GER
titicata referring to twentyhree bales OF rags which
were shipped board the steamship Syrian Monarch,
which sailed for NewYork from London on the I7tb
inst was sent to the the 10Th inst stating
that these rags had been collected in any infected