Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1885-04-30
STATE BOARD OF HEALTH.
Abstract of the Proceedings of the Last
Meeting.

Abstract of the Proceedings of the Last
Meeting.
The annual meeting of the Michigan
State Board of Health was held at its Office
in Lansing, Mich, April IA, 1885.
The members present were John Avery,
NJ. D., President; Arthur Hazlewood, M.
D., G. V. Tyler, NJ. D., Prof. V. G. Vaughn,
M. d., and Henry B. Baker, M. D., Secre-
tary.
This being the annual meeting the Presi-
dents address was the first order of busi-
ness. The President said that he had pre-
pared no formal address. He thanked the
members for the many courtesies shown
him during his administration. He had no
change of policy to recommend to the
Board; nc marked change, he thought, is
desirable. The work is we'll understood,
and is in satisfactory condition. The
eE}fiefgencies, as they arise. He could con-
gratulate the board on what it had achieved.
He thought it would be wise to continue
holding sanitary conventions in different
places in the State. He spoke of the prob
able advent of Asiatic cholera, and thought
that it might tax the board to it's utmost
The board had done all it could to prepare
to resist the disease, but should be ready
for further action. If the bill before the
Legislature becomes law, the duties as
we'll as the powers Of the State Board of
Health to prevent and restrict that disease
| will be increased. 1t would be desirable 10
continue to advise police regulations i'll
cities, adapted to preventing unsanitary
conditions and the introduction or spread
of cholera; and the health officers of cities,
villages, and townships of the State, espe-
cially as they are just now being changed,
many being entirely new in that office,
should be instructed in regard to their
duties,
The Secretary read a report of the work
of the Office during the past quarter. Of
the 760 pages of copied letters sent out
153 pages were modified circular letters to
| local health officers in regard to prompt ac-
| ton to restrict contagious disease. In
| connection with those about ten thousand
| copies of the documents on the restriction
and prevention of certain contagious diseases
and on the duties of health officers have
been sent to health officers for distribution
to neighbors of families in which such con-
tagious diseases have been reported Since
| the last meeting of the board the outbreak
of small -pox at South Boardman has been
suppressed. During the past quarter there
had been one case of smallpox at East
| Saginaw, two cases in Grand Rapids (con-
fined to one house,, the first Of which was
a commercial traveller who thinks he was
exposed on the train between Boston and
Grand Rapids. About the time he was ex-
posed it is known that man having small
pox passed through Michigan on the Mich
igan Central Railroad, from Ontario to Chi
cago, en- route for Manitoba. At Battle
| Creek there have been four cases, with one
death from smallpox, the contagium of
which is supposed to have come from n
brakeman on the Chicago aud Grand Trunk
Railroad, who stopped with family in Bat
| NH. Ia inbt solr ox1
who thinks he contracted the disease on the
train near Chicago. Two members of this
family in Battle Greek visited friends in
Bellevue, in Eaton County, and small -pox
broke out in the family in which they
stopped. Five cases and one death have
occurred there; but thus far the disease at
Bellevue has been confined to the one fam
ily All the members of the family were
vaccinated with virus on points from
Fond du Lac, Wis, as soon as it was known
they had been exposed; but in three cases
the vaccination did not work. In one case
in which the vaccination worked. the per-
son has shown no symptoms Of the disease
At the last meeting of the board the sub
iect of proposed legislation relative to dis
eased ANIMALS, and relative to q standard
for milk, had been referred to the Commit
tees on Legislation and Diseases of Animals
Jointly. The Secretary reported considera-
BILE time and care had been devoted to the
perfecting of three bills relative TO those
subjects, which had been introduced into
the House of Representatives this session.
DANGEROUS ILLUMINATING OIL.
The Secretary reported that during this
session of the Legislature there had been
considerable lobbying TO get the Legislature
to lower tho standard test for dangerous
oils, and to do away with the use of the
tester adopted and recommended by this
Board. The claim of the lobbyist, who
came to this Office, was that the change was
wanted in the interests of manufacturers OF
small quantities of oil, who he claimed,
could not now compete with the Standard
Oil Company. Just how lowering the test
would favor those particular oil manufnct-
urers more than it would the Standard Oil
Company he did, not make clear. 1t has
, been rumored here that the reason fol
, changing from the tester now used was tc
| enable dealer in patent apparatus to sell
, his tester; but as this change is advocated
, by the same person who is laboring for Q
. lowering of the test, IL seems moro reason.
! able TO believe that the main reason is thai
} the proposed apparatus does not detect the
explosive vapor at so low degree OF tenn.