The Portland daily press., 1886-07-24

The charges made against DIR. Young by
the Fairfield journal, when reduced to their
lowest terms, are these:
l. His visit to East Madison was an impert-
hence
g. His report was made up of general plati-
tudes on diphtheria and contained no useful in
T. He did not visit patients sick with the dis
ease.
To these is now added another charge,
which is made by correspondent of the
Fairfield Journal, said to be a prominent
citizen" of East Madison. 1t is in these
words:
contagious diseases cannot be warded off by
sanitary care, and for him [Dr. YOungl to pro
a very deadly character at East Madison was sim
ply to use the dictum of the Board of Health to
destroy business interests of great value to the
people who live there"
The answer to the first charge is that DR.
Young's visit to East Madison was made in
the first place in obedience to the statutes of
the State, and in the second place at the per-
sonal request of citizens, Including promi-
nent physician of the village That would
seem to be a conclusive reply to the charge
that his visit was impertinent.
The answer to the second charge Gf by
cause of diphtheria the first cause is meant
is that DR.. Young failed where every physi-
clan of the civilized world has failed, and if
he is to be condemned for that, then the con-
demnation should be extended to every MEM
Der of the medical profession the world over.
IL by cause is meant the conditions which
are supposed to conduce to- the spread of
the disease after it is started-such as
bad air, bad drainage and contagon-
then the answer is that DR.. Young did dis
cover the cause and gave instructions as to
the best way of removing it.
The third charge is fully answered by DR..
Young's report, which sets forth that the air
which the people of East Madison have
breathed has been polluted by often
sive exhalatons from the exposed
shores of the lake near the vii
lage, and the disease has been propagated by
! contagion. These are not general platitudes,
but specific allegations in regard to this par
ticular epidemic
The answer to the fourth charge is that it
is no part of the duty of the Secretary of the
| State Board of Health to visit patients sick
with disease, unless, perhaps, where there
| is doubt as to what the disease is There
| WAS uOu6 Ill ILLS cast llC bISdtlllCHb VI ulo-
ease belongs entirely to the local physicians,
and they well might have charged DR.. Young
with impertinence and with meddling with
the business of others had he visited pa
tients.
The last one, the one made by the 'promi-
nent citizen" is that DIR. Young has been
hurting business by proclaiming that very
deadly disease of contagious character eX-
listed at East Madison. We have only to say
| in regard to this that man who will con-
nive at the concealment of a contagious dis
ease in town, allowing people through ig-
norance to expose themselves to it and thus
jeopardize life and health, for fear of hurt
ing business, ought to be banished from
the town and never be allowed to come
| back to it. If this prominent citizen" is a
| fair specimen of the kind of men who are
pursuing him Dr. Young is certain to have
! all the decent people in the community on
his side.
That DR.. Young's visit to East Madison
was of great benefit and contributed mate
rally to the suppression of the epidemic is
fully recognized in the following letterssfrom
physician who treated many of the cases OF
diphtheria in that town:
[From letter written four days after DR.. Young's
VISIT
"The next day after you were here. called the
citizens together and told them that 1t would dc
no good to get representative of the State Board
| of Health to come here, unless carried out the
| work he advised. So local board of health was
| organized, and committee chosen to clean UP
| around buildings cause the owners to. do so
| There is committee for the lower mills and one
| to work about here. They go into every house
| examine every cellar, vault Sink-dran well, out
house, etc. Much Improvement has already beer
| made. Men turned out to help Mr.. move
| five feet Of Mr. b IS kitchen, and contained pig
| and various bad smells. Funds have been raised
| to clear up, etc.
Your coming acas a God-send to as, for it reused
| the people up to action.
| TFrom letter written one week after DR.. Young's
| visit
Our committee has performed grand work il
| this place, which has not had such cleaning Out
| before, and was never so clean since l have beer
| here. We have concluded to put
stop to the custom of allowing neighbors to run il
| to see the sick, and then return to their own OF
| other families.
4 [From a letter ten days after DIR. Youngs visit.
Your coming was productive of much good. AL
began to clean up around their buildings Nc
board of health would have been organized here il
| you had not advised it.
Since DR.. Young's visit, but one new case
of the disease has been reported, and that
was soon after the visit. There has been
but one death in the same time, now three
weeks, and that patient was moribund on
| the day DIR Young came