The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1888-11-02
BUFFERS PLAN.
How He Once Fought Yellow Fever,
The System He Pursued at Now
Orleans in 1862
What n Man Can Do When He
Has Absolute Power.
The Cleansing Process by Which
He Purified the City.
Ho Sealed the City Hermotically-Ad.
vice as the Result Of His Expo.
rience-'Do Not Walt
Lady's Experience.

Excerpt from Gen Benjamin r Buffers Article ON
Yellow Fever and it, Prevention. irom the No.
Ncmhcr Issue of the North American Review
What, then, was TO be done? Ii was
impossible to clean the city OF rotting veg
etablo mold, but it was believed possible
to clean the city from all decterious ema.
nations OF animal matter.
The General, therefore, employed LOO
men, who were hired at Il a day, to bo
paid out Of the city treasury, for the pur-
pose of cleaning tho city at once. The
City Council had not then been abolished,
and thcrcupon they passed resolution
that the General was paying the laborcrs
too little. This was at once accedcd TO,
and the laborers were paid $3.50 day.
As citizens were to foot the bills 1t was
thought they might fix the price.
A part Of the cleansing force was sent TO
the French Market, which dug and scrapcd
that all over, cleaned AMI removed the
filth and sent il down the river.
We went through every street where
there was any suspicion Of animal matter.
We hood out, swept out aud brushed out
every drain and ditch in the city, and
took advantage Of the rains Of the early
summer, which came down in drcnching
showers, TO drive all this filth into the
basins and canals. We then waited for a
favorable opportunity, whcna northcr had
blown the water out from the lake some
two feet deep through the Rigolcts into
the Gull, and then We put the water.
works OF the city pumping aud running at
their full capacity, while We brushed down
the banks Of the canals, aud sent the
water, with the accumulated filth. out into
the lake, where IL was carried hy the wind
miles of into the Gulf. We then waited
Tor south wind TO blow contaminated
salt water back into the lake aud iil IL up
again. and then that water filled the canals.
We did that twice over until the water IN
the canals was rs clean and clear Us any
body oi water.
Meanwhile The most Stringent orders
were issued 10 the people OF New Orleans
that nothing should bc thrown into the
streets, open Spacvs nr allcys, that either u
box or u barrel, or some such convenience
should be- obtained by every family occu.
pant OF tenement. into which every
thing Of oiisl, animal ~ vegetable,
and cyery other waste thing
should be put aud exposed at the
area gate three times every week. when
mule teams would come 10y aud take up
the barrels or other rcccp,lclcs and pour
their contents into q cart, aud II that left
the barrel clean and sweet, we'll; " not,
quantity OF chloride OF lime would bc
placed In Il 10y which Il might b. purified
Resides that, an order also went forth
that every household should clean ~ its
areas and back yards, To the acceptance II
nn inspector detailed from headquarters,
aud once IN ten days. aud sometimes
oftcncr, the yarl- were al inspected. And
the most careful and stringent efforts were
made 10 see that nothing oi human or
other animal eNcrcmcniilious matter
should exist in the city, except under
such circumstances rs would make II
thoroughly harmless.
True, We had 10 put one man in the
guardhousc for throwing some paper into
the street, he insisting that be- was TO
Judge whether il would do any harm or
HNA W NlHNlNN wv NIfliN MllAl NIlNWM W
there; aud We had also Ia put one fashion.
able lady In carriage 30 take her Ia the
jail because she refused to clean mp her
place, saying that "She should not clean
her premises at the order Of any Yankee
officer" but nj the sight 81 the Jail she
changed her mind, and was clean and
healthy aiicrward.
The result was that, while We had at tho
quarantine station below In the river the
yellow fever raging in vessels which came
there, but were not permitted 10 come up
~ the city, We had but one cnsc of yellow
fever In that city, and that WIS the case Of
n man whom thc Captain NJ his vessel had
reported 10 the Health officer had come
with him from New York when the sick
man had actually been taken ns a passen.
gcr at Nassau, where the yellow fever was
raging. The Captain went Ia jail for three
months and paid fine 81 500.
We Immediately took possession of the
square where this man WIS sick had
everything thoroughly c.canscd about the
square, acclimnicd persons took charge "
him and they were not allowed to come
out at all until They were Thoroughly
clcanscd. On the sixth dly be- died, and
We took such care of his remains that the
disease did not spread At all
Nor was the absence ol yellow fever the
only result VI thus cleanliness. All diseases
became very much reduced In prevalence.
~ that although In and around New
Orleans We had very consid-
cradle force Of troops, yet with
all these unacclimntod men, and
about 10000, ~ near ~ can be- rcmom.
bcrcd, Of population OF New Orleans, the
General commanding wiz enabled on the
lst Of October, 1862, 10 rcplrI ~ the State
Department that the city Of New Orleans
had q less bill of mortality than any city
In the United States, Moth NJ South.
lie, however guarded New Orleans No.
well "a possible against this aud all other
epidemics In other yean, anil II isbolicycd
the city has been substantially free from
epidemic aud malaiou diseases since
although she Is not by any manner too
clean.
This preventive was made by cutting
through the forest and chapp1pl No at
the bend Of the river from its bank over 10
Lake Ponichartpin, In making an
avenue there some eighty rolls wide,
10 that the air which blows mp
the river In the summer daily, begin.
ming about . o'clock at night from the
Gull, could have free passage acroHs the
lake, which, being a shallow body Of
water, would probably allow ihe air 10
move through this opening because Of
evaporation. Ia return the "nOfthcr'
would sweep down the river by the city