The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1888-11-30
How The Yellow Fever Game.
SURGEON GENERAL HAMILTON SAYS 1T
WAS IMPORTED INTO TAMPA LAST YEAR.


WAS IMPORTED INTO TAMPA LAST YEAR.
At the meeting of the Virginia Med.
ical Society, held at Norfolk last week,
Surgeon. General Hamilton gave the
following account of the manner in
which the epidemic of yellow fever was
introduced into this country, the de
tails of which, he said, had been seour-
ed at great cost to the Government,
and have not before been published;
Last year the yellow fever appeared
in Key West in the family of restau-
rant keeper by the name of Baker. A
family of Bolios, who had kept hotel
in Havana, emigrated, unfortunately
for Florida, to Key West. Their
household effects were landed and stor.
ed above Bakers restaurant. The Ba-
ker family died of the fever; thus the
fever started, and rapidly became epi-
demic.
The Government, under the opera
ton of that section of the statutes for
bidding interference with local authori-
ties, did nothing except at the request
of the Governor to help the local Board
to establish dispensary and pay the
expenses of the City Hospital. To as
sist in the speedy depopulation of the
city refuge camp was established at
Egmont, Ky, at the mouth of Tampa
Bay. No case from Egmont commu-
nicated the disease. The first cases in
Tampa were kept secret from August
to Oct. 81, 1887. A family of Italians
by the name of Turk, fruit dealers,
brought the fever into Tampa. The
steamers had refused, under orders
from the Hillsborough County Board
of Health, to bring fruit from Havana
or Key West. These Italians, finding
it impossible to continue in business,
set up smuggling line, and brought
fruit by way of Punta Gorda Bay and
overland to Tampa. For this purpose
the man Turk and his assistant, "Pete'
made frequent surreptitious visits to
Key West while the disease was cpl
demic there, and blankets were pur-
chased in the infected city, used while
on the overland trip, and brought to
Tampa 1t is significant fact that
the whole family of the Italians were
the first to be taken sick, and that they
were not publicly known to have been
out of the town, although the fact is
now known. The measures taken by
the Government were simply to con-
form to the wishes of the Governor to
aid the Hillsborough County Board OF
Health.
The duty of preventing the spread of
the disease was undertaken by the
Florida State Protective Association
an organization consisting of one rep.
iesentative from each county Board Of
Health. under the Presidency of DR.
King Wyley of Sanford. In Decem
Der, 1887, the association raised the
quarantine against Tampa. The
county Board of Health asserted tha,
the disease had disappeared. I'm
fortunately the disease had not beer
stamped out, and although the cases Of
fever fingered all winter in Tampa, it,
existence there was bitterly denied
From Tampa the disease spread tc
Plant City, Manatee, and other places
and it is now believed that the fever
was at Jacksonville as early as Febru
ary, 1888, DR.. Guiteras of the Marine
Hospital service, an acknowledged ex
pert, says that in his judgment at least
two of the cases of society fever, Of
which there were over thirty reported
in Jacksonville in that month, had thu
well-marked clinical history of yellow
fever Nine of these cases died. DIR
Potts treated cases in Bay street il
June, and there were probably cases
continuously until the formal announce
ment was made. He said that so call
ed isolated cases had been reported a
Jacksonville after the case in Bay
street had been treated in June by DR.
Potts, but that the local authoritie
denied the presence of any epidemic
and placed guard around each case
This state of things existed until Aug
| 16, when the spread OF the disease il
Jacksonville became 80 great, case
springing up at various points in tn
city that could not be traced to any o
the so called isolated cases, that tn
authorities had to declare the diseas
epidemic.
DR.. Hamilton said that the diseas
had been introduced in Decatur, Ala.
by man who had gone from Jackson
vile while all of the cases in that cit
had been reported under guard. Hi
tic ket had been from some point ou,
side of the infected city, and conse
quently he was not denied admittanct
The Doctor said the fever had bee
introduced into Gainesville and Fel
nandina by base ball players, who ha
played a game of ball in Jacksonvill
before the epidemic nature of the di'
ease had been declared, and then re
turned to these cities.
DIR. Hamilton went on to explain th
Government work at Camp Perry, an
said that since its establishment thel
had been only one death from yello'
/, fever in the fever hospital there. II
said that the experience of tt
, physicians at the camp went to sho
that five days wa the incubative perio
and that when persons had been in Il
camp for that length of time and d
not develop the disease, there was I
: danger of their having it. No persc
i having spent ten days in the camp ha
! developed the fever after leaving Il
station.
n He spoke of the lack of local i
q spection at Tampa, where the disea
a first appeared this season, and sa
q that if the first cases had been repol
/. ed there would probably have been !
s epidemic, and said he had proof
n show that when the case of McCorml
"a was reported as the first in Jackso
70 vile the fever was then epidemic,
He also said that while the few
was raging at Key West, he, at the !
20 quest of several health officers, h
y prepared bill providing for t
I establishment of a State Board
N Health, which was laid on the table
,e the Florida Legislature through N
=. tives of false economy, He conclud
N by saying that the inspection
!, Florida cities ordered by the Cover