Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-06-07
kilograms to The Star.
FEARS OF A PLAGUE
A New Terror Threatens the
Conemaugh Valley.
WHAT PHYSICIANS SAY.
Gen. Hastings Hopeful View of
the Situation.
A CITY WIPED OUT BY FIRE.
The Business Part of Seattle En-
tirely Burned Up.
A PLAGUE FEARED.
Warm Weather Felt in the Conemaugh
Valley.

PHYSICIANS BELIEVE THAT GREAT SICKNESS WILL
| PREvAIL-DIPHTHERIA AND TYPHOID FEVER
MAKE THEIR APPEARANCE-EvERY SANITARY
PREcAUTIoN Being TAKEN THAT Is POSSIBLE
! TO AVERT THE PERIL.
JoHNsTowN, Pa, June 7.-.'Are the horrors
of the food to give way to the terrors of the
| plague?" is the question that is now agitating
| the valley of the Conemaugh. To-day opened
warm and almost sultry, and the stencil that
assalls ones senses as he wanders through
Johnstown is almost overpowering. Sickness,
In spite OF the precautions and herculean labors
of the sanitary authorities, is on the increase,
and the fears of epidemic grow with every
hour.
at is our impression" said DIR. T. L. White,
assistant the state board of health this morn
ing, that there is going to be great sickness
here within the next week. Five cases of ma
lignant diphtheria were located this morning
| on Bedford street. and as they were in different
houses they mean five starting points for dis
ease. All this talk about the dangers of epi-
demic is not exaggerated, ,as many suppose, but
is founded upon experience. There will be
plenty of typhoid fever and kindred diseases
here within week or ten DAYS in
my opinion. The only thing that has saved us
thus far has been the cold weather. That has
| now given place to summer weather, and no
one knows what the next few days may bring
forth. Even among the workmen an attend
| ants there is already discernable a great ten
dency to diarrhoea and dysentery. The men
are living principally upon salt meat, and
there is a lack of vegetables. have been here
since Sunday and have not tasted fresh meat
but once since that time. am only one of the
| many. OF course the worst has passed for the
physicians, as our arrangements are now per-
| fected, and each corps will be relieved from
time to time. Twenty more physicians arrived
| from Pittsburg this morning, and many Of US
| will be relieved to-day, but the opinion is gen.
| eral among the medical men that there will be
more need for doctors in a week hence than
there Is now."
EVERY PRECAUTIoN BEING TAKEN.
I DR.. r. L. Sibbel. OF the state board of health
| is in charge of sanitary headquarters. I'VE
| are using every precaution known to SCIENCE
said he, Ito prevent the possibility of epidemic
Our labOrS here have not been confined to any
particular channel but have been extended in
various directions Disinfectants. of course. are
| first in importance and they have been used with
! no sparing hand. The prompt cremation of
| dead animals as fast discovered il another
| thing which We have insisted ON.
The immediate erection of water
| closets throughout the ruins for the
workmen was another work of the greatest san
itary Importance and has been attended to.
| They, too, are being disinfected at frequent
| intervals We have a committee. too. that su-
perintends the burial of the victims at the
| cemeteries. 1t is of the utmost Importance
| in this wholesale interment that the corpses
| should be inferred safe distance beneath the
surface in oGder that their poisonous emana-
| tions may not find exit through
| the creyices of the earth. Another
| committee is making house to
house inspection throughout the stricken
| city to ascertain the number of inhabitants in
each standing house; the number of the sick
| and to order the latter to hospitals whenever
| necessary. One great danger is the overcrowd-
ing of houses and hotels. and that Is being pre-
vented as much possible by the free use of
tents upon the mountain side. So far there is
but little contagious disease. and we hope by
dilgent and systematic efforts to prevent any
dangerous outbreak"
AS TO GOV. Beavers VISIT.
$50 far as know" said Adjt-Gen. Hastings
this morning, "Gov. Beaver is not to visit the
scene Of disaster at all. know there were
rumors that he would be here
this morning, but they were, in my opinion,
entirely unfounded. would have received an
official notification of his arrival, think, and
as yet such notification has not been
received by me. The truth prob
ably is that Gov. Beaver has visited
some of the food-stricken portions of Penn
was going to Johnstown. 1t must be remem-
bered that the floods have done inestimable
damage in other portions of the state.
The flood sufferers are not all in the
Conemaugh valley. 1t is likely Gov. Beaver is
on visit of alienation to some other portion
of the state although for aught know he may
yet be at Harrisburg"
GEN. HASTINGS ON THE SITUATION.
"What is the situation this morning."
s'Very good SO far as reported. Bodies are
being gradually recovered all the time but of
course out in the large number of
the first few days. Last night
We arrested several ghouls that were
wandering amid the wreck ON evil intent during
the darkness, and they were promptly taken to
the guard-house. This morning they were
given the choice of imprisonment or going to
work at 81 day, and they promptly chose the
latter.
We are getting along very well in our work,
and very little tendency to lawlessness, l am
happy to say. is observed"
THE WAITS MISSION
is doing noble work in Johnstown. Miss II.
W. Hinckley and her assistant, Miss Cornelia
Hancock, are the heroines of the
hour. Within an hour after their
arrival upon the scene of horrors they
had established a bureau and were recsiving
the children and wee babes. that had been or
phaned by the cruel food and flames. Miss
Hinckley talked cheerfully of her work this
morning. I'VE have been very busy
from the very first hour" she said,
land feel that we have been able to render
good service. Within few minutes we had
received notification of perhaps a hundred
orphan children, and, as the press was kind
enough to send out an address, We were, within
a few hours more, in receipt of offers from all
over the country to take charge Of some of the
little ones. In many cases the children re-
ported to US have subsequently had their little
hearts gladdened by tie sudden apparition Of
q mother or father who, after all, was
not lost in the food, but had found
friendly refuge ON the river miles be-
low. The scenes Of these joyful meet
ings, after even hope had fed, are such as to
almost tighten the heavy pail that hangs over
this field Of death with which We are sur
rounded.
From Cleveland, Indianapolis, Altoona, Pitts
burg, and. in fact, throughout all Pennsylvania
and the eastern states, we have received tele-
grams from societies and families Offering 10