The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1889-08-10
A RIGID QUARANTINE.
How a Florida Man Kept Gu
the Yellow Fever.


winter, but last summer he staid there
all through the epidemic, and he told
me how, by means OF rigid quarantine,
he escaped the dreadful scourge OF
yellow fever.
I'VE intended to go north,r he said.
'but we put it of too late. My wife
was more afraid OF the yellow fever
than anything else on earth. and SO
was | for that matter. You see we
have a large family and we didn't
want to take any chances. We have
seven boys and girls, and when it
comes to moving back again to Illinois
it Ii quite big job, and that was
what delayed us until it was too late
for US to move. In fact, we didn't
really believe that yellow fever was
coming last summer until it was right
here. You see we didn't get all the
Florida reports you fellows did in the
north, and | think that anyhow the
papers made the epidemic agood deal
worse than it really was. However,
having stayed here all last summer, !
may say that now am not afraid OF
any epidemic that could come to Flor
ida
"Well, as I was saying, the first
thing we knew Jacksonville was closed
up, and as the only way we could get
to the north then was through jack
sonville, we were, in a measure, in a
trap. Along the St. Johns River it is
pretty healthy in the winter time. al.
though it is said it is rather malarious
in summer. OF that, of course, we
didn't know anything because we hal
never stayed here for summer. But
as soon as l found that Jacksonville
was closed up, made up my mind
that we would quarantine our place
and we would keep out the yellow
fever if it took the last cent we had. l
have four boys and three girls, and we
held consultation over the matter,
and we agreed that by taking turns
we could keep up a complete quaran-
tine around the place, and not let any
infected person, or any person at all,
for that matter, within mile OF the
house. My wife was SO frightened
when she really came to understand
that Jacksonville was closed up with
yellow fever, that l was afraid she
would become sick from the very
terror of it. My boys are all strong,
strapping young fellows, although,
you see, am not very strong myself
In fact, II had not lived my winters
down in Florida I should not be alive
to-day. The winters of Illinois would
have killed me long before this. So
we laid our plans and arranged it so
that one OF the boys and myself kept
quarantine during the day, and the
other boys took turns at it through
the night. We thought that in this
way we would make the thing posi-
lively certain, aud run no risk from
the epidemic"
"And were your plans successfully"
asked him.
Perfectly" he answered. 1--WE
never allowed a person to set foot on
our grounds during all the summer ex-
cept once, and that once we had sent
for the man who came. I suppose it
was being out in the hot SUN so much,
for the heat was very damp and sultry
and oppressive that summer. You see
ha6 a rrnnd haa1 Of orl
muggy weather. And anyhow a per-
son who stayed in Florida in summer,
especiallya northern man, should keep
out OF the sun during the middle of the
day. Well, as l was saying. after two
or three weeks of quarantine l got sick
with low malarial fever. You see,
it is kind of malarious anyhow in sum-
mer, especially for northern people
who are not acclimate1. Even the ma
tives here do not work or are not out
in the sun in. the middle of the day,
and as stayed out keeping UP quaran-
tine right through the heat of the day,
it is not surprising that l YVES taken |
sick. Keeping a quarantine is not
like keeping anything else. except it |
be tavern. You have to keep it all |
the time or it is no good. At any 9TH
er work you may drop off an hour and
a half at noon, and quit at 6 |
o'clock, but not with keeping
quarantine. You may keep it for
months, and then being off for ten
minutes let in the very person whom
you have been trying ali the time to
keep out. Although | felt bad for quite
a number of days did not give up, I'M
til was hardly able to stand. Then
had seige OF it. My wife and eldest
daughter nursed me and brought me
through all right, but the strain was
too much for my wife, who is not
strong, as said before. And just as l
was getting WE'LL although too weak to
be up, my wife succumbed to the malari-
al attack. Ny being in the house made
it all the harder for the boys, who
were taking turns in the quarantine,
and before my wife was better, the eld-
est boy got sick. He did not have as
bad an attack as had, and was able to
be out almost as soon as was. Then
the two boys who were on at night,
which was of course the most unhealthy
part of the time, were taken ill togeth-
er. And what with the worry and the
nursing OF them, my eldest daughter
and my second daughter also became
IL. In fact, all that summer there
were some OF us sick. Not one escaped.
And resolved that il we all got we'll
for one week together we would try
and break through the lines and get to
the north. The last one to be taken i'll
was my youngest daughter She is
rather frail little thing anyhow,
and the malady was very hard
On her. We, all did the best we
could for her, but she became steadily
worse. And at last we saw that If we
we're to save her we would have to get
The services of a physician. 1t was