Sacramento daily record-union., 1890-04-12
SUMMERS APPROACH.
| The State Board of Health Urges People
to Guard Against Fevers.

The State Board OF Health Urges Peopse
to Guard Against Fevers.
Secretary Tyrrell of the State Board OF
Health, in his report for March, says:
Mortality reports received from 101 local
tiles, containing an estimated population of
s55, 900, give the number of decedents as
,lS9, a monthly percentage of 13S per
| thousand, or an annual mortality al the
rate of l6 56 per thousand, which IS s fur
| ther decrease from the death rate in Feb
ruary, which was 172S per annum. Dis
| eases of the respiratory organs still con-
| tinue to add more than their quota to the
| bills of mortality, as they dio in January
| and February. Their fatality is now on
the decrease, although we find that con.
sumption caused the death of 233 persons,
which is nearly as great ss the mortality
| for February. Pneumonia likewise caused
| the death of 143 persons, W hich is decrease
| of Il from last report, but yet far above
the average deaths from this cause. Bron-
cnitis was fatal in AZ instances. This is an
| increase of IL from last report, and indi
Gates the great prevalence of the disease.
! Diphtheria and Group collectively caused
| 2S deaths-l3 from diphtheris and 10 from
Group. Diarrhel and dysentery were fatal
|
crease over last report, but still an unusu-
ally small mortality Cholera infan.um
was not reported as having caused single
death, which is quite remarkable, as it is
! the first time it has failed TO do so within
| the past year.
Reports received from 102 different local
| tiles do not indicate much subsistence of
| the diseases of the respiratory organs SO
prevalent in January and February. Pneu-
monia, bronchitis, congestion of the lungs
and influenza were reported in almost ey-
cry locality heard from. Influenza, how
ever, is subsiding, and no longer partakes
of the epidemic form. The Health Officer
in Trinity county reports the death of four
teen Cinnamon from "ls grippe" which is
q remarkable circumstance, as the Chinese,
as rule, do not seem to be as susceptible
| 10 the disease as the white people.
Smallpox is not reported in California
The State Board OF Health of Connecticut
| reports the disease in MeriGen, in that
State, to the number of nineteen cases. AS
this disease can be transported il clothing
or baggage, the importance of our knowi-
edge of the places of its existence cannot
| be oveyestimated.
Typhoid fever is not as prevalent as it
will be when the ground begins to dry out
after the excessive rainfall. We should at
this time remember that the occurrence OF
unusual amounts of rain, supersaturating
the earth, disturbs the contents of privies
and cesspools, causing the carriage from
| these receptacles to be deposited in new To-
calities and perhaps al far distant points.
Now, supposing any OF the ntents of
| these privies and cesspools contain the
germs of typhoid fever, their deposition on
! the ground and subsequent desiccation or
carriage into our water supply might be
the cause of serious epidemic. We know,
| at all events. that the putrefection of or
ganic matter is inimical to health, and the
debris left after the subsistence of large ace
cumulahons of water should be removed
from around our dwellings, our outhouses,
our alleys and our streets, carried away and
buried deep or burned. The cleansing Of
| our premises Is now a wise prscaution
against future sickness, and as typhoid
fever is peculiarly a filth disease its mode
of prevention is essentially cleanliness.
The typhoid germ can be swallowed in
food as we'll as drank in water. Professor
Vaughan. of the Michigan University, dis
covered the bacillus in sewer air, and DR..
Baker, the eminent Secretary of the State
Board of Health OF Michigan, contracted
the disease, it is suppc sed, from the air of
this very same sewer. Our Health Officers
are therefore requested TO urge upon their
several districts the extreme necessity that
exists at this time to remove all accumula-
tions of debris and filth from about their
| habitations, as what are now harmless de-
posltS, will, in the presence OF increasing
| temperature, become masses of putrescent
and dangerous organic matter, that is GER
tain to deteriorate the health and infallibly
expose the system to condition favorable
TO the receptivity of disease germs and
their successful cultivation in the soil thus
prepared for their accommodation and de-
velopment. 1t is only by the education of
the public TO these dangers that we can
| hope to avoid them, and TO the Health Of
ficers the public look for such information,
and for such safeguards to its health, which
i their education in sanitation particularly
enables them to supply and direct.