The Dispatch. [volume] (Provo City, Utah) 1891-1895, 1891-02-28
OUR SANITARY CONDITION.

OUR SANITARY CONDITION..
Since the first ideas of civilization
dawned upon man, and he COM
menced to form communities for the
social and commercial purposes OF life,
two questions have been of utmost
Importance: First, the means at hand
whereby to obtain living; second,
how to preserve health.
Among the savage the custom pre-
walls of moving from place to place, SO
as to escape the accumulations of the
disease breeding offals from his habit
alton. In civilized communities where
residences are of permanent nature,
science and ingenuity are called into
use for the purpose of providing mea-
sures whereby continued existence in
particular place may be rendered
healthful, and the dangerous result of
close living and in large numbers can
be avoided; and wherever unusual
mortality and sickness prevails, the
cause thereof may be easily traced to
defective drainage sewerage and a
general neglect of those precautions
by which only the civilized man can
maintain good health and prosperity.
Sewerage is of the utmost import
ance to any city, and by looking
around us here in Provo we find that
it has been wholly neglected, No
system of any kind is provided; waste
from houses, outbuildings and barn
yards is left wherevre it chances to
fall; the water from washings, from
sinks, and in fact all the rinslngs from
diseased and epidemic victims are
thrown ndiscriminatingly anywhere,
left where the sun may dry them up,
and scatter the germs of sickness
abroad to make fresh victims. All of
our public institutions contain no
sewerage. In zone case, the Woolen
Factory, the poisonous dyes, the de-
posit from water closets andmachinery
alike. are dropped into public stream,
passing through the centre of the city.
Two or three private houses, and one
hotel, lead their pipes thereto, and
allow the waste to run with it towards
the Lake, regardless of the fact that
human beings live along that stream,
use its water for household purposes,
and that what is finally carried to the
lake poisons its water and destroys life
all along its course. This is simply
criminal, and while the law forbids
the saw-dust from mills to be deposited
in our river, it certainly also will for
bid human eXcrement from being sent
on its disease and deathbreeding mis-
sion through the heart of thriving
and populous little city like Provo
were the facts generally known ant
understood.
What can be done? Can we con
sistently aspire to the dignity of ;
city and invite capital to start manu-
factories and enterprises, with tha
consequence increase of population
under our present state Of sanitar,
regulations? Is it likely that intelli
gcpt people will settle where mod
ern house and its convenience canno
be maintained, where our numerous
physicians are constantly employed
and where one alone writes as man,
as four hundred prescriptions for th
relief of strictly zymotic Diseases il
one week.
| 1t must be clear TO every thinking
mind, that something must be done
and done at once, and it behoves ou
City Council and also our enterprisin.
Chamber Of Commerce to give thei
attention to this.
| First of all We must make our cit,
healthful, and then we can ask on
friends outside TO come and live witt
US, and add their energy and capita
to the development of our natura
advantages and resources. Of cours
the cry will be: at costs somethingl'
Well, so do doctors and undertakers
and it is generally most appreciated t,
spend means to live than to fgh
death.
| With our present surroundings w
must at once set about getting sewe
system,and we are creGitably informet
that such system can be adopte,
and at small outlay introduced int
our houses and yards and carry OF
these wastes where they may be safel
deposited and their danger avoided
making our city, in addition to it
natural beautiful I0cat .on, city O
health.
Let all our citizens use their bes
effort to obtain this most needed in
provemsnt and thcrebY show thei
enterprise and maze Provo cit,
desirable for residences as well as 70
industrious Undertakings.