The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1892-11-26
STARTLING STORIES
OF Neglect at the Quarantine
Detention Hospital.
NOW SCANDAL FOLLOWS CHOLERA
And Therois Need ofsan Explanation.
Revelations of a Nurse-choIora
Patients Subjected to Horrible Neg
lect on swinburne Island.

~roVolntlOng concerning Lno JESh4L4onbS4
cholera patients on swinburne Island
during the recent epidemic were made
yesterday by Miss Adelaide Merres, a
professional nurse, OF No. 65 avenue A.
She claims that some OF the nurses and
attendants, both male and female, were
drunk half the time; that theygambled
at night and neglected the patients;
that convalescents were made to Q
tho clothes of victims of cholera who
were cromated, and that many OF the
patients did not get tho clothes, wine
and food sent them by friends.
These allegations and many moro
Miss Merres makes as incidental to q
suit which she has begun against
Health Officer William L. jenkins to
recover $50, which she claims he owes
her for one months services. She says
that none Of the nurses were paid for
the last week or two that they worked
on Swinburne island during September.
Lawyer August p. Wagner, oil No. 80
Second avenue, is Miss Merres' counsel,
and he expects in the trial to show up
the name in which Swinburne island
is run. In the complaint he has filed
Miss Merres alleges that she was hired
by the month as long as the cholera
epidemic should last, and that she
served from August 3 until September
8. It is claimed that as she worked
more than q month and was only paid
$50 she should get q full morth's salary
for September.
SHE WEARS A Z CROSS MEDAL.
Miss Merres is a tall, dark eyed, in
t~elligent woman She is a graduate OF
the charity Hospital Of Berlin, of which
the present empress is president. She
is also decorated with the Red Gross
medal, which she wears at her throat
and is very proud OF. She has been for
nearly eighteen years q professional
nurse.
She served as nurse at North Brother
Island during the typhus epidemic. She
had tyhus and also cholera during her
service at North Brother and Swim
burne islands.
at used to make my heart bleed
almost" said she last night, TO see
the way in which patients at Swinburne
Island were neglected while some OF
the nurses and attendants were carous-
ing about drunk. The fifteen attend
Unts with but few exceptions were
drunk continually, and spent their time
making love to the poor immigrant girls
instead of attending to their patients.
Some of the nurses were Just as bad.
The wine, edibles and clothes which
~, lrsa1 t,0oRtaA .ah0Fifohln
people for the nurses and patients did
not reach them. There were barrels OF
wine and beer sent to the patients, but
they got little OF 1t. There were also
boxes Of clothes sent, and yet patients
had to lie nakedjor thirteen days at q
time without anything TO wear. The
immigrants who were sent there as sus-
poets did not have a change OF clothing
Tor the five weeks they remained on the
island.
PIT1Fun SIGHTS.
at brought tears to my eyes to see
the way in which the cholera patients
were brought to swinburne Island on
the tug Crystal. They were lying on
n part OF the deck Of the tug without
even a blanket to cover them or pillow
under their heads. Piled up in an
other part were the bodies OF the dead
sewed up in canvas. Miss Hill, a nurse
at the Presbyterian hospital, will cor
roborate all that ! have said.
"They were brought in that manner
to the island in a drenching rain on sew
eral days, and a more pitiful and heart
rending sight l have neve seen. lhave
been q nurse the better part OF my life
and have been used to sights OF autfer-
ing and misery, but those that l saw at
Swinburne Island will live in my memo
ry forever as the worst lever witnessed.
i'The orderlies andsome OF the nurses
used to gamble almost every night until
2 o'clock in the morning. One of tho
women nurses told me that she had won
So 40 playing cards the night previous.
/ saw six bodies cremated at one time
and the ashes Of these were gatheredu up
and placed in separate bottles. Labels
were ploced upon the bottles to cores
pond with each Of the persons whose
bodies were buried"
Miss Merres said that Superintendent
John Butler had a room full OF clothing
of every description which had been
sent to the patients. She said Mrs.
Williamson, OF the Kings Daughters,
had sent her a complete outfit for her
self and ak children, which she never
received. Letters that she wrote to
friends were never sent, she claims,
and to communicate with them she was
Obliged to telegraph at her own ex-
pense. She complimented DR.. Byron
Tor his noble efforts to try and reform
things while he was at the island.
CARELESS CLEANING OUT.
The nurses, attendants and GONZALES
cents, she said, were all sent from Swim
burne island on September s, four days
alter the last cholera patient had died.
Their clothes we're not fumigated and