Grand Rapids herald. [volume] (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 1892-1959, 1893-10-28
BAclLLl IN THE AIR
ssabix shs Real Breeding Place
Of the Cholera Plague.
VOW n is coMxusIcATED
rs<Fsoi- Mortality Amosx the Many
Pii<rfms whs Year Arte< fsAr
Joarnsy "a the Hoiy Citse<

~1014Aa - &<o ne stAt4ahtEs % aiof-
sxlity AnS1g pliyrlals u Mecea recent
" rsported ~ ne New fork sur from
Tunis. where OF aias thOaaan who set
oat snt half the naabeF returned. The
1sAth rate 81 thls year II but little
greater than thai Of ordiaary years
Tie health oe.cials Of bombay an
other Indian cities have fOT sons tlzas
besn eolieefiag fAets and statistics -
shO~ that india does not deserve the
ia reputation II Aas n being tho en-
denis hozas of cholera bat that Ar
aba = the homsos the plague, and they
are preparing "a maze stFenu9els ef-
forts "a aroslse the Arabian authorities
add coav.nce them Of the fact. and "a
nave them apply n remedy. seine Of
tie statistics printed in the bombay
6azetts reveal q terrible state ~ AZ
fairs
According - the oficiai returns Of
the health olieer 81 Bombay. Of nine
sy-one thousand pilgrims who left that
,lty for Mecca during the past eight
Ye4rs only sixty thousand have come
n4e<. Thirty pilgrims in every hun
1red have periShed in every year Of
hat period. aud very many of those
wh0 survived 70 return home have
come back only % die of disease con-
tTaoted on The pilgrimage. The facts
1dducod 20 % prove that the pilgrims
30 not carr disease with tlrein from
in.iia. Iasfe i rigid inspection at
bombAy before emharkation. and
every pilgrim - required - pass a
Dedscal examination. 20 undergo .
certain qGarantin!ug process. and 10
possess certificate of good health.
The mortality ca the voyage from
Bombay o. arabia Is very small IL Is
4iser ths pilgrims have entered the
aoly cities. AMI daring the return. that
the mortality Is great.
record - keps y the British con-
sul az Jesisl4h OF the number Of pill
grisnS arriving az and departing from
that port, Nth such particulars as will
assure general Identification. The
hgures OF thLs record fully corroborate
taose Of the Bombay officials An
average estimate OF a mortality OF one
.hird among tie Indian pilgrims In
each year. when there Is no general
epidemic OF cholera. is clearly sstab-
lished. and the belief Is expressed,
founded on such corroborative stats
.ics a. are obtainable. that fully one
third OF al pilgrims 20 Mecca perish in
svsry yeAr.
The Indian officials assert that the
sholesa plaques which periodically
rwscp around the world have their
yrigin Va The filth OF Mecca and
Medina" There u a great scarcity OF
water In these places, aud tho quality
II the little obtainable Is bad The
famous Holy Well at Mecca offers the
most complete conditions for spread.
Esy dise&se. 4, ORDINARILY contains but
attle water. One Of the most essential
ievotions in the pilgrimage Is to battle
n and drink OF the water from this
~cii. and It's brink Is always crowded
with pilgrims. some drawing is water
and pouring IL over their persons,
others dipPing IL up ia cups aud
zourds aSAd drinking H. The water
assd Cor bathing runs directly back
inso the well. and thus diseases are d.
fecfly spread
The authorities did for time thu.
year close up the wel. Drainage 10
.hc city there Is little or none. and the
1no~t ordinary sanitary precautions
are utterly disregardei by tho checked
,ros.ds 81 pilgrims Not alone cholera
IS the bred and spread. but the holy
cities are hotbeds % smallpox and
other like terrible diseases. The same
conditions are true ot III Tor. Jeddah
and Camarsa. and tlc Indian health
officials will for tho protection OF IL
,~oplc - vel "a for the sake OF the
couatry's reputation. make strong en-
f~ayorS % induce TIE authorities o.
she holy places Of pilgrimage % take
an interest ia drainage and general
ssnl.ati0n. ~ have moro scavenger.
sven II they have - have fevcr
,ries,S They think that the western
nations Iligat probably take an In
.e-rst in The condition " things IN
Arabia. and th.e result % their iavesti
rstions viii be offered ia the hope thai
steps VII BE ta-ea "a crush out the
aoi-rs plague IA what they assume =
3rovc - Sc real cB1snic home.