The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1893-06-02
noalth Needs In American crtle..

DR.. John S, Billings of the surgeon
generals Office in Washington contrib
6tes to The Forum paper defining the
present needs of American cities, great
| nd small, in the matter of sanitation,
THE first need no considers to be accurate
ind complete vital statistics. The death
rate per 1000 among infants, middle
aged and old people shoyi be kept in
separate lists, also the race, color and
residential locality Of each individual
1t has been found, for instance, that the
feath rate of the negro population Is far
I.reater than that Of the white. In Wash
lngton it is almost twice as large. A
rity may therefore get the name of be-
Ing unhealthful when it merely has
large population of poor and shiftless
negroes.
From the strictly sanitary point o.
view the first need of city is an album
dant supply of pure water. The danger
from contamination of their water sup
ply is constantly increasing in the vicin-
ity of all our cities as the population is
crowded together closer, and the care
of every city at once should be to see to
it that the sources of its water supply
are given to its own control, with full
power to abate any nuisances. actual or
threatened, for the danger that turks in
impure water is the most deadly of all.
The lack Of perfect sewerage is an
other crying want in our American mu-
nicipal system. Illustrations of the worst
sewerage system on earth are to be
found not few in our towns. Here Is
another dangerous menace to life and
health. DR.. Billings points out next that
many European cities have municipal
lighthouses and washhouses. They are
not charities at all. Poor women pay
small but sufficient fee and take theiI
weekly wash to the public laundry,
where hot and cold water, tubs, drying
rooms and ironing rooms are provided.
They do their laundry work and take
the renovated linen home, with the
unpleasantness and Inconvenience Of
clothes washing all removed from their
homes. Even rich people would be glad
Of such accommodations
AT the public lighthouses working peo-
pie may go, pay small fee and wash
themselves clean. In some towns, too,
the municipal government owns the
abattoirs and keeps them under strict
surveillance from the sanitary point of
view. Our cities want small hospitals
for the treatment of contagious diseases,
such hospitals that respectable, well to
do parents can turn over to them their
children or any member of their families
stricken with diphtheria, scarlet fever
or other contagious disease, knowing
that they will get the best of care, while
there will thus be no danger that the
contagion will spread among other mem
bers of the household. By such regula-
tions as these contagious diseases could
be stamped out.
DR.. Billings would have in each city
a public mortuary, with convenient
branches. These would be houses or
chapels perhaps, to which the poor citi-
zens could convey the bodies of their
dead for burial. They would pay proper
fee, and the funeral services would be
conducted at the mortuary. The body
would be removed thither Immediately
after death, to be kept till the funeral,
thus preventing the danger and incon-
venience of holding it for day or two
in the tenement home with only two
rooms