The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-11-18
THE CITY is IN DANGER.
A Tramp With Smallpox Passed
Through Thursday.

The action OF City Council last night
in failing TO take immediate action on
the report OF the board of health rela.
tive to the smallpox was met with
dlsfavor by number Of prominent
physicians and other citizens of the
city, In view of the fact that Rosnoke's
exposure TO the dread disease If far
greater than 1t is generally thought
to be.
1t is fact. although not yet widely
known, that tramp with q fully de.
veloped case of smallpox passed through
the city Thursday and probably spent
several hours here. The man stopped
In Vinton and was begging food from
door TO door when he was met by Dr..
Eubank, physician of that place, who
saw at once that the man was the vic.
tim OF the smallpox in malignant
form.
DR.. Eubank, knowing that the author
tiles OF Vinton had no means Of coming
with the disease. told the tramp that
he must immediately get out of town
or ne would be arrested, which order
was obeyed by the tramp.
But the incident does not end here
Or. Bowyer, prominent physician of
bedford, was in Roanoke yesterday and
is authority for the statement that a
tramp, presumably the same one, with
fully developed case of smallpox,
arrived in that city on freight train
Thursday night and was at once ar
rested and isolated.
AS 1t sometimes takes fourteen days
Tor the smallpox to develop, it is highly
probable that next week will witness
the plague in bad form in Southwest
Virginia, and this city is liable to be a
prominent center OF the pestilence.
number of citizens last night ex
pressed the opinion to representative
OF The TIMES that Council made grave
mistake in not at once acting on the
recommendation of the board of health,
as delays are dangerous, and cited sew
eral examples, notably that OF Mon
treal, whose council refused to take
action before the plague struck that
city.
1t would evidently be wise for the
citizens to take the matter in their own
hands and have themselves and their
families vaccinated by their family
physicians. There is statute law in
Virginia that requires the pupils of the
public schools to be vaccinated, but it
has never been enforced in Roanoke.
ho AoAoy III SOuuCll Is partly que TO
the cost OF the virus, which will prob
ably be from $500 to $500, and for the
payment of the physicians for perform
ing the vaccination on INDECENT people,
the estimated cost of which is So, 900
Conservative citizens say that while
they are aware Of the condition of the
treasury and realize that Council must
practice economy, that this Is very poor
economy; that this is crisis that mus,
be met even IL it should cost the city a
few thousand dollars.
They point to the fact that should the
smallpox break out in the city, it would
mean complete paralization of the
industries and commerce which, owing
to the financial depression, is already
lowing at very low ebb
Would 1t not BIO better, they argue, to
expend few thousand dollars as pre-
caution than to sit supinely by and
watch a delay that might mean ruin?
1t is undoubtedly the duty of every
good citizen to be vaccinated.
Special matinee at the Academy rhfs
afternoon for ladies and children.