The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1893-10-09
SUSPICIOUS DEATHS
Five or Six Passengers of the
Steamer Russia Buried at Sea.
Some Had ChoIeraic Symptoms, but the
Officers Deny that Any Died from
the Asiatic Plague.
DIR. JENKINS INVESTIGATING
The Steamship Given a Clean Bill
Of Health at Hamburg.
European Cholera NOtes-Many New
Cases of Yellow Fever Reported
at Brunswick, Ga.
DIR. JENKINS INVESTIGATING
Special to the Tndianapolis ,Journal.

Special to the indianapolis Journal.
NEW YORK, Oct S.-The steamship Rus
sia, from Hamburg, arrived at quarantine
station at 10 a. m. to-day, and reported
five deaths during the voyage. Two of the
dead were cabin passengers and three were
in the steerage. The deaths were all said
TO have been due to natural causes, but
DR.. Jenkins decided to detain the vessel.
disinfect the baggage and take every pre-
caution against cholera.
The ship belongs to the Harnburg-Ameri-
can Packet Company. She left Hamburg
Sept "a, with clean bill of health. signed
by Dr. White, of the United States Marine
Hospital Service. who is stationed at that
port to see that steerage passengers are
quarantined five days and their baggage
disinfected before embarking for this coun-
try. Captain Schmidt is in charge of the
vessel. She has twenty-eight second cabin
and 420 steerage passengers When the Rus
sia dropped anchor DR.. Sanborn went on
board, and learned from DIR. Hoffman. the
ships surgeon, that there had been five
deaths during the trip and other cases Of
illness, some of which had not yet recov-
cred. There were two ships surgeons on
the vessel and a doctor among the passen-
gers who was brought into consultation.
The doctors on the ship said that they
were satisfied that none Of tie deaths were
due to cholera
DR.. Sanborn reported to DR.. Jenkins who
made personal examination of the vessel
He found her in excellent condition, and
the passengers to be clean-looking lot. con-
siderably above the average of immigrants
who come to this port. He decided to hold
the ship, as a precautionary measure and
for investigation. DR.. Jenkins said that he
would not express any opinion to the
cause Of the death of the passengers until
biological examination had been made.
No apprehension is felt here in regard to
the danger Of cholera getting in. even
should the cases on the Russia prove to
have been due to that disease. The ship
lies anchored Of the upper boarding sta
ton. The passengers are a happy lot OF
people, mostly Germans, and there Is no
panic among them. The ship is capable of
accommodating one thousand people, and
has only half that number on board DIR.
Jenkins states that he will probably remove
the passengers to Hoffman island, in the
lower bay, tomorrow, where they will be
detained five days. Their baggage will be
disinfected and every precaution taken. DR..
Kinyon, of the Marine Hospital Service,
boarded the shir several times during the
day. He declined to talk about the cases
further than to say that there had been
| five deaths. and that the ships surgeons
| gave a complete history of each case,
| showing none of them was due to cholera.
An Associated Press dispatch says that
| the Russia came into the harbor flying the
| yellow flag, and on being boarded by the
| health officer, Captain Schmidt, reported
| that six deaths, some of which were ac-
| companied by choleraic symptoms, had oc-
| CURED on the voyage. Captain Schmidt
| stated that when a few days at sea fe-
| male infant of twelve months old died after
| short illness. Before her death she was
| subject to vomiting and diarrhea. Five
| deaths occurred subsequently. four of them
| being steerage passengers and one saloon
| passenger. The latter was a young girl
| named Augusta Thomas, twenty years old.
Her death was not accompanied by
| c!.oleraio symptoms. Her brother states
that she was subject TO disease of the
| heart, and he believes that was the cause
| of her death. She died Oct. 8. The Russia S
doctor, DIR. Huannemann, is of the opinion
| that all the deaths were from natural
| causes, and none of them attributable to
| cholera The infant, he says, died from
| cholera infantum, and one of the four
| steerage passengers death was caused by
| erysipelas in the Leg One of the steerage
| passengers is at present in the ships hos
| pital, suffering from vomiting and
1iarrhea