Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-06-14

putably established that a certain well had
been responsible for four cases of typhoid
fever One day. while passing the corner of
9th and streets. he had noticed fifty High
School boys and girls drinking water frOra
the pump at that point. He said this sight
was paralyzing. He knew the water was
unfit to drink and the lives of many prom
ising boys and girls were being jeopardized.
When he returned home he had written a
letter to the health officer calling attention
TO this well and had received a very unsat-
isfactory reply to his letter. He did not
wish 10 criticise the health officer but did
want TO call attention TO the unsatisfactory
manner in which things of this importance
are dealt with. He read his letter TO the
setting forth:
An analysis of this water shows IL to be
IN good S. nitary condition.
-. ID. HIRD, Inspector"
such an analysis as this was misleading
ana unfair to the citizens of the District,
whose life and health were entrusted to the
authorities
typhoid in Suburban Districts.
The greatest number of cases of typhoid
Iever, the speaker maintained, had been
found In the outlying districts of the city.
According TO the observations of DR.. Stcne.
there had been eighty-eieht cases Of ~
phoid In the Brightwood section within
three years. and twenty-seven cases had
been reported in one year. This Was IN
enormous record. MIX was another source
OF typhoid fever. He was not ready 10
maintain that the milk itself Contained na-
Gill, but believed that the washing of the
utensils with water that was has was "A
cause. Washington he said. IS NOT resnoa-
sible Tor all the deaths reported from tY-
phoid fever. There are any ouantity of
people who go away for the summer and
contract the disease and then bring IL bactx
These summer resorts are esnecisllx ,l.n
gsrous. Only a few years ago an epidernic
broke out in the mountains of Nirgipia
whlch was traced directly TO the wells lie
tnouSht IL was exceedingly rare, IL ever
That Potomac water was responsible for
typhoid fever. The rapid current and great
exposure TO the sun destroyed the germs.
IL was an injustice 20 blame our water sun
ply with the responsibility OF disease. lie
was In favor of filters, but scored the char
coal inter roundly, maintaining that IL
ADDED millions upon millions Of bacilli 10
the water. DIR. Prentiss then direct ID his
attention TO the communicating infiuan - OF
sewer gas, and stated there was little dam
ger from this source. He read extracts
rom rom the paper OF DIR. Abbott. professor OF
hs giere in the University Of Pennsylvania.
winch was submitted at the recent medical
congress. No specific disease will be gem
Grated by sewer gas, and, therefore, iacreas-
ed sewer cor nections do not Increase the
danger Of these diseases To sum IN. N,lrla
matter up, he said, the citizens OF Wash
| ington needed:
j. new and better sewer system.
= An increased public water supply and
| provision for sedimentation ana IiItration
before distribution
3. The adjustment of all privies ana cess
pools.
T. Inc adjustment OF all pumps.
DIR. smart's Remarks
At the conclusion of Dr. Prentiss' re-
marks. he was loudly applauded. Or.
Charles Nj. Smart L. S. A. who created
something Of a sensation recently by his
attack. in a public lecture. upon the purity
OF Potomac water. was the next speaker
| He had, he said, made many experiments.
and was greatly interested in pure water
He agreed generally with the recommended
/ TORS OF the committee. but took exception
TO the amount Of harm that came
from wells. He maintained that iJy t.y-olu-
ton harmless bacillus may. under favor
able conditions, take on harmful proper
tlors The medical history of great cities
showed a great improvement in the number
OF typhoid patients in relation 10 the num-
Der of wells destroyed. 1t was difficult 10 ind
city In which the typhoid fever infection
Of the wells could be separated from the
general water supply. There was one case,
however, where this had been done That
was In Vienna. In 1874 the authorities
there realized that the water supply had
something TO do with the enormous death
rate from typhoid fever. The water had
been obtained from springs in the outlying
districts, but during one hard winter a
number of the wells frcze up ana the Dam
ube was turned into the water mains in
certain sections of the city. The result was
many cases Of typhoid fever in that section
which was supplied by water from the
Danube. If, instead of getting our water
supply from the Potomac with ali its tur-
bidity, IL was purified first. we would have
beneficial results. He thought the retora-
mendations Of the committee should be
changed. and the very first one should be
that Congress be urged TO make an cDpro-
priation providing for the publication Of
the general supply.
Drs. Woodward and Kenyon approved
generally q
ter, however. took exception TO the disea Sc
called typho-malarial fever. and said he dia
not believe that IL was distinct from ty-
phoid feve-
DIR. Billings SurEessfons.
Dr. J. 5. Billings. L. 5. A. was the next
speaker. He said the committee had con-
founded the report Of the Sanitary League
with that Of DIR. Theohald Smith. ana read
the report OF the Sanitary League subco-n-
miitee on water supply. as printed in The
Star. From his experience he believed that
chemical test OF the water was Car sli-
perior 10 meteorological tests. single
pun OF dust from the avenue may III a
well with germs. lie claimed that there
had not been single typhoid fever bacil-
lus found i'm the wells OF the CITY in the
Potomac supply. Il would have been far
more desirable. he believed. IL the commit
tee had demonstrated what happens from
some one we'll
Dr. ". w. Johnston said the committee had
endeavored to dc this. and had taken the
well at the corner OF I4th and b streets
southwest. which the District chemist had
condemned some time ago. but which had
been left open at the urgent request Of the
citizens In that vicinity. 1t had been proven
that the water from this well was response
BILE for several cases OF typhoid fever
Concluding, Dr. Billings said that the
thing TO do was TO obtain an appropria-
ton to carry out the system OF sewerage
now in hand, and also to obtain n system
OF filtration ana se3imen;at.on Tor the Po-
tomac supply.
Dr. 3asey Closes.
The discussion was closed by d.. S. {.
Buscy. He preface1 his remarks by an at
tack on the so-cailed typho-malarial fever.
and thought it sicuil be dropped from the
nomenclature of diseases in the District OF
Columbia. There was little doubt in his
mind that this so-calle1 typho-malarial
fever was nothing short Of typhoid fever.
and though IL did raise our death rate 10
alarming proportions. he believed that the
physicians should face the music ana co.
operate with the Commissioners by getting
a better water supply and sewage distri-
button. In every part OF the city. where
the pumps are the thickest. there you viii
find the greatest mortality. This was a
golden opportunity for the society to assert
itself before Congress. When the profes-
sion is united upon any enc subject, AID
that subject calls Cor the attainment OF