Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1894-02-28
NEED OF A PEST HOUSE.
1t Costs About $50 Day to Maintain the
Quarantine on the Cherry Street Build

1t Costs About $50 a Day to Maintain the
Quarantine on the Cherry Street sRuild-
ing. ~
Town Health Officer O'Hara having con-
demned the pest house it is time steps were
taken to build new one. DR. O'Hara told
a representative of the DEMOCRAT to-day
that the old pest house was not fit place
to take anybody, and no matter how many
cases of smallpox there might occur in the
city he should not favor sending anyone
there. He said If the disease should be-
come epidemic he would as a last resort
consent to have patients sent to the old
almshouse. and this place he did not con-
slider anything like what the people should
have for this purpose, but was the
best that could be secured for the
present. He thinks it great injustice
to the people in large building to be
quarantined for FIVE or six weeks because
some one in the place. happened to be
stricken with smallpox. If there was a
proper place where patients could be
treated as soon as the disease is detected
and the other inmates of the house vac
cinated, the longest time it would be
necessary to detain them would not exceed
two or three weeks.
From another source the reporter learned
that the cost of quarantining two or three
houses where smallpox cases occur would
almost pay for the erection of a suitable
pest house. 1t costs $50 day to main
tain the quarantine at the big tenement
house on Cherry street and when it is con-
sidered that this may have to be kept up
for six or seven weeks, people can form
some idea of the need of doing something
to procure some place where people with
contagious diseases can be properly treated
ut a nominal expense and with less danger
to the community. To be what sanitar-
ians call ''safe" pest house should be re-
moved 400 feet from any other building or
place where people are accustomed to
travel and not too far from the center so as
not to endanger the life of the patient in
being removed
ITO take a smallpox patient out of bed
and remove him to the pest house in an
express wagon or hack, if you can find
one" said one of the best physicians, Sin
such weather as this is almost cruel as
to take him out and knock him on the
head. The distance is too far and when
the authorities decide to build q house |
hope they will endeavor to select site as
near the confer as possible and procure an
ambulance which will be used for that
purpose only. No man wants to use a
good vehicle for this purpose. He can nat
use it afterwards and the city is not al
| ways willing to pay the full value for the
use of these things when they are de-
stroyed. And if there is more money
spent in dealing with the present cases
than the taxpayers think is necessary the
fault must not be laid to the physicians of
the town. They have repeatedly shown
the necessity of being prepared to deal
with sick cases ot the least possible eX-
pense and with due regard for the safety
of the patients and the community as well.
A decided scare was given the residents
of Elm street yesterday when it was re-
| ported that another case of smallpox had
| been discovered, on that street. The re
port is without foundation and is pro-
nounced uncalled for by both the health
officer and sanitary inspector
The smallpox patients are doing nicely.
| Conrov is on the speedy road to recovery,
The Hammond girl will not in all proba-
| bility have as severe a case as Conroy.
There is no immediate danger of spread
of the disease. The quarantined families
are contented and will make no effort to
escape. They realize the futility and also
the foolshness of such an attempt. The
watchers are guarding the place carefully
and allow no one to enter the premises
with the exception of the health officer and
| sanitary inspector.