The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-10-22
And It's Extraordinary Results In
Court.
FIRST CASE OF THE KIND EVER
TRIED.
Fumigat ion, Perp1exity and Bother and
Weak Eyed, Uncomfortable French
man-Deputy Sterling Reminiscent.

Yesterday afternoon, before Recorder
Thompson, Theodore Coutre was ar
RAJ, ned on the charge of wilfully enter
ing and leaving quarantined house,
which was duly tagged. This was the
house of Mrs. Bernstein at No. 80 India
street, where Deputy Hartnett made the
seizure of liquor, Sunday and found
Coutre. Assistant County Attorney Webb
conducted the case for the government.
DIR. Chas A. Baker testified that he
VISA called October 9Th to attend a case Of
diphtheria on India street. The patient
was small boy named Bernstein. He
and the house was tagged and orders
given according to the rules. Witness
gave orders till he was tired, to the moth
er mostly. He didn't know the names of
other occupants of the house. Witness
gave it as his opinion that after emulation
leaves the throat. danger of contagion is
over. This occurred in this case about
ten days ago. The law is that danger is
not over till four weeks after the exuda-
ton ceases.
City Clerk Dyer testified that this case
of diphtheria was repored to him October
5th, by Dr. Baker. He asked Deputy
Sterling to tag and quarantine the house.
This was done. To quarantine means
that people who live in the house must
not leave it and none others must come
in except the physician.
Deputy Sterling testified that be placed
two tags on the house, saw Mrs. Bernstein
and told her that she must allow no one
to come in or go out of the house. He
also notified several parties on India
street to keep away from the house. He
did not see the respondent or know
whether he lived there.
Deputy Hartnett testified that Sunday
| he called at No. 80 India street. He
noticed the tags on the house. He went
there with liquor warrant While
searching the house for liquor, the respon-
dent came through an empty room. He
told witness that he had been boarding
there for two weeks. Before that he
had boarded up stairs He said that he
had been going to work every day and
coming to the house for his meals. He
said that he was painter and that he
was working with turpentine SO much
that he couldn't spread any contagion.
Witness declared that the respondent s
room was on the ground floor and that
he could only reach it by going through
the room in which was the sick boy. I
Officer Sylvester testified that he was
with Deputy Hartneit Sunday. That
morning, he went into the house and
found the respondent in bed drunk. To
get into this bed room it was not neces-
sary to pass through the sick boys bed
room, but there was only thin board
partition, in which was window that
was broken. He knew this because Mrs
Bernstein stuck her head through it and
told him she hadn't been selling any
rum.
DR.. Baker testified that at the time the
house was tagged the family was told
that IN their three rooms they must re-
main. If they did that they would be
entirely by themselves He added that
he knew they hadn't followed these in
structions but that whenever he came
there, they were on the watch for him
and had these three rooms isolated by
locked doors, as he had directed.
The res pendent, Theodore Coutre, tes-
titled that he had been boarding at tie
place only since last Saturday. He did
tell the Deputy Marshall Sunday that
he had lived there two weeks. He was
| not telling the truth then. He had been
working in the city for two weeks He
came from Westbrook. He at first
boarded with Mrs. Young, just over Mrs.
Bernstein's. He sleptsright over Mrs.
Bernstein's restaurant. He only slept In
Mrs. Bernstein S rent, on the lower floor,
last Saturday nigh Hel took his meals
on the same floor.
Recorder Turner said that from DIR.
Bakers testimony he was lead to believe
that the people were getting altogether
too careless about the rules of the board
of health He found tho respondent
guilty and fined him S. and costs.
The imposing Of the sentence was not
the conclusion of this case the first OF its
kind in the history of the police station.
The man must be fumigated before he
could be allowed to go forth and pollute
Health Officers Carney and Cram, who
had bathed the contagious Frenchman
that morning with various anticipates,
were sent for, and then the question arose
as to where and how the water-eyed and
miserable offender was to be cleansed OF
the microbes.
Mr.. Carney declared that he didn't have
any proper place and Marshal Trickey de-
cIared that he didn't. Somebody said
"Take him down to Mrs. Bernsteins and
fumi gate him and the whole place"
Somebody else said: "Fumigate himsin
the cell he occupied and you'll kill two
birds withs one stone, meaning to
fumigate the cell and the prisoner at the
same time.
But Mr. Carney found some objec lions
tc this in the fact that it would result in
actual as we'll as metophorical killing of
the frenchman.