The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1895-09-28


fected Pauoa creek.
This house stands about $50 yards
down stream from the one last des-
cribei. Other cases appeared near
the mouth of the Nuuanu stream.
To the left OF the point at which the
Nuuanu stream enters the harbOr Is q
coral ledge which is uncovered at low
tide. The filth bearing waters OF the
stream spread over this ledge and
stand in pools when the tide is low.
Houses have been built upon piles
over this coral ledge and in these
houses and the neighbOring ones upon
King street cholera promptly gained
a foothold. AS all discharges from
the persons sick in these houses were
emptied into the waters over which
the houses stand, fresh cOntamina-
ton was added to the already infected
waters.
Across from the Oahu Railway de-
pot is q block OF stores fronting on
King street. The rear portions OF
these buildings,-usedas dwellings,
oyerhang an old fish pond, and In
one OF these overhanging rooms chol-
era appeared. The discharges were
thrown into the fish pond. This pond
receives water from other ponds far
Their mauka and discharges its surplus
water through a drain which runs
under King street and the Oahu Rail
way lands into the harbor.
This pond is full OF filth and the
wash water from the neighboring
houses empties directly into il. Cases
appeared in one other house in this
locality.
The other localities where cholera
mas appeared are all remote from any
streams or stagnant water.
Soil. The infectious material has
undoubtedly found its way into the
soil in many localities. This Is not
serious matter where the land Is dry
and there is no surface drainage into
any well, spring, stream or pool OF
water.
In a number of places clothing and
bed linen soiled with infectious dis
charges have been washed in wash
houses on the premises. These wash
houses are generally rough board
affairs about six or eight feet square;
roofless, but having loose board floors.
The water in these cases has gone
through the floor and onto the ground
beneath.
In numerous instances the infec-
tiOus discharges have been thrown
down priVy vaults. Since the discov-
cry OF the cholera spirillum by Prof.
Koch, numerous experiments have
been made by physicians to deter
mine the length of time it may live
IN soil, water and other media, and
some important facts have been estab-
lished. There Is however wide diff
ference between the results Of expert
ments conducted in the laboratory
and those attained in nature.
The greatest enemies of the spiril-
lum of Asiatic cholera are other mi
cro-organisms found in nature. At all
times many varieties of bacteria find
their natural habitat in air, soil and
water, both fresh and salt.
The cholera spiriIlum will for a time
live and multiply in the soil and in
water, but eventually it will be
overcome and destroyed by the other
bacteria whose territory has been
temporarily invaded.
The following is taken from Stern
berg's Bacteriology: "Koch found
tank at Calcutta during n period of
fourteen days, and in his experiments
showed that it preserved it's vitality
in well water for thirty days, in Ber-
lin sewer water for six to seven days
and in the same mixed with faces
for twenty-seven hours only. In
the experiments OF Nicati and
Rietsch the cholera spirillum preserv-
ed its vitality in distilled water for
twenty days, in sewer water (of Mar
seilles) thirty eight days and in water
of the harbor for eighty-one days.
The numerous experiments recorded
by the observer named and by Bolton
Hueppe, Hochstetter, Maschek, Krans
and others, show that while the chol-
era spirillum may sometimes quickly
die out in distilled water, in other ex-
periments it preserves its vitality for
several weeks (Maschek) and that it
lives still longer in water of bad quail
ity, such as is found in sewers, mar
bors, etc"
1t has been found that harbor water
contains many varieties of bacteria,
and that the numbers present near the
surface and at different depths do not
vary in any great degree. In marked
contrast to this il is found that the
mud at the bottom OF harbors contains
many thousands of times as many
bacteria per C. C. as are contained in
the hsrbor water.
Water ut n temperature of 7O0 f Cor
that of the water in and around Homo
lulu) il much more favorable to the
life of the cholera spirillum than
water at a lower temperature.
Again quoting from Stemberg,
"Giaxa has made extended and inter
esting experiments with the cholera
spirillum, cultures of which he added
to different kinds of soil garden earth,
clay, sand) and placed at different
depths below the surface-one quarter,
one-half and one-metre. Some of the
earth was sterilized and some was not.
In unsteriliZed earth he found the
cholera spirillum in considerable
numbers at the end of twenty -four
hours at the greatest depth tested Zone
metre) but at the end of orty-eight !
hours it had disappeared in five ex- |
periments out of seven. The lowest |
temperature at this depth was 2O0 G |
t6S0 F).
In sterilized soil the result was diff !
ferent; the cholera spirillum was pres !
ent in enormous numbers at the end !
Of four days at depth of a metre and |
was still found in smaller numbers at |
the end of twelve days, but had dis |