The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1895-09-18
Report of the Citizens Sanitary Com
mittee Unanimously EndOrsed-Ses-
sion OF Health Board Yesterday.
Amount of DisinfeCtants Available.

There were present at yester-
days meeting of the Board of
Health President Smith, Drs. Day,
Wood, Emerson, Cooper and Smith,
members Lansing, Waterhouse, Ke-
liipio, and Minister Hatch, Hack
field, Rev. Serene Bishop, McChes-
ney, Crowley, Heron, W. F. Allen,
Wight, Rev. Birnie, Lowrey, Con
salves, Willis, Alexander, Nc
CandIess. Gear, Kinney, Dilling-
ham, Henry Wate<house, A. w.
Carter, DR.. Nichols, Capt. Camp
bell, J. F. Brown, L. A. Thurston,
Austin, Atherton and Rowell.
The meeting was opened by Pre-
sident Smith reading the following
report of the Citizens Sanitary
Committee regarding a general
cleaning up of the city:
Honolulu, H. l., Sept. II, 1895.
w. o. SMITH, President Board of
Health;
SIR:-At q meeting of the Board of
Health held on Sunday the 18th inst.
the subject of taking further measures
to stamp out the cholera was dis
cussed.
There seemed to be a unanimity
of feeling that, while the cholera was
now we'll in hand, so long as the
SOIIroaS of infp0tiOn ran0ainad fhorQ
was danger of renewed outbreaks at
intervals, which would continue the
necessity for quarantine and inspec-
ton and the injury to business and
menace to life. 1t seemed also to be
agreed that the two main sources of
probable contagiOn, now existing,
were Cd the water In certain lOcali-
ties; and (2) infected clothing and
buildings.
One reason for believing the latter
to be q source OF infection is, that
among the large number of cases con-
cealed until after death, the clothing
and personal belongings of the de-
ceased have in most instances been
concealed, manifestly for the purpose
of preventing their destruction. The
fact that this clothing has been scat
tered about the town is undoubtedly
one of the causes of the isolated and
otherwise unaccounted for cases in
localities entirely separated from any
infection.
The method of neutralizing these
two sources of infection was referred
to two committees for consideration
and report by way of suggestion to
the Board.
The committee on infected clothing
and buildings, consisting of the under
signed, report, that they have con-
suited the Citizens Sanitary Commit
tee, and the inspectors acting in con-
junction with them, as well as others,
and this report has their approval.
Among other matters which have
come to the committees attention, is
the fact that during the past two
weeks, large majority of the cases
have originated west of Nuuanu street
and makai of the line of School street;
and, with exceptions, all of the cases
during the last five days have five
days have originated in the Palama
and Kalihi section of the town.
Under these circumstances, there
has been considerable discussion of
the propriety of strictly quarantin-
ing that section and allowing no one
to come out for given period.
The conclusion was reached, how
ever, that this had better not be at
tempted, TOR three reasons, VIZ:
ID The Board of Health has already
either destroyed or thoroughly disin-
fected all buildings and premises in
which any cholera patients have been
located, and quarantined all other Oc-
cupants of the buildings; and, in Wal
piIopilo, has removed from the district
and placed in quarantine the entire
settlement, amounting to over sixty
people.
~ The Palama section is the most
difficult of any in town to effectually
quarantine. It is divided by only two
main streets, Liliha and King streets,
while it is intersected with numerous
narrow, crooked lanes and blind al
Ieys, with large portions intersected by
swamps, springs and bitches, and hav-
ing no means of communication eX-
cept long, narrow, rice and tarO patch
banks.
The cholera cases have been on both
sides Of King aud Liliha streets. The
quarantiuiug of the infected locality
would therefore require line having
no natural boundary, or else one in
cludIng q large portion of uniufected
territory. In either case 1t would be
difficult To efectu4liy carry it out. II
the disease should increase in the
future it may be necessary to further
reconsider this subject, but, under eX-
listing circumstances, the committee
does not see its way clear TO recon-
mend such q step al present.