Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1895-11-19
STATE HOUSE.
Third Quarterly Meeting of
the State Board of Health.
Secretary Young Reports on Diph-
liberia and School Ventilation.
Other Matters Of Vital Importance Brought
Up for Discussion.
STATE HOUSE.

The third quarterly meeting of the State
board Of health was held at the State
House. Monday, all the members but one,
being present.
The secretary reported on his visit to
Rockland in connection with the outbreak
of diphtheria and stated that nearly all of
the cases appeared among children who
attended one particular school and that
undoubtedly, this school outbreak Of diph-
| iberia was due to the attendance of chill
dren from homes in which cases of throat
disease were at the same time present, and
which had not been pronounce ed diphtherla
by the attending physician. and had not
been reported to the local board of health.
He further reported on his visit to West
brook for the purpose of advising the local
beard of health and the school board in re
gard to sanitary improvements in one of
the school buildings in that city.
Much time was spent in the discussion
of anti toxin, its present status, its value
what action on the part of the board is
now advisable and practicable. As the
accumulated statistics show that the NOR
tality in cases of diphtheria in which the
diphtheritic anti toxin has been used. has
been diminished so per cent or more, by
means of this agent; and, as with further
experience as to dosage and the technique
of its use, the later results are rather bet
ter than those reported earlier, it is the
sense of the board that anti toxin is not
used in so many cases of diphtheria in
this State as 1t deserves to be, and that in
many cases in which it is used, it is not
used early enough. 1t was therefore de
cided to determine what the board can
effect in establishing agencies for promot
ing the better distribution of anti-toxin
and for rendering it more Immediately
available In some parts of the State now
too remote from sources of supply.
The secretary made statement alb
stracted from recent literature on the sub
iect as to the trustworthiness of Formic
Aldehyde as disinfectant. The secretary
was authorized TO arrange for testing the
efficacy of this agent bacte riologically, and
in connection with the work OF actually
disinfectlpg rooms.
One correspondent of the board had pro
pounded a question whether coIored tissue
papers which are so frequently used by
children in dressing dolls, and otherwise
In their plays contain anything poisonous
The question being submitted to Prof.
Robinson, he replied that he had always
found that these tissue papers have been
colorcd with harmless dye stuffs.
A portion of tin fruit can, which had
been corroded by the fruit which 1t con
tanned, was also submitted, and the opin
ion was expressed that there Is some dan
ger in that direction, and that eventually,
the canning of fruits and other food pro
ducts will have to be under control, not
only in the interest of consumers, but also
in the interests of the industries them
selves
The president of the state board Of health
of one of our leading states. in compli-
menting the Sanitary Inspector, writes:
II have most of the current sanitary pub
locations of the country, and while 1T is
true that may publications have valuable
statistics and much of the sanitary science
of the times, am compelled to say that, in
what pertains to practical knowledge in
the great domain of modern sanitary
| science, the Inspector is in the front rank.