The Washington times., 1895-02-12
PARKER, BRIDGET & CO.,
315 7th ST. N. w.
WOMEN HELP THE CAUSE.

New Sewer System Advocates Addressed
Mothers, Wives, and Sweethearts.
Several hundred prominent society women
formed an interested and highly intelligent
audience at the rooms of the Washington
Club ITO 1 street, yesterday afternoon, when
DR.. S. G. Busey, president of the Medical So
| ciety, took the platform to demonstrate 10
them the necessity of immediate action look
ing to the extension and improvement OF the
sewer and water systems of the District.
| BY the aid OF numerous maps and charts,
| highly colored tables and whole library OF
| statistics. he went on to show that Ph1ladel-
| phia, Washington and Chicago have the
| highest rate of mortality from typhoid lever
and dlphtheria of any OF the largo cities IN
| the country. That there is a certain remedy
| for this state of affairs, he contends, oEiy
shows that il is nothing short OF criminal
negligence to let it continue so. Tuberculo-
sis, he asserted, cannot be cotton entirely rid
of, but the other dread diseases which carry
! off annually 150 citizens of Washington can
be entirely eradicated by a proper system OF
! sewerage.
He called upon the citizens TO rise in
body and demand an appropriation OF S.
| 100000 from Congress, such sum TO be eX-
pended In tearing up sewers which have be-
come worthless through old age and other
causes. replacing them with the latest sys-
TEN of sewerage, such, for instance. as mas
recently been adopred in Chicago and for
which S25, Goa, 900 have just been appropriated
by the city government. DR.. Busey would
have the discharge pipes carried at least two
miles down the Eastern Branch and emptied
there, SO there would not be the slightest
chance of the lower part OF the city becoming
contaminated as il is now by the sewers
which empty at the foot of the city.
The death rate in that part of the city is
much higher than in any other section, ex-
cept IN those parts which are thickly dotted
with pumps, which the doctor classed as
being nearly as dangerous as defective
sewers
With a last appeal to those present to bestir
themselves in the matter and delivering g
parting shot by telling the ladies present that
ninety-nine out of a hundred deaths result.
ing from typhus and diphtheria were young
children, he took his seat amidst loud ap-
plause.
DIR. Johnston followed with little tall
which in substance amounted TO what haC
gone before. He gave some Interesting sta
tistics in regard to the amounts expended by
the largest cities in the world for their sewer
age systems. Berlin he considerers one o
best drained cities while the vast sums ex
! pended by London and in this country by
Boston and New York on their sewers have
placed them in the front rank as model cities
Upon MIR. johnston taxing his seat, Mrs
". Il. Browne rose and offered the following
resolution viz:
"Resolyed. That the chairman of this meet
ing appoint a committee of ladies 70 prepar,
petition and submit the same to Congress
setting forth the necessity for immediate
action in providing water and sewerage 70
many sec ions of the District where the wate
is obtained from pumps and where there ii
practically no drainage, for repairing anC
enlarging many old sewers which are imper
feet or too small TO answer the purpose TO
which they were intended.
1.-The existing danger to health and life from
typhoid fever and other kindred diseases ha:
been explained in the ablest and most forci
bic manner for many months past by oul
most able pra titoners in medicine amoDj
! the families whom they have visited, and il
, public lectures by the accomplished presi
dent of the Medical society of the District o
Columbia. and by committees of the Senat
and House of Representatives, yet nothing
has been done 10 remedy evils which may a
any time bring disaster and disgrace upol
the community"
After vote of thanks TO Drs. Busey ant
Johnston, which was proposed by Mis-
! Cabell and unanimously acted upon. III
meeting adjourned until tomorrow (Wednes
day at 2:30 p. M. by which time Mrs. Brown
hopes to have enrolled her committee, which
however, will not be limited to seven, q
advised in the resolution.
Among the other prominent ladies seen il
the audience were Mrs. B. II. Warner, Mrs
Ffolke, Mrs. Tiffany, Mrs. Sweat, Mrs Sena
tor Hawley, Mrs. Capt. McNmr, Mrs. J. Hut
ley Ashton, Mrs. and Miss Newcomb.