The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-10-08
ST. MARYS STRICKEN.
Forty-three Cases ofDiphtheria,
Thirteen Deaths
In Three Weeks-Schools Are
All Closed.
is VERY MALIGNANT.
Six Pupils in One School Room
Died.
The Energetic Little Town
Fighting the Disease.
s VERY MALIGNANT.


For three weeks past diphtheria, in
malignant form, has prevailed in st.
Marys, % miles west of Topeka on the
Union Pacific, and in the parochial and
protestant cemeteries are thirteen newly
made mounds and ten families miss the
childish prattle of these little ones.
The first death occurred September 13
and Sunday evening, October 9, the thir-
teenth child died. There have been 43
cases. The percentage of deaths is
about g.
The first child that died had attended
the public school and all the deaths that
followed, of those Of school age, had
attended in the same school room
Two of the public school departments
are located in the parochial school build
ing for convenience, while the rest OF
the city schools are in Il building IN an
other portion of the city.
BY order of the school board the first
rooms were Immediately closed and the
public schools the week following.
A STATE JOURNAL reporter visited ST.
Marys yesterday and gathered facts in
come ction with the methods adopted TO
stamp out the plague, the closing OF the
city schools aad the quarantins prevail
ing.
From a sanitary and hygienic stand
point St. Marys Is admirably located,
with hills to the rear and natural slope
10 the Kansas river
This gives splendid drainage, for
there is no sewerage system. no decay
ing vegetation nor malaria breeding frog
ponds on the town site, while the wells
are sunk to gravel bed and the water
pure and clear as mountain streams.
n fact there are no conditions IN and
around St. Marys that should cause an
epidemic of diphtheria. if the theory that
the disease arises from poor drainage,
poorer water aud miserable sanitary
regulations, is true.
On the point of the origin of the
diphtheria prevailing there is differ
ence of opinion. Some of the citizens
hold that visiting family from the
south had brought the disease to the
city.
The citizens are hopeful, however,
that they have the disease now under
control, but it has taken a united pull
from everyone.
The public school board continued
One-half of the schools week after the
Infection broke out but few of the par
ents allowed their children to attend and
the board closed the schools.
A prominent merchant said: sit would
have been foolish TO have kept the
schools running with only half attend
ance. For when those that are out come
back they are away behind their classes
and it makes terrible mixture"
Dr. George Miller a member of the
board of health, gave the history of the
disease from its inception to the present
time.
Il hardly know what to attribute our
affliction to-" he said. sour sanitary
conditions are of the best and great care
has been taken to suppress the disease
yet thirteen have died out of forty-three
cases and nine children are sick at the
present time.
The first case that know of was in
the family of Mr. ]. @. BauerIn where I
was called on Friday morning Septem-
ber 13, and that same evening the little
boy died.
"The little boy had been suffering
with membraniOus Group, SO the parents
thought, for three days previous but it
proved to be malignant diphtheria of
the worst type.
.'He had attended the public school,
two rooms of which are located in the
parochial school building where the
Catholic schools are held.
~ on must understand that St Marys
was formerly Jesuit mission and large
parochial institutes are located here.
"The public school building is in an
other part of the city.
son Friday evening the child died and
on Monday the two rooms of the public
school in the parochial building were
closed by order of the school board and
the next evening the parochial authori-
ties closed their schools
"As no cases had appeared among
scholars that we're attending the public
school building those departments were
kept open the rest of the week, but with
greatly diminished attendance
"At the close of the week several
deaths had happened, so the school
board and citizens deemed it best to dis
miss all of the schools and it was ac.
cordingly done.
"Six of the children that died were of
school age and attended in the same
room where the first boy that died went
"Ihe other pupils were under school
age, but one or two were in families that
attended the school department mention
ed This is the list of deaths: Two in
the family of J. G. Bauerlin: John Ger
des, 2; Jim Linn, 2; Martin Lee. /: John
Ernst, /; Andrew EgCer, l; John Sack. /.
Henry Traber, l; B. Arkenberg, I; Jim
Farrell, 1.
"The children that died suffered
severely. The glands of the throat were
swollen enormously and stranguIatiou
and spasms occurred. Dr. Mum. of To.
peka, was called in one case and agreed
that it was the worst form of diphtheria.
"Our quarantine was observed very
strictly. Whenever red card appeared
that house was stunned as if thew had
smallpox or yellow fever, and no com
munication was allowed with the outer
world.
There is no telling how many might
have died If the schools had not closed al
once. And in closing the schools think