The evening times., 1896-12-26
PLEA FOR STRINGENT LAW
Health Officers Effort to Prevent
Spread Of COntagion.
wOrthington Case Likely to Cause
Temporary Increase OF Diph.
iberia in Herbert Court.

The circumstances attending the death
on Thursday evening OF Henrietta Worth
ington, the young colored girl who resided
in Herbert court, are regarded by the health
officials as insuring a number OF addi.
tional cases of diphtheria in that vicinity
and probably in other sections.
From all accounts, the officers say, the
girl had been i'll OF the disease for several
weeks, or at any rate long enough for the
case to develop, become malignant and
prove fatal, and during that time she had
no medical attention. She was likewise
bereft of mothers care, and without
doubt her ncighbors, possibly ignorant OF
the character OF the disease, were in and
out OF her room, ministcring as they could
to her needs.
There is now no way OF determining just
how many others were thus brought in con
tact with virulent case of the conta gion.
nor how many cases may be hereafter at
tributabic to such contact.
Herbert court has not many houses in 1t
and all are small frame tenements, hut
near at hand is another similar court, and
the residents of the two intermingle.
The wortmngton case is the second one
recently from the same eneighbgrtOod, which
mas proven ldldi il'IlutT HAVING idt L4ittiI-
cal attention. This tends to produce more
serious phase of the disease, and accounts
for the fact that recently the ratio Of IA
tality from the contaEion has Increased.
In speaking of this matter the health
officials say that when promptly ad-
vised of the presence OF the disease in
locality, they are able TO control i readily
and say also that the death rate may be
thus kept at low figure. They are not,
however, able to cope with 1t as long as
cases are concealed.
IL is believed that occasionally a physi-
clan assists IN keeping the existence of a
case from the public and the health depart
ment. but without particulars the charge
cannot be substantiated. People object to
being quarantined, and the placing OF q
blue card at the front door is in many in
stances the subject of protest.
The conditions are thus made favorable
for the spread OF the conta gion, and when,
as has many times occurred, persons af
flicted with diphtheria and members OF
their household have mingled freely with
the residents OF the community before be-
ing detected, the health inspectors are
poweriess.
There is a penalty prescribed for viola
ton OF the law, but it seems to possess
no terrors to mauy, who, for reasons yari-
Gus, do not desire to be isolated, and the
community suffers the consequences of
numberiess infractions of the regulations
1t is to render the law more efficient
against the spread of diphtheria, scarlet
fever and other Zymotic diseases that
Health Officer Woodward has asked of
Congress the enactment OF sundry amend
ments which are now pending. 1t is un-
derstood he will request of the Commits
sioners a strong Endorsement of the meas
ure when it shall come before them for
consideration.
Herbert court and its immediate neigh
borhood are to be kept under close obser
vation as long as it is possible for other
diphtheuretic cases to develop from either
the worthington child's illness or from that
OF the Braxton child, buried from Bland
alley a short time previously.
There are now fifty-five houses under
quarantine, notwithstanding the large num-
Der released from surveillance daily, and
the fear is that within a short time the
number will be increased by reason of the
developments from the Worthington child's
illness