San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1896-07-21
APPEAL FOR PLUMBING IN
SPECTION.

San Antonio, Tex, July 20, 1896.
TO the Honorable Mayor and City
Council, City of San Antonio:
Gentlemen:-The undersigned in be-
half of the local association of Master
Plumbers of this city would respect
fully ask your honorable body to APP
point a plumbing inspector and begs
to submit the following reasons: In
November, 1892, the city of San An
tonic passed as complete set of rules
and regulations governing plumbing
as can be found i'm any city of the
Union. These have in theirmost essen
tial points been the guide and rule of
the master plumbers in the city, owing
to tacit understanding among them
selves that they would comply with
the requirements of the city ordinance
in figuring on work whether so called
for or not. but of what avail is this
to the health of the city, when any of
you gentlemen of the council follow
this rule and your next door neighbor
builds home, having for architect
superintendent and contractor or
builder, one and the same person?
Now this style of contractor as a rule
knows more about the plumbing than
the practical plumber. The result is your
work in this most essential point is
done regardless of any sanitary rules
and laws; nobody to inspect his own
work.
In this connecticut can show you an
instance where the owner had his
plumbing included in the general con-
tract, his physician was called in to
treat one of his children for typhoid
fever. On examination it was found
that his water closet was connected
to q cess pool without any vent what
ever, the entire accumulation of the
human excrements, filth and kitchen
water enjoying into this foul sickness
breeding BOle, venting itself direct in
to his house. Now, gentlemen of the
city council, who is to blame for many
such cases? Can any of you gentle
men give solitary reason why the
city of San Antonio should have any
complaints of this character? In this
regard beg to refer you to any physi-
clan of San Antonio. Ask Drs. Herff
Sem, or Jun, your city physician or
assistant; of the new school, ask Drs
Jones or Bliem, in fact / am willing
to submit to any doctor, and my as
sertion will be found true, that 80
per cent of zymotic diseases are caus-
ed by defective plumbing. Has it ever
occurred strange to any of you that
we are prone to raise Cain and send
in daily reports to your health officer
if dead cat is found near our prem
Uses or little garbage is not hauled
away, whilst at the same time in our
very homes these silent gases are al
lnv 70 xvAr,f Int
sickness and death in their wake, but
you will argue that the public should
know the laws, offering also that the
city has no money to pay an inspector.
The right of a municipal corpora
ton to enact laws for the welfare of
the people is not disputed In this
matter, how far are you required to
90 or where you may stop? You may
stop nowhere short of affOrding every
citizen the fullest protection in the
accumulation and enjoyment of his
property, the amplest protection of his
person and the enjoyment of the best
health which legislation can guaran-
tee.
1t would be a thoughtless if not
, reckless board of mayor and aldermen
who failed to provide an ample quar-
antine against the invasion of epidem-
ic diseases which come overland by
rail and river; would it not be as
much so to fail to provide against a
more insidious disease and deadly
contagion, which comes by stealth
through underground ways spreading
disease and death in its track? This
is not fancy. 1t is fact.
Scientific experts will tell you that
more mounds hide the victims of sew
er gas than are chargeable to all open
atmospheric epidemic combined.
If our city fathers require any proof
of this assertion, and that it is appli-
cable to our own fair city, l will pro-
duce the evidence from creditable
physicians, taxpayers and citizens of
San Antonio; in fact any physician
will tell you that in their experience,
when coming in contact with zymOtic
diseases the fault can be traced to the
unsanitary condition of the locality.
As before stated If any foul odor can
be detected on account of any dead
animal vegetation in the near vicin-
ity. the health officer is Immediately
notified, and the cause removed, but
what of the odorless and deadly gases
from the sewers.-Medical science has