The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1896-12-04
MOTHERS
ALARMED.
Took Their Children Into the
Midst of Diphtheria
Without Knowing What the
Disease Was.
DOZEN CHILDREN
We're Exposed and Now There
Is a Fright.
All the Children Kept at Home
For Development.

People living on Klein and State
streets in the vicinity Of the Santa Fe
shops are greatly excited about the ex-
posure of large number of children to
a case of malignant diphtheria. No less
than a dozen children We're exposed.
Whether the exposures were due to the
negligence or ignorance OF physicians can
not now be told Tt is certain that q child
died with diphtheria and public funeral
was held and the death is reported as re-
sulting from membraneous Group.
Early last week the 5-year-old son of
Andrew Ida. who lives at $50 Walnut
street. was taken sick A physician was
not summoned at once and the child con-
tinued to grow worse. When a doctor
was called he pronounced the disease
membraneOus Group
last Tuesday evening after being sick for
a week he died An undertaken was
bOrs came in to assist and there was no
restriction vzhafever lThe bodv was
placed in coffin for the funeral which
was to take place next day.
In the meantime a younger child in the
was held and the neighbors came in to
attend, bringing their small children with
fever. but it was not suspected what the
disease was from which it was suffering.
worse and City Physician Mitchell was
called. He informed the parents that the
disease was diphtheria and sent Sanitary
sergeant toWlef TO quarantine the mousse
Sergeant Fowler secured the names OF
as many OF the women who attended the
funeral as possible and he found that the
following with small children were there.
MIS-: Ihompsso9nq s9q OF 2Uf klein street MIS-
Robinson OF Z0l Klein street. Mrs Gallo
way OF 26 State street; Mrs. Langley OF
28 State street: Mrs Lowe. who also
lives on State street. Mrs SperlocN of
205 Klein street, and Mrs. HeDenphal,
whose number the officers do not know
Mrs Thompson, who lives at Oaklamd,
also attended the funeral with child.
who has been attending the Oakland
Sanitary Sergeant Fowler started out
at once to notify the women of the true
situation. An of them appeared very
had children who had been attending
school, but they promised to keep them
at home until all danger OF the contagion
Sergeant Fowler did not find Mrs.
Thompson, who lives in Oakland. but he
wrote letter to Principal LudevTig OF
the Oakland schools giving him the his
tory OF the case and requesting lnat he
exercise caution.
The people in the neighborhood natur-
ally blame the exposure of their children
to the physicians who attended the case
but City Physician Mitchell is more chari-
He says that diphtheria and membran-
eOuS Group may exist together without
ease being apparent 1t may exist deep
down in the srachea-' he said II d!d
know nothing about it but the case T
was called to see yesterday is plain
found it the house was quarantined-n
The last physician called TO see the
case was Charles Hammond. VINO IS all
tending the Medical college and is in the
office of DR.. S. 2. Sheldon. He has
physicians certificate, emitting him 10
practice He saw the case onlN twice
and that was after the disease was far
advanced. He was not at the office to-
day but Dr. Sheldon made the following
statement:
CDR Hammond was called to see the
case but twice. He told me that ne
thought the case was membraneous Group
but Group and diphtheria may be so
closely assimilated as to deceive the old
est practitioner DR. Weekes. who saw
the case before DR.. Hammond. was called
also pronounced it membraneous Group
I think that DR.. Hammond was not 20
blame for it is very difficult to distin-
guish between the diseases.