Evening star., 1896-12-07

a general alarm has called the entire fire
department TO one section of the city other
hres have occurred i'm parts o. the District
remote from the scene of the first alarm
and ii may well be expected that such a
concurrence or fires may exist as to divide
tie available resources of the d.partmenr
so as TO render it, as ii now consists. in
capable OF meeting the demands unon IL
a better equipment Of the District fire de.
partment is, therefore, imperatiyeiy de-
nlanded by the common sense precautions
"hich would govern any business man IN
regard to his own affairs.
The superintendent of Charities.
The interest which has been shown in re-
gard TO public charity administration I'm
the District. and the discussion had upon
the subject during the last session of Con-
eress, render the report of the superintend-
ent OF charities upon the branch of the
public service under his supervision of
more than usual Importance.
Public Schools.
The reports of the officers i'm charge of
the public schools show the increasing i'm
portance and usefulness of the public school
system of the District. The Commissioners
recommend a continuance of the wise and
generous treatment this branch of the gov
ernment has received.
Health Department.
The work of the health department is
clearly and carefully stated IN the report
of the health officer, and the attention OF
Congress is invited to his important recon-.
mendations, in which the Commissioners
concur.
IL is a cause of much regret that the
gratifying decrease i'm the death rate re-
ported last year-the lowest for twenty
years-has not been maintained, although
still below that of any year prior TO 1856.
hn VI 1nal lsT II. fla.- frg., III
causes was 5.9oI, increase of RIB over
that of the previous year, and an increase
i'm the death rate on the whole population
from 29.51 TO 21.44. The increas, in ths
death rate for the white population, esti-
mated at 1S7.6oo, from l6.97 to l16l
and for the colored, estimated at 81 aoa
was from isis to % ~. OF this increased
number of deaths, 211 or about 60 per cent
were from zymotic diseases. the whole
number of deaths from this class of disease,
being 1,2i1 of which 693 were white and
BOD colored, an increase in the death rate
from this class of diseases of u..3 for the
whites and of l07 for the colored popula.
tion. OF the whole mortality i'm this elias.
the health officer reports that 81 per cent
occurred among children under five years
of age, and that three-fourths of these
were in their first year
The principal causes of deaths In this
class is stated:
Measles 80 deaths Cl1 white and 30 COL
oredl: dipntheria, a. deaths 6G white and
colored); typhoid fever, DDS deaths Q3S
white and 90 colored): malarial fever ~
deaths al white and +3 colHred); la grippe
(epidenc infuenzal, - deaths C2i white
and - colored); diarrhael diseases. 4GS
deaths (23I white and III coored), and
scarlet fever, 13 deaths 90 white and 2
colored)."
OF the DDS deaths from typhoid fever
13I occurred between June 30 and January
Z, of which 30 were in October. November
| and December. The total increase for the
! whole year, however. was only H. There
were reported among the whites 2Sti cases
of diphthera 65 of which were fatal. and
| among the colorcd, a. cases, 10 of which
were fatal. The decrease in the numper
| 1891 to l1.Si. has been due almost entirely
says the health officer, to the rrmarkdbl
and unaccountable decrease in the preva-
lence of the disease among the colored peo-
! pie. The decrease, however. in the general
| percentage Of fatal cases, from B9Sl To
2?.31, has resulted chiefly from the dimir-
| fshed fatality of the disease among the
whites from $50 TO %
Two hundred and eighty-onc cases of
| scarlet fever were reported among the
whites, Of which 10 were fatal; - among
| the colored. OF which were fatal. There
! has beer a decrease in the propcrtionate
| number of cases among both races during
the last three years; the very conSdera-
| be increase in the fatality of the disease
| among the colored people, from 4Ii to H.
| has, however, produced a slight Increase
| in The percentage of fatal cases.
| These valuable statistics furnished by
the health officer confirm and render more
prominent the fact TO which the Cormis-
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