The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1897-11-05
A PROTEST FROM THE PEOPLE
OF MOSS POINT.
Editor n, ,hc pcmocrat-star.

wv tStl th'k
Point and the six hundred square
miles OF territory covered by what Is
called the "Dees quarantine" have a
Just cause Of complaint against the
editor OF the DEMoCRAT-STAR. In
the first place we wish to call your
attention to the fact, that from the
very beginning of the yellow fever in
Scranton you have condemned the
'x.spurts, and also your own author
tiles for allowing them to come into
your town; yet, perhaps, in the very
next line you condemn Moss Point for
not allowing the ''x-spurts" Ia our
town. -.
Several weeks since you charged
that your mills were stopped, and
your laborers were idle and hungry
because quarantine had prevented
logs floating down the river. yet when
| wrote You, and showed that 1t was
for want Of rain and a high water
river, and not our quarantine, that
prevented the floating Of logs, you
would not print my statement. Every
rumor you see in any paper, or hear
on your streets you seem eager TO
print. In last weeks paper you no
tice in your local columns, in two
places, that fine collins were sent up
here. and by this same spirit some
hOodlum at Scranton wrote on the
smaller coffin the name OF the daugll-
ter Of one Of our most efficient quar-
antine officers. A relative IN Scran.
ton saw or heard of this and wrote to
the grandmother Of the little girl,
way up in the northern part Of this
county, and you can imagine the sad
results, when in fact the little girl
has never been sick. You and the
''sorrel topped correspondent of 9TH
err papers from Scranton, have killed
and buried a Miss Thompson" here
half a dozen times, yet from diligent
inquiry cannot even find that there
has been any such girl or lady here.
Now, Bro. Mayors, we have from
five to ten times us many inhabitants
as your place has. Owing to fresh
water, marshes and other causes of
malaria on Pascagoula and Dog rivers,
ana towns and other sections cannot
lay claim to be as healthy as Scran-
ton, P%ascagoula, Biloxi and other
places washed by the salt sea waters.
You and all your subscribers know,
that should yellow fever once start
here there would follow a repetition
Of 1895, and we have five to ten times
as many very poor people, dependent
on their daily labor than Scranton
has. For these and other reasons an
epidemic of yellow fever here would
have been appalling, and instead Of
being able to aid, as we are now, our
sister towns, we would now be plead
Ing to the world for help, and would
have been compelled to have had
many thousands Of dollars, hundreds
Of nurses and dozens of doctors to
help US fight the plague.
In order to prevent this terrible
calamity our people and the State
Board Of Health established and are
maintaining a quarantine, which |
assure you has, up to this time, been
a grand success, and if we can man
age to keep out both the yellow fever
aud your "X.spurts' until frost, and
keep our mills going, 50 that as soon
as quarantine is raised, all your steve
dores and merchants can and will
have good business from here; then If
You aud your people are fair.minded
and want to do right, you will all feel
as proud over our success us we do,
and will.
Now, Colonel, you make an under
banded fling, aud try to discourage
our guards by saying that you learn
when in fact you did not believe a
word Of it) that the State Board had
or would refuse to pay the bees quar-.
antine guards, and that an effort was
being made to try to get the Board of
TO pay them. Now, this
IS like all your other ''mcn of straw"
and can be brushed away with a
breath. But as your paper is only a
weekly, this false report goes out and
has a week to do harm before the truth
can oycrtake it. The facts and truth
are as follows:
Previous to September Goth, at
which time | received my commits
sion, Sheriff Moore and Health Officer
by request of the people of
scranton, and by order Of the Board
Supervisors put our guards between
scranton and Ocean Springs, Barley,
etc. At that time all ScrantonianS
we're loyal "quarantiners." About
Sept. 18th, by request of citizens of
Moss Point and other places, guards
we're placed by Sheriff Moore and DR..
.ell between Scranton and Moss
Point, and also against Mobile. Not
Wishing to assume authority too fast,
did not remove any of these guards,
put in making out my pay roll Ito our
state Board Of Healthy for SeptenI-
Der, l put In the time OF most of these
guards from Sept. Goth up to Oct. LIST,
md will In time see that they are
paid. Ever since l took charge and
rave these men time on my State time
BOOK, for their services AFTER Sept.
.0th l have been trying TO get the
Board or supervisors to pay theirOwn
aired men, for their services BEFORE
Sept. goth. i had no interest in this,
to see that the men got their
Day, and l can't see where there was
my crime nthat,
About Oct, Sd | finished my pay roll
or September and mailed lit to Jack.
son. via New Orleans. A few days
! t%elegraplled the Board,
md they answered that the health au-
OF the city of Jackson would
lot admit any mail matter from New
orleans, and for that reason had not
'eceived my pay roll, but as soon as
'eceiyed they would send to me the
Section 1854 Of our Code pro-
'ides that the Auditor shall not issue
lis pay warrant for the expenS es of
Board or Health or quarantine,
Until such bills are certified to by the
and Secretary of the Board,
approved by the Governor, hence
delay In getting the money for the
But as the President and
secretary have telegraphed me several
lines that they would send the money
IS soon as the bills are received. and
IS the Governor writes me that lie
VIII do all he can for it, it seems no
me but n whose wishes are father
% his thought, can have any question