The record-union., 1897-09-13

fected Districts Outside.
NEW ORLEANS, Sept. 12.-Shortly
before noon to-day, the Board OF
Health officially declared six of the
suspicious cases of fever on st. Claude
street to be yellow fever. a couple of
hours subsequently the board an
nounced another pronounced case of
yellow fever at Miro and Esplanade
streets. also in the lower part OF the
city but a mile or more away from the
infected square.
The announcement Of the first SIX
cases of yellow fever was not uneX-
pected although it was hoped from the
delay on the part of the experts these
cases were simply of bilious malaria
No general alarm has resulted here,
although the news rapidly spread
through the city. The authorities do
not believe that the situation is mater
tally worse than it was four or five days
ago and they are still confident Of their
ability, with modern sanitary appH-
ances, successfully to quarantine the
infected districts The official bulle-
tin of the Board of Experts declaring
the St Claude street cases to be yell
low fever was received by President Oh
iphant soon after Il o'clock. DR.. OIL
phant Immediately sent for members of
the press and gave out the report which
was signed by Drs. Lemmonier, Tou-
atre. Bickham, Petit and Farham, of
the Board of Experts and DR.. Devron,
the attending physician. The report
was as follows:
We the undersigned physicians, who
from time to time have examined the
twelve cases of fever on St. Claude
street between CIouet and Louisa, find
six to be yellow fever, four of whom are
convalescent. There are no other
cases"
OF the twelve original cases, all of
which had their origin from case
that had come from Ocean Springs, the
six other than those reported to-day
as yellow fever were announced this
afternoon to be practically well, up
walking about their homes. OF the
six pronounced yellow fever, four are
convalescent and two were declared to
be critically i'll, one of these having suf-
fered a relapse since yesterday.
Among the suspicious cases reported
yesterday was that of a boy named
Royal, living at Miro and Esplanade
streets. Three doctors We're sent to
make a careful observation of the case.
This afternoon they pronounced it to be
unquestionably yellow fever, and as
having apparently had its origin in
Scranton, Miss, or in the vicinity of
that town As soon as the report was
received the Board of Health took
charge of the house, quarantined the
inmates, placed guards SO that no one
might come within close proximity to
the premises and set to work thorough
ly to disinfect the neighborhOOd. A
brother of the patient. who had left the
premises some time before the official
announcement, was given a permit to
return, but orders We're issued that IN
der no circumstances to let him or any
member of the household again leave
the premises.
To a correspondent of the Associated
Press, President Oliphant said this af-
ternoon: "Of course, 1 have made this
announcement of the existence of sew
eral cases of yellow fever in New Or
leans with sincere regret, but there was
no alternative left me under my pledge
TO keep faith with the public here and
elsewhere. I do not think. however,
there is occasion here for serious alarm
unless conditions shall grow materially
worse We shall have to await de-
velOpments.
An earlier announcement of the di-
agnosis of the St. Claude-street cases
was not possible. The Board of Ex-
perts. which is composed of able eff
cient and experienced physicians had
made repeated visits to these patients
but they insisted that they should be
allowed their own time within which to
make complete diagnosis. They de-
sired to be perfectly sure before pro-
nouncing the sickness to be yellow fe-
Yer They reached a conclusion as
soon as it was practicable and four
days ago they warned the country that
all of the twelve cases were suspicious.
Personally, I am unable to say
whether or not the cases are Of a mild
or severe type. The absence of NOR
tality would seem to indicate that they
are in the former class. That there has
been no spread would seem to strength
en- that view. I have no reason to
doubt, however. that the complete san
itation of the neighborhOod instituted
by The board and the rigid quarantine
enforced has gone a long way towards
restricting the disease to the St. Claude
street square in which the cases orig
mated, and I take hope from this fact
that we shall still be able to confine
the fever within its present limits. The
situation is certainly no worse than it
was four or five days ago for the dis
ease, being yellow fever then, must be
now.
we have now had a total of eight
cases and one death, the origin of all
of which may be traced to the infected
towns on the Mississippi Coast They
may all be classed as importations
I see no occasion for any panic in
New Orleans The general health of
the city is good, and it is rapidly be-
ing put in fine sanitary condition.
There is no present apprehension of an
epidemic. and I have reason to hope
that we shall continue TO be masters
of the situation"
A number Of additional suspicious
cases were again reported TO the Board