The record-union., 1898-08-09
DISEASE IN IMPURE WATER.
IMPORTANT REPORT TO THE
CITY TRUSTEES.
Facts Which Should Silence ALI
Howlers for the River
Water.

was last night submitted to the City
Trustees. 1t is on the subject of water
for domestic purposes, and embodeS
the results of Investigations made oy
Dr. A. NJ. Henderson, DR.. I. w. Hunt
ington, DR.. Thomas Ross and City
Trustees F. F. Tebbets and j. II.
Dolan.
WHAT THE COMMITTEE SAY:
To the Honorable Board of Trustees
and members of the Health Depart
ment Of the city of Sacramento-Gen-
tlemen: Your committee appointed TO
investigate the cause of the prevalence
of typhoid fever in Sacramento during
the months of March. April and May, to
consider means of checking its further
development and preventing the occur
renee of similar outbreaks in the fu-
ture, respectfully submit the following
report:
Typhoid fever is germ disease. Dur
ing an attack of the disease, the germ
occupies the intestinal tract in which it
reproduces itself very rapidly. The
passages from the bowels accordingly
contain the germs in great numbers
Experiments have been made to find
if the germs were to be found in the
gases emanating from these passages
and the results were negative. If they
are not to be found in these gases we
most certainly cannot expect to find
them in the gaseous eGnanations from
sewers.
However, these faecal discharges are
often allowed to dry in vessels or on
clothing and the dried particles con-
tanning the germs may be taken up by
draughts of air and so spread the con-
tagion. This indeed is not common
mode of infection and certainly not a
manner in which an epidemic is pro-
duced. On the contrary, the faecal dis
charge is enptied into a ceSSpool or
sewer. The cesspool may be located
close to a well or other source Of water
supply which in turn may become in
fected. In small towns such is the man
ner in which an epidemic is produced.
The sewer may empty into river, the
source of water supply to a city such
as ours.
The faecal discharge from one patient
would be sufficient to cause an infinite
number of cases under circumstances
favoring the distribution of the germs.
When the germ is carried by milk or
other foods the source is commonly in
directly water-by no means likely
water drunk by the COW. Epidemics
have been investigated by the thou
sands all over the world and when the
origin has been capable of demonstra-
tion it has always been shown that
water carried the infection directly or
indirectly. A common idea prevails to
the effect that if water is the carrier Of
the typhoid germ, that without diff
Guilty the microscopist should be able
to place a drop of the water under the
microscope and readily find one or more
of this species Of germ. This is a mis-
take, for it is only by great skill that
one is able to identify or isolate the
typhoid germ from a passage known to
be filed with these germs.
The germs of typhoid have occasion
ally been found in drinking water at
times of epidemic typhoid. The finding
of the germ is certainly decisive evil
dence. Failure to find the germ, how
ever, would not be considered as evil
dence of the slightest weight in dis
proving it's presence in the river. The
examination is made by adding fifteen
drops of water to a medium in which
the germ multiplies rapidly. This mix
ture is kept at an even temperature
which favors germ development for
from twenty-four to seventy-two hours.
During this time from 500 to 1000
colonies may develop. From this host
of growths, many of which may closely
resemble typhoid, the bacteriologist
must isolate and identify the typhoid
germ If it Is present.
In making 500 examinations only
pint Of water would have been ex-
amined. Allow that the water Of the
Sacramento River contained sufficient
numbers of the germs of typhoid fever
to have caused the epidemic which we
have experienced, a bacteriologist could
hope to identify and isolate the germ
only after long continued and diligent
search, if at ALL AS a negative result
accordingly would be absolutely worth
less, and a positive result quite i'm
probable, we have not subjected the
river water to nicroscopical examina-
ton.
We have inquired into the source Of
supply Of milk and water used by ty-
phoid patients previous to the attack.
AS no one dairyman had supplied more
than three of the patients with milk
we considered it fair to eliminate the
milk as possible carrier Of the typhoid