The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-05-06
The SPANIARDS DEATH RATE.
MORTALITY IN CUBA DUE
TO VARIOUS DISEASES.

4
p, From All Diseases More Than
..acOO in 1s97-They Were Badly
red and Clothed and Did Not Have
proper Medical AttentiOn-PrOpe
Precautions Would Reduce the
Meath Rate Fifty Per Cent.
In a report to Surgeon General Wyman
mr. ". f. Drummer, until recent
" medical inspector of the United
s-ates marine hospital service at
havana. gives some interesting informas
ton with regard to the sanitary conditions
there.
This is the information which DR.. Brun-
ner carried to Washington on the occasion
of his recent visit there and is published in
the resular health report pamphlet, dated
April %. 1t is principally on the subject
of the morbidity and mortality of the
Spanish army in Cuba during the year
1897 In his report DR.. Drummer says:
There are in Havana five military hos
pitals. the largest being the Alphonso xiii,
\ which has a capacity of 1920 beds. 1t is
b built of wood on the pavilion plan and is
s. situated on a high eminence in the out
81 skirts of the city, and is well removed
81 from all other buildings. It's equipment
is almost perfect, having been constructed
ri BY a Spanish engineer who was educated
& in the United States. The surface drain
81 age is complete and if this building Is not
n Destroyed it could be occupied by the
VI United States as a hospital for the troops
II occupying the city of Havana. The light
est mortality of all the military hospitals
N on the island was recorded here. Cases of
q yellow fever and smallpox are treated at
b this hospital, several wards being set
q aside for that purpose. Here it may be
said that but few cases of smallpox have
developed among the soldiers.
There is a second wooden hospital called
Quartet de MADEIRA, having 600 beds, and
situated in the parish known as Jesus Ma
ria. 1t is poorly constructed and could
only be used as hospital for yellow fever
cases.
The Beneficencia Hospital has 1000
beds; 1t is situated near the Gulf and is
built of stone. The building was formerly
used as a founding asylum, but was taxi
en- by Gen. Weyler in 1885, 1t would be
unwise to use this structure as hospital.
No surgical cases were treated In this hos
pital.
San Ambrosia is an old stone structure
situated near the Taliapiedra wharf, and
beyond doubt is the flthiest building in
Havana, and has always showed heavy
death rate 1t should not be used for
United States troops. 1t has 900 beds. Q
There are two hospitals in Regla, but
in the official reports they are made to APP
pear as one, and will be so spoken of in
this report. The buildings are old sugar
warehouses. They are poorly equipped
and the administration was bad. They con-
tanned 5000 beds. No attempts 10 isolate
cases Of infectious or contagious diseases
have ever been made Yellow fever and
smallpox were treated in the general
wards
There are also in Havana the follow
ing civil or municipal hospitals; Reina
Mercedes, Paula, Quinta del Rey and De-
pendiente. With the exception of the first
all of them are filthy Institutions, and
We're erected many years ago
The Reina Mercedes was built in 1886: 1t
IS of stone, has ten paVilions, each holding
a beds. During the past year it has been
oVercrowded, and high mortality has re-
suited. There were from 400 to 500 patients
treated at this hospital from August to De-
oember, and there were over $50 deaths in
mat time. Such bad state of affairs ex-
listed that clinical lectures of the medical
college were abandoned on account of the
danger to the attending students. Many
cases OF smallpox occurred there during
the past five months. There are Sc military
hospitals on the island, and with but few
exceptions they cannot be used by the
United States government on account of
their being badly infected"
Ihen follows a table showing the NOR
taHty in the five military hospitals of Ha-
Nana and Ragla from yellow fever during
each month of 1897. The number varies
from total of 43S in July; to 80 in Deem
Der, showing that there are deaths from
ms source the year round. The total for
the year was 2,5S3
rms mortality" the report says, rep
Iesents about 10000 cases of yellow fever. 1t
VIII DE noticed that deaths from yellow fe-
yer began to decrease in August when
they should have increased. This is &C.
counted for by the fact that the Spanish
government, alarmed by the increasing
ueath rate from that disease began to
pace their sick in Havana province at
PAGES known aseMariel and San Antonion
de las Vegas ~ h.
me next table gives the number of
deaths in other cities on the island dur
fns 1871 IN the military hospitals. The
Agures are as follows: Matanzas 23S:
santiago de Cuba, 65S Sagua la Grande,
o's' Cardenas, 235; Cienfuegos, 212; Man
Zdnlllo' go; Holguin, Guines Remedies,
Nanu Spiritus and other places. 1900.
making total Of 3.451. These, with the
ueaths In Havana, make total of 6,0S4
ueaths from yellow fever among Spanish
soldiers during 1897.
Ihis mortality represents about 10000
Eases" the report says. but few deaths
nave occurred in Havana and in the other
S q during the present year, but as over
I@'oUo recruits have been sent from Spain
70 CUBA, nearly all of whom disembarked
at havana, by June !. heavy death rate
VIII result"
Speaking of smallpox, Dr. Drummer
says: while this disease did not cause
many deaths among the Spanish soldiers,
sun every city and town in Cuba has been
iaVaged by it, and as a result many
houses are infected, and troops sent there
should all be revaccinated"
Then follows a table giving the number
ol deaths from small pox in Havana each
month from January, 1897. TO March, 1898,
the total being 1906. This number in
GUIDES both civilians and soldiers. The
largest number of deaths was 5s1 in Feb
1897. 49,
Inc heaviest death rate from enteric
IeVer existed al Havana snd Matauzas