The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-11-23
DEATH RATS.
In our Navy, Our Army and Here at
Home.
(w. f. Curtis in Chicago Record

| United States navy Will show n most
amazing condition of health among the
officers and men of that branch of the
service throughout the entire war and it
will be very strong recommendation for
people to enter the navy as health
rtsort.
The average numerical strength Of the
navy Tor the last five months was &c, 1872
The total deaths during that period were
elghty-fve. Eighteen men were killed in
battle or died from wounds, eleven were
killed by accident and fifty-six died of
disease, making the death rate I04l per
1000 for everything and $40 per 1000
from disease. There is no village in the
country that can show such a record. not
even the health resorts along the seashore
and at the springs.
| Nor has tho navy ever shown so low q
rate for a corresponding period, which is
Extraordinary considering the hardships
1 and the suffering endured by the Of rs
and sailors on the monitors torye boats
and other vessels of the blockauing feet
in the tropics Very often the tempera-
ture in the engine room and tlrero oms OF
the vessels reached 100 Fahrenheit Dur
ling the bonn bardlnent of the ba tier les
along the Cuban coast and at San Juan.
s.I3d during the race with Ceryera's feet,
many tremen oilers coal passers and
| others who worked below decks aud in
turrets were overcome by the. heat. But
the iackies have way of curing that in
trinity. When man tumbles they turn
the hose upon him, and 1t very soon
1 brings him to. 1t is better than smelling
| salts.
| The health of the naval forces at Ma
Mia is almost mirao ulous. The sick re-
ports show that on the vessels of Admiral
/ l1ewey's squadron the men are in better
physical condition than they have been
at any time or any place for years. This
ls, of course, owing to the extra precau-
i tions that have been taken by their officers
10 protect them from the climate and
from the temptations to violate the laws
| of hygiene.
The army medical reports are not up to
those OF the navy, although the mortality
has not been anything like as great MS the
public generally supposes and the sensa-
| tlonal newspapers have represented.
| While there has no doubt been consider.
able amount OF sickness, particularly
from typhoid fever, dysenteIy, diarrhoea
| and other causes that cannot be mem
| toned, the death rate is very much small
| er in proportion than it was during the
war of the rebellion.
Taking the maximum numeI ioal
strength of the army at 2S5. GOO men, up
to October there had been only one
| death out of SO men from all causes and
one death out OF ia men from disease.
| Died of wounds received in battle, 81 en-
listed men and 4 officers; killed In battle,
257 enlisted men and 30 officers; died
of disease q 4S5 enlisted men and 80
officers; total deaths, 2, 910.
The loss by disease is more than seven
times the deaths in battle and from
wounds.
The ratio of those killed in battle in
| Cuba was one officer to ten men; by sick
ness subsequently,, enc officer to six men.
| These ratios are remarkable and the popu-
lar notion that the officer is much better
protected in camp than the private is not
sustained At Santiago there were in
eighteen commands 39l officers and s. 422
enlisted men, ra ito of q / 2 to one. The
| losses of officers were, therefore, relatively
tMlee as great those of the men. In the
civil war 40, 600 men We're HI lied in battle
and BOZ, COO died of sickness in camps and
| prisons.
Including all persons, officers and en-
listed men, killed in battle and died from
wounds, disease and other causes. the rate
| Tor the i've months ended September 30
| was 27.1S per l,00e. In August it ran
very high because of the typhoid-fever
epidemic and reached SO per 1000, but it
| was SO low in May, June and July, again
falling off to 90 per 1,0O0 in September,
| that the average was reduced. All the
| returns for October are not in yet but
those that have been received show that
| the health of the army has greatly i'm
royed and indicate that the number of
deaths will not be greater than in June.
| It is estimated that this will reduce the
death rate for six months to 20 or 81 per
| l 900, il not lower.
| 1t is interesting to compare this with
the regular monthly health reports from
| the various cities. In Hoboken, N. j.,
the death rate was higher than in the
army, reaching 80 per 1000. The sam Q
was true in Queen county, Long Island,
where it reached %. 90.
| On Staten Island it was g. in New
Rochelle, N. z, it was 30, in Ogdensburg
it was 30 and in many other manufactur-
ing towns of New York, New Euglan 4
| in the army.
But it should be said that in these
places large share of tie mortality was
lamong infants, while the army was com
posed of picked men in good health when
they were enlisted. At the same time the
death rates in the cities are based upon
estimates of population, which in most
cases are exaggerated, and the reports
therefore show smaller average of NOR
tality than is actually the case. For ex-
ample, eight years ago the returns from
the city Of Washington were calculated
upon an estimated population of 2S5, 0O0
Now they are estimated on population
of ESQ, 600, although there has been a large
increase in population during the last
EIGHT years. The average death rate for
the entire state of New York in August
for the last ten years was 1880. The
average for the city Of New York was 20.
| In July last the death rate in New
| York city, based upon a population of
3. ABS. 899, VI hich is undoubtedly an exag
eeration, was 80. 90, and in august it was
81. 81 per 200. In Washington the death
rats in July was 24.45 ana In August
1885. In Baltimore in August it was
"a. so. in ST. Louis 23.07 and in New Or
leans &C. Al per 600, which, it viii bs
notified, came precious near the rate in
the army.
Milwaukee WAS the most hsalthfuI city
in thescountry last summer. theldenth rate
in May being l1.43; in June, 10. 50; in
July, 1864, and in August, 81. Chica-
go, however, came very near the mini
mum mark. The death rate in Nav was
ID; in June, 1l.9l; in July. 1906, and in
August, 1890. People do say, however
that this is not accurate, as it is based
upon fictitious population.