The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-01-26
DISPENSARY'S BUSY DAY
HUNDREDS OF SCHOOL CHILDREN APP
PLY TO BE VACCINATED.
Some of the Little Ones Swooned-
Three Physicians Kept Busy
Smallpox Patients.

The smallpox scare has had the effect Of
bringing out the signs in druggists windows
advertising vaccine virus for sale" and of
multiplying a hundredfold the calls on ply
sicians for this immunity from the disease.
At the City Dispensary, after the promul-
cation of the order requiring pupils of the
public schools to be vaccinatod, the force
OF doctors was kept busy. There were few
applications Tuesday, but yesterday they
came as fast as three doctors could care
for them and during the day over three hun
dred were vaccinated.
The benches in the receiving room were
lined ali day with prospective patients who
waited their turn. in some instances, for an
hour. The demand was greatest just after
the close of the schools for the day. Some
of the patients who had to wait lost their
nerve and withdrew, preferring to take their
chances unvaccinated rather than to under
go the almost painless operation. These
were children unaccompanied. In many
cases a mother or sister with difficulty got
her charge into the room where the opera
ton was being performed. A few children
tainted away At one time three patients
succumbed simultaneously and the doctors
suspended operations to await resuscitation.
One little fellow struck his head against
heater in falling, but was not much in
jured. For the most part the patients
watched the doctor scraping away at their
arms with tightly drawn lips, signing with
relief when he was done and then curiously
comparing marks" while waiting for the
virus to dry.
Matron Cronin was in charge of the little
ones who came. Drs. Trenary, Foltz and
Martin worked assiduously all day with the
needle DIR. Kennedy was kept busy answer
ing telephone calls where the application
had been for vaccination at the homes. A
surgeon during the day visited the quaran-
tined vicinities and vaccinated everybody ne
could find who had not been Vaccinated
within the last seven years.
The matron registered every applicant to-
gether with the age, residence and school.
There was a wide variance between the
ages. The youngest was two years old and
the patients ranged from that age to adult
years. At least half of the patients were
colored. At one time there were in the
room a little aristocrat in leather leggings
and curled hair. and a colored boy. also in
'curled" hair, but with his toes projecting
from his shoes. The latter was vastly
amused at the screams and contortiOns of
the former so much so that he did not APP
pear to notice the surgeons operations upon
the exposed ebony arm, and when the
doctor was through with him, without look
ing at the mark he staggered from the
room conscious of the aristOcracy of endur-
ance
A number of reports of alleged cases of
smallpox were reported to the Board of
Health yesterday, but on investigation they
were found to be without foundation. The
board is relying very much on the expert
ence of DR.. T. A. Wagner, himself an i'm
mune, who has been asked to diagnose the
cases as fast as reported. This morning
DIR. Wagner viii inspect a reported case at
secretary of the Board Of Health. yesterday
ordered the residence of Abraham Waits,
1125 Harlan street, placed under quarantine.
Waits and his wife on. Sunday visited one
of the patients that have since been sent to
the pesthouse. They have a son fifteen
years of age who has been attending the
public schools. He, of course, is under the
quarantine that has been established over
his fathers house. DR.. Clark does not think
there is any great danger to pupils from this
source. He also insists that all the cases
reported to the board have been made pub
lie. DIR. Clark said last night that he had
no knowledge of a tent being placed on
Adelaide street for health officers who were
watching smallpox case. There is such a
tent on Dearborn street, he said, but not on
Adelaide.
DR.. Wagner last night reported that there
is a good deal of measles and chicken pox.
In the early stages of measles that disease
very much resembles the primary symptoms
of smallpox, and it is rather difficult to dis
tinguish what the disease is.