The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-11-26

AS pointed out by The Herald at diff
ferent times during the last six weeks,
! there has been a heavy increase in the
number ,of scarlet fever cases in Salt
Lake during the last six months. At
no time since the health department
was organized has the malady been so
prevalent, and citizens generally, but
more especially those with children,
have become seriously alarmed
The club women of Salt Lake decided
yesterday that it was time for them to
| take hand in the matter. The home
and educational section of the Ladies'
Literary club held meeting yesterday,
at which the subject was brought up
and discussed at considerable length.
This section is the practical working
committee of the club. and its work for
the next few months will be along the
lines of sanitation.
Time to Take Action.
1t was decided at yesterdays meeting
that the time had come for some con-
certed action to be taken. To this end
special committee will take the mat
ter up and see if something can be
done to prevent a further spread of
the disease. The state board of health
and the Salt Lake County Medical So
ciety will be asked to cooperate with
the women. They will be asked to sug-
gest a. means of stamping out the trou-
bic which is causing much serious
alarm in so many Salt Lake homes.
The committee of the club will visit
the officials of the public schools with
a view to seeing if anything is lacking
in the sanitation of the various build
ings- The school board will be asked
to have all the structures under its
control thoroughly cleaned during the
Thanksgiving holidays, and a commit
tee will also visit the buildings to see
that nothing calculated to keep the
fever in check has been neglected.
One Means of Prevention.
AS a possible means of preventing
contagion through school association,
the state board of health will be
asked to issue a circular explaining in
simple terms what the premonitory
symptoms of scarlet fever are. 1t is
hoped that this circular will be issued
and placed in the hands of all parents
who have children in the public schools
By this method it is believed much
danger from contagion can be averted.
1t would be possible, when parents see
one of their children affected with any
of the symptoms described, to take the
child out of school and isolate it until
it could be definitely ascertained
by the disease.
1t is charged that one of the reasons
for the prevalence of scarlet fever at
this time is the careleSSnesS of some
physicians in reporting cases, even af-
ter they are well marked. Again, many
cases are obscure in character and it
is hard to say definitely that ii is gen.
uine scarlet fever until some time has
elapsed. In the meanwhile the child
has been allowed to see visitors, or
perhaps TO play on the streets, or even
go to school.
Suspects Not Isolated.
Thus those who have come in con-
an attack of the fever. If suspected
cases were at once isolated and quar-
antined in a rational way, the people
who are agitated over the matter think
a great deal of the danger would be
done away with. Again, it is stated
that in few cases of scarlet fever is ,
the quarantine rigidly enforced. Peo-
pie where case is being treated go
freely in and out. They attend to their
usual vocations and mingle with their
business associates without thinking
of the carelessness of their proceeding. |
New cases are developed every day by
this means, and it is charged that there !
is no telling where the contagion will |
stop unless prompt measures to check |
it are adopted.
ended yesterday shows a total of thir- |
ty-six cases in the city. II is thought /
that possibly half that many more have |
not been reported, and it is the un-
reported cases that do most of the /
damage.