The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-12-10
BUBONIC PLAGUE DANGERS.
A FRENCH WRITER ON TEE DIFFf-
CULTIEs or DISTNREC1ION


N. Dastre Denies That the Plague Germ
Dies After Eight Days In the open Ar
In Other Than Indian Atmospheric Con-
ditions-Cites Instances OF Longer Lhe'
The position taken by the Board Of Health
in refusing 70 permit the docking oil tho bnDonic
plague injected steamship J. W. Taylor or INC
landing OF her cargo OF coffee here Is sue'oheo
by tho conclusions reached In an artclein srocent
number OF the Rspue des Deuf Mondes Tho
writer OF this article. VI. Dastre. has made an
exhaustive study Of tho bubonc scourge on tho
bnai. Of tho latest scientific data obtained during
,be roc,nt outbreak OF the disease In India and
China and he devotes particular attention 70 the
manner In which the bacillus Ia conveyed into
,hs human system and TO the manner In which
Il IL transported from ono country 10 another.
In the discussion Of this Last branch OF the subject
hi. remarks might DO taken TO apply to the case
OF the Taylor
n psstrc denies tho, tho lie Of the plague
bacillus is only eight days and that at the eIpi-
,.,ion Of ta, dine all danger Of infection ia past
Tho great uncertainty az to tho length OF time
~ which the bacillus will 5ain It's ,i,Ss,l KIM Ind
in tho way " An Intelligent quarantine against
tho di case ho says III true that under certain
conditions s s ssIS qu'IA ssyotdnx TO ho Jspa
nogo scientist Kitusoto one hour exposure 70
the action Of the gun will destroy " When ~
exposed W tho SUM- IL soon loses t' pov or Of propa-
gallon. or in other words ts yirulence and oxperi.
BY Germany W study the plague In India showed
that under favorable atmospheric conditions
in that climate tho longest life OF the microbo
Tnfnrtunatcly. NJ Da,tre says. this statement
Of the German scientists applied only to expoauro
10 the atmosphere and to the climatic conditions
%,r cS will reiait its death dealing power for
eighteen days, and that y viii retain life for
month-that f. Of coura. In the atmosphere but
when mot exposed to the direct action ~ the suns
sH S or imbedSrd dep in the dark and more or
less moist parcels Of ship,s cargo; the duration
its ne and power for evl Is wholly uncertain
b. very long. Grnssi Il quoted by NJ. Dastre as
citing the case Of bnbonic epidemic which broke
out in the convent Of ST. jean ~ Acre In 1920. In
that case the disease originated in the .onenins
Of certain boxes Of clothing which had belonged
10 persons,who had died Of the plague and had
This doubt las IN the duration Of the microbes
@ nR ws r.%sn I'M IN wrs % ' ss
this essential fact the erection Of quarantine bar
riers against the introduction Of the scourge can.
not b. seriously undertaken.
\ recent insinncc ol the vitality Of the bubonic
nicrobo under favorable conditions is instanced
opof o, Portugal. in July last The CITY d Cork
came, from, Bomhny. where ths residence has
it's months voyage from Bombay to Portugal.
but the Cork did not go direct TO Portugal She
DAYS laws or" and Il WAS between S six %c-s and ,%o
months from the time she was loaded in Bombay
beioEs .he ,t d'rhnTScd nrI ssssD IN opofS In
diii"ns%froT nv" :? eight, ~ Daslrc says .
hemp from her hold were down with the bubonic
plague. Al htSt he disens- was, not recognized
that pr. Jorge, ,fc hactrrioloeist who + al the
head Of the municipal hygienic laboratory Of
the scourge Another curious instance Of the
transportation OF the plague over many thousand
in the case Of the two steamship cooks who died
Of the plague In a london hospital In October
bong hit in Hindoo Shop neckclOth OF brilliant
colofs When they reached London they dccora-
rated themselves with their purchases. which
they had not worn until then. and started out TO
stun the town with the gorgeous ncckwear Five
days later both were down With the plague and
both cases proved fatal though. owing TO the
dseas- did no, spread.
:, sui another cuIops ou,brsak q The dir-;se.
.nsS sa' "sS asss,,,al S &c ",
was 81 .; - bombay by the Austrian Government
;. 9d k,, N 5u6o bon p"Fgs Dr. Hermann
mems Of tho plague microbe and brought them,
under proper cultivation to The Anet0mo- Pa,ho-
poses For nearly wear he conducted ,heS- eX.
r~rments with rats for vic'ims One dny tho
fs,s Zen III Ills anent sceni-d 10 BE- an a,,ack
Of influenza complicated with pneumonia II hnd
Ps ne Of B"1bsy and Dr. M9r Wns dc
cived a; first, ye; il was none The less the bubonic
plague pure and simple. and in Us most deadly
form-thc form which hns now come 10 be known
Ss mo ,0 ThrT d.y' after he at
fortunate ~ervan, to the last and took every pre-
-asr lie personally di,dnfrc,ed the SICK room
and every article that had been anywhere near
nurse. who had been in ATTENDANCE upon the pa
ti-nt was stricken. ON tho following day another
nursc and . sister Of chrr,y who h,d visited Tho
third day after he first Patients death, DR. Muller
in himself the fatal syInp,0ms Dr. Muller shui
himself up in his room 10 die alone. While hr sill
had strength he wrote larrysli lcYcrsto his family,
ger Of spreading The disAs- lie also requested
that prizes! stand in the street before his open
after he was attacked he died One o. ihc nurses
died soon ,n'trrHard The other nurse and The
sstcr o. Chart recovered. Here the miniature
II is well established. according to NJ Dastre.
that the plague is spread from rats to other mi.
mails and ~ human bel rs by the Ncas which
are on rats as well rs dogs To get the plague
into the lungs, where they are conveyed BY at:
tachng themselves TO the mipu,s Particles Of
dus. that float in the a,nosphorc, An insect
such AZ flea OF mosquito, NJ Dsstro says.
established by Simond, who shut up insects which
Lightly closed boxes in which were perfectly
hral.hy rats and mice :. The rats and mice invaf-
iabiy contracted the discasc In tie case Of a
human bcing, slight abrasion u tho skin Is a
sufficient port Of entry for the microbe. but tho
worst form OF the disease is when the bacillus
Is breathed into the lungs and produces the pneu-
moniac form which in about nine cases out OF
ten IN fatal and Is particularly dangerous
to those In attendance on the sufferer N, Dastre
makes the assertion that this terrible form Of Tho
bubonic plague would speedily exterminate tho
human race II Il once got good start were il
not for the fact that the life % the mcrObe in sun
light and In ordinary atmospheric surroundings
is very short, and,in consequence. the pneumonia
form Of tho plague In cutie rare compa red with
tho diseas spread thrDug IN incubation.
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