New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-12-03
GUARDED FROM PLAQUES.
THE VIGILANCE THAT PREVENTS EPl-
DENIES IN NETWORK.
wow SMALLPOX, TYPHUs AND AsIATIC
CHOLERA HAVE BEEN DEALT WITH

HOW SMALLPOX, TYPHUs AND AsiAiAC
CHOLERA HAVE BEEN DEALT WITH
nv THE crrY's HEALTH OFFICERS.
inst how It has happened that no epidemic. or at
,.as, an endemic worthy OF the name, has en-
tered New-York for over quarter OF cen'ur!
makes I'D an interesting chapter or local history
During that time there has hardly been scare
a scare" it should be said. that was al al Jusu-
sed for now and again rumors OF impending dan
gers have flown thick. A few days however, anu
rrnor. and dangers have disappeared. The lying
IN the Bay Of a plague ship from one OF the
cities that the black death has touched brings
I'm the subject anew. and the reiusal Oh 'He ~u
charities to allow any OF the cargo OF cofee 10 Dc
handed "a in itself an excellent illustration OF the
ola time theory OF the Board of Health AN ounce
n, nrevention is better than a pound OF cure.
II has frequently come about. nevertheless that
tho authorities have had no opportunity to Apply
the preventive ounce. Dangers or disease nave ~
mass through two sleeves before they can enter
New-York from the world without-the adamaht
gateway OF Quarantine and the Health boalu Vi
the city. In the present instance the plague snip
has slipped through the first seve II Is haltea al
tina second-because of rats. There may be luihiea-
ton and dsinfection aboard the ship. us crew, 10
cargo may be made germ pure, yet there Is o'
ger the Health Board says. OF the rats carrying
the .rblack death" with them, leaving the snip
when 1t gets close TO the piers. injecting nls'
wharf rats and these, IN turn, house rats how
great such a danger is the Board will not say Out
II is enough to halt the unfortunate vessel
Yet oftentimes contagion creeps Init has mace
its appearance half dozen times in New-IorK
within the last twenty years. Then II is tha' tiio
science OF handling comes up-for, behold the as
ease has been snufed out Ike fash. There nave
been critical half days in New-Yorks history Vi
late that the public has not heard or Quaran'ine,
with its disinfecting boat its power TO 'hod up
any vessel, and the well remembered incident OF
the exiting OF passengers on Fire island are only
enc chapter OF the story
FORCE OF PLAGUE FIGHTERS.
An army that can be modified with far greater
rapidly than can the National Guard Is at the
Board OF Health's call at any moment should the
first warnings Of possible epidemic IN Newt ork
City come. This army consists OF not far from o0o
men, Roughly It includes $50 DOCTORS 25O medicai
school inspectors (also physicians) loO sanitary
policemen and 40 disinfectors. Besides thls the
Board can call upon the police to any extent Three
diagnosticians constantly on duty. Ike amou-
lance surgeons. The Board headquarters are always
open. Six main telephone wires run into H. Nhere
men cannot be reached directly by phone 1t is SO
arranged that they can be summoned dlrecty ny
hour from the time an alarm is given the force can
be gathered at any point however distant ~ ne 1
There is a famous instance Of this. In January
were reported IN the Italian guam f. small
nox Without mistake. They heard also that fe,
male child III with the disease had been spirited
f fsa pr ,nnT action At 10 O'Clock that night
raid made. Gordon OF poiIce was IN 49,
We're turned loose Nor man, woman. nor child
could get out Seven blocks Of tenements were gem gene
thousands were vaccinated before daylight and yet
s ss@ped the upon With an 0i IRON heel
number OF deaths from smallpox IN Ne"-AoiA A0'
that year was only eighty-one.
TYPHUs PROMPTLY STAMPED OUT.
Hardly had these queled smallpox than w.
plus came to the fore. This was in FEBRUARY OF
that same year. II had slipped through Vuaian-
tine" One night the Chief Inspector or Contagious
diseases had four suspicious cases called to his at
+ention They were In an East Side lodging mousse
Early the following morning hnal diagnosis wa"
made That lodging house alone divuigeo seven
cases These men had come off the steamship MAS
silia The energies Of the Department were aroused
All dav long the Inspector hunted for the others
who had come in the Massllia Clew after cew he
followed up finding and more II was scleI be
the Jump As fssf as ne and ambuances rat
tied up to the houses. Scarcely nag me s,Cn mn
been carried away than corps OF oisi'iiee'0' "E
That day hfysix cases were found dW9 t me I0
cention Hospital in East sixteenth-st at the
wharf there on the steamboat en- route iU sand
Brother Island they were sheauy on C1T hl,,
Nv midnight every Of these was com com
,n bed During these sixteen nours aTations com
pieted Nor was this all. 1t seemed pest 10 IeodT
as well those immigrants VINO haO
The sick and exposed. 1913. were sent 10 N9rt IN
Rrother island the exposed being segregated IN
groups and placed in tents number ot caSe u.s.
came from these. proving the wisdom OF 'he pre-
Decisivey had the danger been stamped out Tvs
saT,ousness NAV be Judged from the fact that two
Of the policemen who guarded the infected houses
S,ad and several nurses. Yet typhus did not
faSage NewcYork. despite its introduction in the
city.
As1AT1c CHOLERA HELD IN CHECK.
" IA because OF this mitarylike promptness
that contagon has only fickered here for years
mast. When the Asiatic cholera scare was on In
1897 the meat elaborate precautions were taken. NO
greater sac could have been taken had this been
a military programme Ten cases in almost as
many parts OF the city appeared suouenly now
ever How they originated was WondeI. lney
were certainly not brought from without YET they
came, all together No further trouble followed.
though nine OF the ten died. Inc Iorce was 100
vigilantly ION guard ,. a..
II should be remembered that every doctor Is
now compelled by law to report every case OF con
taeious disease or suspicious case at once. Too
many physicians have been prosecuted in times
past to have them dodge the law now.
Typhus has been practically unknown in New
York since 1886. The last yellow fever eplcemc
was in 1856 The yellow fever cases OF PROFESSOR
Richard A. Proctor and Colonel George Warins
will be well recalled. Cholera has not been q
present danger here since 1856 when l.l37 died. In
iS32 the deaths from cholera were 35l3; in 1884, el;
1919 BOIL and 1854 500 The smallpox record reads:
In 1859 2O3 deaths; 1872 929: 1875. l.%O: 1876 N5;
1871 0he yacCinating corps now organized), a. and
Isg Q In 1871 there outbreak, with bl
deaths and in 1882 259 deaths Since then the
worst year has been 1894. with 1873 deaths. Three
years 1889 1890 and 1891. showed /, 2 ard Deaths
sfx-aIN