The evening times., 1899-08-03
YELLOW Fever HISTORY
Ravages of the Disease i'm the
Eastern Cities.
Washington Especially Fortunate i'm
Escapins the Scourge-sorfoIi. I'm
mune Since Her Sanitary Improve
mcnt-Somc Epidcmics i'm PhilndeI-
Observation-Disclosures of the Disease.

This Office" said DR.. Emmitt Wood
ward, statistician in the Health Department
of the District of Columbia, TO Times re-
porter this morning, has no local yellow
fever statistics, because since the year 1925
there has been only one typical or genuine
case of yellow fever in this city. In that
year Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York.
and Boston were sadly afflicted with this
most insidious Of diseases. On the coast
the people died by the thousands. 1t came
from the West Indies 10 Norfolk, Va.
where Ii almost swept the town of its popu-
latien. and rapidly spread by way of AL
exandria to Washington and Baltimore and
direct from its origin to as far north as
Montreal and Quebec, Canada.
From I740 to 1920 there have been sew
enteen yellow fever epidemics in Baltimore.
Philadelphia, and New York. The worst
epidemic suffered by Philadelphia was in
1888 when on account OF the scarcity OF
help old Stephen Girard acted as nurse in
the Pennsylvania ..ospital. The most vio-
lent and fatal epidemics OF yellow fever
have occurred in the North. Since the ter
rible epidemic at Norfolk in 1850, how
ever, the great ravages of yellow fever have
been confined principally TO the Southern
or Gulf cities New Orleans, Memphis, and
Vicksburg have been the afflicted cities
within the last thirty years
yellow fever is a peculiar traveller. 1t
strikes where least expected, and is viru
lent before its presence Is known. on
cannot tell where il is going 10 strike II
as quick in its spread, when sanitary con-
ditiOns are favorable to il, as match TO
gunpowder. i will not say there is no
danger of the disease spreading TO Wash
ington. Atmospheric conditions, which
may be favorable TO an epidemic when the
disease has once started, have much TO do
with its progress This city, however, was
never in a better sanitary condition, and.
with the proper precautions already taken,
ii has little to fear from any yellow fever
germ which may have been brought here
by recent visitors TO the Soldiers Home at
Hampton"
From William B. Moore, the statisti-
clan in charge of the vital statistics OF
the District Health Department, The Times
reporter gathered some very interesting
yellow fever history.
For half century Norfolk, Va, was one
OF the sickliest cities on the seaboard, and
was frequently subject to yellow fever. In
later years, by draining, paving, and filling
up her low lots, the collecting reservoir
of humid filth of all kinds Norfolk has Dl-
timately become a healthy city. Years ago
miasmatic fever was a very commcE dis
ease in Norfolk, especially during the fall
months No case, however, originated in
the paved parts of the town. With the
paving of streets, filling up of lots, and in
creased attention to the cleanliness of the
streets, and other sanitary regulations.
Norfolk has now very little intermittent
or remittent fever, so that from having
been the most unhealthy of the Southern
section Of the country Norfolk has of late
become proverbial as a healthy munici
pality. The mortality has recently aver
aged lower than that of Washington.
The great epidemic of yellow fever that
devastated Wilmington, Del, in 1902 was
ascribed to the streets being cut down
and leveled and the materials spread on
them: to the cellars being filled with wa
Ter, the weather being very stormy; To
torrents OF rain falling; 10 much fog and
misty weather. The disease seemed COM
municable as far as the fog extended and
not beyond il. In 1871 Wilmington had a
severe epidemic of yellow fever, and this
for the first time aroused the citizens OF
the place 10 such an extent that the sani-
tary condition was altered-poois were
filed UP, culverts opened, filth removed,
neighborhoods cleared and sanitary meas
ures promoted until fully established.
With these improvements have eventuated
the re-establishment of the health OF a
city which was in the first l-a!f CT the CEN
rury several times nearly defopulatei from
yellow fever.
In the city of Philadelphia in 1920 there
died eighty-three out Of 125-about two
out of three. During one outbreak of yel-
low fever in that city there occurred 12S
deaths out of 10 cases in public and pri-
Eate practice, making a mortality Of /
to every Jas, or % per cent. In Philadel-
phia in 1I93 the ratio Of mortality TO
those exposed or remaining in the city dur
ing the epidemic was j in 10 and the ratio
TO the entire population l in i3. In 1897
the ratio of mortality TO those that re-
mained was ! in 1G.5 and 10 the entire pop
Ulation j in SO. In 1898 the mortality to
the entire population was j in l5.5 and to
the number exposed j in 6. The three epi-
denies in the same city-1793, 1897, and
179S-gave an average mortality OF the en-
tire population of ] in 1924. and to those
that remained in the city Of j TO 10.l3 The
mortality TO the cases attacked in the cpl
demic years from 1873 downward varied
from ] in l.2, in 1919 to ] in 3.S5 in 1905,
giving an average for all three epidemics of
j in PIP. The loss in the hospital alone
during the epidemics of 1898, 1897, 1898,
1893, and 1929, the only years in which
the admissions were recorded, varied from
j in LES, in 1899, to ] in ., in 1903, with
an average for the six seasons of in ]. SCI.
In these several attacks of epidemic yellow
fever in Philadelphia il was rmarked that
1t was much more fatal in the low, filthy,
malignant atmosphere of some districts
than those more elevated and airy-in
those Of frame houses than in those Of
brick houses.
The general mortality to cases in New
York was about j in ,; in Baltimore, / in
2.S1; in Charleston, about j in of the
cases fatal, on an average of the several
authorities. The average in New Orleans
in a series OF years TO 1S49 was mortality
of l TO 4.
During the year lS04 twenty-five cities
and towns in Spain were visited by yellow
fever. The population amounted to 49,
22S. OF which 80 559 or / in S.l2 perished.
In the West Indies il is often difficUlt
as it was formerly in the United States, to
obtain exact records of yellow fever. the
public and private practice being so differ
ent In the military hospitals in Cuba
the mortality from yellow fever is very
small. not exceeding Gf the statistics pub
lished can be relied on) . to per cent,
while in the hospitals for the reception OF
the poor it is very large.
Some years ago in Vera Cruz the NOR
tality in private practice was very small
but in the military hospitals with the
|. Mexican soldiers coming from the upper
country. the mortality was frightful-
sometimes all of them dying. The filth OF
the hospitals and the intemperance of the
men were very great. In Jamaica, under
the care of DIR. Hume three out of four
died with il.
II will be apparent from these statistics
that yellow fever is much more faAl dis
ease in Northern than in Southern cli-
mates. The subjects differ as much as the
treatment and climate.