Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-08-11
THE YELLOW FEVER SCARE
What Those at the Home and in Phoebus
Say About It.
Do Not Believe 1t Has Been the Real
Disease The Druggists
Statement.

The Star Is in receipt of quite a number
of communications from the Soldiers Home
at Hampton and from Phoebus in regard to
the yellow fever scare, from which the fol-
lowing are selected as interesting.
G. F.. HARDWOOD writes from the home
under date of August o. 1899, as follows:
Il have been since 1865 taking The Star
from carrier except two years when l was
too poor to take anything, except by re-
quest, and 1 want to give through your col
umns my version of affairs here l am
now, and have been for thirteen years, con-
nected with hospital work in the dining
ROOM and know what rations are sent to
each ward. AT the present time there are
twenty-five in ward 1 fever ward, ten in
ronvaiescent ward. and nine deaths from
(So-cailed) yellow fever That would make
only f0rty-one cases, all told. No deaths
from so-called yellow fever since the 4th of
this month. This is inspired by an article
"A Druggists Views from Hood Yeager,
home druggist in The Star Monday, Au-
gust !. Where are the balance Of his sixty
cases? We are the happiest lot of quaran-
antiaed men you ever saw. Not one in one
hundred of US believe little bit in the vel
low fever theory. doctors reports to the
contrary notwithstanding"
The Phoebus Suspects.
Mr.. E. L. Simpson of Phoebus, from
whom one letter has already been publish
ed, writes again, under date of August -,
saying:
Again with to call your attention to the
yellow fever farce here Last Saturday
they raised the quarantine on the police
man, Mast1n- He Immediately came down
into the business section of Phoebus I
met MIN IN the barber shop of the other
yellow fever victim, Stevens, and being
shaved by him Saturday morning Until
IL o clock Monday he was wearing the same
clothes he has worn all along, and no at
tempt had been made TO fumigate his house
or him at that time. The doctors had sent
him DOWN town, still in his yellow fever
Clothes to get a linen suit and after II
o clock they fumigated his house and him
and then burned the dangerous injected
clothes that he had worn in the town
ing
Druggist Yeager's Statement.
7. H. Yeager, druggist at the National
Soldiers Home. writes, under date of Au-
gust 9, to say that DIR. Wasdin's report
on the number of cases here is entirely
correct Up to this time we have had
1orty-three cases and eleven deaths. Every
thing favorable
How the Sickness Originated.
]. Judge thus writes from Phoebus, I'M
der date of the Sth instant:
Don't you believe the reports from here
yellow fever here or at the home. 1 made
it my business on July 3O.to go IN on the
Soldiers Home grounds and houses and
learn all about this sickness. This sickness
started in this way: Some one in the home
set rough-on-rats around the old commits
sary building and around the old quarters,
where some of the old men drank the wa
ter that these rats drank and died in, and
those drinking that water got sick and
some died and some got better. That is
hC Ill b. t. =
1 am there is no sickness here at this
place such as yellow fever. This quaran-
tine is an outrage on the people here. The
deaths at the home are less now than
they have been for five years
The Latest Alleged Case.
An anonymous communication, signed
vet" from the home, dated August 8,
says:
There has not been a death since Sunday
or new case, notwithstanding the state
ments sent out by the doctor. Fred Foster
of Company K is the alleged new case. He
has been sick in quarters for over three
weeks, because they would not admit him
to the hospital. Foster is over seventy, with
face wrinkled and yellow from old age, and
has been in hospital time after time for
treatment of dyspepsia and bilious diarrhoea,
which he aggravates by periodical sprees
When he was sent to hospital the home sur
geon refused 70 accept the case as yellow
as they had treated him so often. But Dr.
Van Egsdorf, the alleged expert, declared
the case suspicious and went to telephone
and send news to Dr. White. An order
came to isolate him at once as a suspect
and inside of two hours Van Egsdorf went
to the Hampton bridge and passed out the
statement of a new case being found. And
DR.. Vicking, in spite of his personal knowl-
edge of Fosters case, was weak enough to
follow the lines of this expert At first the
members of the home INDUCED in a big
laugh, but as they think the matter over
anger begins to take the place of mirth"