The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-12-21
THE ORDER IS REVOKED
Compulsory Vaccination Is No
Longer Required.
RESULT OF THE DECISION
Physicians Refuse to Report Smallpox
Cases Owing to the Action o; the
City Court-Alexander Fears
an Epidemic.

DR.. Alexander the city health officer,
feels that the decision of Police Judge
Sullivan Diminishing the case against
DR.. Hanson on Tuesday is going to
have a bad effect on the smallpox sit
uation and fears that it will result in
Widespread contagion, for the reason
that, he says, the great majority Of
the physicians in the city are convinced
that the man McCants, over whom the
trial arose, has smallpox, and they
argue that if one physician is not to
be compelled to report cases they are
not going to the trouble of doing So
One result of the decision has been
that DR. Alexander yesterday revoked
the order he made the latter part Of
last week making vaccination compul-
sorry. The order signed by Dr. Alex
ander yesterday evidences a feeling on
his part that there is little use of at
tempting to stamp out the disease by
enforcing rigid regulations, as it reads
thus:
owing to the recent reputation of
the health authorities by the judicial
authorities of the city, my order maxi
ing vaccination compulsory is hereby
abrogated, and those who remain un-
vaccinated do so at their own hazard.
4NeN tOH fAleAdllutIs w. L., pIGoiutIll
Butte board Of health"
In speaking of his order Of yester-
day, last evening, DR.. Alexander said:
Il have decided to revoke the order
for compulsory vaccination for the rea-
son that if l am not to be supported
by the court there is no use trying to
enforce it, as there would probably be
great many people who would refuse
to be vaccinated, and if they could not
be arrested and fined they would sim
ply laugh at us. AS it seems that |
am not to have the support of the jul
dicial branch of the city government
l can see no advantage to be gained
toward the desired end of stamping out
smallpox.
One important effect Of the decision
in the Hanson case has been made ap-
parent already, | have to-day received
notice from at least a dozen of the
leading physicians of the city that they
do not intend to report smallpox cases
in future. When I inquired the pur-
pose of this seemingly concerted ac-
ton on the part of the physicians |
was told that If one doctor could es-
cape the responsibility that a smallpox
epidemic imposes on physicians they
did not propose to be compelled to obey
the regulations and that they did not
propose to have anything further to
do with smallpox I do not know for
certain, but | understand that the ply
sicians who thus served notice on me
held an informal conference this morn
ing and decided upon this course of
action. If it is true, or whether it is
not, the number who sent notice to me
indicates pretty clearly what the ma
jority of the reputable doctors of the
city think about the complaint McCants
suffered from. l don't know where we
shall end if the doctors adhere to their
% % ~ 10y fny
hard for the department to find cases if
the doctors do not report them, but l
can conceive that a widespread cpl
demic may be the result. We shall do
the best we can, however, in trying to
cope with the contagion, and if it does
become bad epidemic we certainly
shall not be to bame''
DR.. O'Leary, the new county small
pox physician, had his attention called
to his first case yesterday and found
1t to be the most serious that has been
discovered since Walcott died. The
victim is the 17-year-old son of Benja-
min Dudden of Silver Bow, and the
young man is suffering from a case of
malignant black smallpox.
DR.. Monroe, who will continue the
physician to diagnose smallpox cases
for the city. had case reported to him
last evening of a person who had sus-
picious eruption, but he did not get to
see the man. ThomaG Smith was given
as the name of the person, and his resi-
dence was said to be at the corner Of
Aluminium street and Nevada avenue
DR.. Monroe called there, but was re-
fused admission, and he then teie-
sraphed the city Jail for police assist
ahce: He was told to get the officer OH
tne peat and hunted up officer Foley,
VINO Hatly refused to accompany him
70 the place and force an entrance, and
man.
Numerous other suspicious cases were
reported to DR.. Monroe during the dav.
put ne did not pronounce any of them
smallpox. John Dwyer, who was found
10 nave smallpox night before last, in