Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-08-01
necessary to take many of the inmates
of the home away.

necessary to take many of the inmates
of the home away.
Speaking of the situation, General
Sternberg said to-day: 1.-THE matter
of dealing with the epidemic will be
entirely in the hands of the marine
hospital service, but of course we shall
cooperate in any way possible. |
shall ask to have a yellow fever expert
sent to Fortress Monroe for the protec-
ton of the army interests there
General Sternberg said he had no
theories to advance as to the origin OF
the outbreak. He has requested that
acting Assistant Sugeon Seaton New
| man be detailed for service at Fortress
Monroe. Surgeon General Van Reypen,
of the navy, also declined to discuss the
| not think it might be due to the pres
ence of the old Spanish ship Reina
Mercedes at the Norfolk navy yard, he
replied emphatically in the negative.
DR.. Van Reypan also said that he did
not believe it would be necessary to
suspend operations at the Norfolk navy
yard. The yard would, however, be
quarantined
The ironclad monitors Terror and
Puritan are the only naval vessels sta
tened at the Norfolk navy yard, and it
is understood that they will be re-
| moved in case their crews should ap-
| pear to be endangered. 1t is also quite
we'll understood that in such emergen-
cies the navy department pays little
heed to quarantine regulations, and
| would not hesitate to send the ships
out, bound for a northern port.
WASHINGTON, July 31-The latest
official advices received tonight show a
total of 81 cases and seven deaths from
| yellow fever at the Soldiers Home at
| Hampton, Va. One new case has oc-
Cured at the home to-day. Thus far
| the disease has been confined to the
| excited and vigorous quarantine is
being maintained. DR.. Wasdin, of the
Marine Hospital service, in charge Of
affairs at Hampton, and is working in
| cooperation with the local boards of
health. He has strengthened the cor
don about the town of Phoebus, which
he reports is in very bad sanitary con-
dition.
DR.. Wasdin's official report of his
official examination of existing condi-
tons at the Soldiers Home reached Dr.
Wyman to-day. 1t is dated yesterday
and notes the fact that the doctor has
| seen all the cases of suspected dis
eases at the home. He sums uo the
| history of the contagion as follows:
EARLY in July an old soldier entered
| the home for short rest and soon af-
terward appeared at the dispensary,
where he informed the physician in
| charge that he was but recently from
Santiago via transport TO a northern
port; thence he started for Manila via
| San Francisco, beat his way to the
home on a freight train and entered
with his baggage. He complained Of
dumb chills and fever and was pre-
scribed for. He mingled freely with
the inmates of the home, and short
time ago disappeared. From this as a
possible cause the outbreak is as fol-
lows:
Preceding Friday, the 21st inst,
there had been noticed nothing of sus-
picious nature The weekly death rate
was usual. But on the 21st and 22d
there became i'll during the night, with
sharp or less chill, high fever, some
| eight or ten inmates-men of usually
good health. These seizures, although
| noted as peculiar, had occasioned no
| alarm until about Thursday, the 9th.
when death occurred, the man becom-
| ing distinctly yellow some time prior to
death. On or about the same day an
other one died without having attracted
particular attention. He also turned
| quite yellow. Autopsies were held on
both by the resident pathologists. and
! it was then or a little later that the
| telegram was sent you asking for an
expert. I found there were $500 in
mates, and that thirty-fve had taken
i'll since the 21st'
DR.. Wasdin says he withheld a posi-
tive diagnosis in his first communica-
/ ton because Of the assertion of Sur
geon Vickery at the home that there
had been no communication Of the in
mates with any Cuban soldiers returned
since last May or early in June. With
the discovery Of the probably origin
Of the infection and the two autopsie.
| to-day there can be no doubt, he says,
about the disease being yellow fever,
and continues:
Il have advised Major Vickery 10
empty the dormitories infected at once,
putting the men preferably in tents. The
grounds are closed. There has been a
, very free inter-communication between
= he 1r1 -nav,En -