The Hawaiian gazette., 1900-05-01

The papers of December 10Th contain
ed the news that Ethei Johnson was a
suspect. OrCf concerning the raising
of the quarantine were revoked, al.
though II was obvious that the plague
had not yet amounted to much The
public about this lime began to feel bit
ter toward the Board Of Health FIR h v
ing so far neglected their duty in the
past as to allow so vile ard danger
Gus state of affairs to grow up in
Chinatown: but concluded to let by
cones be bygones, omit recriminatlons,
and ho'd up the hands OF the Authorities
in their present work.
Said Filth was Not Unhealthful.
The quarantine of Chinatown was
raised on the same day. The China
town property owner was now embold-
ened by the passing OF tne scare To arise
In his dignity and we4.th and mold .orth
to the erect that filth was not unhealth-
full, and the Official ACES showed tnal
no radical measures were contemplat-
ed for the future. Three days ldtel
President Cooper declared Honolulu
free from dangerous, contagious or in
leCtious diseases and the holiday bust
mess went gaily on.
The fancied security lasted over
Christmas, but on the next day tn
town was startled to learn that three
more deaths were declared TO be unmis-
takably due to plague. one OF thas'
was that of Ethel Johnson, DR.. Hoff.
mann having fourd bac Iii in every par
OF her body. At the special meeting
the Board OF Hellth on Christmas nigh
DR.. Wood cane out strcnoly and ST te'
that he thought 1t would be cowardly ,C
call it anything but p'agre. II 1t wa
plague. 1t was discovered that native
and Chinese were concealing Their sick
lest the latter should he cremated. an
the relation of filth ard pllrun bocamr
more ard more apparent as the place
from which victims cane were take
ro'e Of. There was another srsniciou'
case the same day: the Austral'a's pae
sengers were TO- b'ddpn TO car"v LET'S
ord the SUGGESTION about burning in
'ooted buildings began to come into IA
vor.
A Str cter Quarnntire.
a striCter quarantine than the former
one was establish d over Ch. .natown o.
the night of December 1928, and largt
numbers of house servants we e caush,
by its sudden application. The battle
was on once more in earnest, and I'll
discussions OF all sorts of measures fol
keeping the city clean and the drinking
wafer pure we. e resumed. The couneC
llon between the Bishop Esta,e, thC
filth of Chinatown, and plague deaths
came to light, and many horrible illus
tration5 of this are scattered a.
through the succeeding weeks. Two
more deaths and suspicious case wer,
announced the morning of the twenty
ninth. There were no new cases thai
day, but the investigating commission
rendered a startling and horrifyng re
port which made the worst reading the
plague had yet produced The lax and
!neuectual character of the quarantine
became SUBJECT OF general comment.
The whole thing was farce, and ev
erybody knew it. The household ser
wants We're fumlgated. provided with
fresh clothes, apd passed out of quar-
antine.
Three more deaths on the last day
December decided the Board of Health
to take vigorous action and the first
official fire of the crisis took place that
afternoon before large crowd The
adoption of this policy received the
hearty commendation of all right
thinking people. Everybody was glad
to see that fire and to realize that II
meant that the Board was on the road
to the ahandonmort of halfway meas
ures and of the idea that the plague
'ns sman ma"e~ which would soon
be over. The Board also inaugurated
on this day the policy of removing h
quarantine quarters persons who had
been exposed to infection,
Death on New Years Day.
ine first day Of the new yea.' was
marked by another death, and another
extensive shack on Mlun- kea and Pau
ahi streets was burned. Inis day tht
policy Mas definitely inauguI uIated of re-
moving all The lnnab.lants o. emma
town as rapidly as practicable, and tax
ing all steps 20 stamp out the pIague
including the destruction OF buildings
and ulher property. Inc site for the
quarantine camp at Kalihi was chosen
tne next uay, AID a big block in China
town condemned. There we,e two sds
poets on the second, Il death on the
thhd, and lour more deaths on the
fourth, making nineteen IN all to date
-HStAiA " hA4t iI4Olt were COLI
demned and burned, and work on the
new quarantine camp Was rushed a.oAs
as last as possible.
One suspect was the record for Jan
uary 5. The Council OF STATE appru
pI lated 100000 for the erection of gar
bage crematory ana s25OOUU Tor the
suppression of the plague. Minister
Cooper resigned his position as pres
ident OF the Board of Health, and DR..
c. b. Wood was elected in place.
Two days before this the whole judicial
district OF Honolulu had been paced
in strict quarantine. and all persons
were forbidden to leave the city, and all
persons outside 1t were for bidden to
harbor any who should escape and sue
ceed in passing the guards at the Pail,
Moanalua and elsewhere. With the ac-
ceptance Of the presid ancy of the Board
by DIR. Wood. who could give his whole
time to II, the official part OF The COM
settled down in dead earnest to
fight the plague.
Battle on in Earnest.
The disposition to ignore or
hp1ift1a tha seriousness NJ tho