The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1900-11-21
IT is EXAGGERATED
Ridiculous Stories Afloat Regarding
Small POx.
JUST p CASES IN THE CITY
The Greatest Number There Has Been
at Any One Time Was Twenty-Sey-
en.-The Number of Cases
Diminishing.

All sorts of wild stories seem to
have gained currency throughout
neighboring towns and cities re-
garding the great seige" of small
pox that Washburn is having. AS
is usual in such things the story has
got bigger as it got farther from the
seat of trouble. It is said that promi-
nent Ashland physician who visited
here a few days ago, reported, after
returning to his city that there were
at least $50 cases OF small pox in
Washburn, and that the number
was rapidly increasing" Some of
our very anxious neighbors up at
Bayfield, have very kindly intimated
that the only proper thing to do
would be to quarantine Washburn
Travelling men and others who have
visited here have repeated the
horrifying things they have heard
about the ''seige" here, and some of
them have even refrained from COM
ing here. In view of these things
THE TIMES has concluded that the
wisest thing that it can do is to give
to the world an accurate account of
the actual conditions, and to assure
our readers that the scare has not
extended to this city but exists on
the outside, almost entirely.
The following is an accurate state
ment of cases that existed in the
city at noon today:
In pest house. -. ..... :. 2
Legacy's farm, mile from town. Z
Threaghout the city ...ds... Il
lotal. .. AZ
Nearly all of these patients have
recovered, as there has been but
little spread of the disease in the
past few days. The physician in
charge of the cases informs us that
most of the houses where the
disease exists will be fumigated the
latter part of this week or the fore
part of next, and the patients dis
charged. The largest number of
cases there has been at any one time
was twenty-seven, which was when
it took a fresh start last week.
Throughout it has been Of very
mild type, and there has not been
single death. With cold weather
however there appears to be a
tendency to greater virulence, and it
is expected that one of the patients
now in the pest house will die.
The disease first made it's appear
ancien the city during the summer,
and as the doctors were unfamiliar
with it there were a large number
of cases before it was known to be
the contagiou. Prompt measures
we're taken and it was stamped out.
Latter on it made it's appearance in
a certain family, and that family
sought to keep the matter a secret.
The sick child was put off in a re-
mote part of the house, and the head
of the house continued at his work.
while the balance of the family went
about as If nothing was wrong. In
this way large number OF people
became exposed, and the case only
finally came to light on account OF
it's severity, when the guilty law
breakers had to call in physician
when, of course they were quaran-
| tined. A dozen cases are attributed
to this point of starting. There
have also been one or two other In
stances where the presence OF the
disease was secreted by people who
were afraid of being quarantined,
and to this cause is attributed most
of the recent cases. These people
have, or soon will be released from
quarantine, and in few days will
be arrested and brought before the
Court to answer for their offense.
AS a matter of precaution the
schools have been temporarily closed
by order of the Board of Health
and all public meetings have been
prohibited. This fact need not have
been so startling to some OF our
neighboring towns, as 1T did no'
necessarily indicate q violent con
dition Of things as they seemed te
suppose; it was simply a proper
precau'ion taken to prevent any
further spread OF the disease.
The Board of Health and the