Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-10-05
SMALLPOX SITUATION.
TWENTY-THREE CASES NOW AT
THE PEST HOUSE.
Seven Arrived Yesterday-City Off
Gals Resent Criticism Of County
Commissioners.

In an amiable tone, the charge
made by the county commissioners in
yesterdays Inter Mountain laying the
onus of ill management In the fight
against smallpox at the doors Of the city
administration. He says the pest house
Is a county institution, under the super
vision of a county physician. The am
bulance to convey patients to this inftrnl-
airy is county property. For the care of
smallpox patients the city and county
have entered into an agreement, the
city's share to be 30 per cent of TIE ex-
penses. The city has no charity fund at
it's disposal. The county takes care of
all paupers, and the money is raised
through the poll tax levy and other
sources.
when a nan without means walks
about the streets and is taken ill., laid
the mayor, che is sent to the county in
Urinary, or ought to be sent there. It
Is the duty of a county officer as we'll
as a city officer to send him there, ana
there should be no splitting of hairs
about authority"
Said Chief Lavell: 1.-THE poor fellow
who appeared at h city Jail and subse-
quently at the rooms Of the county COM
missioner in charge of a policeman,
walked out to the pest house rather than
wait for the ambulance. Why didn't the
commissioners telephone for the ambu-
lance? What was the patient to do?
There is no detention hospital, and the
health physicians can't always be found
to give an order or determine whether It
be a case of smallpox or something else.''
DR.. O'Leary will be much relieved when
the detention hospital is ready for the
reception of cases just like that of the
man who showed up at the rooms Of
the county commissioners and alarmed
everybody in the court house. He ex-
hibits as much repugnance as the city
jailer does against tramps afflicted with
smallpox making their appearance daily
in his Office. Should smallpox be COM
municated to the prisoners in the Jail it
would do as much injury as the con-
tamination spread through cheap lodging
! houses.
Two cases were sent out to the pest
house yesterday by DR.. O'Leary, Ber-
nard Moore and ]. D. Whitaker. Two
others did not wait for the ambulance
but got there on foot. -sa #
While the Inter Mountain reporter was
engaged in conversation with the mayor
and chief Of police, a man came in look
ing for the health officer. He informed
the mayor of a supposed case of smallpox
in a cabin on Iron street. He was direct
pronounced 1t a false alarm.
DR.. Alexander cited one case Of a poor
fellow walking out to the pest house on
foot with u~nmistakable marks of the dis
ease on his face He was refused admit
lance until he brought an order from the
county physician. The man walked back
to the city through the mud and returned
again with the order on foot.
The guard at the pest house reports
that there are twenty-three cases. Seven
of those came out yesterday. The names
were Bernard Moore, J. D. Whitaker, ].
D. Cunningham, Frank Pellar, ]. NJ. Caz
lahan and Jno. Towey. The patient ]. d.
Cunningham is the proprietor of the Cash
Lodgig house from which several cases
nave been taken The last case reported
was Jos. Chesney who was taken from a
cabin near the corner of Arizona and
Galena.
The physician in charge is introducing
a new method of discharging patients. 1t
was formerly the custom for to county to
furnish each patient with a new suit OF
clothes upon his discharge. For this pur-
pose the county allowed $22 but the ply
stefan in charge has discovered plan
by means of which the clothes may be
washed and fumigated ready to be put on
again by the patient after his discharge.