The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-05-03

Plumbing Inspector OMalley and
Health officer Allen, in a report which
they had ready to be presented at
last nights meeting of the board of
trade, but which was not presented,
owing to the absence of Doctors Rey-
nolds and Rodham and President
George Horn, condemn the prison cells
in the county Jail as being unfit for
occupancy and otherwise find serious
fault with the sanitary arrangements
of that institution.
1t will be remembered that at the last
meeting of the board the plumbing in
spector and health officer were direct
ed to inspect the plumbing at the
county jail and to recommend to the
county commissioners the necessary
improvements that should be made.
The report gives technical and
thoroughly complete description, of all
the defects found in the plumbing.
which must be in a very bad condi-
tion, according to their report. The
individual closets in each cell are con-
demned for several reasons. The
valves in many instances are inopera-
tive and the water supply pipes are
so crowded that there is not enough
of a supply to properly flush the clos
cts. In some cases the clean-outs are
removed, leaving apertures four in
ches across through which sewer gas
escapes.
The closet on the ground floor is
directly opposite the cell ventilator
and the foul air from 1t accordingly
passes over the beds of the prisoners
occupying the cells. The ventilators
Cor oh, ,srf,, I,A ct. To-, Is
were found to be useless, owing to the
fact that they are choked with refuse.
In reference to the general condition
of the building the report says:
Speaking from general and from a
sanitary standpoint we would condemn
as unfit for occupancy all of the prison
cells in their present condition"
They recommended that the whole
system of plumbing in the building be
overhaulcd and remodeled This will
mean great expense, but it is a nee
essary expense.
NEW DEATH CERTIFICATES.
DR.. Aliens report also dealt with
some trite subjects among them be-
ing the necessity of adopting a new
form of death certificate to replace
those now in use. Regarding this he
says: II would respectfully suggest
| that the form of physicians certificate
of death be changed by prefiXing the
statement OF the physician signing it
| by a clause stating that lie or she had
| personally attended the deceased in
his or her last illness and by adding
clause forbidding "A certificate based
upon post mortem views of a dead
body and statements oc so-called heal
ers not legally qualified to practice
medicine"
In many other cities it is required
that the physician making out the GER
| tificate shall have attended the de-
ceased twenty-four hours prior 10
! death. The doctor also calls attention
to the necessity of having some method
of collecting garbage. There are
large quantities of offensive matter
| deposited in vacant lots in the city,
says he. regardless OF location OF
surroundings. This is done by people
otherwise respectable perhaps--at
night and there is no way of pre-
venting it until a proper system of
collecting garbage has been put in
force
He also calls attertion to the stream
| VI "dltl thiOuSh ib- Duil-
more and Forest Hill cemeteries, where
! thousands of bodies are inferred and
passing for a mile through the dense
| ly populated district of Green Ridge
| He recommends that q committee be
appointed to determine whether or not
| this Is q menace to ncalth and if sc
to devise means by which it can be
disposed of.
The secretary's report for April was
as follows: Actual mortality, 179;
deaths from accidents, 10: total deaths
1S9; births. 73, 80 males ana 3s females
marriages, 32. There were 203 cases
OF conta eious disease reported, So oi
which We're diphtheria end 1856 scarlet
fever. There were IA deaths from scar.
let fever and Ii from diphtheria.
The food inspectors report was as
follows: Stores and market inspec.
tions, 80; number Of lactoi eter mill
tests, 1873; number of Babcocil mill
tests, 81; average per cent, tota
solids 12.S3: average per cent butter
fat, $50. The following were destroy
ed: Veal, so pounds; poultry, l6
pounds: fish, 1000 pounds: tub oysters
120 quarts.