The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1901-05-25
WATER AND MALARIA
4 Physician Relates the Results OF His
Observations in Florida.

So much has been written of late rela
tive to the cause of malara-there being
such widespread interest among scien-
tltc and professional men concerning the
same-and, as it is subject bearing upon
the life, health, and prosperity of vast
number of people, feel called upon to
offer for publication my observations
during the past twelve years.
After graduating in medicine and upon
locating in the town of Warrington, Fla,
l immediately began, conformity with the
military surgeons on duty in the vicinity
at the time, DR.. John w Ross, of the
navy, and DR.. w. c. Gorgas, of the
army, crusade against the drinking Of
pump (driven-well) water by the inhabi-
tants. People were told, whenever the
opportunity occurred, of the danger Of
drinking water obtained from their driv-
en- wells, and encouraged to get water for
drinking purposes from the brick els
terms in the navy yard and from the hos
pltal spring, which spring furnishes the
only water free from vegetable organic
matter | have ever seen obtained from
the ground in that locality
here was some Improvement in the
healthtuliess of the villages during the
year 1892. yet malarial diseases continued
to prevail. The task of convincing the
residents that the water which they had
been drinking for years was dangerous
and unfit for that purpose was cot an
easy one by any means; but the work
was pcrsevered in with the result that in
ment in the healthfulness of the villages.
From that time onward the place grew
more more healthful each year, and from
the year 1896 to the time of my departure
thence, September 2S, 1900, l do not re-
member to have heard of, or to have been
called to single case of malarial fever
although nearly all of the medical work
OF the villages fell to my hands.
The most striking examples of the ben
eicial effect of the change of water as
well as the instances most clearly illus
tratlng the correctness of the writer s
views regarding the causation of malaria,
occurred in large families = families
which had not gone through a summer
or autumn for years without having more
or less malarial fever among the men1-
bers, often two or three of them being
sick at one time.
that | do not know whether the ano-
pheles species exist in that locality or not,
or whether they existed during the time
the locality was so notOriously malarlous.
and have since become exterminated
through some unknown agency, but do
know that there are, and always have
been. mosquitoes there galore, apparent
ly all kinds, big and little. brown and
gray, and that they exist the whole year
round. There is only one house in the
village provided with screen doors and
windows. and large majority Of the
inhabitants sleep. without mosquito nets.
AS to the experiments now going On in
Italy, | do not think that a few months
trial will demonstrate anything, should
the evidence remain negative, because
experience has shown that in the ma
larious sections of the south newcomers
usually remain exempt the first year of
their residence and develop malaria dur
ing the second or third year.
In conclusion, l will say that my OBJ
servations have thoroughly demonstrated
to my mind that malarial fevers are main
ly, if not entirely, due to drinking water
contaminated with vegetable organic mat
ter.-Dr. Richard Waggener, U. S. N, in
the Medical Record.