Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-08-29
MANY KICKS COMING
Twenty.ninth General Assembly
Will Have Multitude Of Com.
plaintsfto Satisfy.
Redistrictinf OF the State will
Be One Of the Hardest
Problems.
Board OF Health will Ask Changes
in the Law Affecting
Its Work.

Its Work.
Des Moines Aug. 29.-The twenty
ninth general assembly will have NOR,
than the usual number of kicks to anne
liorate when it convenes in January
Nearly every one of the biennial report.
OF state officers this year will contain
4 recommendations as regards the respec.
tive offices number of them proposing
radical changes-changes which the as.
sembly will not be able to decide upor
without discussing the subject at great
length.
I The most important question to come
up will be the redistricting of the state
into congressional, senatorial and rep.
resentative districts. Little attention
has been given this question thus far
the general impression being that but
few changes are necessary. The excess
OF population in the Tenth and Eley-
enth districts is too great to be over
looked. and counties on the border line
OF these and adjoining districts have al
ready begun to figure on political and
other conditions which surround the
changes.
! State Auditor Merriam stated this
morning that he would recommend to
the legislators several changes in laws
relating to his Office, one or two of
which will be vital. and which will to a
certain extent affect the present plan of
controlling the insurance business of
Iowa. Mr. Merriam rersed to go into
particulars in regard to the mat
stating that he preferred the announ.
ment of his intentions to come thru the
biennial report.
One of the changes to be recommended
Is to come from j. H. Kennedy, secre-
tary of the state board of health, with
regard to the matter of collecting data
and statistics for the department.
The worthlessness of the present law
has been demonstrated by the returns
which the Office is now receiving with
regard to cases of smallpox and other
infectious diseases. Some time ago
township and city health officers We're
notified to report on postal cards en-
closed the number of cases of SMALLPOX.
ulphtherla and scarlet fever under their
supervision during the period of time
to be covered by the biennial report.
The answers are nearly all in-or rather
those that will be sent in-because there.
are numbers of officers who pay no at
tentfon to official requests
More than half of the replies received
state that there havesbeen no cases of
the diseases mentioned in their respec-
1--WE townships or cities, while to the
certain knowledge of the board of health
a number of the communities from
which such reports have been returned
were among the worst infected places in
the state. There is no law to compel
these reports and the board is at sea.
The state board of health receives an
annual appropriation of $1,000 from the
general assembly to be expended in is
suing bulletins, collecting data, etc. The
law requires that information be collect
ed, but gives the board no power to COM
pei reports or to punish officers who fail
10 comply with the requests sent out,
or who wilfully falsify the returns in
order to have the particular community
IN which they reside appear on the face
neighboring townships or counties
Another change which DR.. Kennedy
Believes is needful is in the manner OF
returning birth, death and marriage re-
turns. 1t was formerly required that
physicians make .he return of births
and deaths to the county clerk under
penalty for non-fulfilment. The physi-
clans were lax in making their reports
and the county clerks and grand juries
were still more lax in requiring them.
and the result was that very small
percentage of the births and deaths
We're made matters of record.
Then the legislature changed the plan
entirely, and compelled the assessors to
take reports of births and deaths when
they made their annual rounds and
make special reports to the clerks. the
county clerks to make reports to the
state board of health the same as be-
fore.
Two years or more of this system has
proven it to be of less value than the
fromer one. The county clerks, in state
convention short time ago, passed
resolution calling for change in the
law on the ground that the present sys-
tenn was inadequate, and for the further
reason that it punched the work at one
time of the year instead of dividing 1t
up as it would do if births and deaths
were reported from time to time as they
happened.
The last report Of the secretary of the
state board of health shows that during
one year that there were but sixteen
deaths in Marshall county. Other equal
ly ridiculous statements are to be found
in perusing the report as compiled from
the data at hand.
The average number Of deaths in the
city of Des Moines is not less than fifty
Fer month or 600 annually, to say moth
ing of the territory outside the city but
inside of Polk county. Yet the report
shows that in the year 1896 there were
less than 400 deaths in the entire county.
DR.. Kennedy believes that there
should be return to the old system
but he also believes that In addition to
the penalty prescribed for failure to re-
port there should be an incentive to
make such reports by attaching fee.
Many states pay 25 cents for the return
of births and deaths. The total number
OF births and deaths in an average
county in the state will not aggregate
1000 AT 25 cents for each return it
would cost the county $3.50 annually,
which could be expended from the coun-
stV fund HifhoyY< Iocc o,,d nut t,at,,x