The Washington times., 1901-07-07
Here are the deaths from influenza and
the diseases which it aggravates:

The caase of the delay in the increase
of consumption mortality due to influenza,
as compared with the increase of pneu-
monia, is obvious. The former disease is
chronic, the latter acute. Lessons of the
mucous membrane of the nose, throat, and
air passages in the prevailing catarrhal
bronchitis of influenza and of the air
cells in pneumonia permitted the invasion
of the tubercle bacillus de noyo, while the
characteristic prostration of the disease
and consequent impaired vital resistance
favored the development and activity of
iatent bacilli already in the system Even
a mild attack of influenza has often been
the starting point OF fatal attack OF
tuberculosis.
The Forthcoming report of the board
of health Will show an increase OF about
$3.50 over the number of deaths in the
greater city in 1900. No less than 1900 of
these are attributed directly or indirectly
TO influenza.
In view OF, these facts and the now
regular annual outbreak of grip, 1t is con
sidered likely that the disease IN America
has become domesticated. The three
former influenza epldemics, though they
ragged violently for time, died out again
completely, so far as Europe and America
v ere concerned. The influenza bacillus is
short lived, and il those suffering from
it can be isolated until the disease has
run its course in each of them, IL will
not spread farther The difficulty with
the epidemic that started in 1883 has been
that IL has never been allowed TO die out
in the locality where it happens to be.
Means OF communication are so much
better that the disease is carried to Chi
cago, for instance, before II has time to
die out in New York, and so on. Every
year it is first heard of in Europe, whence
IN q few weeks il comes to the seapOrts
OF this country, and thence slowly west
ward TO the Pacific. curious phenome-
non is that 1t apparently rebounds at
the western coast and travels slowly east
ward again over the same territory.
Just at present the grip is not raging
here, and deaths from consumption are
considerably more numerous than those
from pneumonia. In the week ending
last Saturday there were l4I deaths from
phthisis and Ia from pneumonia The
week before the numbers were 2Oi and loo,
respectively; and week before that ls5
and 1866.
The FIRST certificate of death from in
nuenZd in this ctty was filed in the last
week Of December, 1889, and the first
year epidemic I><,ched its maximum ia
January. For a number of years there
after the severity of the disease alter
mated between January and April IN
1891 the number Of cases had fallen so
low that II was hoped the disease would
die out completely in another year or
two 1t did not DO so, however, and
more people had the grip last winter than
any time since 1888, as was Witnessed
both by the death rate and by the
crowded condition of all the city hos
pitfalls.
IL is worth noting that the effect of the
influenza OF the past ton years has been
almost exactly the same in other cities
as in New Y ork. a compilation recently
made by the Chicago Health department
shows the same increase in the death
rate from pulmonary diseases since the
influenza was imported, ana the same in
crease in the fatality OF pneumonia. BE
tween 1871 end 1890, inclusive. there were
in Chicago p, 1l9 deaths from consumption
and 1851 from pneumonia, whereas IN the
last decade there were 25,22S deaths from
pneumonia and only 22 957 from consunp-