The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1901-01-11
OPPOSES VACCINATION.
A Parent Who Believes it is Merely a
Fad.
Mankato, Jan. 9th, 1901.


Editor Free Press: Permit me to
use your columns for the purpose OF
making few comments on your edl-
torial in last evenings Free Press re-
garding the school boards vaccination
order You say some people apparently
prefer to take the chances of having
small pox to having a sore arm. Are
you prepared to demonstrate that this
is the only alternative under present
conditions? Or can you demonstrate
that the only result of vaccination is a
sore arm2 Would you be able to re-
flute the proposition that more per-
sons perhaps have died or were per-
manently injured from the effects of
vaccination during the past year than
have died from, this so-called small
pox during the same period? Are you
not aware that some at least OF the
best medical men in the state question
the existence of the disease in the
state at all2 You say that in the
opinion of the majority of people this
was timely and wholesome order. If
you will be at the trouble Of inquiring
little you will find that many people
have submitted to this order under
protest and. because. the only alternative
was taking their children out of the
schools or resorting to expensive liti-
CATION to protect themselves. You
will argue no doubt that the majority
of the medical profession recommend
it. True. So, too, not many years
back the majority of the medical
profession believed in and practiced
the bleeding of patients for about all
real or imaginary ills The man who
would practice that now would be con-
sidered a fit subject for the lunatic
asylum. And yet 1 have no doubt the
medical profession then was just as
.dogmatic as it is today. The medical
profession infallible Why, it's only
few days ago that an unfortunate
family in an adjoining county who
were sick from eating diseased meat
were quarantined for smallpox and
left to die for want of care and medi-
cal attention. But for the sake of ar
gument, Mr.. Editor, I will admit that
we who oppose thi order are
"cranks, if you please, and behind
the times. But from the standpoint of
those who favor this thing and who
go into ecstacies so to speak over the
blessings to accrue from vaccination
from this standpoint say this order
was unnecessary, uncalled for and not
warranted by prevailing conditions in
the city There is no board that would
dare to undertake such thing with
an assembly of adults, but the children
are defenseless and so, like the pauper
dead their bodies must be turned over
to be experimental upon in the inter
ests of science (so-called).
offered to submit the legality of this
order to the decision of either of two
eminent jlrists who reside in the city
and agreed to abide by that decision
but the board refused. Why2 Simply
because they figured the ''bluff' would
W ork and that rather than incur the
expense of litigation we would either
submit or withdraw the children from
school. Mr.. Editor, we may be
freaks, - 'cranks" and possibly are
behi nd the times but 1 will make the
prediction that % years hence the man
who would submit to this thing will
be considered a far greater 'freak"
than those who oppose it now. And
the physician who would recommend
it will be classed with those who can
not tell case of smallpox from case
of trichinae poisoning.
Yours truly,
p. KINNEY.