The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1901-03-28
American Army Surgeons Probe
Source Of the Scourgs.
LAY IT TO THE MOSQUITO
interesting Report on Q Series Of Heroic
Experiments Which Were Conducted
Ina Cuban ClMp

Yellow fever Is recognized as one OF tn.
desdliest scourges 20 which man is sub
Ject. While its ravases In the United
states In late years have not attained any
great proportions; every year cases de-
velop In the southern tier OF the states
and a wave OF alarm sweeps over that
section, driving northward those OF its
inhabitants who can get away, and more
or less paralyzing business interests for
time.
In Cuba the disease has prevailed every
season, and yearly rigid quarantine meas
ures have been taken by the L ...ced States
to prevent its importation from that
island which has been known in this
country as the home OF the disease.
These facts. therefore render OF absorb
ing interest to both medical men and
laymen the recital OF a series OF expert
ments which have been conducted in Cuba
by medical officers OF the United States
army-experiments which, aside from
their value 10 medical science in pro-
Viding knowledge about yellow fever. arc
of absorbing interest because OF the
others concerned in the investigation.
As a result OF the experiments in Cuba
according to the Journal of the American
Medical Association. the following facts
seem TO have been clearly and scien-
tifically demonstrated:
That yellow fever Is communicated by
the bites OF mosquitoes.
NO DANGER IN CONTACT.
That contact with yellow fever patients
or with clothing or other articles that
have been I'm contact with such patients
will not produce the disease. and that
therefore the rigid disinfectlon of such
articles by the United States quarantine
regulations is unnecessary.
That mosquito that has fed on the
blood of yellow-fever patient cannot
convey the disease before twelve days. IL
taking Il least that time for the germ Of
the disease TO develop In the insect.
That the disease may be transmitted by 1
injecting the blood OF yellow-fever pat
ient into healthy individual
The experiments In Cuba were conduct
ed by Drs. Reed, Carroll and Agramonte
of the United States army. and the first
report upon them was read at the session
Of the Pan-American medical congress.
held in Havana in February.
The experiments were something on the
same order as those recently made I'm IT.
ally I'm the study OF malaria All of those
concerned were volunteers General
Wood made an appropriation OF 5000 for
the expenses of the work
An experimental sanitary station was
established by DR. Reed and his collea-
gues In healthy locality, near the town |
Of Quemados Besides the three medical |
men mentioned. the camp contained thir- |
teen men, four of whom were immunes.
A strict quarantine was established. and |
no non-immune person having left the /
camp was permitted TO return 10 IT, A !
selection OF infected mosquitoes was OBJ
tained. and certain of the non-immunes
submitted to be bitten by them All the
subjects were young men. In good ply
sical condition.
CASE or PRIVATE KIssINGER.
The first experiment was on private j.
r. Kissinger OF tho United states army |
hospital corps. A mosquito that had bit
ten severe cases OF yellow fever eleven.
six, and three days previously was allow
ell Ia bite Kissinger Three days later Il
was allowed to bite him again
= No results came from these bites. and IL
was therefore determined that the insect
was Incapable of conveying an infection
on the eleventh or fourteenth day after
II had bitten a case or yellow fever An |
interval OF twelve days was allowed to
elapse. and then five mosquitoes were al
lowed 10 bite Kissinger.
TWO OF these had bitten yellow fever
patients nfteen days before. one nineteen |
days before. ana two twenty one days be-
fore Three days after being bitten Kis-
singer showed symptoms OF yellow fever.
and on the fourth day was down with a |
case. lie recovered
DiNer men who allowed themselves to he
bitten I'm the interest OF science were John |
j. Moran, nOn-immune, and three Span |
ish immigrants. non-immunes aged 2s
q and 6, respectively. Moran was bitten |
10y mosquito which had bitten yellow
fever patient twelve days before. and |
again bitten by the same insect three
days later
Moran did not get the fever. The three
Srariards. however. were all taken down
with The disease. but only arter they had
been tho second time bitten by Insects
hat had fed on "a yelow-fever patients
blood seventeen or more days previouslv
They all recovered. Concerning these
'Vpsriments Or Reed IA his paper before
he Pan American congress said:
1T will h. observed that the epidernic
81 reiio~ fever at the camp was strictly | I
hnited To those individuals who had been
litttn hy contaminated r1osuitftoes Moth :
ng could point more forcibly TO the
'ourcc of the Infection than the order OF !
be occurrence OF events az this camp
Tho precision with which the Infection a
" The individual followed the bite Of the