Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-07-15
TO STUDY DISEASES
Object of the New Government Hy-
gienic Laboratory.
WILL Be LOCATED IN THIS CITY
Plans for a Most Remarkable
Series of Experiments.
GUARDING PUBLIC HEALTH

GUARDING PUBLIC HEALTH
Written for The Evening Star.
Ground Is about to be broken for the erec-
| ton here of a remarkable scientific insti-
tuition, whose function will be the protec-
| ton Of the health Of the people of the
| country. It will be known as the ''Hy
gienic Laboratory and will be administer
ed under the marine hospital service. /
| have just gone over the plans, fresh from
| the architects The main building, to cost
| S'5.000, will be built of brick and in its
| classic lines will somewhat resemble the
| WHITE House In this will be room for a
FACULTY OF thirty scientists-bacte riologists
biologists, biologists, entomologists and
| chemists. A 5000 menagerie to shelter
| hundreds of animals. upon whom the ills to
| which human flesh Is heir are to be IN
ficted, will be unique annex A complete
| crematory for disease afflicted beasts " III
| be another novel adjunct This collection
| or buildings will occupy a five-acre tract
upon the river front and within the reser-
| walton of the old naval observatory From,
| their windows the new faculty of sayants
| VIII view the White House. the mon1.men.
me 1apltoi' the broad eXpanse of the mall,
arlington mansion above the verdaDt Vir-
| ginia hills.
Uncle Sam, for the first time will TINA
| nave federal public health service oct h,
! ished by statute and recognized nv 60
| SresS. Ihis new institution was conceived
| py surgeon General Wyman of the ma rfne
nospitI service, the noted scientist who
| SO successfully guards our gateways asains,
the entrance of foreign diseases DR. Wy
| man DAY or two ago introduced me TO
d II. IA. j.. Rosenau, distinguished Phila-
s LUNA aaceerioiogist. who will be director
| Oh the new laboratory, and authorized the
| latter to tell me the details of how his
| novel institution will improve the health Of
the entire nation.
| A T1le-Lined MenaEerie.
Will tell you first about DR.. Rosenau's
projected menagerie. There will he no
other building like it In the world. Its
| rules for the enforcement of cleanliness
Will be more rigid than those which bind
the habits of human beings. 1t will be a
| big brick barn, of modern arcbitactura
! containing stalls and cages for monkeys
raltlesnakes, alligators, turtles, horses
goats, calves. dogs, rats, mice guinea pigs
chlGkens, pigeons and what not. Every
| wall and ceiling will be tiled like those Of
| our modern bath rooms. Every floor viii
| be cemented and will slope into a central
| culvert. Daily the smallest GRANNY and
! corner OF eacn apartment will be flushed
| with sprays of permanganate of potash
ana carbolic acid solutions, preventing the
| intrusion of any disease microbes other
| IMAM those invited by the experimenters
SkyiShtS VIII admit sunshine to every
| room. and the interior atmosphere will he
continually refreshed by the most Improved
system of automatic ventilation Opening
| from the indoor stalls and cages will be
OUTDOOR runWays, where the beasts of the
menagerle may exercise in their respective
| divisions of an open field. Healthy ami
| mails Will be confined to one part of the
menagerie; those inoculated with d,raoso
| germs to another.
The animal crematory, In which menae-
| erie inmates will be treated to the most
aesthetic and aristocratic mortuary process
invented by man, is to be const ructed unon
distinctly novel lines. The furnace will he
similar to those devised for human corpse
disposal but by means of an irnproyed ar
tachment its interior will be made a seeth-
ing cavern Of fire. Coal oil will ha
| vaporized by steam jets protrudine every
Where inside, and when this fuel Is kindleI
dreadful white heat will quickly reduce to
ashes the introduced carcasses as well az
tneir communicating disease germs. Thus
| each individual animal dying in the cause
or the many in it's own or superior Kingdom
| VIII leave no elements of pestilence such
as may escape through the earth or atnos-
| phere.
10 Make Cure for Their Own Venom
r. The employment Of rattlesnakes for the
manufacture Of a positive cure for their
h bites will be an interesting line of work to
VI.
Rosenau explained to me the perilous pro-
cess by which this will be done and told
me that he had number of poisonous rat
tiers temporarily Installed at the Zoo, await
ing removal to their new quarters When
ever one of the serpents is needed an at
tendant in the menagerie will introduce into
the serpents' cage a long rod with a moose
at the end and will Iasso the reptiles head
herewith. Then Mr. Snake will be carried
to the geological department of the labora-
tory proper Here he will be laid across a
table, large force of men holding his tail
and body while one of the specialists tightly
grasps him about the head Beneath the
rattlers mouth will be placed glass watch
crystal. When this has been arranged a
specialist will introduce into Mr. Snakes
mouth a slender rod and will tickle his nal
ate Herewith. All Of these goings on will
make the astonished serpent exceeding
wroth He will fnstinctively open his ugly
Jaws and as he does SO the terrible venom.
IN the form Of yellowish LIQUID will
forcefully eXude in fine sprays from the
orifices of his fangs. Altogether, two tea
spoonfuls of the venom will be collected at
each operation. After his ordeal has con-
| Guided Mr.. Snake will be returned to his
companions and will be rewarded by a
generous meal Of live mice and birds
The yellow venom after dropping into the
watch crystal. will be poured into a glass
receptacle, there to be kept until admins
tered to some Of the horses in the menag-
erie The two Irresponsible will be suffi-
Gent to kill thousand horses outright mr.
|
tered to horse will be a thousandth of a
mllogram. or less than can be contained on
a PIN point. This will be gradually in
creased over 4 period of several months
until the equine subjects blood develops a
substance which will make man immune
from rattlesnake poisoning, or which will
cure him after he has been bitten The
blood OF the horses so treated will be drawn
on In small quantities and the faithful ami
mails themselves will be Just as happy as II
nothing had happened to them. Moreover
they may thereafter be bitten by a hundred
rattlers without ever suffering from the
poison.
Bug HatcherIes and Breeding Rooms.
Special rooms where disease-carryfng in
sects can be applied to the flesh of animals
will be the feature Of the main floor Of the
laboratory building. These rooms will be
screened. and adjacent to them will be in
teresting cases and cages where feas mos
Quitoes. flies, all kinds of gnats and other
biting insects may be bred and fed on dis
ease germs A trained entomologist. or
insect expert. will have charge of this de-
partment. He will make resea riches 70 dis