The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-04-26
KENTUCKY MAKES THREAT
QUARANTINE MAY BE ESTAB-
LISHED AGAINST INDIANA.
Several States Is Held in
This City.

atives Of the boards of health of Ohio In
diana and Kentucky at the Statehouse yes
terday a mild sensation was caused by the
president of the Kentucky Health Board
sending I'D a letter to the Indiana Health
Board threatening to establish a quarantine
against Indiana If more rigid measures
were not applied by this State against
smallpox. The letter said it was known
that smallpox cases existed In great num-
bers in all the counties bordering on the
Ohio river. 1t said that Indiana was well
infected with the disease. there being sixty
counties out of ninety-two in which the
disease is prevalent The Kentucky official
in his letter told DR.. Hurry that he did not
like the task he was about to perform, but
it was the action of the Health Board of
Kentucky and was done to protect the State
against an invasion Of smallpox. Dr. Hurry
sat through the talk, and when the letter
was handed him he read it with interest.
He said it was what he had expected He
said he knew smallpox was becoming more
prevalent in the State and that he and the
other members of the State Board of
Health were unable to cope with the large
number of cases on account of lack of
funds He pleaded poverty before the mem
bers Of the other State health boards and
concluded by saying that until the State
furnished more funds for the suppression
of the disease Indiana would be looked
upon as an outcast.
This action. coming, as 1t did, along with
reports of the disease during the confer
ence, was a great surprise TO many. DR..
Hurry and the rest of the Indiana State
Board Of Health promised TO do what they
0n1flH 70 ont fhn nf he
and especially in the counties along the
Ohio river mentioned by the Kentucky let
ter.
When the session opened yesterday morn
ing DR.. Theodore Wagner scored the pest
house methods in use In this country. He
said he had travelled over the entire coun-
try and had yet to find one pesthouse that
was nit for dog to live in He criticised
pesthouses, and especially the one In this
county.
The health officers of Charlottesville and
Muncie said they had what are termed iso-
lation hospitals, to which the people do not
object. Other health officers made short
remarks telling of their different pest
houses.
A resolution requesting the State Board
of Health to extend the time of qIarantines
from fourteen days to twenty-one days was
adopted.
Those present from Ohio were DR.. Stan
ton, president of the Ohio Health Board,
and DR.. Charles Probst, secretary. Those
from Kentucky were DR.. Bailey, president,
and Dr. J. N Mccormick, secretary of the
Kentucky board.
RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED.
During the afternoon DR.. John n. Tay-
Tor, Of Charlottesville, a former president
OF the Indiana State Board of Health. sug-
gested that a committee be appointed to
draft resolutions based on the manner in
which the Governor Of California is deal
ing with the bubonic plague at San Fran
cisco. The following committee was ap-
pointed: Byron Stanton, president Ohio
State Board of Health: William Bailey
president Kentucky State Board of HEALTH
A H. MeBeth, health commissioner, Fort
Wayne, Ind; w. s. Pritchett, commissioner
of Vanderburg county; Hugh A. Cowing
Delaware county health officer; Eugene
Buehler. city sanitarian, Indianapolis J.
n. Hurry, secretary Indiana State Board
of Health.
The committee framed the following res
Olutions, which were adopted:
I'VE, the representatives of the state
boards of health of Ohio. Kentucky and
Indiana, together with representatives of
the county and city boards of health of
Indiana, in conference assembled in the
city of indianapolis. April ., 1902. in view
of certain documentary evidence before us,
resolve as follows:
1--WE view with surprise and alarm the
acts of the Governor of California and the
mayor of San Francisco i'm attempting to
suppress the facts relating to the presence
of bubOnic plague in that city. We are
surprised at such attempts because we
regard the facts as fully established and
| beyond all question. The Board of Health
of the city of San Francisco, composed of
/ honorable gentlemen distinguished for their
scientific attachments. and holding the en-
! tire confidence of their associates and the
| public, published the facts in their monthly
reports to the city government. submitting
| therein all necessary data The eXistencs
| of the plague in said city was afterward
confirmed by an expert, sent there by the
! United States Marine Hospital Service, by
! an expert employed by the State Board of
| Health. and finally by a commission of
| eminent PSYCHOLOGISTS of international
! fame, whose sole interest in the matter
| was scientific. We view with alarm this
attempt to suppress the fact of the pres
! ence of an epidemic disease, the most dead
! ly known to medical science, because with
| bubOnic plague and cholera in a number of
! ports i'm direct communication with that
! of San Francisco. and with the energies
/ OF the Governor of the State and the mayor
| of the city directed to the suppression of
| fact rather than the plague, what guaran-
| tee has the interior that 1t Will long be
! exempt?
I'VE condemn the acts of the Governor of
! said State in attempting 10 discredit the
competency and veracity of the experts
| above mentiOned: for forcing the resigha-
| ton of certain members of the State Board
| of Health because they cOncurred i'm their
verdicts; for seeking to unduly influence
| the United States Treasury Department
| and for making a condition of appointment
to the vacancy caused by the above resig-
II.
I'VE condemn the acts of the mayor of
San Francisco in cooperating with the
Governor as above, and for removing from
/ office the city Board of Health Of San Fran
cisco for no other reason than that in the
/ faithful discharge of the duties imposed
/ upon them by law and their endeavor TO
/ protect the lives of and health of the citi-
/ zens OF that metropolis they published the
/ presence of the plague and maintained their
/ honor against all influence brought to bear.
BEYOND COMPREHENSION.
1--WE further declare that it is beyond our
comprehension how any member of the
honorable profession of medicine, conscious
/ of the dignity of his high calling and zsal-
Gus for maintenance of that dignity, could
accept appointment to vacancies thus Gre
ated under the conditions expressed or i'm
Piled
1--WE call upon sanitary associations,
boards Of health. medical and scientific as
! sociatiOns throughout the country to join
! with US in the above.
I'VE affirm that in every State, Territory
! and municipality of the United States
! where the representatives of the people
! have enacted laws for the protection of the
/ lives and health of their citizens and have
| appointed boards whose duty il is to exc
/ cute those laws the citizens Of said States.
/ Territories and municipalities have a right
/ TO hold said boards to the faithful perform
| ance OF their duties and TO the prompt and
/ effectual use of every means which the law
] allows and sanitary science approves for
| the prevention of the Introduction and
! spread of epidemic disease dangerous 10
the public health.
/ we further affirm that in the employ
] q fe 1Rcn 1srfr1