Waterbury Democrat., 1902-04-19
TROUBLE BREWING
The French Canadians Worked
 Up Over Smallpox Cases
WILL HOLD A MASS MEETING

They Talk of Bringing Experts to
 Waterbury to Diagnose Certain
 Cases-No New Cases Reported To-
 Day-Health Officer Says Mrs Promo
 vests Is Not Mentally Unbalanced.
 The French Canadians of Waterbury who doubt the ability of Health Officer Kilmartin and Dr Frost to tell small~ pox from other eruptive diseases have planned for mass meeting to be held tomorrow with a view to bringing q specialist here to examine alleged smallpox patients at the isolation hos pital and at the quarantined houses about the city. Before taking definite action in this respect. Mayor Kildnff will be asked to state whether or not such an examination will be permitted to take place. There does not appear to be anything wrong about this so long as the dissatisfied parties are willing to bear the expense. But of course it is only fair to assume that in case the request should be compiled with that the board of health will ln- sist upon appointing physicians to rep- resent the city at the consultation. Something like this took place not long ago in Holyole and the specialists were unanimous in support of the opin- ion of the health officer and that settled it with most people. Of course a few still persisted that the disease was not splalIpob, but the bulk of doubters gave in and the consultation was considered a good thing.
 | T4 :,. I<1o | I,oE the health officer would be willing to accomodate every doctor who might want to call at the isolation hospital and take a peep at the patients. It IS not likely that he has the time to do this and in any case physicians do not make practice of doing things on that plan. The talk about the attitude of the board of health regarding this smallpox matter having some influence in determining the result Of future elections in Waterbury is all nonsense. It does not make any difference what way some people may decide to vote at the next and succeeding elections. if these cases are smallpox they will have to be treated as such and if those who have to do with them get whipped on that account it will not be the first time public officials had to step to the rear because they possessed sufficient moral courage to do their duty regard less of consequences But this is digressing. The proposed request Of l the French Canadians under certain I conditions appears to be all right and I while the health authorities are not obliged to pay any attention to it. still it is a question if it would be fair to deny them the privilege of having man of their own race inquire Into this matter and examine the patients. Probably nothing else that could be done would disabuse some of them or the notion that they are being perse- cuted and it might be wise to show them that it is their so-called cham pions and not the board of health who are putting them in a position where they do not want to be seen. that is provided such q thing be possible. It is mistake to say that all the local physicians of that nationality as well as large numbers of the laity have no doubt regarding the existence of the malady here. but while so many Of their own people are on the other side they do not care to parade such opin- ions.
 g'he meeting will be held in Con press hall on East Main street at o'clock.
 Health Officer Kilmartin said this forenoon that there were no new cases of smallpox to report. He also stated that he had called upon Mrs Pronovost this morning and found her somewhat troubled over all that had been said of her regarding the small pox case discovered i'll her house. She is worried over these things. but the health officer saw nothing in her ac- tions that would lead him to believe that she is mentally unbalanced. Mrs Pronovost is the wife of the man who was discovered hiding in the clothes closet and sent to the isolation hospi- tai. It is said that he contracted the disease while delivering groceries to the Trepanier family, who had the disease at the time, but the authori- ties were not aware of the fact. IF this be true it conveys some idea as to why the disease has attacked so 1 many people of that nationality