The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-01-08
FAILED TO GIVE NOTICE.
MIR. Newman's Explanation Before
Sanitary Board of Scarlet Fever

Ease.
Mr.. Emile Newman was before the
Sanitary Board yesterday upon the
charge of having removed a scarlet
fever patient from one house to an
other without notifying the health Of
ficer. The charge was made by Health
Officer Drummer. Mr.. Newman appeared
and made an explanation, which was
heard by the Sanitary Board.
DR.. Drummer was asked after the
hearing if the incident was closed. He
replied that it was not AS to whether
he expected to push the charge against
Mr.. Newman in the Recorders Court,
he would not say.
Mr.. Newman was seen about the
matter and told the full story. He
said that he thought the circumstances
relieved him from all blame and that,
If the case were pushed in the Recor-
ders Court, he expected to fight it to
the best of his ability.
On Dec. 2S, Mr.. Newman said, he
returned from a business trip and
found his l1-year-old son, Tracey. COM
planning. The next morning he had
showed some Improvement over the
afternoon before, but Mr.. Newman
began to suspect that his illness might
be scarlet fever, and he so told Mrs
Newman, who shared his suspicion.
Mr.. Newman then determined, if pos
slble. to remove the boy from Miss
Perkins boarding house, where the
Newmans live, and accordingly made
an effort to get him into the hospitals.
BY every hospital, however. he was
refused. as his suspicion that the pa
tent was suffering from an infectious,
disease was sufficient to close the doors
against him.
This was Sunday AFTERNOON, Mr..
Newman then asked Mr. J. M. Solo
mons, who, by the way. is member of
the Sanitary Board, if he knew of a
house that would receive the patient
Mr. Soiomons recalled the case of Miss
WAYNE who had been removed few
weeks before from boarding place 10
the home of Mrs. NJ. E. Hoffman. No.
5l4 Barnard street. Mr.. Newman ac-
cordingly sought Mrs. Hoffman. The
scarlet fever sign had not been removed
from the house, and he found the room
that had been used for the other pa
tient well isolated from the rest of
the house. He made an arrangement
with Mrs. Hoffman whereby she agreed
to receive his SON
The removal was made the next
morning in closed carriage, and the
occupants of Miss Perkins house did
not know that there had been a case
of scarlet fever there. This, Mr.. New
man said, was through consideration
for her, as he did not desire to drive
away her boarders.
Then Mr.. Newman sought DR.. T. P.
Warning, who attended the boy Dr.
Warning had not been called in pre-
viously, but Mr.. Newman said that
DIR. Drummer arose during the hearing,
when the fact became known to him,
and said that. he felt that he owed
an apology to DR. Warning, as he had
been under the Impression that DR..
Warning mad recommended that
the child be removed from the one
house to the other
Mr.. Newman said that the case had
been mild one, and that his son was
doing well. He had made no report of
the matter to the health officer, be-
cause for one reason, he did not know,
at the time, that it was required, and,
for another, that he was so worried
and harassed over the illness of his
son that he did not think of it later.
He spoke at length of the care he had
taken to prevent the spread of the dis
ease, and admitted that he did not
urge his ignorance,of the law demand
ing that the matter be reported to the
health officer as an excuse as he should
have known it. Mr.. Newman said he
deplored the entire matter greatly, but
felt that he had done nothing repre-
hensible.
The matter now, it seems, rests with
the health officer The Mayor was asked
about it, but declined to discuss it,
saying that the meetings of the SAM
tary Board We're secret and that its
business should not be made public.