The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1903-12-03
THE INSPECTION TOUR.
Members of Vermont Tuberculosis
Commission Visit Sanitariums

Three members of the Vermont
State tuberculosis comm ssion, Drs ID.
d. Grout of Waterbury, W. N. Bry-
ant of Ludlow, and the Hon Henry
Ballard of Burlington have returned
from short tour of inspection of
leading sanitariums in Massachusetts
, and New York. Drl Lewis of Bur-
lington and Hubbard Of Lyndonville
were prevented from taking the trip
with the other commissioners by ill
health. Drs. Grout and Bryant spent
Friday, Nov. 20, in New York city
interviewing DR.. Le1erie, health com
missioner of that city, and others
upon the subject of the proposed
tuberculosis camp which they intend
to establish outside New York and
keep the patients for the most part in
tents. On Saturday they visited the
famous DR.. Locmis sanitarium. This
institution is located in Liberty, on
the western slope of the Catsk ill
mountains, about 100 miles from New
York Ontario 81 Western railroad.
The town of Liberty is the highest
above the sea level on this road. The
sanitarium is about three miles from
the village itself, and it's altitude
about 800 feet greater, or 1890 feet
above the sea level. 1t lies upon the
southeast and south slope of the Cats
kill mountains and the outlook from
! it reminds one very much of the
| veiw from Mansfield mountain. The
sanitarium was established by DR..
Loomis, the noted author and writer
on the subject of lung diseases 1t is
built upon the cottage plan, there
being some twenty large and commo-
dious cottages, many of them the gifts
of wealthy people The large build
| ing called the administration building,
: which contains quarters for patients
and officials of the establishment was
the gift of J. P. Morgan, the million
aire financier. There is also very
beautiful library. The entire staff
( of officials, the physicians in charge
aud the assistants and head nurses
were with one exception, at some time
in their lives, victims of tuberculosis
and have been cured by this treat
ment, It is needless to say that they
are enthusiastic in their belief that it
is the right kind of treatment and
faw q. Il.
so.
The idea that underlies the insti-
tuition is distinctively the open air
treatment, the intention being to
give the patients the purest air to
breathe at night as we'll as day and
plenty of the most nourishipg food to
eat. They have three regular meals a
day at the regular times and for those
who need a light luncheon between
meals and something before retiring.
At the Rutland sanitarium about
] twelve miles from Worcester, Mass :,
there are, beside the main buildings,
some fifteen or twenty buildings,
which might be called sheds They
are enclosed on three sides and rooted
over, the open sides facing southeast
and south. These are located in the
woods at some little distance from the
main buildings and in them many of
the patients spend much of their time
when the weather is suitable. The
temperature at both of these places
was quite low. AT Liberty in the
mo ming the thermometer registered
10 degrees below zero and didn't rise
to exceed 30 or 40 degrees during the
day. 1t was nearly as cold at Rut-
land, yet the officials and patients did
not seem to be troubled at AL by it,
even without any artificial heat, and
most of them seemed to, enjoy it,
while the commissioners were disposed
to turn up their coat collars and dc
more or less shivering The patients
are, as a whole, very healthy looking
for sick people. The commissioners
were told that the patients rarely
take cold The average time al
which they remain at the institution
is from four to seven months.
DR. Herbert O. Clapp. one of the
examining physicians of the santa
rum, told the commissioners thai
the institution is very popular one
, with the Legislature and that very
seldom have they asked for an appro
priation to enlarge it by new build
ings without receiving the desired
amount. The commissioners were
treated with uniform courtesy ant
feel that the time has been vel