Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-06-09
HOFFMAN MAKES
GOOD SUGGESTIONS
Advises a General Cleaning Up
and Enforcement of More
Rigid Sanitary Measures
SURFACE WELLS ARE BAD
With an Assistant and Professor
Weems He Has Made Thorough In
vestisation of Conditions and Finds
Necessary Precautions Lacking in
Many Instances.

! Charles II. Hoffman, of DeS MoineS
who, in company with an assistant ano
Professor j. b. Weems, of Ames, has
been making a thorough investigation
into conditions that exist in the city
and at homes where typhoid fever
has been prevalent. DIR. Hoffman did
not make his suggestions in the shape
of report, as he is not yet ready
to present a formal summary OF his
findings.
| Dr.. Hoffman showed clearly in his
talk that he had gone into detail to a
marked degree He has been over the
ground personally, investigated the ma
tural surroundings of homes where
fever has existed, and has found con-
ditions that should open the eyes of
physicians and citizens alike, in uni
ted effort to remedy the difficulties.
| DIR. Hoffman does not state what he
thinks was the primary cause of the
outbreak of fever, altho he was asked
by both Mr.. Greene and Mr. Webster
| IL he considered that the city's water
supply was responsible. Determination
of the first cause he has deferred until
he makes his final report, but at the
present time he feels that other things
need looking after, and should COM
mand immediate attention. He is inn
pressed with the fact that the disease
will spread If proper sanitary and n.y.
genie precautions are not taken. Di-
rect infection is clearly shown to have
been responsible for many of the later
cases. In the majority Of the homes
visited Dr. Hoffman finds that there
have not been proper arrangements
made for disinfection. Urine and focal
matter from fever patients both potent
agencies of disease, are thrown into
privy vaults without disinfection of
any kind In some instances no pre-
cautions have been taken even to de-
post the waste matter in vaults, but
have been thrown into yards instead,
where the rains wash it over the ground
and into surface wells. He considers
that flies will be another agency of
disease.
DR.. Hoffman has examined the veni-
lation in school houses of the city, and
finds conditions at the high school
building very bad indeed. Faulty
plumbing has allowed the lavatories to
ventilate into the attic Of the building
where stands the open tank of the wa
ter supply. Improper trapping of clos
cts and sewers he also considers dan
gerous.
AS immediate measures of precaution
he advised the general cleaning of
city where there is now sewage connec-
chances whatever in portions of the
city where Their is now sewage connec-
ton. He advised that the city look
after the work of disinfection, and es-
pecially among the poorer families,
where they are not able to disinfect
properly, and at homes where the in
telligence of the people can not be
trusted to see that the work is properly
done.
Dr. Hoffman referred to the High
berger family, which has been so sorely
afflicted, and in this connection men,
toned the necessity of a hospital. where
families of that kind, where the pa
tients were huddled together in small
rooms could be taken, properly isolated
and cared for. The material about the
house infected should be destroyed.
Mater used from the shallow wells
should be boiled, not only what is used
for drinking purposes, but for every
other purpose. and especially that in
which fresh vegetables are washed. In
connection with the reference to the
family DR.. Hoffman stated
that couple of old water closets, that
formerly stood on school premises, had
been purchased and used for outbuild-
ings. In one was kept the family's
milk supply, open to all contamination
possible
DIR. Hoffman was asked If he had
learned whether or not physicians had
instructed their patients as to the ne
cessity for great care in disinfecting
properly and replied that only about
40 per cent, in his opinion, had so adj
vised.
DR.. Hoffman made the statement that
the majority of surface wells in GER
tain districts of the city were nothing
more or less than sewers from which
people were taking great risks in
drinking. He thinks the plumbing or
dinance should be strictly enforced;
that people should be advised to keep
all milk covered, and not allow 1t to
stand open to Infection; that grass |
dDOul ydTuS pS hSPt lilONCtA SiosSiS anu
alleys cleaned up that the dairymen's |
premises be investigated regularly. in
order to ascertain if their supplies were
free from contamination. and if not to
prevent their selling: and also to insist
upon a rigid enforcement of sewer dis
In speaking of the danger in contami-
nation of milk Dr. Hoffman said that he
had found one family. in the vicinity of
Sixth avenue and Lee street. where a
case of fever existed, which kept COW
and sold milk to five customers in the
In each of the five homes
fever developed and he thought it
nothing more or less than case of
direct infection.
Professor Weems Talks.
Professor j. b. Weems of the chair
Of agricultural chemistry, in Iowa State
College. Ames, made a very short adj
dress before the board. He has been
the analyses of water from
the different wells investigated by Or.
Hoffman, and says that between 50 and
10 per cent of those thus far examined
are contaminated. He says that in his
chemical examination, the city water