The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-09-09
DR. BEATTY TAKES A POLITE FALL
OUT OF DR.. METZ OF NEW ORLEANS

To The Salt Lake Herald:
The Importance Of the question is too
great TO allow TO pass unnOtiCed the re-
ported assertions of DIT. Metz taxing is
sue with the statements made by me in
the paper on typhoid fever in which /
claim that No tests chemical micro
sc6pical or bacteriOgical could be relied
upon TO determine the absence Of typhoid
DaCilli from q water supply.
He is quoted as saying that such an
opinion was held in the past age of me0i-
cine, etc, but thanks be to science 1t
rs mo longer true. as chemistry and bac-
terlolOgy may be relied upon TO prove the
presence or absence OF typhoid DaCilll
from water supply ] desire to say that
It WIS for the purpose of calling atteI-
ton To the danger existing in just sucn
doctrine as that advanced by the doctor
that the point i'm my article was en-
pEa~ized.
! scitcratc it and call upon the doctor
over his own signature to substantiatc his
claim ] am sure he does not wish to be
understood as holding that chemical
means can detect disease organisms. and
we VIII discuss only The ARCHAEOLOGICAL
methods furnished by modern science.
No one denies that I'm n given specimen
OF infected water subjeCtgI 10 baCtcr-
biological test by means Of a culture, tho
presence Of typhoid bdCilli VIII be dis
closed But what assurance is there that
specimen or many specimens taken
from millions of gallons daily flowing i'm
the water mains Will contain typhoid
nacilH. In point OF fact II Us only an
such a system even when largely con-
taminated that contains baCilli. as must
be apparent TO anyone who possesses an
ordinary amount of common sense. II il
were otherwise thousands Of people using
the water would contract the disease in
stead OF the limited number affected. If
the entire accumulation of cXreta from
"a case of the disease were thrown at one
time into one OF the streams supplying
Sal- Lake City. fl would be SO diluted that
it would only be by the meTcst chance
that the bacilli would be found in any
quantity such as the sample for bacter-
biological test. Water Of the quality found
i'm our mountain streams is not q GOOD
culture medium for the propagation Of
disease organisms, and they certainly
are not liable to propagate and increase
after their Introduction into it. Is il
possible TO better illustrate the fallacE
OF depending upon water analysis than
city Were not chemical and bacter-
biological tests OF PaTley's canyon water
made Dy the score during the past few
weeks. and was not The water pronounced
pure and free from any evidence of in
lection?
Accepting this statement did not thou
sands of people conclude that IL was un-
necessary to boil or otherwise take pro-
CaufiOns with water. and thus misled.
subject themselves TO danger in view Of
the fact thar 10 transpires case OF ty
phOid fever had existed on the banks Of
that stream during all OF the time. and is
now held responsible IN part for the prev
no reflection on the ability or care of the
CITY chemist that he failed 10 FIND evil
dence of contamination. He is entirely
competent and simply reported on -
strength or what he found. or failed to
find. and no other chemist could have
done more 10 is only another instance o.
thousands which might be cited wherein
chemical and bacteriological tests failed
Go discover the presence Of the contamin-
alton responsible for typhoid fever out
breaks; and I challenge anyone 10 quote
"a single authority who claims that any
practical chemical. microscopical or bac-
Pathological test can be relied upon to de-
tcrmine the absence Of typhoid baciil
from q public water SUPPLY lt would
indeed be an easy matter 20 settle the
origin of typhoid in an cases Of water
injection il 70 were fortunately suScepu-
bic of such simple determination.
IT, IS useful 80 make chemical and bac-
terolocical tests oi water for their pre-
sumptive value. The detection OF large
amounts OF nitrites and aihrmenOid ann
monia Is prosumptive evidCn OF impuri-
" and should be acted upon accordingly.
But their absence is no evidence OF the
absence OF disease organisms The only
practical means az orr command for
solving the question Of infected water
supply is the study OF the cases % the
disease ae related 90 e.. and the exercise
Of Infinite pains TO ascertain any focus