The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-02-24
COL. GoRGAs.
An Alabamian's Distinguished Ser vices Have Been Recognized
 by Congress.
Washington Special

Washington Special.
 bill has just passed both houses of Con- gress giving highly deserved promotion to one of the best-known Southern men on the roster of the United States army. This Is the bill which authorizes the President to appoint Major William Crawford Gorgas, surgeon. to the rank of assistant surgeon general. with the rank of colonel, on account of the notable services he rendered in Cuba.
 This promotion strongly urged by Gen eral Wood and the War Department officials. In his letter to Senator Pettus, who is a member of the military affairs committee, General Wood urges favorable consideration ito the recognition of the excellent work per formed by Major Gorgas chief sanitary of- fcer of the city of Havana, a work of inesti- mable value not only to the inhabitants of the city and island. but to the inhbaitants of the Southern States Major 0orgas work freed Havana from yellow fever. and In carrying out this work he has applied the results of the work of the late Major Walter Reed, the discoverer of the method of the transmission and the control of the yellow fever The work of these officers Is little appreciated by the general public, but 1t is safe to say that the results of this work has brought each year a saving of life equal in numbers to those lost during the Spanish war. and in freeing merce of the interruptions incident to yellow fever has resulted each year In saving of money equal to the cost of the war;
 The surgeon general of the army shows that
  following the discoveries of Major Reed. the number of yellow fever cases in Havana which 200 in 300. dropped to 8 in leo and in 1902. There has been no case of yellow fever in Cuba, so far known. since September. 1901.
 Major Gorgas Is a native of Alabama and a member of of the most prominent fami- lies of that State. He graduated from the University of the South at Sewanee in 1875. received the degree from the Bellevue Hospital Medical College in 1879 and was appointed assistant surgeon with the rank of first lieu tenant in S60. He major and brigade surgeon of volunteers in the war with Spain and Is now a major surgeon in the regular tabishment, From 1880 to 1884 he was on duty In the department of Texas, serving through the epidemic of yellow fever at Fort Brown At that time he suffered a at tack of the disease himself
 In 1887 he volunteered for service at Fort Barrancas Fla, during the epidemic of vel low fever at that post. and was commented by the surgeon general for his fearless and sklllful management of the epidemic" !" At the outbreak of the war in Cuba he went to the island. where he In charge of the re- serve divisional hospital at Siboney and of the yellow fever hospital near Santiago during the epidemic there until he was stricken with ty- phoid fever After his recovery he volunteered for duty at Havana, where he filled highly important positions until May, 1900, when he was assigned to duty as chief sanitary off cer. a position he held until the end of the American occupation The official record of his services on file at the War Department says:
 During the year sol, while Major Gorgas was chief sanitary officer he accomplished the magnificent and herculean task of com pletely eradicating yellow fever from Ha- yana, which city it had scourged for 40 years-an achievement without parallel in the
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