Omaha daily bee., 1903-01-20
PLAGUE RIFE IN FRISCO
National Health Conference Announces
Dread scourge Found in California.
SEVERELY BLAMES LOCAL OFFICERS
Calls ON City and state OmcIaIs to
Cooperate with Federal to Fight
Disease RavaEinE Pa
cinc Town.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 19.-Surgeon General
Wyman Of the public health and marine
hospital service and the representatives Of
the health authorities of nineteen states,
Indian Territory and the District of Co
lunbia met in conference here today to
consider the subject of bubonic plague in
the United States.
Among those attending are: California,
DR.. Matthew Gardner; Connecticut, DR.. c..
A. Lindley; Colorado, DR.. II. r. Bull;
Delaware, DR.. c. w. Cooper; District Of
Columbia, DR.. William c.. Woodward; In
dian Territory, DR.. NJ. B. Thompson; Iowa,
DR.. T. l. Kennedy; Indiana, DR.. j.. N.
Hurry; Louisiana, DR.. Arthur Nolte; Maine,
DR.. Charles d. Smith; Maryland, DR.. ]. s.
Fulton; Minnesota, DIR. II. NJ. Bracken;
New Jersey, DR.. Henry Mitchell; North
Carolina, DIR. r. II. Lewis; Pennsylvania,
Or. Benjamin Lee; Rhode Island, DIT. G. T.
Swartz; South Carolina, DR.. T. G.. Simons;
Vermont, DR.. H.. d.. Holton; Virginia, DR..
p. A. Irving; New York, DR.. Gannett c..
Lewis; Tennessee, DR.. ]. A. Albright.
Surgeon General Wyman announced that
the states represented had asked for a
conference. He said the subject Of the
recent plague outbreak in Mexico was to
be considered, but that it was deemed
best to consider first the situation as 1t
exists in San Francisco"
Arraigns Consular Service.
The surgeon general then advised the
conference of the action of the marine
hospital service in sending DR., A.. II. Glen
nan to San Francisco to investigate, and
of his (Wymsn's) personal visit to San
Francisco. He also read a telegram from
, DR.. Glennan, dated January II, giving the
present status and review of the situation,
as follows:
Chinatown, six sickened in other parts OF
the city, none proven to have originated
In the country. Total, six whites, four
Japanese and eighty-three Chinese since
last month. Last case outside of China
town, October 81. AS mans personal habits
were bad, possibly Chinatown origin, but
could not trace connection.
The surgeon general read a letter from
DR.. Glennan, in which he stated that of, a
total OF twenty-five dead rats found in
Chinatown within a given period, eleven
were discovered to have been infected. OF
354 rats caught alive, four were found to
have been infected.
A discussion followed relative to the
situation in California.
The following resolution was adopted:
The presence of plague in California is
established beyond debate by:
l. The Investigations of Kellogg of the
San Francisco Board of Health, S. Ryk-
togel of the California State Board Of
Health and Kinyoun for the United States
Marine hospital service.
2. By the later Investigations of Pillsbury
for the State Board Of Health and by those
Of ]. White, NJ. White, Flint, Currie, Car
michael, Blue and Glennan for the United
States Marine hospital service.
3. By the findings of FleXner, Barkner
and Norknel, special committee acting
under federal authority.
a. BY the findings of Independent and dis
| Interested inNeEtlRat tors. RlnDlipn with ma
terials from autopsies made at San Fran
cisco and working in San Francisco, Bos-
adelphla and Ann Arbor.
8. BY the occurrence OF a case OF human
plague U IN Ann a due to an aeeident
prophylactic fluid with a culture of plague
bacillus obtained in California,
6. By the autopsy records of ninety cases
of plague, now in the possession of the
United states Marine hospital service and
of the San Francisco Board of Health. and
published In part in the Occidental Medical
Times of San Francisco.
Censures Local OmciaIs.
The following resolutions were also
adopted, after considerable discussion:
The present danger to California and 10
the United states lies to the persistence,
during nearly three years, Of a definite
indus OF plague injection in the part of
San Francisco known as Chinatown, but
the gravity of this circumstance Is in
creased by gross neglect of official duty by
the State Board of Health OF California
and the obstructive influence of the recent
governor of California, by the failure of
the city government of San Francisco TO
support Its City Board Of Health and by
the obstacles proposed to the operations OF
the United States public health service.
The conference will consider the safety
of the country sufficiently assured as soon
as satisfied that a competent City Board OF
Health of San Francisco and a competent
| State Board of Health, I'm cooperation with
the United States public health service,
will proceed under definite, harmonious and
effective laws and ordinances; that they
/ are provided with ample funds and they are
| jointly and severally in the free exercise OF
their lawful powers.
Sir Gilbert Parker Arrives.