Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1904-10-27
WARNING NOTE
AS TO SMALLPOX
Prevalence Of Disease Prompts
State Board of Health
to Action.
VIRULENT TYPE RETURNS
Vaccination of School Children Espcc.
tally Urged as a Precau-
ton.

| DF. ". u. craig, JT., city comm iSSiOn-
er of heath. has received the following
communication, a copy of which has
| been sent TO every town in the ILL
nois. from the state board of health:
Smallpox, the prevalence of which !
| has occasioned repeated warnings on
the part of the state board of health. !
is still to be found in many parts of |
| Illinois. In some places the disease
| has become epidemic. Unless every
| effort is now made to check the spread |
Of this disease. it will prevail through |
out the winter TO a frightfuI extent and !
with great mortality
| In 1900, 1901 and 1902 the state
! board of health called the attention
of the people and of the health officers
of the state TO the immense number !
of cases and to the probability that
| the mild type then prevailing would. !
| sooner or later. return to the old, ma ,
! lignant type. By constant agitation
! during those years. the state board /
of health was able to secure such gen /
eral vaccination throughout the state
that the disease was largely checked
and the number of cases in 1908 was.
consequently, quite small
| CareleSsneSs Ia Vaccination.
| The mild type of the disease and the !
| decrease in the number of cases have |
| led to carelessnesS as to vaccination
and other sanitary precautions. Now
smallpox is appearing in many parts
of the state and hundreds are being
stricken.
AS fOretold by the state board of
health in its warnings. the viru;ent
| type of the disease has returned Dur
ing the month of September. in one
infected district, 10 patients among 80
afflicted, died in a period of four days
one death in every five! In another.
% among 2OO-one death in every
| eight
During August a few cases Of sma':.
pOx, improperly diagnosed as some
| harmless disease. were found in a GER
tain town Of Illinois. No precautions
| were taken to prevent contagion Vac
cinatiOn was neglected. In a few
weeks cOntagion had spread to five
adjoining counties and the malignant
| type of the disease appeared. Panic
reigned. travellers avoided the town
and business was practically suspend
ed. Human lives were sacrificed to
tiles to appreciate and act upon the
repeated warnings of the state board
of health.
| No Excuse for Epidemic.
There is no excuse for an epidemic
OF smallpox. That vaccination. prop
erly performed. will absolutely prevent
the disease. is known to every health
officer in the country. That general
vaccination now, with careful isolation
and quarantine of every case of small
poX or suspected smallpox coming TO
the vicinity, will entirely remove the
danger of an epidemic. is too well
known to require repetition.
The knowledge of the certainty of
the means of prevention places a re-
sponsibility upon health officers which
they cannot ignore.
In protecting the people of your COM
munity. as well as those of all other
parts of the state. the state board of
health urges upon you the necessity
of the adoption in your vicinity of ev-
| cry possible means of preventing the
invasion of smallpox; that the import
ance of vaccination be urged upon
your citizens, and that vaccination be
demanded in the case of school chill
dren who are especially susceptible
to the disease. 1t is urged that every
effort be made to induce managers
and owners of manufacturing and 9th
er plants or establishments employing
large numbers of persons TO unite in
determined fight against the disease.
by insisting upon evidence of satisfaC-
tory vaccination of every CmplOye
| in
great good is shown by the fact that
great Chicago packing houses have
just decided that only recently vacci-
mated persons will be retained in en-
ployment Practical business men will
usually cooperate with health officers
in checking the spread of disease. es-
peciany if the business losses of an
epidemic are impressed upon them.
Loss of Life and Business.
Aside from the great loss OF life
which may be expected this year
wherever smallpox gains a foothold.
the suffering and the horrors and fears
of panic. the loss financially 20 a com
munity in isolating. quaranUin!ng,
nursing and providing for the needs
OF patients is great. while the cessa-
ton Of business and the turning of
trade from outlying places into other
| and safer channels entails a business
loss of the largest proportions.
One case of smallpox coming into
community in which the people are not
generally vaccinated may cost hun
dreds of lives and the loss of thous-
ands of dollars When that smallpox
patient will come into your commun-
ity. regardless of your striCtest pre-
cautions. is merely a matter Of specu-
lation
Forearmed with the warning that
this fatal and loathsomc disease threat
, ems your locality in virulent form:
advised as 10 the suffering and death