The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-02-24
DIR. HALL READS
RIOT ACT TO M.D.'S
THEY HAVE BEEN NEGLIGENT
ABOUT REPORTING TYPHOID. -
Without the Information Which the
Law Says They Shall Furnish, the
Health Department. Is Seriously
Handicapped in It's Preventive and
Statistical Work.

While only about $50 cases Of ty-
phoid fever have been reported to the
health department since the first of
the year, there are probably many
times that number in the city. Physi-
clans have not generally been report
ing typhoid cases simply because they
are not quarantined, a1tho the law re-
in .twenty-four hours after being
called The penalty for neglect is
just as great as for failures to report
cases Of smallpox or other malignant
diseases. . go ~" -
AS a result of this negligence the
authorities are deprived of many val
liable data in determining the causes
and development Of typhoid epfdemics
and consequently in taking means for
preventing similar outbreaks. If ten
or fifteen cases are reported from a
certain locality instead of one or two,
the health officers would at once sus-
pect dangerous conditions, whereas
one case would attract no particular
attention.
It was recently discovered by clerk
in the health department. that num-
Der Of deaths from typhoid fever had
not previously been reported. A
check kept for several days, showed
that Of fifteen deaths reported, only
two of the cases were found on the
typhoid fever register. That is, only
13 per cent of these cases had been
reported to the health department..
Prosecutions Are Threatened.
This wholesale ignoring Of the rules
Of the department was called to the
attention of Health Commissioner P.
M. Hall, who at once gave instructions
to warn all practicing physicians that
certain regulations were being persist
emily violated. DR.. Hall was sur
prised as well as. angered by the
negligence. of the physicians and
threatened to have some Of them pros
ecuted in the police court as an incen-
tive to obey the law. "
East Side Samples Analysed.
In conjunction with Professor F. A.
Bass of the state university, the health
department is having made a large
number of analyses Of both city and
well waters. AS the public schools
on the East Side are well distributed
thru the, centers Of population the
samples Of city water have been
taken at the schoolhouses.
Samples have been obtained from
the East High school, First avenue
Sc and University; Holmes, Fifth
street and Third avenue Sc; Marcy
Fourth street ana Nlntn avenue 81,
Motley, Oak street and Washington
avenue Sc; Sidney Pratt, in Prospect
Park; futile, Fourteenth and Tai
mage avenues Sc; Nicollet, upper
Nicollet island; Everett, University
and Sixth avenues NE, all of which
are deemed to be in the contaminated
district For the sake Of precautior
and obtaining desirable data samples
were also taken at the Webster school
Sumner and Monroe streets; Sheridan
Broadway and University avenue NE
Humboldt, Main street and Thirteenth
avenue NE, and Holland, Washington
and Seventeenth avenue NE; Pierce
Broadway and Fillmore streets The
Prescott and Van Cleve schools OF
| Twenty-fifth avenue NE and the Schil
| Ter school, California and Twenty
sixth avenue NE, are supplied direc
from, the reservoir and are supposed
to be out Of the danger zone.
Results from the bacteriologica
tests may be. expected tomorrow ant
| the reports of DR.. j, Frank Corbett ar.
awaited with some interest. Thes'
| will probably show a smaller numbe
Of colon bacilli than previous tests, a.
the East Side pumping station ha'
been closed three days when the sam
/ Piles were taken.