Omaha daily bee., 1905-07-28
Nearly All These Are in Vicinity Of
Original Focus
LAGUE ORIGINATES IN ITALIAN QUARTERS
Nearly All New Cases Are People Of This
Nationality,
RIGID QUARANTINE is ESTABLISHED
Work of Draining Low Places and
Screening Cisterns Proceeding
RRpidIy-NO Cases at
other Points.

NEW ORLEANS, July 27.-An the forces
engaged in the battle against the yellow
fever scourge today Joined in expressing
the belief that while the situation has been
and is serious, enough success has already
been achieved in the application OF the
methods applied, the result of the work
of the Reed commission In Cuba, TO Justify
the hope that for the first time in the his
tory of the country what threatened to be
a malignant epidemic OF yellow fever will
be stamped out before frost comes and
that New Orleans will be spared the horrors
of previous epidemics. 1t is the opinion of
DIR. J. H. White. in charge of the marine
hospital forces, and of the state and local
health officials that IL destruction Of the
stegomyia checks the spread of the disease
and enables the gradual eradication of the
cases in hand and those which may be ex-
pected to appear for some time to come in
the infected sections. the present visitation
of the plague will have been blessing in
disguise, since it will have demonstrated
the ability of science to control the most
virulent outbreak of the fever in the south.
origin of the Plague.
With the cases reported today the aggre-
gate since July l3 runs close to 200. These
are included in twenty to twenty-five foci,
focus No. /, including the section around
the French market, where the fever first
appeared and where a large proportion of
| the cases and fatalities have occurred. This
| section from st. Ann to Barracks
| streets. and from Chartres to the river, in
cluding about forty city blocks Italians
i here are notoriously prone to avoid ply
| sicians, and the fever got foothold in the
! district before It became known to the au-
thonties. No precautions were taken to
destroy the mosquitoes and the scourge
spread with such rapidity among the cheap
| and crowded lodging houses that the
Italians who could get away fed, some
! going to friends in other sections of the
| city, some by rail to surrounding towns
and some by luggers into settlements along
the coast. The result is the appearance of
cases of fever in various parts Of the city,
| but principally below Canal street in neigh-
borhoods OF the poorer classes. Almost
| every instance OF a new focus outside OF
| the French market district Is that of an
Italian who escaped therefrom or OF ocrie
one of different nationality whose busi-
ness was in that section. AS far as the
| health authorities were able to discover
! today no case has thus far developed from
outside of any OF the outlying infected dis
| tricts, and with very few exceptions the
| cases and deaths have been among the
Italians. Illustrating this fact a report for
twenty-four hours made of1ciaily to the
! state board shows twenty-six cases and six
deaths, nearly all of them being Italians.
Cleaning Campaign begins.
A cleaning campaign has begun on an ex-
! tensive plan. Every ward is being thor
oughly organized with precinct organlza-
tions radiating from the major body.
Cleaning up streets and removing dirt
! from cutters is energy thrown away" de-
| clared President Kohnke of the City Board
! of Health to a delegation of citizens who
! called TO consult him on the subject.
! Screen cisterns and drain standing water
from premises where IL abounds," said he.
The emergency hospital which has been
| fitted out for the care of ye' vT fever pa
tents was in full operation roday. 1t Is
| located in an old three-story building In
the heart of the French quarter. The hos
pital will be operated at its full capacity.
patients being removed to it from all Sec
tions of the city in a screened ambulance,
which has already been provided
| A visit to the French market section to-
day gave little visible evidence of the seri-
Gus epidemic that has prevailed I'm that
quarter. Two weeks OF hard work by the
public cleaning gangs showed in the gem
eral cleanliness of the surroundings, but
there was no excitement among the resi-
dents.
Quarantine f. Rigid.
Every avenue of egress fro mthe city has
been closed by the rigid quarantine and
uninfected sections OF the city are discour-
aging any further invasons by Italians. II
is considered wiser for them to remain
where they are at present and where they
are to be charitably cared for II in distress.
and nursed If ill.,
The detention camps established by the
lmarine hospital service I'm order to enable
persons to leave the city who want TO get
into sections quarantined against New Or
leans were opened today. Permits to enter
these camps are 20 be obtained from the
headquarters OF the marine hospit service
here. This is to he required in order that
each applicant may be examined. the hos
pitaI service not desiring to send into the
detention camps persons who are likely to
become III. thereby establishing new centers
of infection.
There is a very slight exodus of New Or
leans people Some heads Of families are
sending their wives and children elsewhere
and men whose business has suffered by
the appearance of the fever are taking ad-
vantage of the opportunity to take summer
vacations now. It is next to impossible 10
get into Mississippi. Alabama. Texas and
Louisiana towns without detention. Quar-
! antines are being made constantly more
rigid since the board OF health began 10
! make public the number Of cases and
, deaths Mississippi is sending her inspec-
tors right into New Orleans. Every passen-
ger Is examined and the tickets OF through
passengers scrutinized to prevent any one
from attempting 10 get into the state by
, | surreputiOus means.
! Refuses 10 Modify Regulations.
In many country towns there was a dis
; position amoPg the medical men TO accept
| A.
, ify the quarantine regula tions. The masses
of the people, however have not been suf-
: hciently educated and the fact that there
are 200 eases in New orleans has been suf-
hciently terrorizing TO force them to de-
; mand that there shall be absolutely no
communication with infected points. Efforts
q have been made by men OF influence on the
gulf coast and In New Orleans 20 induce
Governor Yardaman TO relax the quarantine