The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1905-11-29

to teach them how? Would it not be
wise to enlighten them on the methods
of preserving health by applying the
doctrine OF cleanliness to their homes
and their persons? Cleanliness Is
next TO Cioiiness'' and as Goodness Is
a guarantee against evil so cleanliness
is guarantee against germ diseases.
I believe it has been ruled that Godli-
ness may not be taught in the public
schools for fear OF treading on the
favorite corns of some equity ecclesi-
astic, though 1 can not for the life of
me see why the broad ethical principles
underlying the decalogue should not be
the corner stone of all education, but
there has been no such ruling against
cleanliness and therefore I urge that it
be included in every curriculum.
Take the subject or ventilation for in
stance. Physiology teaches that we in
hale a mixture of oxygen, nitrogen and
carbon dioXide gases, and exhale them
| in different proportions plus moisture
and waste organic substances. Santa
| ton teaches that our habitations must
| be properly and sufficiently ventilated.
! Physicians often enter the homes of
the poor where the air is so foul that
| it is almost suffocating, where the ig-
norant mother has an unholy fear OF
fresh air. Many time l have found a
poor infant suffering from pneumonia
or bronchitis in a room so tightly
closed that a cubic inch of fresh air
could scarcely find its way in, the little
creature swathed in wraps like an
| Esquimo, painting and struggling for
a bit of oxygen, but only able to breathe
over and over again the vitiated at
lmosphere of the sitting room. Some
mothers particularly amongst the ig-
norant Portuguese and Chinese seem
to consider fresh air poisonous, and it
| is with the utmost difficulty that they
can be persuaded to open the windows
and doors. In this land of even tenn
perature and perennial sunshine there
should be no lack of fresh air in our
homes. Most of US are so accustomed
to it that it is actual misery to be in
| a closed room, but as I say, amongst
the ignorant classes, this is not true
and if their offspring can be taught
its value much good will be done them.
BY the side of pure air. we must put
pure water an article we see very
little of in Honolulu nowadays.
| In this enlightened century it is the
sacred duty of governments and water
companies to supply pure water to
communities, but unfortunately this
duty is ignored more often than it is
fulfilled in the United states. 1t would
weary you to relate the epidemics that
have devastated cities through con-
tamination of the water Suffice it to
say that thousands upon thousands of
lives have been lost and tens of thou
sands have had to endure long and
tedious sicknesses for having used
disease laden water. Typhoid fever.
cholera, dysentery diarrhoea and in
testinal parasites are the principal all
ments on the water carried list. every
one of which can be avoided by the
use of boiled water.
| aIf every individual in this city were
% drink only boiled wafer, the death
and sick rate would be appreciably re-
duced
1t is simple thing to do and many
of our people never do otherwise, but
unfortunately amongst the ignorant
classes again, the custom does not pre-
vail and they pay the penalty in
disease and death.
The Asiatics as a rule boil the water
they drink because they drink it in
the form of tea, were it not for this,
China and Japan, where house SAM
tation is unknown would be decimated
by the water borne diseases.
If children We're laugh; with en-
phasiS the Importance of using only
boiled water of never drinking from
the city taps or from unknown sources,
it would be better for them than to
pass 100 in their physiology examina-
tions.
F'iltering is another means of puri-
flying water, but it is not so practical
for domestic purposes as boiling, be-
cause filters are expensive and they
must be constantly cleaned or they are
liable to do more harm than good
How is water contaminated? Usual
ly by sewage or eXcreta. Those of
you who lived here in 1895 when Ho-
nolulu suffered from an epidemic of
Asiatic cholera recall how often cases
were traced to contamination of the
water; how the Nuuanu stream be-
came infected by a cholera victim who
lived on the bank of the Pauoa stream
near its junction with Nuuanu; how
the natives who used the water below
the point of infection We're stricken
by the score
This brings me to the third impor-
tant subject in connection with SANTA
ton, namely the disposal of sewage.
One of the greatest boons that has
ever come to Honolulu was the laying
of sewers. While studying the sub
ject of deaths from fevers recently,
l was impressed with the marked re-
duction that immediate ly followed this
sanitary Improvement. The deaths
from fever in 1899 and 1900 were 1s9
and 1874. In 1901 and 1902 after the
sewers were in operation they We're
only as low as AZ and q. It is to be
regretted that the system has not been
extended to cover the whole city and
that the government has not the power
to force househoIders to connect their