Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1906-03-21

At the meeting of the Board OF Health
,,sfprdsv- afternoon, Secretary William
Hamann presented his report for the
vear 1905, which was approved and
sordered sent TO City Council.
During the year, according to the re-
rort there were 70 direct complaints.
Tbicb involved the sewering of 46l proper
ties $50 of which have been connected,
f02 remaining unconnected, due to cold
weather. Ninety-six Of the l04 proper
ties left over from the year 1904 were con-
nected making a total OF ass for the
yeor and 10 unconnected. This does
moi represent the total sewer work. as
,nanv properties were connected by their
owners who anticipated the board
oot;on and voluntarily proceeded. Were
tbese included the number would approx
s,ote 500 properties. OF the complaints re-
ceired ISL were found groundless. Many
nsrtv drains and alleys were opened, re-
haired and repaved.
Secretary Hamann commends the execu
tire officers. stating that they have been
AT an times faithful punctual and prompt.
On the subject of changing officers Mr.
Hamann makes the following comment.
ut is to be regretted that IN the usual
course of events the department passes
from the control of one political party TO
another. that careful conscientious and
faithful employees should be removed If
there is one department in the munich
pslitv that should be beyond the evil Of
political changes and influences, / believe
f 10 be this one. / frankly believe that
the department has indeed been fortunate
in the selection of these men who have
displayed unusual ability along sanitary
lines and to them is undoubtedly due the
greater part Of the success Of this depart
ment in maintaining the good sanitary
conditions OF the city"
The officers, in addition to their other
duties. made AIS fumigations in the city.
They have also made fumigations in the
territory within a radius of eight miles
Of the city. including New Castle. Newport
Marshalton, Hockessin and Talleyville,
at the request of physicians and families
where there have been cases Of diphtheria
and scarlet fever. The fumigations out
Of town we're at 81 residences and four
schools.
About 1000 notices were served, order
ing different kinds of nuisances abated.
Relative to garbage the report says:
The garbage service during the year
has been on par with the preceding year;
not perfect by any means. still. however,
a. kARA % AtAAA 'A "a IAANNA vi A!oAA~A AaA
under present conditions and cifcum-
stances. 1 cannot conceive how the sys-
TEN Of collecting and disposing of garbage
as at present conducted and operated will
ever satisfy the people or prevent COM
plants. In my opinion there should be
adopted one or two systems of collecting
and dispOsing OF garbage; one by award
ing contract 10 a reliable and responsible
firm to collect and dispose Of by the re-
duction process or a contract to remove
and dispose of at so much per ton. This
is practically on the profit sharing or piece
work basis, the incentive being to collect
all garbage to derive a profit or make it
pay. In my report of one year ago,
recommended that City Council enlarge
and increase the capacity of the present
incinerating plant, believing then, as l do
now. that the present plant is not capable
Of disposing Of all garbage collected in
the city. and that the city WAS not pre-
pared to undertake the disposition Of
garbage by the reduction process. As a
number of corporations are desirous Of
accepting a contract from the city for
the proper disposal of garbage by re-
duction process, / would urge upon the
Council immediate action looking for
ward to the adoption of such a system.
The city was free of smallpox during
the year. There was a remarkable, as
well as gratifying, falling of in the number
Of diphtheria cases. The number of cases
reported for the year 1905 were l54, with
II deaths. against 80 cases and 80 deaths
in the year 1904, a 50 per cent decrease
in number OF cases and deaths. There
we're 100 cases of scarlet fever, with two
deaths, against IS cases and three deaths
for the year 1904. There were reported
2l0 cases of typhoid fever, with 80 deaths
against 7S cases and 43 deaths during
1904. This would appear as though al
epidemic had prevailed here, Nh. .Hamanr
says, but to the contrary, i believe it wal
nothing more than the enforcement Of
statute compelling physicians to repor
cases or suffer the consequences. In
previous years physicians had been neg
Letting to report these cases"
There were l52 deaths from tubercu
losis. He recommended that Counci
adopt an ordinance for statistical pur
poses, compelling physicians to report al
such cases under their care.
On the ground that smoke is a menacl
TO public health the report urges Cit,
Council to adopt an ordinance on tn
subject, with regulations similar to thos
IN New York, Philadelphia, st. Paul
baltimore, Boston, Cincinnati, Cleveland
Chicago and other cities
The recommendation is made to Coun
cil that a fund be set aside for the purpos
OF sewering properties which are helC
IN litigation, or where persons hold life
time interests, or are unable to do thl
work and desire the board to do so, placinl
uen against property to be reduced a
parties are able
Under a recent decision of the Superio
Court, the report says, "the board can
not compel agents Of properties to connec
the properties with the sewer Il Ger
tainly will appeal to any fair-minded per
son that the department would be unjus
TO enforce local property owners to comply
with the law by connecting propertie
with the sewer and permit non-residen
owners, who may have local agents, u
escape. Therefore to abate nuisances il
Their entirety, it will become absolutel,
necessary to have some such fund o
appropriation, or frame and adopt a la,
70 reach nonresident owners throlg
Their local agents
livery request made by The healti pa
paiimeni of the Street and Sewer Depart
u.nt Tor new seres has been granted
lne total numheI of deaths ior sea
was $40 as against SOP loF yH.i 1864
eec rease ui 1865 Based on am lmale
population of 81 000. the death atc wa
io.lo, the lowest IN the history oi th
department. The principal causes G
ueath were tuberculosis of which ther
were l52, and pneumonia lO5, a mate. ia
Increase from the preceding year, whe
tne deaths were; tuberculosis, 1869; pneu