The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1906-05-10
This Dreaded Disease Appears.
Again in the West.
DOCTORS BAFFLED.
The Medical fraternity Is Entirely a
Sea Concerning Causes, Oiigin and
Nature of the Disease. Natives
Generally Attribute it to
the Wood Tick. \
the Wood Tick.

Passed Assistant Surgeon King, OF
the public health and marine hosDit-l
al service, has just been sent from
Washington to Missoula, Mont, TO
Investigate new outbreak Of spot
ted fever" ard tho medical world is
once more "up in the air" over this
strange and deadly disease. Whatcause
it? What will cure It? And what
will prevent it are questions that the
physcians have been vsinly trying to
answer for thirty-fve years, and today
with the history Of hundreds Of cases
to guide them, the learned fraternity
is as much In the dark as 1t was In the
early '7O's, when the csttlemen OF the
Bitter Boot valley fell victims Of the
mslady. Under the various names OF
"black measles" blue disease, black
fever" "tick fever" and spotted fe-
ver," scores of doctors have inVestiga-
ted each new outbreak and generally
have now come to the conclusion that
all the former Investigations n1ads by
their brethren were conducted upon
erroneous premises and therefore were
just little less valuable than OF no
value whatever. In the frBt place
nearly all the scientists agreed that
the common wood tick was responsible
for the disease. In 1903 DR.. John 3.
Anderson, of the marine hospital ser
vice, wrote 8 80. page pamphlet on the
subject and said the tick was the
cause Two years later DR.. Charles
Wardell Stiles, Of the same buree,
wrote a booklet Of 120 pages upon tho
disease and da.lared that there
was nothing to support the theory
that the tick is to blame either for
the feVer'S start or finish. Alter eI-
amining the records of several hum
dreds of cases and personally watch
ing a score OF it here. DR.. Stiles reache
ed the conclusion that mo sstisfac-
tory specific treatment is known" for
the spotted fever, and added: Il have
no new theories to present regarding
the cause, transmission, and origin OF
the disease"
In spite OF the fact tnat DR.. Stiles.
does not believe that spotted fsVer is
caused by the tick, throughout the
Western country whereit is most pre-
vslent, the tick Is more than the rat
tlesnake. Many of the pilgrims and
dwellers in the valleys nearly die from
fright when they fad trick upon
their person and often when they are
bitten by the pestiferous insects, take
to their beds, declaring that death has
marked them, when they are really In
perfect health.
In the Bitter Boot Valley, which
many physicians regard as the home
of spotted fever, nearly all the cases
occur on the western side Of the river
In the months OF April, May and June.
B 9TH sexes and sll ages are subject to
the disease, and, according to the rec-
ords, about 70 per cent OF the cases
termine in death. About five or six
days after being bitten by the tick,
which is given credit for the start Of
the disease, the patient takes to his
bed with heavy chill, headache and
nausea. Soon after the spots begin to
appear upon the wrists and ankles
and later upon the arms, legs and
about the waist. Nosebleed, sore
throat, q fever rising to lO6 at times,
and swelling OF the joints 5nen fol-
low In succession or simultaneously,
and often a hacking cough serves to
! make the patient more nlisera BILE.
OtGen the symptoms closely resemble
typhus fever and spinal me ingitis.
DR.. Kings Investigations into the
causes and results Of the latest OUT
break of the disease will be watched
with great deal Of interest by the
entire medical profession The fact
that the fever has In recent years
often spread into Utah, Idaho, NeVa-
da and Oregon from Montana, makes
each fresh appearance Of the disease
the more alarming. Unless q remedy
is found that will cure it, some physi-
clans believe there Is danger Of wide
spread epidemics occurring through.
out the West.
Most of tee doctors who have given
study to the disease agree that 1t IS
not contagious and that 1t occurs
chiefly in the months of April, May
and June.
The spots that come with spotted
fever first appear about the ankles
aud waist and by the end OF the first
week they extend over the entire
body. There Is no regularity about
their appearing on the feet ftsG, as
some times the first spots appear on
the hands. The spots are bright red