The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-06-03


might be called easy money. It Is
safe guess that Bob alone put at least
six hundred corpses under the SOD. Tor
elsewhere In the accounts we see that
II. Stoakes, the only undertaken who held
his ground In Portsmouth, was paid Site
dess s10o6.n for ooffins) for burying OBS
persons and In oil probability the negro
had q monopoly in the grave-dlgging line
The horrors OF tho plague reached
their npogee. on Sunday, the I'd day OF
September, 1866, for On that date thirty.
two personH-nbout one in hundred OF
the population-ceased to live. The NOR
tally for the week commencing on that
day attained the fearful number OF at
least one hundred and nifty, equal to per
cent. OF the human beings In the town at
the time. Thousands had previously fed,
and II Is estimated that before yellow
jack, got his clammy grip Of Ports.
mouth, the town had population on
10000 or 1900.
Strange to say, the committeeman who
had charge OF affairs In Portsmouth dur"
Ing the rs,ages Of tho fever. declared,
after the hideous ordeal was over, that
the .'preponderance lay In tho theory OF
instrumentation though In this opinlon'II
saws the report---"we are not sustained
either By the gentlemen composing tho
association or the medical facuAty' OF
my considerable portion OF the com
munity at large; and hence are alon .'e
individually responsible Tor the VIC" We
have advanced"
In another paragraph, where an at
temnt Ia made to argue that the disease
il not contagious, and While the laws
of nnture retain thoir present oruor Gun
never be Imported SO as to become an
endemic in any country" we ma TINS
uuerulous languages ~
If the knowledge OF this lthe true'
doctrine OF yellow fever had been gen
crallv prevalent, the country would nave
escanod the deep Disgrace produced by
the heartless brutality which character
lied the proceedings Of the authorities
If Suffolk, Weldon, Isle OF Wight county
and other places with regard to tneir
quarantine regulations: and tho cities OF
Norfolk and Portsmouth would have oeen
shared. much OF tho suffering which boz
fell their unfortunate inhabitants. we
should have had no threats OF the inpo-
sition Of heavy fines on the fugltives from
those plague stricken cities, nor would
practicing physicians have refused to at
tend upon these same fugitivcs when
overtakcn by the plague fend at their
very doors, rs did actually occur In at
least one instance"
early in August" adds the report,
'Richmond and Petersburg thought It
necessary to protect themselves against
the Importation Of the fever, but In q
very short time q moro healthy and en-
lightened sentiment prevailed and tho
nntiquated and unscienti1c policy which
they had SO hastily and inconsiderately
adopted, was done away with"
It would appear. however, that Rich
mond still chung to her ''antiquated and
unscientiac policy in September, 1856.
mouth Mayor under date OF September
9Th we find one from Mayor Joseph Mayo,
which says: I'VE have to-day made ar
rangements at plantation called Sail
ors' Tavern about ten miles below Rich
mond, where we will take care OF as
many OF your citizens as you can send
UP to us. In sending them simply give
them a ticket, saying that they will land
at Sailors Tavern II they como by tho
river boat. the Curtis Peck, or any other"
Despite the attempt to prove that the
epidemic was due to the immense
amount of decayed vegetable matter on
the Portsmouth wharves, the filthy con-
dltion Of the premises known as Fish
Row, the heavy spring rains and the
extreme heat following in June and
July, 1t would certainly seem at this dis
tant day as II all the trouble was caused
BY carcessness OF the local health au-
torties. These officials seemingy wore
astonishingly Ink in tho case OF the
steamship Ben Franklin. which some
days prior to June 81, 1856, arrived at
the port OF Norfolk and Portsmouth,,
coming last from the Island Of St.
Thomas. where, on her departure yellow
fever was prevailing to some extent.
Mailing fron an infected port and
having had two deaths on board during
her passage, she was placed in quarantine
and during this period one OF her crew
sickened and died and was candestnely
chorago. 1t is safe to presume, from the
secrecy observed. that this sailor per-
ished from some infectious disease.
DO that as II may, the vessel was al
lowed to go to Gosport under the cap
tains promise that her hold should not
be broken out and that only outside
repairs should be done to her. She was
accordingly ioy'erhau'ed and then the
trouble began, Singular to say, youth
full Richmonder Of tho name of Carter
his initials are not recalled-prObab!y
set in motion the awful forces of nature
which resulted 80 dlsastrously. He was
Il machinist by trade ana being out OF
! employment Mt the time sought work
in repairing the machinery OF the Ben
| Franklin.
The unfortunate Carter went aboard
July 3d. but spent only one day on the
! vessel On July fourth, after tho man
| ner of great many young Americans
| he celebrated the holiday by "indulEins
| freely in appropriate thrst-quenchers
The next day he was stricken with the
| fever and on tho 9Th his mnlady was
| pronounced to be genuine yellow fever
| That afternoon It was all over with him,
Subsequent investigation proved tina
Cartnr's was probably not the first case
| hut his passing was enough to cause In
tense alarm and instant action on thu
| part of the town council. The BEL
| Franklin was quickly shooed out O
Portsmouth waters, but the steamer wa
destined to do still moro harm. To
wards the close OF July she hailed two
negroes In lighter londed with Woo
and bought some fuel from them, AS {
storm came about this time, the men 70
NAMED all night and slept on the decl
OF the vessel The day after they wer