The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1906-05-25
WASHINGTON.
Legislative and Gem
eral Topics from
the Capital.
May IL, 1906.

nay IL, 1SUO.
One of the local papers has
come out this week with what is
alleged to be ar authoritive launch
ing of the Cannon boom for the
Presidency. 1t claims that the
Presidential bee has lit at last and
that there is being prepared by
some unnamed Representative
speech which will be delivered in
the House some time during the
coming week, naming "Uncle
Joe" as the real thing in preSi-
deGtial timber and putting the
thing III such a shape that the
old war horse of the Republicans
can but cOyly say Eyes" This is
a piece of gossip that is given for
what it may be worth. There is
no authentic record of a man yet
refusing the nomination for the
Presidency when it was definitely
rendered him. Speaker Cannon
says he has enough trouble run
ming the House and is not par
ticularly after the nomination.
But it is possible he might be in
duced to do violence to his feel.
ings if he were violently APP
preached. There is just one thing
against the suggestion, and that
is that it is a little early for the
real boom to be launched. Presi
Dental candidates are not usually
named so far in advance of the
convention and it is just possible
if the Cannon boom is launched
at this time that it may wither
with some other boOms already
launched that probably never will
get into the convention hall.
One of the most important con-
ventions that has been held in
Washington for long time is now
in session. 1t is the joint meeting
of the Association of American
Physicians and the National AS
sociation for the Study and Pre-
vention of tuberculosis. 1t will
be recOllected that this aSsocia.
ton was the Outgrowth of the
commission appointed by the Pres
ident to study the subject. 1t has
had the effect of bringing some of
the best minds in the medical
profession to the study of con.
sumption and has resulted in the
first organized fight that has ever
been made against the Great
White Plague. 1t was pointed out
by one of the speakers this week
that the ravageS of tuberculosis
is a greater amount of loss and
suffering. save perhaps the actual
money loss, than the Galveston
food, the San Francisco earth
quake and the Baltimore and
Chicago fires com bined.
DR.. Billings, in addressing the
convention, said frankly that the
medical profession had come to
the conclusion that there was no
specific drug for the cure of tuber-
culosis. The medical profession
had been twenty five years in
arriving at that conclusion. and
the average layman was now %
years behind the medical prOfes
sion and still clung to the idea
that there was some specific
against the disease. Dr. Billing
said, and the convention agreed
with him, that the only hope for
the work lay in a broadcast cam.
paign of education among the
people. The masses must be
shown the real facts, namely that
was neither heredi.
tary nor contagious, though it was
communicable from cOnsumptive
to we'll person if the most san
itary life was not led and the
greatest care taken aga inst
spreading the media of contagion,
namely the sputum from the con-
patient. If this were
done, and it could easily be done,
there was no danger to be appre-
hended and the plague could be
stamped out. There was world
of interesting material in the con-
vention and the work of education
and eradication outlined were so
sane and simple that it made one
wish to help the cause along by
showing just how much and how
little there really was to be dread.
ed from the disease. 1t may be
said however that the National
Association for the Study md
Prevention of tuberculosis has a
lot of simple and interesting read
ing matter prepared on the subject
which it is willing TO distribute
and any one who is interested in
the matter can help themselves
aud help the work by communi-
eating with the association.