Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-12-18
SANITATION IS SUCCESSFUL
First Great Problem of the Canal
| Zone has Been Solved

Zone has Been Solved
| The first great problem to be solv-
| ed, upon the solution of which the
i success of the rest of the work de-
pended, was the problem of SANTA
ton. This was from the outset under
the direction of DR.. w. G.. Gorgas.
| who is to be made full member of
| the commission. 1t must be remem-
bered that his work was not mere
sanitation as the term is understood
in our ordinary municipal work,
| Throughout the zone and in the two
cities of Panama and Colon, in adj
dition to the sanitation work proper,
he has to do all the work that the
Marine Hospital service does as re-
CARDS the nation, that the health de-
partment officers do in the various
states and cities, and that Colonel
| Warning did in New York when he
cleaned it's streets. The results have
been astounding The Isthmus had
been a byword for deadly unhealth-
| fulness. Now, after two years of our
| occupation the conditions as regards
sickness and the death rate COM
pare favorably with reasonably
healthy localities in the United States.
! Especial care has been devoted to
minimizing. the risk due. to the pres
/ ence of those species of mosquitoes
1 which have been found to propagate
malarial and yellow fevers. In all
1 the settlements, the little tempor-
airy towns or cities composed of the
white and black employees, which
grow up here and there in the tropic
jungle as the needs, of the work die
| tate, the utmost care is exercised to
1 keep the conditions healthy. Every
| where are to be seen the drainage
bitches which in removing the wa
4 ter have removed the breeding places
of the mosquitoes while the whole
jungle is cut away for considerable
space around the ,habitations, thus
destroying the places in which the
MOSQUITOES take shelter. These drain
age bitches and clearings are in ev-
idence in every. settlement, and, to-
gether with the invariable presence
Of mosquito screens around the piaz-
zas, and Of mosquito doors to the
1 houses, not to speak of the careful
fumigation that has gone on in al
]. infected houses, doubtless explain the
extraordinary absence of mosquitoes
AS matter of fact, but single
mosquito, and this not of the dan
gerous species, was seen by any mem
ber~of our party, during my three days
on the Isthmus.
EQUAL care is taken by the inspect.
ors of the health department to Sc.
cure cleanliness in the houses ant
proper hygienic conditions of ever,
kind 1 inspected between twenty ane
thirty water closets, both those uset
by the white employees and those uset
by the colored laborers. In alnos
every case / found the conditions per
feet In but one case did find then
really bad. In this case, affecting ;
settlement of unmarried white EN-
plyes, l found them very bad in
,, deed, but the buildings were all in
herited from the French company ant
were being used temporarily Will
other buildings were in the course o
,, construction; and right near the de
fective water closet new and excel
lent closet with good sewer pipe wa
in process of construction and nearl.
finished Nevertheless this did no
excuse the fact that the bad condition
had been allowed to prevail Tempo
; rary accommodations, even If onl
. such as soldiers use when camped i
the field, should have been provided
, | Orders to this effect We're issued.
, append the report of DR.. GorSas o.
: the incident. I was struck, however
: by the fact that in this instance, as il
! | almost every other where complain
, , was made which proved to have an
: justification whatever, it appeare
: that steps had already been taken t
:, remedy the evil complained of. an
that the trouble was mainly due
the extreme difficulty, and often i'm
? possibility, of proyidingAin every pIac
\ for the constant increase in the mum
:. bers of employees. Generally the pro
! vision is made in advance, but it
. not possible that this should always b
/. the case; when it is not there ensue
: period Of time during which tn
: conditions are unsatisfactory until
!. remedy can be provided; but I neve
l found case where the remedy wa
e not being provided as speedily as pos