The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1907-03-17


was shown that SIS OF them used milk
as beverage, ninety ate fruits. fifty
drank hot tea or coffee, sixtv-fve ate
Ice cream. forty did not use milk. and
fourteen not stated. one Of the find
lnes OF the board OF investigators which
Is not in conformity with their conclu-
sions is that Of the ~ cases examined.
IL or 91-5g per cent showed that they
used Unboiled Potomac water supplied
through the city system. Only about s.
pei cent Of the cases are attributaDie IN
contact The large number Of cases
treated IN the hospitals IS said 10 be-
responsible for the reduction OF the
coutag.gn.
Infected LIiIk Cases.
\ summary Of Stj cases studied shows
ID or 10 per cent. contracted BY con-
tagion outside OF the District: eIehtv-
i've cases. or 10 per cent, 10 infected milk
or ice cream; fft--four cases. OF 6 Der
cent, - Infection by contact. LEAVING
about 5S9 cases, or S per cent. unac-
counted for One OF the dangers frcra
coa:a6iJn is shown TO be the use OF
milk bottles by daiTymcn from houses
where the disease is located; then again
the small grocery where m-Ik is handled
cAreiesSly IS a source of great danger
II IS pointed out that by reason Of the
careless handling OF the great bulk Of
milk that comes TO this city during the
summer months this milk would be cor
sidered aduiterated and condemned and
prohibited for sale in Boston and New
York on account Of the temperature or
number Of bacteria.
Ice as a vehicIe for transmitting "
phoid is shown in that the chemical ana
archaeological examination OF artificial
ices show Jhc ice TO be impresnated
with impurities that do not exist in the
water from which il is made. This is
due to lack OF cleanliness.
The trend OF modern opinion, SAYS the
report, is that typhcid is communicable
directly from man 70 man. and is con-
taSious, thus emphasizing the import
ance Of isolation and disinfection OF this
disease
The examination OF the deep and shall
low wells o. the city used for drinking
water is against the shallow wells.
which the Investigators think responsi-
bic for much Of the disease. Taals
waters sold here are decidedly DANGER
Gus in many instances, the report says.
Sand Filtration Water Plant.
Examining into every feature OF the
sand filtration water plant. the investi-
gators say that this addition TO the
water plant Of the city IS a great factor
of publication, and as time passes will
become norS and more valuable.
It is shown that at the Government
Hospital for the Insane, with 5000 in
mates. the change from reservoir water
20 deep well water had the effect "a
greatly reducing the number of cases
Of typhoid there. In conclusion. on this
point the report SAYS. 1T Is probably
true that IN former years some Of the
typhoid fever In Washington was due
to infection from the river water: but
in view of the improvements Of the
water by storage. sedimentation. and
filtration, Il would seem reasonable 20
suppose that the danger of infection
from the water may have been largely
eliminated"
The United States Census report for
twenty of the principal Southern cities
for n period OF five years. shows New
Orleans with a death rate IN 10000 Of
AGO. the lowest; Lynchburg. Va. 1922.
with Washington 6320. For the year 1906
the rate here was cut down to $3.50
Further Investigations viii be made BY
the hygienIc laboratory, Later Surgeon
General Wyman viii publish an ex-
haustive review Of this work in the form
Of q public document. The voluninous
report from which this review Is made is
open 70 public inspection