The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1907-09-07
BOARD OF PUBLIC HEALTH
UNIFORMED OF SITUATION
Lake County Medical Association
Meets to Discuss the Articles Pub
ished in the TIMES Regarding
Spread Of the Disease-Dr. Kohr
Not Surprised at Conditions.


The epidemic OF typhoid which Is
prevalent throughout the city seems to
be as serious as when published in
Tuesdays edition of THE TINES. Yes
terday afternoon a representative of
THE TIMES made a personal investi-
cation at the hospital and found that
there were there at that time thirty
one patients receiving treatment for
typhoid fever. Some of the cases, how
ever are of light character and not
of the Indignantly dangerous type
Since the publishing of the facts in
regard to the typhoid fever epidemic
the fact has been revealed that most
of the cases are those of foreigners
living in Gibson or in the Standard
! Steel Car company settlement in
which the sanitary conditions were
very bad and in many instances the
patients have been known to have used
slough drinking water when they found
1t impossible to get anything better.
Epidemic Confined to Foreign Districts.
Although there are several cases re-
ported about town, as far as the epi-
demic is concerned, it is confined most
u 10 tl4es seGtSenaent of the foreigners
Several doctors have had their hands
full handling these cases and the hos
pfta1 has been crowded as result. Very
few OF them, for some reason or other
have been reported to the board of pub-
lie health, although there is a fine OF
| from $40 to $100 for each physician
violating this rule. A member of the
board of health stated this morning
that he did not believe that the fine
could ever be assessed as the breach OF
this rule is frequent.
Soon after THE TIMES spread the
news of the typhoid epidemic the Lake
County Medical society met and dis
cussed the matter thoroughly. Severa
of the members present expressed the
opinion that the matter was not so bad
as at first reported 50 that no definite
! action was taken, as far as can b,
learned. by that body at their meeting
DIR. Kohr Is Not Surprised.
DR.. Thomas W. Kohr. president of tn,
health board, admitted that when b.
read of the account of the spread o
the malady, he was not at all sur
lprised, as he has predicted for som
time that there would be a fever epi
demic in Hammond owing to the impur
water. He also stated that 1t woul
have been possible for this disease t
! have become prevalent without hi
knowledge, as he was not covering thi
section of the city, being intereste
( more directly in the health of the resi-
l dents of Robertsdale because of hi
: living in that locality.
! Many physicians about the city den
emphatically that there is an unusua
number of cases for this season of tn
: year. Others are just as positive tha
the epidemic has secured a firm clutc
in several sections of the city. Tn
Standard Steel Car company settlemen
is supplying large quota of the case
owing to the exteremly unsanitary con
dition in which many Of the foreigner
are living.
: 1t appears as If the difference {
opinion among physicians in the nun
Der of cases of typhoid in this city
due to the construction of what const
tutes typhoid. Many physicians hay
| the opinion that certain symptom
which have been shown by a large nun
Der Of patients denote typhoid in til
system while others declare that
cannot be considered as such.