The Lafayette advertiser. [volume] (Vermilionville [i.e. Lafayette], La.) 1865-19??, 1908-03-27

cent years In the nnal abOlltlOn OF
cholera and yellow fever. and even
the fact that the three noble men who
gave their lives to accomplish the lat
ter, who freed large section of the
country from the annual dread of this
pestilence, and made possible the
building of the Panama Canal. died
unrewarded and now lie in unmarked
graves, has made little preceptible
change in this sentiment.
You will first be shown how this
has affected us as a nation. Not to
spead of the avoidable suffering and
sorrow, the drain upon the material
resources of thu people of this country
every year from preventable sickness
and deaths. and from vicious living.
is almost beyond the conception of
the finite mind In actual dollars
and cents it is estimated to amount to
more than the taxes paid for all pur-
poses. During last year 100000
persons died, and 1900, 900 were sick,
involving the comfort and material
prosperity of 5000, 900 homes and
25 ,O0O,0O0 people. Medical men not
only believe that at least One-third OF
this was distinctly and practically
preyentable with existing knowledge,
but that this might be extended to
other diseases and the proportion
constantly increased by such broad
scientific research and collective in
vestigation as the federal government
should be conducting every day in
every year, and for which doctors
have appealed in vain for quarter
of a century. AS an argument for
peace you are told that 100000 men
died as result of battle in both ar
mics during the civil war;. AS an ar
gument for better health laws and pol
icies we tell you that $50, 900 people
died of tuberculosis in the United
States during the past four years. and
that at least three-quarters Of mil
lion are constantly sick OF it. Should
not an effort be made to prevent this
disease as well as typhoid fever, dip
theria, scarlet fever, cholera infantum,
dysentery and the other domestic
pestilences? Within the last ten
years the Department of Agriculture
has expended over SAC, 600, 900 in the
investigation and externiuatiOn of
Texas fever in cattle, cholera in hogs,
pests in cotton, corn, potatoes, grapes,
fruit and shade trees, warning farm
ers against frost, and other proper
and profitable activities affecting in
terests having recognized commercial
value, while medical men, as has been
said ,havenot only failed to Obtainassis-
tance in their unselfish war against
pestilences affecting men, women and
children, but few in authority can
ever be induced to consider the value
of such collection and cOdifcatiOn
of the facts as to. the extent and
causes of such morbidity and mortal
ity as could be made the baisis of in
telligent action by the future genera
tiOns.
Turning from civil to military af-
fairs, on account of inadequate au-
thority for medical officers during the
Spanish-American war, we lost Is of
our vigorous young soldiers from
preventable diseases for every one
lost in battle, and IS out OF each 100
OF them were inmates of our hospitals
during that short struggle from the
same class of diseases. During the
much more severe and prOtracted
Russo-Japan war, with medical
officers having cO-equal authority and
rank with those of the line except on
the field of battle, Japan lost but one
of her soldiers from sickness for
every four killed. and only 10 OF every
100 of them ever saw the inside of
their hospitals. Medical men had
known for q quarter OF q century that
this danger hung over our armies in
the event OF q war, and at their own
expense, in the discharge OF purelv
patriotic duty, and without avail, rep
resentatives from all over the country
made pilgrimages to Washington or
memOrialized the congress at every
session for remedial Legislation TO
avert it. Even with the object lessons
from Cuba and Manchuria held up in
contrast before the congress and the
country at subsequent session we have
failed, and should q foreign war Oc-
cur with any first class, power the
next, or any year until this legislation
| is had, our armies must again face
pestilence and our country needless
danger and disgrace, because large
per cent of our soldiers would be in
the hospitals and cemeteries instead
! of upon the firing line. If time per-
mitted facts of the same expressive
kind. almost without number, could
be arrsyed to show that, except in the
emergency OF an epidemic, and OF the
recently enacted pure food bill, in ell
OF the history Of this nation from the
beginning in these matters those in
authority have had no training, and
those who have had training have
had no authority.
Bad as is this record for the nation
the facts and figures make that fol
yo6r own Stste even worse. One-third
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