The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1908-01-29
INDIANA IS FIFTY
YEARS BEHIND THE
TIMES, SAYS HURTY
Secretary of State Board of
Health Holds This State
Does Not Use Preventative
Measures to Stop Disease.
SPOKE TO THE EARLHAM
STUDENTS THIS MORNING.
There He Attempted to I'M
press on His Hearers They
Should Heed Preventative
Measures and Not Cures.

Indiana is fifty years behind the
times in health regulations" stated Dr.
J. ". Hurry, secretary of the state
board of health. who was in the city
today. Dr. Hurry is making an active
campaign to educate the people Of this
state in matters OF public health. An
ounce of prevention is worth pound
of cure" is his motto. Dr.. Hurry is
trying to make the people of Indiana
realize that laws should be enacted 10
prevent the spread of disease-nOt to
stamp out diseases after they have
been contracted. To Illustrate his
meaning, DR.. Hurry always. in ad-
dressing an audience relates some true
incident This morning he spoke to
the Earlham students at Lindley hall.
TO his youthful, but appreciative audi
ence he told the following story:
Three Brothers.
The eldest of the three brothers was
nine, the second seven, and the third
five They had come, the two young
err ones hold OF hands, to the office Of
could be done for their mother.
Montgomery, the oldest, said: Ny
mother is sick in bed with consump-
ton, and Mrs. Homer told us to come
and tell you, and you would tell us
where to take her" NO" he said, in
answer to questions. we haven't any
father; he died sixteen months ago of
| ~tr e
consumption. and me and my two
| brothers and mother are all there is.
| Yes, mother worked to support us.
| She sewed and l was elevator boy at
Smiths block. | amt doing nothing
now, and we haven't anything to eat
| except what the neighbOrs give us.
| Please tell us where we can take moth
err. She coughs all the time, and-and
I am afraid-she shes-going TO
die
| In imagination there appeared a
| picture of a true, good woman, fatally
stricken with the great white plague.
| She lay on a miserably furnished bed
| in a bare room. Piece by piece it
had been stripped of its furniture to
|
hands, pale, wan face, bright eyes and
appealing look haunted me without
seeing them. Afterwards, a visit and
| investigation proved that imagination
had not run riot. Indeed it had not
pictured all. The last stage of the
relentless disease had been entered.
| there remained but few days for the
mother who had given birth to four
| souls and who had fought good fight.
Between coughs and in gasped whis-
perings she made no complaint, made
no idle wishes, but expressed solicita-
ton for the welfare OF her children.
They had come out of her life, she had
worked all her life for them. and now
| when that life was on the eve of de-
parting. it was not herself, but the
boys whom she hoped to bring to use
full manhood, of whom she spoke. The
room was dark and mouldy, the floor
broken in places and plaStering falling
off. and the four dollars month rent
went TO a man whose name was on the
published list as paying taxes on S1Oo.-
oOO and over. The window admitted
filth tainted air from the back yard
and through the front dopr came the
hot street air laden with Infected dust.
Nothing coL4d be done except to ad-
minister a dose of morphine to give
temporary sleep with its oblivion to
pain and care. 1t would be murder to
give enough TO hasten the permanent
oblivion which was inevitable in a few
days Yes. it would be murder. and
the law. silent and inactive before and
during the slow poisoning by the pre-
| yentable disease. would then tremble
with activity. Detectives and police
would hunt the murderer; the last
cent in the county treasury would be
spent to apprehend and convict him.
and the economy quack would declare
/ against spending money for any such
crank idea as preventing consump-
! ton"
Please tell us where we can take
mother" I might have replied In
| truth. To a grave: that is the only
place the great Christian State OF In
diana has where poor widows with
consumption may be taken
There might have been no story
like this DR., Hurry said, had the wo-
man been educated to the prevention
. Of the disease.
Ii people were thoroughly acquaint-
90 with preventative laws as they
should he The state would be. spared
he expense OF caring for 50 many or
rbanS, Until Indiana auaAes 10 her
duty. state institutions will increase
and more people will be thrust under