River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1908-09-10
CHECK BUBONIC PLAGUE
SURGEON GENERAL WYMAN
TELLS OF STEPS TAKEN.
Problem Dealt with by Able Scientists,
and Results Declared to Be
Most Satisfactory.

Washington, Sept 7.-Surgeon Gen.
eral Wyman of the public health and
marine hospital service, has issued in
pamphlet form a paper prepared by
Assistant Surgeon General j. M.
Eager, giving a history of spread of
bubonlc plague during the last IA
years. No study presents more impor-
tant and difficult sanitary problems.
DR.. Eager says, than the lines of
march taken by bubonic plague during
the period mentioned, in its advance
from the remote endemic focus of the
disease in the province OF Yunnan,
China, where in many instances it has
established itself in defiance of the
most carefully planned preventive
measures.
The revival of the plague, DIR. Eager
says, dates from 1894 when, escaping
from the western Chinese province of
Yunnan, it reached Canton. 1t ap-
pears to be established that there are
two distinct strains" of plague, diff
fering in the location of their perma-
nent homes and in their facility for
spreading outside them. The strain"
lodged in western Asia does not pos
sess the same power of diffusion as
the Indo-Chinese strain" 1t was the
latter variety, which, escaping from
it's center in Yunnan, gave rise to the
present pandemic. From 1879 to 1894
not single year passed without the
appearance of plague in some locality
distant from endemic plague centers.
Between the months of March and
August, 1894, the number of deaths
from plague in Canton is estimated at
10000. All classes among the native
population suffered and rats were
found to be affected, but in the foreign
quarter of Canton, with population
of about 800, not single case oc-
Cured. During the next year cases of
plague were reported in Hong Kong,
Annoy, Macao and Foo Choo, and in
1896 sanitary attention throughout the
world was focused on the threatening
epidemic by it's appearance in Bonn
bay. Starting in August the disease
spread throughout the whole vast ter
ritory of the Bombay presidency, and
before the end of the year showed a
total of 1880 cases and 2,288 deaths.
During that year plague reappeared in
Hong Kong, where it has been cpl
demic ever since. In 1897 the num-
Der of cases in India was more than
$4,000 with over $4,000 deaths. In
China there were epidemics at Annoy
and Swallow with many deaths in
other sections of the empire and in
the following year there were over
10000 cases in India with NOR
tality of $4,000. In 1897 an interna-
tional plague conference was held at
Venice, Italy, and in the year follow
ing others were held at Alexandria
and Constantinople. But through re-
ligious prejudice efforts to stem the
tide were only partly successful.
In 1900 plague was present in every
quarter of the world, the deaths in
India alone amounting to $4,000 dur
ing the year.
The Philippine islands were in
cluded in the march of the disease,
$50 deaths occurring in Manila.
The most notable fact in the history
of the plague in the western world
was the appearance of 20 fatal cases
in San Francisco. In 1891 in India
a great augmentation took place until
in 1904 plague caused the death of
over 100000 persons in India alone
and epidemics prevailed to a greater
or less degree in nearly all parts of
the world.