Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-10-17
Chickens, Flies and Typhoid.
70 the Editor OF The Star:

To the Editor Of The Star:
In regard to the present typhoid fever
outbreak there has been one cause which
has not been given it's due weight, and
which has been persistently ignored. and
II is one which I have observed as a
'propter hoe" for many years in the city
and country. l refer to the accumulation
of filth In chicken houses and the swarms
of flies attracted there for food and
Matching: the flies infect these houses.
which are fine propagating plants for any
germs. and then the infection is carried
into kitchens and dining rooms by the
flies themselves. l have scattered fine
lycopodium powder in chicken houses only
to soon discover 1t upon eatables in
kitchen. deposited there from the feet of
the flies. We all saw a very graphic
picture at the tuberculosis congress of
fly propagating the bacilH of tuberculosis;
it is q thousand times easier to carry the
typhoid from convenient and neghbor-
ing chicken house into d kitchen or dining
room.
l lived once next door to a family whose
back yard was a chicken yard with a
gooJ-sized chicken house. and in damp
weather the odOr was intoierable. l
wrote to the health officer. He instituted
an examination. and a cleaning up of the
yard was ordered. but the chicken house
was ignored. l then went to the trouble
and expense Of making my kitchen and
dining room fiyproof with screen doors. 1t
was money we'll invested, for my neighbor
had two cases of typhoid fever in the late
summer and autumn. while my household
was immune Then the health office
made an examination into the cause of
the disease. 1t was not the water supply,
it was not the milk supply. the cases were
not imported; result-cause unknown. IN
my humble opinion ii was simply result
OF chicken filth and flies.
In the country over and over again
where l have seen the chicken houses
located close to the dwelling and the
kitchen and dining rooms unScreened l
have also known frequent cases of typhoid
fever, but when the chicken houses were
well removed from the dwellings and
frequently fumigated and cleaned and
windows and doors of dwellings, screened.
typhoid fever was rare. Here in the city
a dirty chicken yard is inspected. the in
spector serves notice that the yard must
be cleaned: IN few days the yard is
swept and lime sprinkled about The 0dOr
decreases and the health inspector re-
ports everything salts actory. whereas
the main source of infection, the chicken
house with its filth and complement of
flies. remains TO do the same work of
sending out infection to the neighbor 1ood
Some few years ago We were informed
that owing to the installment of a new
water plant typhoid fever would be d
thing of the past. but Il has come every
year with its old-t.me regularity. and we
| have good water. Then t> wells and
pumps were closed. Then il was the
milk supply was investigated and finally
1t was suggested the cases of typhoid
were imported. None of these reasons
| htted although each one may have con-
triouted its quota About that time IN a
small row OF houses there were Il dozan
| cases OF typhoid fever for which none of
| the above reasons would account but
| back OF these houses was. and had been
| for more tban a year, big chicken house
accommodating over a hundred hens and
several billion f!es. Finally this house
| was swept out and cleaned. after il was
! too late. do not maintain that chickens
| and flies cause every case of typhoid. but
the disease is a filth disease and thay
certainly produce plenty of filth and the
| flies are ready carriers of 1t everywhere
| in the neighborhOod. -
WILLIAM F. HART