The sun., 1908-10-30
NATIONAL HEALTH BUREAU
ROOSEVELT TO RECOMMEND 1T
IN HIS NEXT MESSAGE.


Speech at the Academy OF Medicine
Talks OF the Economic Loss From
~ Consumption and Typhoid Fever.
DR.. Charles A. L. Reed Of Cincinnati,
through whose efforts the Panama Canal
Commission was reorganized. giving the
medical department supreme author
ity In all matters connect ed with the
sanitation OF the Canal Zone declared
at the Academy Of Medicine last night
that President Roosevelt's next mes
sage to Congress will include. with his
ihdorsement, proposals for the organi-
ration Of all existing national public
health agenoies into q single national
Public Health Department.
Dr. Reed told last night why such
Government action Is necessary. The
public, he declared. does not realize the
number Of deaths annually throughout
the country due to diseases which might
be partially prevented II not entirely
controlled. Typhoid has killed 2s,OOo
In Q year. tuberculosis 100000 more.
Malaria. pneumonia and other ailments
raise the rate so that infectious diseases
are now killing on an average one person
every two minutes in this country, Pres
ent agencies for fighting disease are
doing some good work. DR.. Reed de-
clared. but their activities are scattered
and disarranged. State laws are made
quate and the need Of national public
health administration has been recognized.
As q result OF several years Of agitation
by the leading medical associations a
plank was adopted this year in the Ohio
Republican platform favoring "the or
genization Of ell existing national public
health bodies into single national Pub
lio Health Department The same dec
laration was made In the platforms Of
several States and was followed by dec
hrations Of similar purport In the ma
tional platforms Of the Republican and
Democratic parties.
It now devolves upon the people, said
DR.. Reed to anticipate action by the
President by prompt and active cam
paigp on behalf Of this feature Of public
welfare. Attempts at somewhat similar
legislation have failed In the past owing
to lack Of public sentiment on the sub
ject. too radical proposals and lack Of
medical men in the legislative halls.
Heretofore. DR.. Reed declared, too much
Of the educational work had been con-
fined to the medical profession and too
little devoted to the public. The motto
Of the campaign should be. Garry the
message to the people, This message
he outlined thus:
In the first place. tell them some things
that have been done. that they may judge
for themselves and, Judging. hope for and
help secure other things that can be done.
We can tell them OF Finley and Reed and
Lazears and Carroll and how. from their
martyrdom. II comes that the argosies Of
commerce can to-day sail the seas without
flying the yellow nag OF pestilence. Tell
them this. Tell them the humanity Of it
all.
But II that does not appeal translate 1t
into dollars and cents and show them how
profitable has been the investment. i"
Compute the commercial disaster contin-
gent upon single visitation OF yellow fever
on our Southern seaboard. And then tell
them how tho recent attempted invasion
OF this country by that terrible disease was
repeiled and defeated through the efficiency
of tho service under Wyman. But above
all tell them how the zone Of pestilence at
the Isthmus has been made the habitation
OF health. All made possible by the genius
Of Gorsas. ...
Tell them that. right now. health and
life. are being made secure on the mainland,
and commerce itself. domestic and foreign.
is being protected by a valiant guard sta
toned at our seaports-stationed, for in
stance, right here in New York-sifting out
aud rejecting the disease that comes in
the guise OF the immigrant and at San
Francisco. where the triumphant battle
against the bubonic plague has added new
laurels to our country. and especially to
our Public Health and Marine Hospital
Service. Tell them Of our food and drug
laws and OF our supervision OF cattle in
tended for food supply. Tell them OF the
work that is being done right az their doors.
work that makes their homes habithbie.
Then tell them that II these things are being
oone other things that ought to be done
can be done.
A proper ly constituted national health
administration, DR.. Reed declared, could
lessen preventable diseases to the almost
incalculable benefit Of the people. Tuber-
culosis, he pointed out, 10 d preventable
disease, yet, according to the statement
OF experts, it kills 100 900 persons and keeps
in invafdism nearly 10000 more in this
country every year. The human lives
thus sacrificed are equivalent to the en-
listed men Of both the army and navy.
what III these two arms OF our service
were wiped out OF existence in q single
year by a foreign foe?' he asked. DO you
not suppose that every resource Of our
country would be taxed to repel the in
vader, to- destroy the discriminating min
ions Of death? Or suppose that first
indianapolis, then Kansas City, then st.
Paul were as suddenly wiped of the map.
Would not the peoples representatives
In Congress vote, il necessary, the last
dollar In the treasury to avert such mem
aoe from still other citiesi'
Typhoid, said DR.. Reed, is due to the
almost total lack Of sanitary supervision
over streams used as sources OF water
supply. Only Massachusetts, New York
and Pennsylvania have adequate laws
on the subject, he declared, and Federal
control Of Interstate watersheds may be-
come necessary TO stop pollution. Con-
Rress has already declined to pass a law
on this subject, although the President
IL. The Ohio watershed,
said DR.. Reed, n. /, 900 miles OF typhoid.
The thought OF tine manner by which the
disease spreads Is disgusting, yet there
"A popular apathy on the subject, Nor
does the TACT that about $4,000 Americans
die Of this dIseaseIin single ycs.g seem to
have dRni1ed anything to the very Con-
gress under whose authorization the sta
tistics were gathered, he said. Yet
II, every man, woman and child In either
ILL.,, or Lexington, KY, or
Fort Worth, Tex, had died OF that disease
in.a single tWelyemonth the world would
have stood for a niement In consterna-
ton. and then something would have been
done. But the death roll Ia not the fun
OF the calamity, Nearly 200 900
,..,~,,I. xrngn iilTcf fvnhoid but recovered