The Paducah evening sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1906-1929, 1909-02-16
Parsons Can't See Why Little
Thing Like Smallpox Should
Come Between Them.
Smith Can't See Why Cairo
Doesn't Report.
AND THUS THE MATTER RESTS

Although Mayor Smith insists that
whatever took place between himself
and the chief executive of the quaran-
tined city of Cairo Is sacred. 1t has
fleaked out, that each has stood up
quite vigorously, not to say warmly,
for his own town in such communf-
cation as has passed between them.
The first intimation that anything
was amiss, was last Friday when
Mayor Smith was holding a confer
ence with the board of health in re-
gard to the quarantine, and he an
lnounced that Mayor Parsons had
called up, and he had made arrange
ments for a long distance commune
cation with Parsons at noon. Later he
call had been cancelled and he had
not talked with Mayor Parsons.
The next day Mayor Parsons. be-
sides whom no one else In Cairo could
have known the fact, inspired a story
in the Bulletin, that he had called up
Mayor Smith to learn what the board
of health here is doing, and Mayor
Smith CURLY announced that he was
too busy to talk. That, of course,
furnished the text for a letter from
Mayor Smith to Mayor Parsons, ex-
lplaining. and protesting against the
light in which he was shown to the
people of Cairo.
What Mayor Smith said in his let
ter Is not known, but what took place
is. The Cairo representatives, who
Stated in conference here that there
were 81 cases of smallpox in Cairo
land that As new cases were reported
week before last, promised that they
would send daily bulletins to Padu-
leah, indicating the progress or the
epidemic and their efforts to stamp IL
out. 1t was the intention OF the local
health authorities, as soon as it ap-
peared that the epidemic was abating
and the health authorities of Cairo
had vaccinated everybody and isolat-
ed all exposed cases, to lift the quar-
antine. No report ever was made.
and at the meeting Friday the board
of health decl1ed not to raise the
Quarantine until Cairo could show
some effort to stop the epidemic
A Lively Tilt.
Now, Mayor Smith desired to in
form Mayor Parsons of what was
done. and that is why he asked for
lpostponement Of their telephone con-
versation. Apparently Mayor Parsons
misunderstood. cancelled his call in
bve o,d raI;ayad hfp,caif throurh tha
newspapers.
A later telephone conversation took
lplace tina. was not satisfactory. Mayor
Parsons informed Mayor Smith that
Cairo's business Is fine and lots OF
people are trading there. Upon Mayor
Smiths polite congratulations over
Cairo's condition, Mayor Parsons
added that he told II to show Mayor
Smith that the Paducah board of
health Is not succeeding in its effort
namely to ruin Cairos businessain
Assurances from Mayor Smith to
the contrary had no effect. and
Mayor Parsons absolutely refused to
send any statement OF conditions,
land said he didn't have any use for
those two DOCTORS" who advised the
Quarantine.
The stand taken by Mayor Parsons
probably will result in the quarantine
remaining in force longer than it
otherwise would; because the local
health officers do not intend to raise
IL until they are satisfied that the
epidemic in Cairo, either dies out
from lack OF subjects or is stamped
out, and without reports from there
they will have to wait until they
learn the fact in some other way.
The 1.-TWO doctors" of whom he
speaks are the ones who called on
him at Cairo in January and asked
for a conference, but were told by
Mayor Parsons that Cairo wanted no
conference and had no epidemic, al
though his representatives stated
here that there have been more than
200 cases in Cairo since October.