The Norfolk weekly news-journal. (Norfolk, Neb.) 1900-19??, 1909-08-20
CHILDREN DYING
NEAR NORFOLK
EPIDEMIC OF SPINAL MENNlNGl.
tbs PREVAILS AT sTRoMsBURo.
800 CASES ARE NOW REPORTED

Or. J. n. Mackay Discusses the Uses
Of the State Health Association;
Says Council Should Have Allowed
His $40 ELL.
Norfolk, Neb., Aug. 14-Editor of
The News: For whose good is the
state health association? Let me give
graphic illustration and then Judge:
An epidemic of meningitis Is pre-.
valent at Stromsburg. 1t has spread
into the surrounding country and up
to date there has been 300 cases
Every church in the city is closed
and there have been no public meet.
ings in a month. Their chautauqua
and races and carnival were abandon
ed. No person who can absolutely
avoid 1t comes to town or goes to a
store or to visit a neighbor and many
OF the farmers in the country are los
ing their crops, because their families
have the disease and no one will help
them with their harvest. The dead
are buried at night and the large
number of small new made graves in
the cemetery are mute reminders that
pestillence is abroad in the land
The financial loss to the city and coun-
try will aggregate many thousands of
dollars. Two-thirds of all who have
had the disease and recovered will
be life cripples.
That is not all. Yesterday three
cases were reported at David City in
the county north of Polk. This county
joins Platte and the latter joins us
and there is daily communication with
Norfolk. How many of your Norfolk
readers know that such a dangerous
contagious disease exists in the
second county south Of us and what
would any of us give to avoid the
death of one of our children or it's
being a cripple or feeble minded for
life?
When it first broke out people smil-
ed at the health officials who tried to
suppress it. Now they can have all
the money and cooperation they need,
but they had to learn this from the
graves on the hillside. | spent parts
OF two days with the health officers
of Polk county and learned how the
disease got its start and how they have
finally got it practically under control
in that county, although it got out to
Butler county. Colonel Bannister, who
has been thirty years In the army and
had charge of the sanitary work in
the Philippines and other tropical
posts and who Is now chief surgeon of
the department of the Missouri, ad-
dressed our meeting at length and
gave minute accounts of how the gov
eminent suppressed epidemics in the
tropics and made it safe for white
people to live there. The methods
employed by DR.. Bannister are with
slight notifications applicable to all
epidemics and it was valuable les
son to me.
There were other equally valuable
discourses and l learned that If the
coming generation Of children are to
be protected from the blight of con-
sumption we will be forced to go into
the public schools and weed out those
now afflicted no matter whose chill
dren they are. Down in Polk county
the recent epidemic of meningitis
did not even spare adults. II it comes
to Norfolk what will our loss be in
money, in happiness and human lives?
1t will depend upon our vigilance in
stamping it out at the outset and
recognizing the very first cases in
fected. The state health association
was organized for mutual cooperation
In stamping out epidemics and conserv.
ing the health of our people.
Unfortunately, not until the graves
get too numerous in any month do peo-
pie realize it's value and significance.
| attended two meetings of this or.
ganization at Omaha and Lincoln and
took a part in getting 1t established
IL over the state. have spent more
than my salary to date and / notice
that a bill | presented to - the city
council for $10-I spent twice that
amount-for expenses to one of these
meetings, was rejected. l ask the pub
lie who will ultimately be the loser
by this policy? l was the only health
officer in the state who had to pay
his own expenses. The United States
government sent a representative, the
Lincoln newspapers gave us columns
of space and the Lincoln Journal gave
half page to my paper alone.
j. H. Mackay.