The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-12-09
HEALTH LAWS ID BE
 GREATLY AG|TATED
The HookWorm and Insanitary
 Trains Are Attacked
TO DISCUSS COMMISSION
un'fc"tion of Methodist coliesea op- posed By Thomas II. knight of Grecnsboro-Decisio Made
 Fly the Supreme Court

Montgomery, December S.-(Specal.)- While the state generally is fighting the railroads of Alabama for more sanitary conditions at all railway stations. and on all coaches, one of the minor depart mentsa of the state government is fight
 ing for sweeping sanitary changes | throughout the commonwealth. Not only are the common carriers of Alabama in- volved in the legislation which Is desired
 to be passed at the next legislature but the department back of the proposed leg | islation Is to a corresponding degree after avery county commissioners court and | every city council in the state.
 The agitation which is at the present | time before the railroad commission is designed to make the carriers improve all | of their coaches with the general end in
 view of thereby bettering the health of | all passengers.
 | The agitation which has been started | by the state department, and which will | be carried to the legislature, is especially l designed to bring about such sanitary conditions as will quicken in this state the total eradication of the hookworm,
 and such as will place every county of
 Alabama on a fighting plane for the eX- | termination of the pest. a
 | Bdck4 or the movement IS UT. w. II. Sanders state health officer, who is being | given invaluable assistance by Dr. W. w. | Dinsmore, supervisor for Alabama of the | Rockefeller hookworm commission. Ever | since the active campaign which was started against the hoolxworm in this
 state several weeks ago, the officials in question have been trimming their sails
 with the end in view of securing such
 Legislation as will facilitate their work l l.f1 ..f tn1c xr-f11 | the success of their efforts at the present | time 1t is nevertheless generally under
 stood that bills covering the purposes de-
 sired have already been drafted and
 made ready for the solons who meet here
 in January.
 Especial legislation desired passed by
 the health officials is a measure which
 will compel sanitary toilets at every pub | lie or private house in the entire state
 It is designed that the measure shall be
 a blanket one thoroughly mandatory on
 the part of cities the sanitary regula- ton of all closets, and making compul-
 sorry on the part of the counties the es-
 tabishment of such closets as will ma | terially make for the health of the citi-
 zens It is desired that the legislation
 be especially enforced at all public places,
 such as churches and schools. It has
 been proved that insanitary closets in
 rural school districts have done more | than any other agency for the propaga-
 ton of the hooltworm disease. Statistics | taken at one rural school in the south. 1 where there were 10 pupils in attendance. | showed that 3S of the patients had hook
 worms as result of the lax sanitary reg
 ulations.
 Dr.> Dinsmore announces that reports l from DTS. H. c. Perry and J. K. Orr, | field agents of the commission, who are 1 at work in Houston county, are very en- | couraging, showing that successful work
 Is being done in that immediate terri | tory. The work is expected to be com pleted within the next week, when other | counties will be entered by the experts. Since the aggressive hookworm cam | paign was begun in this state not many
 reports have reached the health depart
 ment confirming the presence in Ala
 bama of the clay-eating variety of hook.
 worm patients. Patients so addicted are
 said to be frequent in all states where | the disease is a an advanced stage. Many
 such patients, it is said, have been known | to eat the plaster from the walls of their | buildings in order to satisfy their appe- | tites.