Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1910-02-24
To, sEGREGATE coNyUalFTIvns.
can open letter to thesSecretary of the
Ohio state Board. Of Healthy
Newark. O.. FepFuaryg g. 1910.

Ohio state Board. Of Healthy
Newark. O.. FEBRUARY, &. 1910.
~ Secretary Stats Board OF Health
Do>you fully realize the Significance
Of your recently published statement
Suppose it Is no. longer good form 90
say consumptfoHl-,shou be segne.
gated from other people? Is it pos
sible that suck aetie Hs as this is de-
should be very sorry to say any
thing that would imply lack of proper
interest in the efforts of the medical
profession to- stamp OUT this dis
ease, but my whole soul rises up in
protest against your proposed seEre-
cation OF its victims, and ! boldly
challenge you to produce the proof OF
ats necessity. Neither do believe that
you are doing a service to the public
IN representing this disease as such q
all its victims in order to protect our
selves from its ravages.
I will not permit myself to assert
that there is no contagioa in this dis,
ease but during the sixty and eight
years that l have been on the earthrne
case has come within the range OF my
observation that would make; me con
slider it contagious; and may sareiS
assume that ninety mine laymen OF my
age out of any hundred of them Wouio
bear the same testimony.
generally consider the disease so high
| " contagious as to call for the separ-
alton of its victims from all assocla'
ton with their fellows l Will ventnTt
| 10 assert that they have derived thi;
| opinion from medical books and jour
| nails ana not from their own experience
| and observation. And Is not the con
/ tagiousness of consumption, even Will
I medical authorities, a matter OF theory
| and speculation and laboratory expert
mentation rather than actual knowl
edge and observation!
/ If this proposed segregation OF con
| sumptives is to be carried into lul
sorce and effect, the. good Lord onl!
knows what fate. is in store for then
| Win they not all be avoided and shun
ned and counted "unclean by all tnell
lofellows? In short, will they not-lf !
| may coin so fearful term.be lepsr
| lied? Will not parents have to forsakt
| their afflicted children and chlldreI
\ their afflicted parents2
| Already you medical authorities have
gotten the public started, on the higi
| road to this dire consummatlon. Al
| ready you have so frightened the man r,
ayers of. hospitals and sanitariums tnat
| they will not receive any patients al
| cted with this disease. Already you
| have secured the passage Of law
which forbids the admission OF con
! neutrality-suspicious. / should call them
| tubercuiosiyes or tuberculosarians-t
any of the county infirmaries Of the
| state, unless there Is separate Duilo
ing provided for them, Wnicn = mus ~
provisions and purposes of the law are
| carried into full effect,
| If this policy of segregation con-
! tinues to be- advocated and enforced,
| how many years will it be before these
unfortunates will all be deprived OF the
care and sympathy that they need and
be made the subjects OF iate Una. t ie
me that it would be more mercifuI ano
human to chloroform them than e
| treat them as you are proposing TO 40;
Removal by chloroform is what
would prefer, fl were one of these
And even If the disease in question
! can possibly believe it to be, II would
| still protest against the proposed 1sola-
| ton of it's victims. because there ls q
better way to secure the deslreo op-
serve the laws of health and thereby
render themselves immune to the var
| ious diseases that beset us as the days
OF the 100000 (more or less) inhabi.
tants Of Columbus, how many do you
suppose, habitually sleep-exeept dur
ed or ill-ventiiated rooms? And Of the
| 1000 (more or less) practic1ng pnysii,
clans in the city, how many see 70 !.
that all, their patients are s suppiie e.
medicines? And how much informa.
ton and Instruction is given to the
| public concerning the importance
j fresh air and outdoor exercises An'
| how much concerning the importancf
of frequent bathing and Of drinkint
enough "water-water. water 70 sup.
| DIV the demands of the human system
| And how much concerning the evil .sf
| fects Of over-eating and of narcotic:
| and intoxicants? perhaps there ar
| some smaller cities in the state T.
| whose Inhabitants these inquiries Woule
| be as applicable as they are to the IN
habitants of CslumbusO
am not a Christian scientist, tr
| Probst, and have no desire to express
that school. but might we not iearr
something from them concerning tns
virtue Of keeping our minds anc
| thoughts in purer and clearer satmos-
/ phera than that of contagion ana ols,
| easel Would it not be more rational
| and more scientific to discipline our,
selves in this manner than to spen6
too much time chasing after germs
| and tmicrobes'S-or running away from
| them. as the case may be?
| Wherefore in view of all these prom
| ises. let me beg you in the name OF
| humanity and Christian civilization 70
| nal1se IN your cruel policy and ypropa-
| randa Of segregation, and spreacn to
| fhe Notwithstanding not at JeruSa-
| lem but at the medical professlon-tnss
! gospel Of sunlight and fresh ar an1
pura-water and outdoor exercise any 8
! moderate eating and proper tninklns
Land manly grit and courage and faith
Fin the Divine Wisdom and Goodness
| 10 the end that we may put tuperculo-
I sis and. all other diseases out or our
| minds and under our Feet ana may
Aa4tfS