The Washington times., 1910-03-24
Oklahoma Senator Speaks
In Behalf of Bill to Con-
solidate Powers.
ECONOMIC LOSS
CITED AS ARGUMENT
Appalling Figures Presented to
Demonstrate lnadequacy of
Present System.

Senator owen, Of Oklahoma, today
appealed to the Senate for the establish
ment of a department Of public health |
for the purpose Of concentrating all ]
agencies Of health under the Federal !
Government.
He said that 10000 preventable deaths !
were occurring in the United States /
every year, and billions Of dollars in /
wealth was being lost through prevent /
able sickness.
Backing the oklahoma Senator in his /
fight for a health department instead Of |
health bureau, are the American I
Medical Association, representing 4009O |
doctors. and the Committee Of one
Hundred. which was organized for the
advancement Of medical science and ma
tional health Among the members of
this committee are Dr William IL
Welch, Of Baltimore; Dr. A. G. Abbott, |
Of Philadelphia: Miss Mabel BOardman, |
former Senator Charles J. Faulkner, DR..
John c. Fulton, Mrs. John b Hender-
sen, DR.. George NJ Kober. George |
shiras, DR.. q. T. Powers, and Robert
S. woodward. Of washington.
Would Transfer Authority.
The Owens bill. now pending. TO which
the senator SPOKE lfIOh4la ANA Nah" '-i'
poiutment Of secretary and assistant
secretary of public health and for the
transfer Of all medical, surgical, bioiogi-
cal or sanitary service or the depart
ments. with the exception Of War and
Navy, 10 the new department. 1t Is TO
have the power 10 impose and enforce
duarantines and 10 establish standards
in foods, drugs and sanita ton.
Senator owen said in par The peO-
pie of the United States suffer q pre-
ventablc less of over $4,000 lives per an
mum. This terrible loss might he pre-
vented by reasonable safeguards under
B. the cooperation of the Federal and
State authorities. each within strict con
/, stltutional limits.
> These deaths are caused by polluted
Z water. impure and aduIterated foods and
, drugs. epidemics. various preventable
: Neutrality-suspicious. typhoid. malarial
2 fevers and so forth-uucIean cities, and
: bad sanitation.
: Cost Appalling, He Says.
= Measuring the money value at $1.7'O.
. this preventable loss by death is one
y thousand million of dollars annually,
= equal 10 she gross income OF the United
Is States Government
: There are S,O0o.QJ0 people Of Fle
= United States on the sick list from p'Q-
= ventable diseases, Of whom 100000 ~
3 in the working period of life; about
= three-quarters of a million actual work
5 ers losing on an average 800 per annum,
!. an approximate loss from illness Of $500.-
5 O0Cg00. and adding reasonable allow
I ance for medicine and medical attention,
= sueCial food and care, a ike sum OF S51b,-
: C0G.0OG. these losses would make auother
= thousand millions of dollars of preyenta-
he mile q
States. .-...
= uer aunum is tnrce-fourths due TO III
= ness and death from diseases which
p were D-o7outahIC Under a wise adj
9 miuistration in the past the United
States would today be saving an an
e. nual charge OF about Sl-7,V"''1y on iIe
= pension list and would nave saved un-
der this heading over 5000, uo,Ve9 and
e. much human misery and suffering.
Duration of Life.
scientific hygiene and increased
o. knowledge of the laws relating 20 health
have had a very striking effect upon
ne uroIou-ation Of human life through
r. out the world. IL IS demonstrated ne
yOnd reasonable doubt by the report
Of the committee OF one hundred thar
tho average human life In the United
States may be- within "a generation pro-
longed over fourteen years
BEFORE the American intervention In
Crba. the death rate from yellow fever
alone I'm Havana to the 100000 popuIa-
tiou in 1895 was $50, and after American
occupation it fell from 12f i'm 1900 TO zero
in 1908 " hat a glorious record
II am informed ON high authority that
% 0er. cent Of the children OF one OF our
Southern States are afflicted WITH the
hookworm, a preventable disease cur
able at a cost of less than 50 cents
spie~e with two doses OF thymOl and 4
little careful treatment
Senator owen then made the charges
that the bubOnic plague is spread'lC To-
dav an along the Pacific coast and that
this is the result Of a Federal Judge
declaring the quarantine Of the disease
unlawful and Of the weakness Of the
Marine Hospital Service.
When, said Senator Owen, "bu-
bouic plague broke out in San Fran
cisco i'm 1900 and the city board of
health Of san Francisco QUaranttned
the Chinese district, the United States
circuit judge on June %, 1900 Influenced
by the commercial spirit Of San Fran
cisco, declared the city quarantine IL
Says Disease Is Spreading.
"Bubonic plague was then in the city
i is now scattered over the Pacid,
coast at points o thousand miles apar;
and is requiring enormous sums Of
money to stamp It out. It has not beer
stamped out and Is now epidemic and is
spreading through the infection OF
ground squirrels and rats.
This opinion of the United Statel
Judge was followed with an immediate
Federal quarantine Of the State Of Cali
fcrnia. which was the duty of the Gov
. erament officers in charge under tn
obligation 10 the States OF the Union
and to the nations of the world. Tn
Marine Hospital Service declared thi
= quarantine. The governor of California
tho Sena atOrs and commercial bodies o
that state. Immediately suppressed tn
= Marine Hospital Service, compelled IN
surgeon general 10 yield. proved a falls