The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-09-18
DUST AT BOTTOM
OF MANY EVILS
HARDNESS MAKES FINAL REPORT
IN WHICH HE SAYS HEALTH Of
FICER SHOULD GIVE HIS ENTIRE
TINE TO THE CITY

The report of Health Officer R. B.
Hardness for the fiscal year ending June
3d. 1870 was issued yesterday and con-
tanned a strong appeal for the reduction
of the dust evil In Birmingham. He at
tributes much of the sickness to this
cause and presents the use of oil to lay
the dust as an economic proposition.
DR.. Hardness, in making his last report
(for he retires October y insists that the
health officer should give his whole time
to the work, and his salary should be
second to none in the city hall He con-
dennis the old city stockade. and con-
dennis the negro schools In some sections.
He urges the people to join in fight
against tuberculosis, declaring that there
is no longer any use for pest house for
smallpox If the vaccination remedy Is
forcibly applied, and the money pre-
viously used for a past house should
be used in caring for tuberculosis pa
TENTS. He declares that the North Bir-
mingham water supply is contaminated
and should not be. used unless filtered.
Here are some extracts from the report:
I'm spite of the fact that during the
many perplexing problems and complica-
tons, has become fact, our health de-
partment, l think, has made material
progress. The year has passed without
an epidemic of serious nature, save the
very extensive prevalence of measles that
existed during the latter months of 1909
and the early months of 1910 To those
who doubt the serious nature of measles
we point with sorrow to the deaths that
were caused directly or indirectly by this
disease, numbering 81, to say nothing of
large number who died indirectly from
this disease Other striking lessons I'M
pressed upon us by this epidemic were
the incompleteness of the reports from
our negro population and our absolute in
ability to secure satisfactory quarantine
among our poorer whites, as well as
among the negroes, under the present re-
gine. In figuring our mortality for the
year. 1t is hard to compare our record
with that of previous years, inasmuch as
doubled for the last six months by the
creation of Greater Birmingham.
During the early months of 1910, while
epidemics of smallpox were prevailing in
many communities over Our entire coun-
try, there was sharp increase in num-
Der of cases occurring in Greater Biz
mingham, though this increase never
amounted to an epidemic. The situation
was met in a different manner than that
heretofore employed in combating out
breaks of small pox in our city. A num-
,av,In q n
stationed at various points In the city,
where they would be accessible to the
citizens. proclamation from the mayor
called attention to the necessity for vas
cination. And the city ordinance requir-
ing every unvaccinated person to be vac
cinated within 10 days was enforced.
Within two weeks we vaccinated about
1000 persons. We found this method
much more effective and much less ex-
pensive than engaging corps OF vac
cinators to patrol the city, endeavoring to
apprehend all unvaccinated persons
'It is my belief however, that our at
titude toward smallpox should be entire
~ changed. Smallpox has become cpl
demic In the southern states particularly
in metropolitan centers, such as Bir-
mingham We have an absolute pre-
ventive In vaccination, hence the absurdi-
ty of pest house. 1t is my humble opin-
ion, we should spend no money in fight
ing smallpox save that spent in vaccin-
ating our population. Money that is now
spent for maintaining an isalotion hos
pital for smallpox would be productive OF
real good to our community were 1t spent
In maintaining suitable quarters for
the tuberculous poor.
During no year since the organiza-
ton of our health department has there