The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1911-04-18
On Request, Would Help
Clean Up Epidemic
at Our Expense,
BUT NOTHING ELSE
Necessity for a Local
Board Would
Continue.
(FrOm Mondays Advertiser.)

(From Mondays Advertiser.)
That federal control of the health
tuation of HAWAII is an impOssibility
far as precedents go, that federal
Ontrol of appropriations is still more
impossibility and that federal con-
rol will mean "cessation of poll
Ics' is absolutely an lmpossibility, is
be result of a consultation of Doctors
Janus and Currie of the marine hospi-
hl service, called in yesterday to dag
ose the sad state of affairs in which |
ouch effort is being used to prove that
beal control of local health cannot be |
satisfactory and that Uncle Sam could |
o it better.
The statements of these two authorl-
les, one of whom is chief quarantine
ficer Of the port, and the other one of
be government s foremost bacteriolo
lists, are sufficient TO pat the quietus
n the persistent campaign to discredit
he board of health on the grounds that
IS work is totally inadequate com
AIRED to what the federal government
ould fand stands wiling to do.
Ieither officer spoke for the govern
TENT or represented its desires or opin-
pms in any way, but merely made a
lain statement of what could and
that could not be done.
81 don t think federal control in
his sense over a local situation has
cen done in any other instance in the
nnals of the federal medical serv-
ce,'' said Doctor Currie, and it would
ertainly be a unique state of affairs
We're it to be done part of the police
overs of the Territory would have to
9 ceded to us without the other part.
% have one department federal and
II other departments territorial would
e a system rather cumbersome.
Appropriation, Mirage.
The bait held out for federal health
government to the effect that if this
Eere the case appropriations would i'm
iediately poIr in to fill up the Waikiki
uck ponds, kill all the mosquitoes
nd do all the other highly desirable
hings seems to be much of a will-o'-
he wisp. Appropriations for the work
eem to be under the necessity of get
ing themselves passed by congress
much in the same way that the board
f health has to get appropriations
rom the egislators-with a pipe
wrench. Doctor Currie states that he
not cognizant of any fund that
ould be applied to federal health
department. in Hawaii, there being a
alf million dollars passed as an cpl
emic fund after the New Orleans yell
ow fever scare, the present status of
which he does not know. 1t is an "epi.
emic fund.- however, and could not
pe used to maintain any settled depart
nent.
One Condition.
eff the present epidemic reaches a
tage where the presence of our service
n control would be necessary, we would
tep in, in inst the same way as we did
San Francisco. Your Governor
would cable the President, who might
ither detail the public health and
marine hospital service to step in and
AXE control of the situation or he
night detail the army to do the clean.
ng. There is no determining that
I'M pretty sure you would have to
urnish your own money.
"We would be nominally under the
ERECTION of the local board of health
nut in reality we would cooperate witt
t., combining our attention to just the
ubject of the epidemic and doing moth
ng else except work upon that.
"Federal control would merely near
he guarantee of the efficiency of the
nan at the head. 1t would not tak'
ver the regular work of the board Of
health, and that board would have tt
meet our expenses and would depend
the territorial legislature in just th'
anne way for its existence and subsist
nee as it does now.
The Other Alternative.
son the other hand, if we had
very bad outbreak of disease here,
s possible that the army would clear
up the place for the protection of itself
t would not clean up the other islands
md it is doubtful if it would perma
GENTLY keep control OF the local situa
ion, stepping out merely to let the dis
ised board resume duties considerably
packset by the hiatus.
81 think the community should hol
N to the situation as long as 1t ear
There is enough intelligence in it, bar
ing a certain element among the Ia
yaiians, with their ignorance, to b
able to run things al they should b
un.
Local Possibilities.
az think it is perfectly feasible I
Duild up the local board Of health t
be just as effective an institution q
my body anywhere else. Some maj
inhampered by politicians, should be 3
he head Of it. He must have power
sufficient to carry out ordinances Il
;ardless Of political ties, to have abs'
ute control over his men, and have III
unds 70 carry on his work properly.
1.-THE man IN charge Of any sue
board would not be on the way 10 b
come a popular man. Every time I
nterfeTed with the shortsightedness ,
my person 10 the community or vii