The Brattleboro reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1907-1912, 1911-01-27
How TO XIII the White Plague.

In vour own neighborhood, MT aver
age. Citizen, especially II you llNe IN
large city, are innumerable Houses OF
Death, And are you sure, after all' that
YOU are not occupying one or tnehl
Who occupied il lastf You don !
know. Are YOU sure It WASH some one
afflicted with tuberculosis II you re
not SIRE. let us see what your chances
are.
According TO statistics, the chances
are one in seven that it was somebody
with tuberculosis. Can you afford TO
take that chance2 Certainly not.
Nevertheless. no matter how clean TINS
fiat or house which YOU are about TO
occupv NAV appear to be. the chances
are one in seven that you are about to
run the risk of contracting that great
est plague of modern times, tubereulo-
sis
We average Americans are a moving
race particularly in the larger cities;
Considering the semi-annual changes OF
Nav and October, is ii any wonder that,
under existing conditions. the number
of white plague victims is largely on the
increase, despite all our campaigning
against itl Unfortunately, thus far,
notwithstanding the amount of print
er's ink. brains and money used, the
campaigning has come to naught.
The reason for failure is plain. TAX
ing as another instance the mere room
er-lodger. if Won will-struggling for
a bare livelihood all dav, going home
he must call il home-at night-to
what2 To room, be it ever so cosy
or humble. that may have been rented
n dozen times to as many cossumptives
during the past twelve.monthl The
dusty carpet on the stairs; the conVen
tionaI rugs in rooms fairly reeking with
malignant germ life: clean sheets, may
he: but blankets on the beds that NAV
have been eoughed into for decade
by an innocent victim of the disease,
who innocentlv passes it on in turn to
another helpless victim.
Imagine a child living under any of
the conditions mentioned: inhaling an
atmosphere laden with disease. crawl
ing on all tours midst unseen filth and
death. It's lungs may be attacked. or
its spinal column. causing ''hunch-
back later. if it lives; or it develops
hip-ioint disease, making then and
there a lifelong cripple. The shame of
i'll And then we nrattle and babble
about Heredity No child was ever
horn with tuberculosis The disease is
always developed after birth. and is al
WAYS due to exposure to a tuberculosis
laden atmosphere, and that atmosphere
too often its own home.
Prevention, radical prevention. is our
one salvation. OF what avail are ex-
pensive, special tuberculosis hospitals,
while we are breeding victims in the
House of Death faster than those same
victims can die in the hospitals. to
make. room for new army of stricken
recruits. Let everv nation, and every
state city and village, pass statutes
and ordinances. causing every landlord
to have and to show clean bill of
health for every room in his house,
whether there has been illness therein
or not. Then, before renting a house
or room. every renter can demand to be
shown copy of such sanitary certif-
cate, properly signed and dated. When
this shall be done, YOU will then know,
IN so far as enforcement of law can 90,
that when you retire to your couch at
night, if YOU and those in your safe
keeping, will breathe and livo in an at.
mosnhere of health and purity.-Tech-
meal World Magazine.