The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-05-31


 improve the quality of the local sup ply of meat we need a municipal slaughterhouse, and S<to improve the quality of meat from outside we need state law as recently proposed by the state tuberculosis commission.
 In order to rid ourselves of the ma larial swamps we need to heed the advice of pr. Britton, the state ento- mologiSt. He has made a mosquito survey of the Connecticut coast and has shown the importance of draining the marshes about New Haven and of covering with oil every ten days during the mosquito season such por- tions as cannot be drained Other towns, including Branford, have avail ed themselves of the latest scientinc advice on this subject, but not yet New Haven.
 To insure ourselves against typhoid. we need to pay attention CD to our stables, @ our privies, (3) our gar bage, (D our sewerage, t5) our milk, and (6) our water With these im- 2-cVe :s &c. 5Larcn should be practically free from typhoid. It is known that typhoid is carried largely by the common housef1y or as it is now called the typhoid fly. To exter- minate the flies we must attack their breeding places which are mostly in horse manure. Consequently our sta bles should during the fly season be cleaned of manure every five days and at other times the manure heap should be kept covered. Flies carry typhoid on their feet from privy vaults to the food in our kitchens. here are in New Haven between 800 and 1000 such privy vaults-a disgraceful condition for any city. The large number of these, probably three or four hundred are on severed streets and could be connected with the sewers if the own CTS were compelled to make the con nections. We have ordinances requir- ing such connections which fact makes the continuance of unconnected vaults even less eXcusable than otherwise. I cannot appreciate the argument that Ethe financial hardship to the owners of these vaults can be weighed against the interests of the city as whole. The board of health is closing many of these vaults every year but I be- lieve they should be all closed at once. special appropriation being made, if necessary, and liens being put upon the property. The fight against the fly must be largely waged in our garbage cans and no student of the garbage question will claim that it has yet been settled. Our clam and oyster beds are now polluted by our sewers. For instance, off the shore bordered by Hallock avenue sewage matter is de- posted creating a sickening stench and on the same shore large numbers of bivalves are dug and sold to the stores of the city. Milk has always been the common source of typhoid. The milk supply of New Haven comes from some 120 different milk men with very inadequate inspection. We need a law against selling dipped milk. Another method, which has been found effective in Montclair N. J., is for the health board to publicly post bac- terial count of the various milk men. believe the board of health owes it to the consumer of milk to let him know what sort of milk he is buying. Typhoid in New Haven has in the past been traceable to infected water supply. We need to extend our filter system to include our whole supply.
 The matters which have been re- ferred to all relate to the prevention of infection. Hygienic progress dur ing the last few decades has consisted almost exclusively in the prevention of infection. This lis a natural and germ character of many diseases. But there is another cause of diseases equally important. These may be called the degenerative diseases the control of which depends on the per- sonal habits of the individual, such as Bright's disease, heart disease, etc. These two classes of disease should be carefully distinguished. Infectious dis eases are given from one man to an- other by germs. Degenerative dis eases are given by one man to him. self by over-eating, the use of alco- hol, tobacco and drugs. lack of sleep or recreation, overwork and worry, and last but not least, by housing condi- tions.
 The prevention of infectious diseases is accomplished by stopping their com- munication through isolation and de- struction of mosquitoes, flies etc., vaccination, disinfection, street clean ing, school inspection, etc. Degenera- tive diseases, on the other hand, are to be prevented by changing wrong habits of living of the individual This is accomplished by pure food laws, partly by tenement laws and partly and chiefly by the education of the public.
 Few people yet appreciate the fact that while infectious diseases have been decreasing rapidly through the intelligent application of public hy- giene, yet degenerative diseases, on the other hand. have been steadily in- creasing. This fact has at last att tracted the attention of life insurance companies leading to a campaign of education of their policy holders. We need such a campaign in New Haven. Until recently it has not been recog- nized as function of boards of health to educate the people and in New Ha- ven no thought, I believe, has been given to this subject. Such little health education as the people can get comes from the New Haven County Anti-Tuberculosis associa tion, the New Haven Dispensary, the Consumers league, the District Nurse association. the United Workers and other similar organizations, but it is now being recSa ognized that the most effective means of such education must be through the boards of health in cooperation with newspapers and moving picture shows and the public schools. Chica go is leading in this matter and through the energy of it's very effi- cient health officer, Commissioner Ev- ans, is maintaining a low death rate and saving thousands of lives. New York is beginning to follow Chicago's example. In Chicago the newspapers print Dr. Evans "hea1th grams and the people read them with avidity. The moving pictures display wildly the fife history of the typhoid fly.
 I have mentioned two of the health conditions in New Haven, one bet ter prevention of infectious diseases and the other a spread of degenerative or personal diseases. but the two can- not be altogether separated and in closing I wish to mention problem in which they are inextricably inter woven. refer to the tenement prob- lem.
 It is in the bad tenements that we find the worst ding. neglect of garbage and sanitation, ac- emulation of filth in air shafts, car