Lower coast gazette., 1913-01-18

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United States Department OF Public
Health.
IN the earlier organization OF our Fedefal
government there were comparatively few sec
retaryships to be filed by them. Some OF the
departments now in existence were created
years afterwards, but were first organized as
bureaus under some Of the more general titles.
The United States Department OF Agriculture
was one of these and it was known as the Y. :.
Bureau Of Agriculture in 1884 under CleVelands
first administration, when the bureau was con-
verified into the present department OF agrlcul-
trre, which has gradually become one OF the
most extensive and extraordinary departments
of the public service, exceeding in its effective
ness the departments Of State, War and the
Navy and, in TACT, consumes now over lOo
millions Of dollars annually.
Notwithstanding the wonderful development
Of this great department and specially under
the hands Of it's chief officer, the Hon. James
Wilson Of Iowa, it is one Of the most popular IN
the United States and has apparently done
more to make the country wealthy than any
other of the departments and it meets with gen
eral commentator at all times.
We are led to these reflections by consider
ing what good an equally skillful management
of a public health department could do IN the
limited States. When we reflect as to what a
wonderfully complex piece OF mechanism the
human machine is and how difficult it is to keep
Il in fine order and to obtain from it its highest
degree Of effectiveness in carrying on the
duties of the human machine in this world CT
ours. we think Of the automobile, which has
come into such common use OF recent years.
The automobile is simply an abe of simplicity as
compared with the complexity Of our human
mechanism. At the same time anyone who has
an automobile knows with what extreme care
it must be handled, what great danger there is
Of accidents and when anytrouble occurs IN the
machine, how wonderfully difficult it IS at times
to account for the trouble. Our automobile en-
thusiasts are willing to sacrifice, time and mon
ev to keep their metal machines in good order
and yet are singularly careless about their ha-
man mechanism and sometimes are unwilling
to pay doctors bills and unwilling to give fair
consideration and fair protection to their own
mechanism, and thus many of them seriously
damage themselves and their families and die
earlier than they sholl for a lack OF better IN.
derstanding Of their own mechanism and for 3
lack of that care that they should take OF them.
selves all the time. When the slightest de
rangement Of their mechanism occurs they
should go to their own selected experts, then
local doctors, and learn just what is the matter
lust as they would take their automobile to
garage, there they pay without grumbllng
They should pay the cost of the human repair
Just as they pay literally for automobile re
pairs.
The United States Department of Agricul
ture by it's Intelligent management and develop
ment has simply worked wonders in %increasin!
the agricultural wealth of the United States
During the year 1912 over 5000 millions Q
bushels Of corn were produced worth over zoo
millions of dollars. The Investigations of tn
US Department of Agriculture reach along q
lines Of agriculture and its development j
every direction has been accelerated by the II
telligent work Of the Hon. James Wilson, il
distinguished head.
Now, if we could have a q. S. Departme1
Of Public Health, with hundreds Of thousane
OF dollars, or even millions under its control Il
the study Of all health questions, we could pc
: haps in the course of time learn somethin
about the origin of whooping cough and measle
Yet we say in the presence Of these disease
t that we seem to know no more Of them thu
) we did fifty years ago. When We reflect on Il
/ fact that the average family doctor, and e
!. pecially the country doctor is kept going ov
his various routes day and night, rain or shin
constantly, we can see that if he is faithful
' his patients and answers their calls, he has b
a little time left for research work, The gre
e institutions established by Rockefeller in Was
e ington. and the Astor family in New York al
e doubtless many others, have done and are dol,
e now very fine work in the matter Of researc
f but thus far they cannot tell us much abe
S whooping cough or measles. They do seem
II have solved the question Of malaria and are nj
~ mok;nr Il nocSihIo IN nytarninata thn annnhn