The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-01-29
STATEMENT MADE BY
BOARD OF HEALTH
Bearing on Status of State
Health Office
LEGAL ISSUE RAISED
Board Points Out Past Handicaps I'm
der Which He Has Worked-Im-
portance of His Services
to the State
LEGAL ISSUE RAISED

1tgomery. January &.-(speciall-
The state board of health has issued the
following statement bearing on the re-
cent controversy regarding the state
health offices:
ITO the People of Alabama:
In view of editorials and news items
that have recently appeared in some of
tile papers of the state commenting on.
oI setting forth, the salaries of several
officials engaged In public health service.
the undersigned. constituting as they do
me state committee of public health, and
therefore authorized to speak for the
state board of health during the inter-
vals of its meetings, deem 1t proper to
make the following public statement:
THE committee Is the more inclined to
do this for the reason that considerable
rusapprehension seems to prevail with
reference to the matters referred to-
THE state board of health is corpo
rate body, made SO by the Legislature, and
is composed of physicians residing In
every county of the state.
Section 7O2 Of the code imposes many
and important duties on the board, for the
discharge of which some provision must
obviously be made. Section 7oi of the code
makes such provision as follows:
The state board of health shall elect
an executive officer. to be known as the
state health offices. and shall fix his
term of office and salary, provided that
the latter shall not exceed 5000 per an
mum. The state health officer so elected
shall. under the direction of the state
be ard of health, exercise general super
vision sover the county boards of health
ana county and municipal health officers.
aud shall, etc, etc.
Difference of Opinion
'On the Interpretation of the words
lust quoted a difference of opinion has
arisen betwixt the attorney general and
otber lawyers of the state, two very
eminent ones having furnished elaborate
opinions, in writing, to the effect that
the official known as the state health Of
fcer is the executive officer of the state
board of health and not a state officer in
The sense that these words are employed
in the clause of the constitution which
forbids the increase or diminution of the
salary of a state officer during his term
of office.
ut will thus be seen that the question
at issue is a legal one and can only be
settled in the courts. suspension OF
opinion is therefore requested until an au-
thoritative Interpretation of the law in
question can be obtained. Should the de-
o:sion be adverse to the position which
the state health officer, acting under legal
edvice, has assumed, all moneys In dis
rute will be promptly put back to the
credit of the state board of health. py
which body they were paid out.
I'm this connection it may not be amiss
To briefly discuss from the standpoint of
equity and justice the salaries that have
been publicly commented on, especially
that of the state health officer.
when the state health officer entered
upon duty-more than 16 years ago--owing
20 the meagerness of the appropriation
i,iade for public health purposes, the
salary then attached to the position was
quite a nominal one. This condition of
things continued for IL years, during
W hich time the duties of the position were
very onerous and often critical and
psriIous.
I'm addition to wide prevalence or
smallpox. the recognition and manage
rlent of which required skill and judg-
uient of a high order. for FIVE years out
cf the IL the state was dangerously men,
aeed at times with invasion by yellow
fever. For parts of four years out OF
the five when neghboring states were
overrun with yellow fever, their people
falling victims to the disease or flying,
their commerce and trade paralyzed, the
wheels of their trains largely silent and
still, the people of Alabama were COM
pletely protected from the seourge, their
business proceeding practically undis-