Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1913-09-02
4 WOMAN WHO Is CLEANING Up
AMERICAN CITIES


appears an article about Mrs. Caroline
Bartlett Crane, who is a professional
Municipal Sanitarian.' She is hired
by cities, which gladly pay her 500 q
day for her services, furnish funds foc
all expenses, a secretary, automobiles,
theatres and halls for meetings, official
Authority to conduct her Investigations,
and an escort to accompany her. Fifty
two cities in the United States have al
lready hired her. She calls her visits
Sanitary Surveys" When a city de-
sires her services it calls upon her as 4
professional municipal expert and
places the keys of the municipality at
her disposal. She personally investi-
gates the city's resources, and every
thing that concerns community life.
She stirs up public opinion, and in this
manner makes her work effective. The
following extract from the article
gives some idea of the results of her
work:
The practical results of Mrs.
Cranes surveys all over America pre-
Isent sum total of improvement that is
inspiring. Sometimes she has appear
ed as a prophet of warning. In 1919
Mrs. Crane told Erie, Pennsylvania.
that it ran the danger of a terrible ep-
idemic unless it purified its water sup
ply; in 1911 Erie had one hundred and
three deaths from typhoid, untold suf-
fering. and a municipal expense of
twelve thousand dollars. At Sea Breeze.
Florida great hotel was condemned
for lack of fire escapes and proper fire
protection; the hotel burned to the
ground two weeks later, and the guests
barely escaped with their lives, sons
by jumping from the windows. A Ro-
chester, New York school building, the
twin of one condemned by Mrs. Crane,
was also burned before that active city
could put through various improve
ments upon which it had determined
after her visit. At Harrodsburg, Ken
lucky, where an angry official sued
Mrs. Crane but afterward found his
case quashed, the contract system of
caring for the poor was abandoned and
a new almshouse built. A tuberculosis
sanitarium rose at Paducah, Kentucky,
and at Valley City, North Dakota, a
beautiful new infrmary replaces the
old poorhouse. At Albert Lea, Mime
sofa, the citizens boast a new munich
pal hospital; at Big Rapids, Michigan,
fine new abattoir. At Rochester, Min
nesota, the father of a child in one OF
the public schools altered a whole
classroom to demonstrate Mrs. Cranes
system of scientific lighting, while al
Mankato, Minnesota, the bakeries and
market-places went through a thor
Iough cleaning and securing to get upon
the white list suggested by Mrs
Crane.
"Of equal if not greater value are
the general results. In some twenty
cities which Mrs Crane has surveyed
permanent civic leagues have been be
gun under various names, to work al
various tasks. During the year afte;
her survey of Kentucky that state Sc
cured more advanced health Legislation
than in all its past history, including
an appropriation of thirty thousanj
dollars annually for a state bacteriol-
logical laboratory, an annual school for
county and city health officials, and q
law forbidding the importation of any
but tuGerculin-tested cattle. Her Min
nesota report, volume of two hun.
idred and forty pages, is being used By
IwomeR's clubs as handbook on san.
itation. Health officers and faithful of
lticials have found their first public rec
iognition through her keen-eyed vigil
ance, and have gone to work with re-
newed courage, while careless officials
Ihave been awakened to some scense 81
their grave responsibility.