The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-12-04
ENTERTAINMENT OF PERSONS DETAINED AT U. S.
 QUARANTINE STATIONS

The United States Public Health
 Service, in its conduct of the many national quarantine stations under it's
 control has number of tasks i'm
 posed upon it incident to the recep- tion, not to say entertainment, of per
 sons who may be detained in quar-
 antine during the period of incubation #of the disease for which they have been removed from the vessels. The periods of detention vary as follows:
 For cholera, days: for yellow fevers E6 days. for plague, 7 days; for snaf1- tpox, If days.
 Not only do the cabin passengers
 expect comfortable and clean quarters
 and wholesome food, in variety
 somewhat like they have been used to
 on board ship, but even the Steerage
 passengers expect as many if not. more, comforts than they have had
 during the voyage, so that the nledi-
 cal officer of the Public Health Ser
 vice is forced to learn the arts and
 wiIes Of the Boniface and some of
 his success as a quarantine officer
 will depend upon his reputation along
 these lines. The Public Health Ser
 vice, therefore, has been encouraging any attempts on the part of it's quar- 1 antine officres to provide croquet and quoit grounds. gynasiuns, baseball
 fields and even tennis courts for the
 amusement of persons in detention these tertainment are usually sufficient for cabin passengers. they will not prove
 to be So in the case of steerage pas sengers. particularly when the latter are from the various parts of the Orient. These persons, not being fa-
 n1iliar with any of the games above
 mentioned, must either be taught the amused in some other way, so that
 frequently at quarantine stations, in the afternoons. one will see the steer age passengers assembled in an or ddnary manner around a hollow square. Various persons are singled out to exhibit feats, sleight of hand l tricks, or other performances. Prizes ! are contributed either by the person neI Of the station or else by popular
 subscription from assembled passen- gers
 An amusing incident is recalled which almost promised to end in in l ternatioaI complications, when after several afternoons of impromptu ann ateur performances, it was found that the imported talent had been expend- 1 ed. and it wah incurnb ent upon the medical officer in charge to provide some new form of amusement. An i international tug of war was decided 1 upon, ten representatives from each Of two nations selected, la rope pro- vided, chalk line arranged, and fin ally the signal given for the struggle to commence. In a few moments the
 first two out of three events proved to be decidedly to the advantage of one of the nationalities concerned, 1 which so infuriated the relatives and
 friends of the defeated nation that they at once decided to show their
 superiority in another way. Accord
 ingIy. without warning, they caused a pdle of unused brickbats to melt as if it had been ice cream in the sun,
 for suddenly the whole air seemed to be filled with these br1ckbats,
 causing everyone to beat a nasty retreat. This, of course, put an end for the time being to the afternoons
 entertainment. The victors in the tug of war would probably have made
 a creditable showing on their. own ac- count in throwing brickbats had the defeated team and their friends left any of them available for the purpose.
 The medical officer in charge gave
 the prize for the tug of war event to the nation which had won it, but in order to make a joke out of the af- fair he was compelled to give a prize
 to the nation which showed the re-
 markable proficiency in the use of the brickbats.