St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1914-07-08
HEALTH OFFICERS
Sectional Meeting Held Here Last
Week-COuntry Schools Severe
ly Censured.

Pythian Hall Thursday, July 2, after
noon and evening, and Friday morn
ing, was attended by all health Of
ficers of this section, embracing Gale
donia, Essex, Lamoille and Orleans
counties. The meetings were open
to the public and we're most inter-
esting and of great benefit, although
few outsiders saw fit to attend.
The school opened Thursday after
noon, promptly at 2 o'clock with a
paper on the "The Problem of Water
and Ice Supply" by G. P. Moat, sani-
tary chemist, State Laboratory of
Hygiene. He gave statistics of the
water in some of the larger places
of this district. He said the water
from Stiles pond, On analysis, show
ed a large amount of organic mat
ter and chlorine at normal and sew
age bacteria is never found.
In regard to the ice problem, he
made the general statement that
water which is safe for drinking af-
ter filtration is safe to use after
freezing. In clear ice there is no
room between the crystals for sedi-
ment, and the sediment is the portion
of the ice containing the greatest
number of bacteria. Hence all ice is
purer than the water from which it
comes. The conditions of the ice
houses greatly affects the purity of
the ice. The ice house should be
most sanitary and the surface of the
ice protected before and after har-
VeSting time.
This paper was discussed by DR.. F.
G. Kinney of Greensboro and DR.. ].
F. Blanchard of Newport, who
brought out many points of local in
terest.
Doctors For Health Officers
DR.. Charles S. Caverly of Rutland,
president of the State Board of
Health, gave his address, dealing es-
pecially with the problems of the
back towns. The purpose of hold
ing meetings in the different sections
of the state is to get in better
touch with the local conditions in the
different parts of the state. He
pointed out most emphatically that |
health officer of the future must be |
physician, and that he should be
a specialist in his line. Of the 241 |
towns having health officers at the |
present time 116 of them are laymen |
who may make excellent health Of
ficers, but lack technical training. |
He spoke of the movement afoot to
put the health officers on a whole |
time" basis. The health officer must |
be a physician, statitician, a teach
er, sanitary engineer. food chem
ist, a sanitary inspector, a lawyer, a
versatile man, and it is evident that
such a combination cannot be a side
issue to some permanent occupation.
School HYGIENE
DR.. M. F. Prime, health officer of
Barton, gave a paper on School Hy-
giene," especially the conditions of
the rural communities. He brought
most forcibly before his audience
some of the abominable conditions
in some Of our rural schools
today; the gross neglect and unsani-
tary conditions in which so many of
the country children are forced to
attend school.
This paper was discussed and val
liable points brought out by DR.. H.
E. Somers, health officer of Derby,
and Dr.. S. E. Darling, health officer
Of Hardwick.
Following this was a discussion of
ocal problems, led by DR.. H. w.
3arrows, health officer of Stowe.
IDEAS were brought out and condi-
ions discussed by Drs. Leach of
Hyde Park, Rodgers of Eden, Elliott
IF Barnet and Copeland of Lyndon
7ille.
Session for Town Clerks
A special session for town clerks
vas held in the adjoining room at
which M. C. Grandy, city clerk of /
Burlington, gave a paper on the ]
Use of Blank Forms and ImpOr- !
ance of Vital Statistics following
which matters of local interest we're
discussed :
At p m. was the special session |
or children, illustrated by motion
'ietures. There were five reels
brown on the serene, three being
moral pictures showing the fatal re- s
ults attending the use of the ''pat-
mt medicine cures, the danger of
mpure milk, and the danger from ;
care of fruit. One reel :
howed the fly in all it's different +
tages and how thousands of flies :
nay be killed if the maggots are pre- :
ented from burying themselves in
he ground. The last reel was one !
f purely historic interest, 1.-THE Cap i,
ure> of Fort Ticonderoga," by the !;
+reen Mountain Boys.
DR.. Rodgers gave a most interest
lg address, not down on the pro- T
ram, on the care of consumptives, :
nd the prolongation of their lives. =
[e showed the most efficient methods '
treatment, and with pictures
hown in the evening, most complete
Instruction was given on the proper
are and surroundings
The Evening Session
The evening session opened at
clock. An illustrated review of the S
rork of the state board of health, b
1llowed by a paper on ''The Control n
f Typhoid Fever" which was given I
IT. Mcknight of the assachusetts b
oard of Health, in the absence of O
n. Richardson, who was scheduled Z
)r the evening.
The sessions were opened Friday c
forming by DR.. F.. Thomas Kidder a
CONTINUED ON page Sd a