Evening star., 1915-04-11
Guard Against
Typhus Fever,

Aypnus SeVeT. vessels from Eu-
! rope bringing typhus fever into this
| country. This disease has been raging
violently in Serbia for several months
| and has caused thousands of deaths.
| 1t thrives best, according to Uncle
| Sans medical experts, in cold weather
and among people living under crowd
| ed conditions
| With the coming of warmer weather
physicians of the public health service
\ look for a marked shrinkage in the
number Of typhus cases in southeast
ern Europe Their vigilance at Ameri-
can ports will not be relaxed, however,
for in addition to the danger which
will continue so long as there are any
cases of typhus abroad. warm weather
will bring typhoid and cholera prob
| lens These latter two diseases are the
bane of armies in the field, and it is
considered probable that some or all
of the armies engaged In the European
| war will have to face more or less
1 the spring and summer. The exposures
| OF trench life. 1T is pointed out by
| medical experts, reduce the vitality of
| the soldier and make him easy prey to
| infection. When the two diseases once
get started the ground itself may be-
come contaminated and make the
eradication Grad of the epidemic difficult.
contaminated food and water
Uncle Sans medical experts are TAX
ing great interest in the methods of
nghting 1,,sn cholera and typhoid in the
tWarrlng armies. incubation against
Iyphoid has been made compulsory in
the army and navy of the United
states, and in consequence the disease
has been practically eliminated from
both arms of the service Such fnocula-
In ha rtt oh
army. however. and the medical ex-
perts of the United States government
VIII observe closely the comparative
showings of the armies of the two
| countries. It is learned by the public
health service that the British authori-
ties, although they cannot under pres
ent laws compel the incubation of
npiaiers npnssaJ L9.n against typhoid. are SO i'm
lection that they are sending 'medi-
cal missionaries" to the trenches in
Fianders and France to preach the
men to make use of 1t.
Ihe physicians of the public health
service are also watching with inter-
est for results in the incubation meth
or OF treating cholera. Early last fall.
era in the Austrian and Russian armies
IN Galicia. the British government sent
an expert bacteriologist by way of the
Arctic ocean to Archange1 and thence
down through Russia to secure a cul-
ture Of cholera germs. It Is believed
| that from this culture serum for inocu-
lation has been supplied to the armies
Of the allies and will be used in an
eHort to combat any outbreaks Of the
malady that may occur this spring and
summer. The fnoculatory method of
fighting cholera, it is pointed out by
Surgeon General Rupert Blue of the
public health service, was practiced
successfully on Greek soldiers on their
fro ~ NJ
when cholera was raging at the front.
AS the result of the treatment of the
soldiers no cases of the disease were
carried into Greece
The public health service expects to
see the cholera problems that may pre-
sent themselves on the western front
in Europe when warm weather comes
solved with equal facility. At all
events the service officials believe that
with the observance of constant Wig
ilance at ports of the United states
there is little danger of the spread of
cholera epidemic to this country.
Because of the proba bility of oues-
tions arising at any time involving the
location Of the three
Ihree-Mile mile limit along the At
T;n;+ lantic coast of the
United States and the
navigability Of the territorial waters
within the limit over which the United
States has control. the coast and geo.
detic survey recently prepared chart
showing these data. The case then of
immediate interest grew out of the
reputed intention Of the officers of the
German commerce raider. Prinz Eitel
request that the ship be conducted to
New York.
The fact was developed by the chart
that though the territorial waters
north from the entrance of Chesapeake
bay would be navigable for the most
part for ship of the Eitefs draft,
there are places where it would be
necessary to dash outside the three
mile limit to avoid shoals. If belliger-
ent war vessels seeking to destroy an
enemy's ship navigating in the terri
torfa1 waters should take up watchful
waiting just outside such shoals. it Is
realized that the coastwise ships pas
sage would be beset with serious dan
gers.
If naval battle occurred under such
circumstances the delicate question Of
determining whether the territorial
waters had been violated would be pre-
sented to the United States and this
question would probably be referred to
the coast and geodetic survey. The
probable procedure would be for the
escorting United States ship to mark
of attack by buoy, whose position in
reference to the three-mile limit would
then be determined by careful trian-
gulation observations from the shore.
The ships would have determined the
approximate dividing line between ter
ritorial waters and the high seas by
observations on known points on shore
or on lighthouses and buoys.
In the early days of the present Eu-
ropean war it became necessary for the
United States to escort the German
liner Kronprinzessin Cecilie from Bar
Harbor, Me. to Boston. where she was
interned. Because of the existence OF
relatively deep water close to the rocky
shore along this portion of the Atlantic
coast and the absence Of sand bars and
shoals, 1t was a simple matter to keep
within the national boundary and avoid
international complications.
Attention Is called by authorities on
International law to the fact that II
advanced with the extension of the
range of cannon, which first determin
ed it, problems of the nayigabtlity of
territorial waters would seldom or
never present themselves. The limit
was agreed upon between Great Brit
ain and the United States toward the
close of the eighteenth century, when
coast defense guns had an extreme
range of three miles and could protect
waters for only that distance from tho
shore. Naval guns had an even shorter
range Now, however. coast defense
rifles of sixteen-inch caliber, such as
those defending the entrances to the
Panama canal, can fire projectiles more
than fifteen miles. while the range or
the modern ffteen-inch naval guns is
almost as great. If the outer limit OF