The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-05-09
DR.. James p. Warbasse Outlines His
Ideal System---Federal Health
Bureau First STEP.

"Of this episode Senator owen said:
The Secretary Of the Treasury was
not selected as n Cabinet officer be-
cause of his Knowledge of the public
health. but because he was an expert
on finance. At present our Cabinet
expert OF. finance directs Government
activities ;:l controlling bubonic
II que. and the Board OF Trade and
. few commercializcd physicians of
San Francisco would be more i'm
rortant in his eyes than the chief Of
one ( his subordinate bureaus.
The evil lies in the arrangement OF
governmental affairs under which the
medical service of the rational Gov
eminent is sIbordinated to and made
a part of the Treasury Department.
instead OF being. as it should be, a
department 10y Itself Surely the pub
lie health Is ~ importan, as the
finance or tn" agriculture or the labor
or tie army and navy of the nation,
and is AS distinct in its requirements
rs any one Of these. II should he d.
rcCted by experts, ius, as obviously
as the affairs of other departments
should he and are directed by ex-
pcrts in their various lines.
WHY, then, have We not a govern
mental interes, in the public health?
The hog story and the buboric plague
episode certainly do not indicate that
! we have. II Is because movements
to cor serve the health OF the people
interfere with somebody's profits. and
profits have a bigger representation
in the councils of the Government than
The mere health Of the people. Adult
i'rated foods, patent medicines. mis-
branded products. the dope business.
polluted streams, diseased meats. over
crowded tenements, unsaMtary shops,
stra phanging street cars. child
/ labor-these are some OF the things
| that II would be the duty Of ma
| t!onal department Of health 70 be con-
! cerned about, and every one OF these
| things represents millions Of dollars
OF proht every year to the business
interests for which governments are
| conducted
THE establishment of such a de-
| partment would greatly simplify the
| efforts which are now being made -
protect the people. The growing ten
deacy of all such efforts Is to trace
1
! whether the question be that Of
tainted milk in the grocery store or
| the shipment of infection from the
| other side of the world. 1t IL no
Longer deemed adequate to fine the
! grocer or TO stop a smallpox patient
who Is about to land from n ship. a
| local quarantine does little toward
stamping out disease, and all the great
Governments are working together to-
day to some extent to prevent the en-
barkatlOn anywhere OF any person or
article likely to spread infection, and
the matter OF milk inspection IL no
longer confined TO the confscation OF
the diseased milk when II In actually
put on sale.
But the moment local board steps
outside Its own locality to seek the
original source of a threatening peril
it encounters complications. A pol
luted stream may arise In foreign
state. The milk may be brought from
n point outside the jurisdiction OF the
officials who seek to destroy II. Every
where commercial interests are liable
to he antagonizcd. and under our pres
ent system commercial interests are
paramount, or at least are formdably
powerful.
AS 1t stands now we have no great
department In the national Govern
ment for conserving human life. That
is the reas n pure food law has had
such time OF It, Food adulteratlon
In business, and every agency Of tho
Government Is planned in the interest
OF business. The administration OF