The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1915-05-28
SWAT The
'''' House FLY
he Carries The Most Dread
full Germs.
dJood Advice Contained In Able
Paper By DR.. B. F.
Ticheror.

Mr.. PRESIDENT and Gentlemen, OF the
OHIO County Medical Society:
j presume that when you gave me
a place on your splendid program,
reuesting a paper on general sani-
tation, you expected me to forward
she motion of our sanitation pro-
pagrauda that was initiated at our
last meeting of the Ohio County
Board of Health. If | am correct
Tn my assumption l will proceed by
Saying that what | will advise with
reference to the prevention of typhoid
fever is largely true of all contagious
and infectious diseases; and that at
some future time | will be glad to
write paper on any of the maladies
Cor which general sanitation would
ameleorate or prevent. The meas
-rlres to prevent typhoid fever are well
known TO all physicians.
A problem in the average commun
1ty, not only in Ohio County but
most everywhere. is how to get in
telligent public sentiment sufficiently
aroused 10 make the enforcement of
the necessary measures feasible.
In the United States about 450, 900
persons are incapacitated and about
$4,000 are killed by typhoid fever
each year. A large proportion of
the cases are in persons at their per-
iod OF maximum earning capacity.
Thus the Nation suffers from this
disease q tremendous economic loss,
sa1e work required to prevent such
loss would cost.
Typhoid fever is a filth born dis
ease. II is well that the people should
know that it is caused by germs
which are parasites and which de-
pend for their perpetuation upon
multiplication in the bodies of hui
man beings. The germs are .discharg
ed from the bodies of persons in the
stools and urine. To cause the dis
esae in other persons the germ must
be swallowed.
Every person who has had typhoid
fever recently has swallowed some
typhoid germs which have come in
some way from the excreta of some
infected person. Unless We put in
10 our mouths and swallow some
thing which as been soiled or con-
.taminated with human filth we will
not have typhoid fever.
Therefore it behooves the physi-
how to avoid swallowing the human
filth which is more or less always
present in every community. To tell
them that the hOuse-hy is the great
common carrier of typhoid fever. and
that by its industry thousands are
slain every year is not an eXaggera-
tion.
To say that we eat with our arch
enemy every day during the summer
months and allow him the glorious
privilege of bathing in our butter
milk, and then drying his legs on
our bread, and that he expects as a
price for these privileges often the
death of our friend or loved one, is
mot an overdrawn picture. We don't !
only refuse to challenge this lothe- F!
some enemy of mankind by screen
ing, trapping and swatting. hut we
furnish a delightful breeding place /
by leaving the manure in our stables |
all the summer where they multiply /
by the teeming millions; also the gar
bage, dirt water and filth of all kinds |
are shoYeled out the back kitchen .
door TO the iy's delight, and that .
they might multiply by the thous-
ands. Not satisfied with this court
eous treatment, of the fly, we care
lessly provide an unsanitary toilet,
where their chief sport is to bath
their legs in excreta. communicating
typhoid, germs, and probably many
other infectious microbes. And then
as a mere matter of courtesy and in
return for our generosity, the pesky
lily makes us an extended visit at
dinner hour. He doesn't need an in
PRODUCTION. For we recognize that il
is he by the flower that we sprinkled
on his back one hour previous while
he was enjoying the privilege afford
ed in our valued insanitary privy.
He is not at all satisfied to carry
typhoid germs alone. but will carry
without burden to himself, or even
a lazy feeling, thousands of tubercle
baccili, provided some poor consump-
awe person has swallowed his own
sputum and in turn deposited ii in
the backyard nuicance (toilet) men
TONED above. II not in this way he
Hiii bravely wade through the gobs