The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-08-18
TEN THOUSAND
 PLAGUE CASES
 KNOWN IN US.
Public Health Service Calls Conference of POliOmye-
 litis Fighters.


 Washington, Aug. 18-Measures to prevent further spread of infantile paralysis were discussed here yester- day in conference called by the Public Health Service under the au- thority Of Congress for such councils in an epidemic of national danger. from nearly all states were present with detailed reports of the spread of the epidemic over the coun- try.
 The imposition of new regulations to prevent interstate transmission of the disease is not the primary object of the conference, but, in welcoming the delegates, Secretary McAdoo ex- pressed hope for Federal and state coordination of preventive measures and regulations. Local regulations are o4 great variety and. while en- tirely commendatory, so-ordination of regulations is needed to avoid un- necessary inconveniences, and still give adequate protection to the pulp lic," said he.
 Assistant Surgeon-General A. H. Glennan, in the absence of Surgeon General Blue. opened the conference, which is expected to continue two days. Assistant Surgeon-General w.. c. Rucker presided.
 The conferrees agreed that their figures showed more than 10,000 cases of infantile paralysis in the United States, but that outside of New York. New Jersey, Connecticut, and Penn sylvania the situation practically was normal. Aside from the cases in the of New York city there was no specific evidence that the trans mission of the disease could be traced back to the metropolis. The statistics showed that cases in persons older than 16 were rare, but not impossi- ble.
 The exact figures from 3S states showed 11,117 cases not confined to cities by any means. Many were re- ported on farms. Few suggestions were offered regarding the possible origin. The scientific problems of it's study and prevention will be discussed at later conferences yesterday after noon and today. A uniform, possibly a Federal health certificate to facili- tate travel of children was suggested.
 Most of the speakers thought there was little necessity of a quarantine by other states against travellers from the east. Practically all state officers re- ported rigid local quarantine regula- tions to check the spread of the dis ease in their own states. The fol- lowing number of cases this year or since the outbreak of the present epi- demic were reported:
 Alabama, 64; Arkansas, 3; Califor- mia, 4; Colorado, 4; Connecticut, 323; Delaware, 2; District of Columbia, IS; Florida, 6; Illinois, 206; Indiana 37; Iowa, 25; Kentucky, IS; Louis jana, 51; Maine, IA; Maryland, 66; Massachusetts, 105; Michigan, 97; Minnesota, SIS; Missouri, Il; Mon- tana, Is; Nebraska, 10; New Hamp-
 shire, [; New Jersey, 1,714; New York, 7.753 (6.753 in New York city and 1000 estimated elsewhere) l; North Carolina, 20; Ohio, 166; Ore gon, 3; Pennsylvania, 336; Rhode Is- land, 53; South Carolina, 55; South Dakota, 22; Tennessee, 3S; Texas, 30; Vermont, IS; Virginia, 29; Washing ton, 5; West Virginia, 8; Wiscon. sin, 70.
 the QucSJlOH OI IdiITOc1u COIIl-
 munication, the Pacific Coast dele. gates reported success of a co-opera- tive method in which British Colum.
 bia officials are aiding. Instead ,ol
 having child travellers inspected upor leaving the trains, the Oregon and Washington delegates said mutua notification by the health officers O, these states and British Columbia wa, made of suspected children. It wal stated that California would abandon the train inspection plan.' and adop
 the mutual notification system New Hampshire's delegates sait | that with thousands of summer wis itors from New York, New Jersey an( Pennsylvania there were only sever paralysis cases in the state, all of To | cal origin. Connecticut's delegate.
 said 34 cases there had been directf. traced to New York, and that ther,
 were 20, ,o00 New York children in tn,
 state. | Dr. Fitz- Randolph of New Jerse! estimated that there are now 2.00t cases in 175 districts in New Jersey and said the epidemic was spreadin, over the state.
 |
 missioner of New York, said thre,
 striking facts had developed. Of 30, 900 children in institutions under stat, supervision using the same milk
 water and food as other New Yorl children, not one had been afflicted
 with the disease Near the city. garbage dumping place, where tn | maximum contagion from flies an. germs might be expected. not on,
 case had developed. The death rat | in the more congested Brooklyn dis tricts, he stated, was lower than il more sparsely settled and wealthie' communities. He could give no ex planation of the fact that about eigh
 times as many dead animals had beer found in Brooklyn streets during thu last six weeks than during the sam, period last year. The death of tn, animals was not found attributabl to paralysis and no specif1s infection
 was found in them.
 EXPLAINED
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