The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-07-15
BIRMINGHAM GRIP
 !. ON TYPHOID FEVER GERM TIGHTENING
Federal, State and City Ex- perts Working Hard to Stamp Out Disease.
 Success Attends

With the three federal experts working under the direction of Dr. c. c. Lums. den, and two state experts, pr. Armes and Dr. Harrington, all cooperating witt Health Officer Dr. Cecil D. Gaston. the city of Birmingham is tightening it's grir on thetyphoid epidemic to the extent that only about 10 cases were reported yester- day. This means 298 cases for the month of July
 Commissioner John R. Hornady, who has lead the civic fight against the typhoid epidemic and who also instituted the free vaccinations which will eventually check the spread of the fever and also eliminate typhoid from the community, is enthusi- astic CT the efforts of the federal and state expe. in seeking to locate all the causes of the read of typhoid in Bir- mlngham. The eA erts will also point out sanitary reforms and these suggestions Will have great weight on the city com mission, asserted MT. Hornady, who is or the opinion that public health must be placed above everything else in the com munity
 Public health should be above every thing else in our consideration" said Commissioner Hornady. T was reading today in an Associated Press dispatch of a speech by United States Senator Rans- dell of the Senate committee on public health. In effect, Senator Ransdell stated that 1t cost the United States every year the enormous sum of $92S, ,234, ,SS0 for ty- phoid and malaria, both preventable dis eases. The senator was talking on Rural Health-America' S First Duty, and his address created profound impression on his colleagues. He estimated that the total economic loss from typhoid fever alone was $271 932, ,8S0 a year in this coun- try. Senator Ransdell also made the very significant statement that the sta t1stics showd that the United States gov ernment spent S5,016,175 per annum for the prevention of diseases of animal plant life and only $1,917,566 for the investigation and prevention of diseases of man. 1 cite these figures to show the economic losses of typhoid and malaria to this country and to show that the federal gov ernment is also unmindful of the serious ness of the problem of public health
 However, we are all being awakened to the needs of being prepared against infectious diseases. New York city is today suffering from an epidemic of in- fantile paralysis and it will emerge from it a more healthful city. Birmingham is also slowly getting the best of danger ous and costly outbreak of typhoid fever which has made us mindful of the needs of public health and which will make us heed the suggestions of the federal and state experts now in our midst in order tc prevent return of typhoid, which is ar entirely preventable disease. We should conserve the public health, and the money spent by a city in enforcing health regu. lations pays large dividends.
 "The number of typhoid cases reported
 on Friday showed a sharp falling off from the previous day and in fact was the lowest since the outbreak of typhoid be- came a matter of public interest. How 1 ever, many more cases will be reported 1 and the only way to prevent typhoid i. | to get vaccinated. Come to the city hal and get a shot It won't hurt, and i
 may prevent you or your children iron | spending about 10 weeks in bed with tn resultant heavy expenses. I aso urge tha | those who get the first shot should ge l the second and third, as the treatmen l has little effect unless completed. Re
 member, the motto should be, prepar, yourself against. disease"
 About HOO persons were vaccinated a 1 the city hall yesterday for the first time and about half that number for the sec l ond time.