Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-03-05
WHAT THE GOVERNMENT IS DOING

Because the European war has con-
tHbuted to the keeping alive and
spread Of some Of the
State mr. Federal worlds most infec-
tious diseases not
SuaIantlnes ably cholera, typhus
and the plague-sanitarians and physi-
clans in all of the medical services OF
the United States believe that the great
conflict will operate to sweep the quar-
antine function in this country wholly
into the hands Of the federal govern
ment, where they believe it belongs.
This means particularly that the port
of New York is expected to fall under
federal quarantine control; for this
greatest and most important Of the
national gateways is one Of the few
ports whose quarantine functions ara
still managed by state. Here, off,
Gals of the United States public health
service realize, will center the great
food Of immigration that is expected
to set in from the old world at the end
of the war. And here, for that reason,
will be the danger point to the nation
at which the accumulated pestilences
to be introduced.
Under the extraordinary dangers that
1t seems will surely threaten in the
next few years-and that to certain
extent are present even now with the
coming to our shores of shiploads Of
widows and children of slain soldiers
will 1t be wise to leave in the hands of
a state the most strategic port for the
protection of the nation? This Is the
question that sanitarians and medical
experts in and out Of the government
service are asking: and practically
unanimously they are answering in the
negative.
Persons in position to know are pre-
dieting that unless New York finds
some graceful way to turn over the
quarantine functions Of the metropolis
to the public health service, which is
now in charge Of practically all Of the
other ports of the country, the first in
dication Of unusual danger from in
coming disease will precipitate one of
the most interesting fights between the
federal government and state that
has occurred in recent years. The out
come of the dispute Is not hard to
prophesy. however, for armed with a
clause OF an act OF Congress or 1888
and the power of the customs service,
the federal government could insist on
mands before permitting ships to dock.
The state quarantine authorities would
be left with the choice of resigning
their functions entirely. needlessly
paralleling the activities of the federal
government or adopting its work.
the United States who have lived an in
land life and many who have passed
through our ports do not realize what our
quarantine situation has been. With the
crude ideas of medical science in vogue
when the Constitution was written the
Importance of keeping dangerous diseases
out of the country was not understood
and the matter naturally fell later into
the hands Of the communities most d.
rectly affected and their states.
Until 1883 the federal government made
no move toward a national quarantine
service. In that year. however. the first
step was taken when it accepted the
transfer Of the station at Fort Monroe.
Va. At that time scores of stations were
operated along our coasts by different
jurisdictions. with greatly varying regu-
lations that had no relation to one another
except that they were on occasion actual
Cases are known in which a port made
the bid to ships that its quarantine regu-
lations were lax, while competing port
subjected shippers to annoyance because
of strictly enforced regulations
Maintaining quarantine service is a
costly privilege, however, especially for
small ports, and with the move toward
a uniform national service once started
numerous requests were made that local
stations be taken over. In 1893 Congress
specifically authorized the public health
the marine hospital service
to accept the stations offered volunta-
rily and to pay for them the reasonable
value of the property. In this way sixty
seven stations have been taken over from
states and municipalities and placed in
the national service. In addition. through
the opening Of stations or the appoint
ment of deputies the service has been ex-
tended to practically every port on all
our coasts, even to places to which not
more than one or two ships put in during
the year.
SO fully has the quarantine service
OF the country become nationalized that
there are only two breaches in the ma
tional wall against disease. One of
these is New York and the other Bal
timore- While the latter port is con-
sidered important: it is realized that
New York is much more so, and it is
this great gateway of travel that pub
lie health service officials hope will
next be added to the national system
They believe that Baltimore will then
fall into the service of it's own weight
and complete The logical system.
A third port, Galveston. now main
tains a state quarantine station, but
this does not constitute a breach in the
for 1t is paralleled by a federal station
which first inspects and disinfects
ships. The state station. in fact, has
adopted the plan of merely accepting
the federal certificates for a reduced
fee-a practice which is so futile that
public health officials are confident that
the entire state station will soon be
abandoned.