The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1918-05-09
SMALL POX CASES ARE.
FEW IN NUMBER
school Childrea and Many Others Be-
ing Vaccinated

Dr Olivier GAIA and the other
bea1th officials have had some anxious
hours during the past week over the
small pox situation. There have been
ron or more cases in town, and a large
nnmber of persons have been exposed.
Our health department consists of
the health physician, Dr. GAIA, who Is
also a member of the board of health,
the other two members being Leslie
F Jacobs and Fred A. Wood The
first family to come to the attention of
these officials was that OF Charles
Perry on Railroad street. One indt-
vidaal was sick at the time, and the
ease was promptly determined to be
small pox Two others had been
previously i'll. and the circumstances
indicated that they were recovering
from the same disease. The house
hold consisted of seven members, and
of course the other individuals were
at once vaccinated. They had al
ready become infected, however, -and
have since had the disease. Five out
of the seven cases in this family were
comparatively light, but two were
quite i'll, the eruption covering the en-
tire body Roscoe Turner is another
one who has had this malady He
was sick at his home on the Malbon's
Mills road, but has completely recov-
cred Miss Mabel Welch, whose home
is near the junction of Bloomfield
avenue with Waterville road. has also
been i'll with this disease. There has
also been one case in the family of
Peter Murray at the foot of the Eddy
Hill. The family consists of ten per-
sons, and no other member has as yet
become affected. OF course, in each
Instance, the families were quaran-
tined and all other individuals in the
house vaccinated. In this same build
ing, quarantined with the rest, Is the
family of Philip Wood, but they have
thus far escaped the epidemic. Miss
Dorothy Gaylord, in the family of AL
onzo Smith on Kennebec street, is an
other small pox patient, and Mrs.
Stinchfield, the wife of DR.. w. S.
Stinchfield, has ben i'll with the same
malady at her home on Court st.
DR.. A. G. Young of Augusta, secre-
'tary of the Maine State Board of
Health. was promptly notified, and ar
rived here Friday night of last week.
1t was by his instruction that the
household of DR.. Stinchfield was plac-
ed under quarantine, school children
ordered vaccinated and certain other
Instructions issued. Vaccination has
been going on a very lively rate. 1t
is probably that of school children
and others nearly 1000 have been thus
treated during the past weeks. So
far as the children are concerned, the
rule is imperative and no one will be
allowed to attend school without sub
mitting to this order.
Small pox is not the dread disease
which 1t once was Owing to vacc1-
nation, which has been increasingly
resorted to, and perhaps to other in
fuences not fully understood, cases
are almost never fatal, and very often
are exceedingly mild This leads to
the fact that the trouble is often con-
fused with chicken pox and there has
been some confusion of this sort in
the present epidemic. 1t is now be-
lieved that there were genuine cases
of small pox here at least two months
ago. While the officials are not GER
tain, they think they have located the
first case out in the country on the
south side of the river No legal
liability is involved, but as matter
of interest they hope to make certain
as to this first case by investigation
which is now being carried on.
Among the latest cases is that of
the II year old daughter Of Mr. and
Mrs. Phillip Lancto, Maple street, re-
ported yesterday morning. Mr.. Lancto
is an employee of the Savage Paper
Co The entire household Of five
persons has been quarantined