The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1920-04-27
Many Recorded Epldemlcs Shown e
Havs Emanatsd Fseesr That Ares .fl
~ -0lseass Claims More Victims
Than EIffopsan War.

: . - ~ - -
different stages. asa Nd y 4 VI u q II
There are excellent reasons for re-
gardinga thesende mic. home Of Influenza
TO be, Eastern Euro -, !" he said, "an q
Ia particular the border regions be
tween Russia and Turkestan. Many
recorded epidemics have been shown
more or less clearly stoz emanate from
that area. while the epidemics Of tre7.
cent history have been traced there
with high degree sof sco ln
From this Eastern home, at intervals
OF two or three decades q migrating
epidemic Influenza begins, moving east
ward and swestwards With the greater
velocity in the latter directions s.,sM
ts Uncanny ii Action! = Me- TO- s..
ITO the casual observer there Is
something uncanny in the way tndu-.
enza strikes down its victims. While
other epidemics proceed from bad 70
worse, with at least progressive In
creases IN intensity, influenza seems 70
.overwhelm communities over even Wild
er stretchesof territory5 as by "a single
stupendous blow, While In the one
casesthe grad accl erating rate. o tl
speed Of extension may be taken to
indicate personal conveyance OF the
provoking micro organism, In the other
the. sudden wide onset appears the
very negation Of personal communica-
ton. 49,, i T. II IT.. ;.4.. IT
{ 'sHence the invoking of mysterious
influences. the revival of the notion OF
miasm and similar agencies, to account
for this phenomenon :. Indeed. the pub
lie mind in general lends itself readily
TO such formless concepts. for the rea-
son that there still resides In the mass
Of the people, even IN the more en-
lishtened countries. a large uneradi-
Gated residue 6f superstition regard
inx disease. One does not need to look
far or dig deep in order to Uncover
TIE source Of this superstition. We
have only recently emerged from q
nast IN which knowledge Of the origin
Of disease was scant, and such views
u were com4pDsy held and exploited
we're mostly fallacious It Is, indeed.
very, recently, Il the transformation
can he said ITO be perfect even now,
that the medical profession as a whole
has been completely. emanclpated. All
this Is very far from being q matter
5.ok remote Import nces only, since I'm
the end the successful imposition OF
sanitary regulations involves wide CO.
operation; and until the ma ority Of in
diyiduals composing IA community L.
brought to a fair level Of understand
ing of and belief in the measures pro
posed, serious and sustained stendeayor
q enforce them II a. scarcely e be e1-
peeted. T. % se> e. F 81, ::s .I;7 n.
"a >.F y. Routing . euoaboo. s.sE ID.
Z =. sand yet no, better instance Of q
communicable disease could perhaps be
Z invoked than Influenza to exercise the
false idea Of the mysterious origin Of
epidemics. TO dwell solely on the sud
den and overwhe Ginning sstr0ke OF the
disease is wholly to overlook the
significant incidents that precede the
mass infection. because they, are Of
such ordinary nature aid lack all dra
matte quality. Accurate observers
noted long ago that Influenza In its
epidemic form did not constitute an
i exception tG the common rule govern
fnE epidemic diseases, which were
OBVIOUSLY associated With persons and
their migrations. What the early stu
beats made out by tracing 1.-The cpl
demic backward to its point Of: depar-
] tgae, more modern observers have cDn-
nElhed BY carefully kept records, often
graphically compiled, al IN the excel
I4nt instance OF the Munich records
covering the epidemic Of 1902, which
can now be supplemented by number
ofsimilarly constructed records Of the
epidemic Just passed. These detailed
rreecords show convincingly q period Of
inYasion during which there is grad
uaI rise In the number Of cases ID
eliminate, within period variously
! esttlnated at from one to three weeks.
ina widespread, so-called explosive
y outbreak Of the disease. $s,4: +. VI ~.
FIT happens that the early cases OF
epidemic influenza tend not to be Sc
\ we're ,.,, chiefly because they rarely are
i amended BY pneumonia and hence are
4 frequently mistaken. and the confusion
inSdiaRnosis IS resolved only when the
fuiE intensity Of the ~epidemictis real;
I iySd. In the meantin, rich oppor-
!; t1nity has been AFFORDED tcs thlea tres
- unrestricted comnangling Of stae
80 and the well. Of doubtless
h9althy carriers Of the, melting agent
- others, until 20 high z degree q
llIISemination Of the provo eins uicre'
1Ifliianism has been secureds as g u.
!, Dc the entire susceptible elemsht o.
IT, population, which happens to be
!. flife. to IN almosg sireulta neogs Se'
ai,ss % tie eject 4. sths 4 la e sdt
n1obe. .4zsSs.z.
Ebsdueuens q me- Import en- .
;|lIlisIliiItH lslIlss!ll. sisssa iii.