The evening herald. [volume] (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 1914-1922, 1920-11-17
TYPHOID STRICKEN
CITY BECOMES HUGE
ANTI MACHINE
Uncle Sam and State Aid
Salem, Ohio, in
Drive Plan
NY RUSS sINfoNToN

RALBM, o.. Nov. i7.-Gripped by
the most virulent typhoid epidemic
experts say has ravaged al American
city this generation, and with one per
son In 10 OF it's 10000 inhabitants
down with the fever, Salem has
organized itself into n great and
smoothly running machine to stamp
out the disease. Every other activity
has been showed into the background.
Salem faced this situation;
Its entire water supply was infected
with typhoid.
In the homes OF rich and poor ty-
phOid made greater inroads each day.
It's doctors were unable to attend
TO all OF the sick.
Its hospital was ov~ercrowdcd.
Its milk became contaminated,
The epidemic grew with APPALLING
speed. From the first two cases, with
In n few weeks there had sprung more
than 800 and the number was increas-
Ing.
Salem "Gcts Busy
Then this little old%-fashioncd Ohio
town realized its danger. Death might
easily decimate its population. a
great maus meeting was called. The
central committee which made Salem
u leader In war was placed In power.
Salem called COR outsl lc mid
Twenty. five doctors came first.
r.. Il. Tarbctt. engineer Of tho u.
&. public health service, and W.
II. Dittoe, Ohio state engineer, ar
rived. located the source OF the
water pollution where n water
main and a sewer crossed and
leaked. Immediately the town
tapped a new artesian we'll.
Or. +. q, Boudreau, state health
officer In charge OF contagious dis
eases, came to cooperate with City
Health officer II. NJ. Swartz. They
established health rules, and taught
Salem how to guard against the d.
sease. They inoculated virtually every
well person In the town with anti
typhoid serum.
MIX Itulcs
The houa OF every typhoid victim
was placardcd with a warning to
milkmcn not to leave bottles at the
house or take away those previously
left. Tho milk must he poured into
the housewives pan. The milk
man must not enter the house. All
milk was pasteurizcd at dairy.
In addition, ]placards explaining In
simple language the health measures
required were issued to everyone.
Tons OF chloride OF lime were distrib-
uted free.
Meantime the Rcd Cross and the
public health league divided the actual
work OF nursing the sick.
Under Mrs. q. l.. Smith. tho Red
Cross called 900 trained nurses from
all nearby cities. Some came from
Chicago and New York. Mrs. Z. +.
O'Neill became head nurse Of one
4b-bcd emergency honpital In a vacant
apartment house. Miss Louise Miletz,
OF the Cincinnati General O pital,
took charge Of n 35-hed hospital In n
hotel. The Red Cross o. over one
ward in the city hospital. The Red
Cross enlisted women n began the
manufacture OF hundreds Of sheets
and slck-room clothing. w. II. Null
Inns, n wealthy man, CAV 800 cots ana
mattresses.
Flying Equals
The public health league, under
nurse Grace Donsing, aided by state
Supervising Nurse Huldn Cron, took
charge OF all nursing outside the hos
pitfalls. II built overnight a volunteer
automobile transportation system to
carry corps OF Is nurses from home
TO home.
The chamber OF commerce built a
Kitchen and installed a dining room In
it's headquarters to feed the nurses
and doctors. Citizens took them into
their homes at night.
SAYS DR.. Boudrcau: we aren't out
nf the woods yet-nOt with some iOu
patients to care FOR. But we have
eliminated the source Of the original
endemic. and we have the epidemic
under control. All our efforts nov
are to keep the well from contracting
the disease from the nick.'