Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1920-01-21
SOLDIERS At RHINE
HARD HIT BY FLU,
ARMY CHIEFS TOLD
WORD FROM MEN IN OCCUPIED
TERRITORY is THAT DISEASE
or MORE vlRULENT FORM
THAN INU S SWEEPS TROOPS

THAN IN v. s SWEEPS THOOPS
Washington. -. G., Jan. 3l.- lnlln
enZa has become epidemic in several
army camps, particularly In the ma
die west, Surgeon General ireland ol
the army announced today. and It has
made It's appearance among the Amer
lean troops in Germany,
The form of the disease in this
country apparently II much hIildeI
than that which made its appearance
among the troops In Germany.
Daring the week ending Jam. =, 1863
new cases Nere reported among the
soldiers on the Rhine. this represent
ing an increase of siXtyliNe over the
week before. Twelve deaths from the
disease were reported, while there
also six deaths from pneumonia.
Not Alarming IN America.
While the disease is increasing
among the civilian population OF the
United States, II has not reached rpl
demic form and Surgeon General i'Iue
of the public health service said today
there was nothing in the situation 10
= cause alarm.
The maady as it has appeared, both
among soldiers and civilians, is ol a
mild type, and the resulting death
rate proportionately has been far be
low that of the wartime epidemic
while the incidence of pneumonia also
has been much lower.
Surgeon General Blue said the state
health authorities apparently had tie
situation In hand wherever the dis
ease had occurred and in many
states ii Is not prevalent and that
no request for federal aid has been RE-
ceivcd As a precautionary measure,
however, Dr. Blue has representatives
in these states cooperating with state
authorities and a corps of doctors
trained in fighting this particular mai
ady is available,
Precaution al Camps.
Epidemics have been reported from
Camp Grant at Rockford and Fort
Sheridan, M; Lovetield Tex" and
the Great Lakes Naval Training sta
ton, but the number OF men in those
camps Is much smaller than it was
during the war when influenza caused
thousands Of deaths among service
men
ne type OF disease appears TO DE
mia Said surgeon GehefdI hIue'
commenting on conditions at camps,
Dtt | diIcCt the attention OF All med
zeal Officers to the Importance OF com
pliance with regulations concerning
adequate use of floor space IN com.
pany barracks and hospital wards, in
proper supervision of heating and Ven
tialtion at night. cleanliness OF floors
and prevention of dust. masking Of
cases prevention of use OF common
drinking cups. adequacy of clothing
and bedding. removing promptly from
barracks when men begin To feel sick.
and professional service in Treatment
of the sick All cases of mna%,oS a,. /
influenza. however mild. should he
early and carefully treated in bed and
kent free from danger of chilling"
5000 If in CHICAGO.
Chicago. Jan u More than L 5000
persons in Chicago today were i'll
from influenza. and reports indicated
the contaginn had appeared in cities
and towns throughout the middi.
west. Pneumonia also was reported
Epidemic and proportionately had
caused IA large number OF deaths.
A shortage of trained nurses haudi-
capped the efforts of CHICAGO health
officers. During the last tWcniy-luur
hours new cases already reported at
the rate OF fifty an hour OF these
800 could not be given even temporary
supervision BY trained nurses. FIT
teen hundred additional nurses are W
gently needed at once.
While the number OF new influenza
cases reported reached 2.51i, which
VAS ll5 more than for any similar
period during the 1918 epidemic DR.,
John Dill Robertson, health commits
sioner, expressed his opinion that
the epidemic is near its climax,
Deaths from influenza IN chicago