Evening star., 1935-12-27
OUTDOOR FUNERAL
FOR MISS PABST.
Woman Scientist Martyr to
Her War on Dread
Meningitis.

An outdoor funeral in the bitter
wind was held in snow-whitened Rock
Creek Cemetery for Miss Anna M.
Pabst shortly before noon today be-
cause of the virulent nature of the
meningitis which cost her life in the
war science Is waging against the
dread malady.
Relatives. friends and colleagues
stood with bowed heads at the grave
side while a brief eulogy to Miss
Pabst's service to. the Institute of Pub
lie Health, and to mankind as whole,
was spoken by Rev. DR.. Russell J.
Clinchy, pastor of Mount Pleasant
Congregational Church.
The casket, banked with floral trib-
utes, was borne to the grave by eight
of Miss Pabsts colleagues in the Pub
lie Health Service-Drs. Charles Arm
strong, Edward Frances, M. v. Beldee,
r. D. Lilly, j. L. Engle, w. T. Har-
rison, r. E. Dyer and ]. C. Woolley.
Church Permit Declined.
The nature of the malady which cost
the health pioneer her life forced the
health authorities to decline permission
for a church funeral. The body was
taken directly from Emergency Hos
pital, where Miss Pabst died Christ
mas day, to the cemetery.
Miss Pabst, bacteriologist Of note.
lived at 1922 Fifteenth street. She be-
came infected 10 days ago while ex-
perimenting with an anti-meningtis
serum. An animal she was inoculating
moved suddenly, and some of the Sc
rum squirted into her eye. Every pre-
caution failed and Miss Pabst was
taken i'll last Saturday while on a
Christmas shopping trip.
Since the tragedy kilograms and
telephone calls have poured in upon
the bereaved family, offering express
sions of appreciation for Miss Pabst's
sacrifice and sympathy.
Bacteriologists Pay Tribute.
A telegram came today from the
Society of American Bacteriologists,
whose convention, in New York, Miss
Pabst was to have addressed yester-
day. The telegram said:
THE Society Of American Bacteriol-
ogists, now in session, is profoundly
shocked and deplores the untimely
death of our colleague, Anna Pabst.
We extend our deepest sympathy"
Miss Pabst had prepared the paper
she was to deliver and this was read
to the meeting by one of her COL
leagues from the health institute, DR..
Sara e. Branham.
Among tributes made to the service
Of Miss Pabst was one from DR.. G. w.
Mccoy, chief of the institute.
Family Indignant.
Members of Miss Pabst's family ex-
pressed indignation today that the
Government makes no special benefit
allowance for its scientific workers
employed in hazardous experimental
work.
There have been five such deaths in
the last decade and in numerous other
instances victims attacked by the dis
eases they were combating survived
only after hard fight.
Miss Pabst, who was SO, was the first
woman laboratory technician in the
Public Health Service to die in line of
| disease research.
Two Died Of Fewer.
In 1924, G. H. Cowan, laboratory
assistant at the Rocky Mountain Spot
ted Fever Laboratories in Hamilton,
Mont, died of that fever. Four years
later, L. A. Kerlee, another laboratory
assistant, died in the same place in
the same way.
The name Of william Lindgren is
held in special honor in the service
because he started as a humble deck
hand on a ship, and became self
made expert laboratory technician
through sheer interest In the subject.
In 1922, he became infected with
tuberculosis while transplanting cul-
lures, and injecting animals with
virulent human tuberculosis, in the
laboratories here. Six years later he
died Of the disease.
One Psittacosis Victim.
H B. Anderson, laboratory assist
ant, died in 1880 Of psittacosis (par-
rot fever) at the time when an out
break of that disease occurred in the
National Institute of Health. then
deep in research on its battling ap-
pearance in this country. Several of
the scientists had severe cases, but
lived to save other lives by using their
own immunized blood as serum to
fight the disease.
M. L. Nolan, laboratory assistant,
died of Tularaemia rabbit fever) in
1881, q disease on which he was then
working.
DR.. Charles Armstrong almost died
Of psittacosis. Later, serum from MS
blood, flown across the continent,
saved both Mrs. william e. Borah, in
Idaho, and DR.. H. e. Hasseltine. In
California.
Among others suffering severe Ill
nesses through diseases on which they
| worked were DIR. r. e. Dyer, typhus;
DR.. Edward Francis, DR.. Alice Evans
and DR.. w. T. Harrison, undulant
| fever.