"As To Yellow Fever"

Transcript

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ton, S. C., published an able article on “In-

land Quarantine,” from which I make the

following extracts:
“Can it be claimed that any ‘cordon sani-

taire’ has ever kept out cholera or yellow

fever when these diseases appear in an epi-

demic form? Has it ever prevented the ex-

tension of yellow fever from our seaport

towns into the interior? In years gone by,

and before we were as proud as we are now

of our scientific knowledge, we never enter-

tained the hope of land quarantine prevent-

ing the spread of the disease. And its dif-

fusion, or march into the interior, with rare

exceptions, never took place. In recent

times the boasted sanitarians have so im-

pressed the people with their importance

that much is now expected. Hence incon-

veniences, privations and sufferings have

followed, in a most alarming degree, the

futile attempt to carry out a supposed prin-

ciple in hygienic law. Upon a mere as-

sumption of the knowledge of the laws of a

disease (a knowledge possessed, as we said

above, no more now than it was a hundred

years ago), the most arbitrary regulations

have been attempted. People flying from a

stricken city have been driven back to die.

Refugees from a pestilence have been hunt-

ed down, and, upon the possibility of their

introducing disease (after they had already

been the carriers of the poison, if such thing

were possible,) have been shipped to the

nearest sister city, who in turn was expected

to protect herself. This selfish, arbitrary

and unreasonable action was practiced by

cities hundreds of miles away from the in-

fected regions, and in Northern as well as

Southern latitudes. The law of self-preser-

vation, as interpreted in other times, con-

tained no provision for a brother’s welfare.

We regret to say that in but few instances

has even a protest against this rule of con-

duct gone forth from the profession. The

people naturally cling to their superstitions.

They possessed but small capability of dis-

tinguishing between a real and an imaginary

danger. They were without that enlighten-

ment which should have reached them

through the profession, and they were ready

to reject the lessons of facts. Thus it was

that the futile scheme most generally con-

sisted in the attempted exclusion of persons.

While this action for the most part pertained

to municipalities, or improperly constituted

health boards, it at times received the sanc-

tion and support of regular health officers in

good repute.”

The late Dr. J. M. Wood worth, Supervis-

ing Surgeon-General of the Marine Hospital

Bureau, expressed the belief that absolute

quarantine by land is impracticable.

“It may be argued,” continues Dr. Kin-

loch, “that it is necessary to calm the public

mind, and that upon this ground quarantine

serves a useful purpose. We question if

public quietude is not thus often obtained

at too high a cost, and if the reaction, that

sooner or later must follow with the realiza-

tion of the truth, is not the evil the more to

be dreaded? We cannot, however, now dis-

cuss this point, but will parenthetically ex-

press our earnest conviction that truth is

ever the best policy, and should be diffused

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Everywhere under an enlightened and pro-

gressive medicine.

“With the vulgar, the question of exclud-

ing disease from communities is a simple

one, and their faith in the potency of human

power and scientific application of means is

stronger than it can be with our enlightened

profession. Quarantine and sanitation are

now, with the people, veritable supersti-

tions. They are worshipped and implicitly

relied upon. There are many, too, in the

profession equally credulous in this regard,

and some, though sufficiently informed,

culpable enough to encourage the vulgar

delusion, with the view, perhaps, of magni-

fying their own office.”

Much more might be adduced to show the

absurdity of inland quarantine if time and

space permitted, but I shall wait till after

frost to prove its futility in the present epi-

demic, when probably some more M. Ds.

will feel cheap as they may be surprised.

This is the first season that I have had any

experience with a County Health Board, and

I am so disgusted with its workings that it

will be my last. I have no hesitancy in de-

nouncing them as a curse to the State, and

trust that among the first acts of the next

Legislature will be the repeal of the statute

creating them. For funds they are made de-

pendent on the County Commissioners, and

are expected, without remuneration, except

in the way of abuse, to protect the public

health. Nor do I have any faith in a State

Board of health being able to accomplish

any more in preventing the introduction and

spread of epidemic diseases; and am fully

convinced that, as a member of the Constitu-

tional Convention of 1865, I made a mistake

in using my efforts to get a provision in the

Constitution providing for a State Board of

Health. Capable medical men cannot be

Expected to use their knowledge and give

their time to the public for nothing, while

incapable men would prove a blight and curse

to the commercial and industrial prosperity

of the State. So the best thing for the State

is to let her population know that they must

protect themselves after the English fashion

by removing from their midst those causes

which would give epidemic diseases a foot-

hold if introduced. Provision for medical

inspection at seaports, and the detention

and isolation of the sick with infectious and

contagious diseases, is all the quarantine

that a State law should provide for or per-

mit on the part of any seaport city or town.

Of course this should include disinfection

where necessary. Beyond this neither

State, county nor municipal law should ex-

tend; for, as already pointed out, reliance

on quarantine has a blighting effect on sani-

tary progress, which is our only hope for

the future health and prosperity of the
State.

In conclusion I may say that the fever did

not get in here through the Plant Line of

steamers, but was evidently smuggled in by

a small boat engage in contraband trade,

which, it seems, eluded the Custom house

officials as well as the quarantine authorit-

ties. The first cases occurred during my

absence from the State, and were among

Italians and fruit dealers, who were

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