Prevention Of Disease

Sanitarians hope to be able to prevent the ravages of pneumonía and conerimption ; but they are already doing a great work in the prevention of lyphoid fever, small-pox, diphtheria, and scarlet fever. In preventing typhoid fever, they pay special attention to securing pure drinking water. In preventing diphtheria and scarlet fever, they pay special attention to inolation ar.d disinfection. There is a vast amount of ignorance concerning those diseases. Even the expert sanitarians know little enough. In Ann Arbor we often hear it stated that we need sewers to prevent diphtheria. Now, probably the introduction of a first-class system of sewers into Ann Arbor would not have the slightest effect in preventing diphtheria and scarlet fever. Those diseases apparently are spread largely, if not entirely, by infected clothing, houses, persons, etc. The question as to the influence of sewers and general water supplies on the death-rates from diphtheria, scarlet fever, and typhoid fever has been worked out with great care for the leading cities of the world, and there can be no doubt that diphtheria and scarlet fever are not controlled by such things. In the ahsence of rigid isolation of patiente and scientific disinfection, nothing can prevent diphtberia and scarlet fever from spreading in a country as thickly settled as Michigan. It has been amply demonstrated that those two diseases follow linea of railroad, and that towns like Detroit, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Jackson, and Ann Arbor are centers from which they spread into the country. We do not mean to say that diphtheria and scarlet fever cannot be conveyed by drinking water under any circumstances : it is possible that that may be one means of the spread; but in the absence of isolation and disinfection, the utmost care in regard to the purity of the soil and drink ing water will not avail with those diseases. Typhoid fever and Asiatic cholera, on the contrary, seem to depend almost entirely on the soil water. Typhoid fever seems to be spread almost entirely by water; and henee the purity of soil from which the water is drawn becomes of great importance. Henee it is that public water-supplie8 and public sewers, doing away with the well and privy draining into each other, are of the utmost importance. As Michigan has about 10,000 cases of typboid fever each year, it is alarge item. Then, if Asü.tic cholera should ever visit Michigan, the town with the fewest privy-vaults, cesspoolg, and wells would be the most likely to escape. From these facte, it becomes the duty of onr city government to provide for the best possible system of supervising outbreaks of diphtheria and scarlet fever. AVe ought to have a health officer for Ann Arbor so well paid that he conld afford to give up hie practice and devote himself to the health interests of the city. We do not mean to cast any reflection upon onr present health anthorities ; undoubtedly they do as well as possible under the circumstances. It is also the duty of the city to provide for the abatement of the privyvanlt and cess-pool nuisances in the city, and that can only be done by having sewers. As we suggested last week, il can be partially accomplished by the dry-earth closet system if carried on by the city. Thb anarchists are at it again in Chicago. Last Sunday 1500 of them were stirred to great excitement by the speech that was made. Here is one of the passages : " Vive la Commune. Aye, Vive la Commune. This glorious sentence thundered upon the eare of the tyrants and money-grabbers 17 years ago. The world trembled at the sound. The thieves of the bourse, tbe pulpit and the presa shook like autumn leaves in a high wind." It is questionable how far such meet ingsshould be permitted. Most of th narchists are cowardly ; but a few mong thetn may be roused by tbese neetings to such a pitch that they will are anything. Many others, by contantly brooding over the actual and áncied injustice in our social system, will become crazed and ready for lood. In the course of 50 years, Chicago will be in a dangerous condition, and in the meantime such incidents as the Haymarket tragedy may be expected. It is a gloomy outlook ; but who is there that can give a good reason why it is not a correct outlook ?