State of Connecticut.

OFFICE OF THE

SECRETARY OF THE STATE BOARD OF HEALTH,

STATE HOUSE, HARTFORD, Dec., 1879.

To His Excellency CHARLES B. ANDREWS, Governor of the State of Connecticut.

SIR: In compliance with the laws of this State, I have the honor to present to you the accompanying report for the fiscal year ending November 30, 1879.

Very respectfully,

C. W. CHAMBERLAIN, M.D.,

Secretary of the State Board of Health.

MEMBERS OF THE BOARD.

JOHN S. BUTLER, M.D., President, Hartford,

A. C. LIPPITT, New London,

A. E. BURR, Hartford,

R. HUBBARD, M.D., Bridgeport,

C. A. LINDSLEY, M.D., New Haven,

PROF. W. H. BREWER, New Haven,

C. W. CHAMBERLAIN, M.D., Hartford, Secretary.

GENERAL REPORT.

The past year has brought forcibly to public attention the close connection between public health and material prosperity. The prostrating effects of a general epidemic upon the business of a city, and the influences checking growth and development, as well as the direct losses involved, have been plainly illustrated. The lessons derived from the wide-spread epidemic of the previous year were startlingly emphasized and enforced. The unsanitary condition of very many populous places, and the neglect of the laws of public health, as shown by the almost universal contamination of air, soil, and water, in all the places invaded, was evidently one of the most important causes in producing the epidemic of 1878, if not the producing agency. The outbreak of the fever in 1879 in Memphis, where the local conditions were undeniably worse than in the other southern cities, its localization there by quarantine, and the perfect control of repeated outbreaks in New Orleans by well-enforced sanitary measures, afford striking illustrations of sanitary laws, that pollution of the requisites for healthy life cannot proceed with impunity, as well as the power to prevent the outbreak of diseases that once developed cannot be controlled. The remark of Col. Waring at Nashville, "that yellow fever is, after all, one of our minor diseases," is significant. We hardly realize that unsanitary conditions in a quiet way destroy multitudes each year, while epidemics are infrequent, and the mortality, though strikingly impressive, is but slight in comparison to the waste of life from preventable diseases, the results of neglect of sanitary regulations. Consumption, diphtheria, scarlet fever, typhoid fever, and like diseases cause the needless loss of many lives, but they attract little attention, and the accumulations of filth continue to increase, unless some epidemic occur, and even then a partial recurrence may be required to induce action.

Yellow fever occurred in several places in this State in earlier years, and a few years ago there were four deaths from this dis

ease in New London, from a ship that ran into that port to evade the quarantine at New York. One death was reported in 1878 from Stonington, from yellow fever, but on investigation it was found that the captain of the ship visited an infected port, was taken with yellow fever, died, and was buried at sea.

The Board were consulted by various local health organizations with reference to refugees from Memphis, and in several instances where carpets and bedding had been used in connection with yellow fever cases in 1878, it was recommended that these goods lie unpacked until winter, and be then disinfected and aerated. This course was pursued in regard to unpacking the goods, which were stored until the winter months. There were quite a number of refugees in Connecticut from Memphis.

THE IMPORTATION OF RAGS.

New Haven is the only port in this country that receives whole cargoes of rags. These come for the most part from Egypt-the companies have an agent there and extensive shipments are made. The principal garment of a large part of the population is a long cotton robe reaching from head to feet nearly, hence cotton rags are abundant. These rags are torn up and pressed into bales at Alexandria. Upon the outbreak of the Oriental plague fears were entertained lest the disease might be imported through the medium of these rags. The companies were conferred with, and orders given that no further collections be made from the infected region or southern Russia. The port of New Haven was visited, and it was there ascertained that, owing to the time required for the trip, the cargoes of the vessels under way and loading must have been collected before the outbreak of the plague. The subject was brought to the attention of the National Board of Health, which issued an order relating to the disinfection of cargoes from infected ports. Similar action was taken by the quarantine authorities in Great Britain. If disease could be conveyed in this manner, the danger would be where the bales are opened at the paper mills, as the rags are imported in closely pressed bales. The health of the sailors on these vessels was investigated, and no cases of sickness discovered while in port, and apparently none at sea. The reports generally from the manufactories in this State show that small-pox is the only disease that has been communicated by rags, and that from domestic rags in a few instances; the law obliges all operatives in paper mills to be vaccinated, and it is recom

mended to mill overseers that the law be strictly enforced. The British government appointed a commission to investigate the transmission of disease by rags, and as a result of inspection of the principal mills in England, and the records for a long period, extending over twenty years, no other disease than small-pox was found to have been communicated, that is as in this country, no other epidemic contagious disease. Of necessity, researches on other forms would be incomplete, uncertain, and unsatisfactory.

SCARLET FEVER IN THE ORPHAN ASYLUM.

A few years ago there was a rather mild epidemic of scarlet fever in the Hartford Orphan Asylum, then occupying its old quarters on Washington street. The type of the disease was not particu larly severe, but every child that was admitted subsequently had scarlet fever, but no other cases developed from these, although all the inmates did not have the fever in the first instance. It was considered an undesirable state of things to continue, and the aid of the Board of Health was invoked. It was directed that all the articles of bedding, carpets, curtains, and woolen articles generally that had in any way been connected with cases of scarlet fever be brought into one room and disinfected by burning sulphur, and specific directions were given as to the quantity to be used for a room of a given size. The iron and wood-work of the furniture was ordered to be repainted after disinfection, the woolen articles to be thoroughly aerated. These directions were well carried out and no further cases of scarlet fever occurred, neither was the disease transmitted to the new building where the asylum was in a few months afterwards removed. Several admissions had meanwhile taken place. The inmates slept in large dormitories which were then frequently white-washed, so that no infection would be liable to linger in the walls, but apparently in the bedding.

PROMINENT FORMS OF DISEASE.

The general health of the State during the year 1879 has apparently been for the most part satisfactory. Malarial diseases have been decidedly prevalent, involving new territory at apparently a pretty uniform rate. Some discussion of malarial fevers in the Quinnipiac valley will be found in the special reports. The fatal forms are congestive fevers, typho-malarial, and bilious remittent. The ill effects of malarial diseases are not to be estimated alone by the death rate, as the proportion of fatal cases is slight.