New-York tribune. [volume], February 04, 1912, Page 2, Image 16

About New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924

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Health Is a Purchasable Commodity, Says Commissioner
E. J. Lederle
Fifteen Years Have Been
Added to the Average
Life in New York City
Since 1875.
YOU can purchase health the same as
anything else, according to the be?
lief Of Health t'ominissioner Kl list
J. ix".ierle, and M dty is able t<> g?'t just
such a negree "f healthfulneea as it la nlll?
ing to pay for. New York City has Inveet?
e?l a vast amount Of money for that end
in the last thirty-five years, ano the ret urna
arc nova- evidence ?>f What can thus be ac?
complished in lengthentni human life.
"The fact that public health is a pur?
chasable commodity," said the Hesith
Commissioner In discussing with a Tribune
representative his conclusions regarding the
lowest death rate the <iD' has ever had,
"has been proven over and over again, ami
stand; out avlth Unmistakable clearness
When we note the steady decrease in the
?leath rale ?if lar??- cities, particularly In
the matter .?r infectious diseases. It is
this da-s of diseases on which sanitary
sdence has a ncentrated its efforts in the
last, leaving to our time the more difficult
campaign .?gainst the diseases less anicn
Sble to public health control."
The death ate of a community lias been
k Viewed by many persons, the Health Com
R mission?-r thinks, as an a.'strait something
0 in winch only statisticians have and should
b? Interested, imt this, !., aaya- la absum.
The reduction of the death rate in New
York City in the last thirty-live years.'' de
?laii.i Commissioner Lederte, "has bean
??norm.>us. and representa to a very coneic?
PRF.PVnNTION or niPtmiFRlA \NTITO.\IN?fill INC. TUT POTTLES
CLD CITY OF NF.W YORK (MANHATTAN AND THE BRONX). DEATH RATE PER 10.GO0 POPULATION
FROM DIPHTHERIA AND CROUP FOR THE PERIOD 1873-1903. FREE INJECTION OF ANTITOXIN BE?
GUN IN APRIL. 1695. LAST YEAR THE RATE FOR THE SAME TERRITORY WAS 2 79. WHICH WOULD
CARRY THE BLACK AREA DOWN HALF WAY TO "0."
?rable extent the return <>ii New York's in
vestment In public health work.
"For Instance, In IfK, the death rate fc
that part of (he metropolis now repr?senle
by the boroughs "f Manhattan, The Bran
and Brooklyn wai 9M per thousand ol ill
population, whereas in IfM it avas only Kb
If W'e add Hie less congested boroughs n
(Queens and Richmond the death rale fo
the entire greater <ii\ in 1916 war l*..i?s. tb
lowest point "i. record up lo Ml, whei
there nrss the lowed record In the hlator
of the <ita. the rate beluf U.13 per thou
>>and of the population.
"What does thai remarkable how nr.
mean.' wiia. it is simply that about Rfteei
years have ?been added t" He* average in
In this community. Therefore, it looks a
if the death rate v.?, vitally eoneerai
eaer> one of us, Including Hi?' atatlstidana
Will any one for a moment dispute thai
public health in this ?lia has been I niosi
wonderfully paving investment'.''
What wer?- some of the bann.? points ?>|
the yea: Ml? There were four thousan?!
more persona alive than would have beer
th? ?ase if the rate of the year 1910 had
preaallc?!. There were forty thousand fewe*
of Illness in the c?immunity an?l a
Very large financial saving, not tc
mention Hi? human suffering avoided.
There wne '2X&? cases of measles re?
ported, as compared with :;i.5t?s in i9:o.
Starlet fever showed UM ?ases, against
17.TJ8 in th< prt-vlous year, and diphtheria
showed 1. ? report?*d, as compared
with l.'..MO In IM9. There were fifteen case-?
of smallpox, against :',<<m In Ml
i in?' of the iiHist slgniilcant points in the
record "*ea"**e history was the lowering of
th?- Infant death rat?-. Nest to tubereuloda
this has le.-n the | linclpal source of di-aths
? In the community, Th. re were 13.iW deaths
of Infants m ?1er one year, as against H.MI
In 1910. in 1891 the deaths of infants under
On?' jrsar was Ml per thousand. In Ml it
was H0.4. In the opinion of ?'?mmlssloner
Laderh even greater results can be Moon?
??lishrd in the future by proper preventive
measures, by proper foods and the educa?
tion of mothers In the care of their Infants.
The death rate in some of the tenement
house dlstiicts of infanta runs a? high as
2?A in l.dOO, five tunes as many deaths as
nrt recorded of children that age in bet?
ter environment?.
"A considerable portion of the reduc?
lion of the death late in the last few
yerrs," said commissioner Lederle, dis
cueMng the infant mortality decree ?
"muht be ?redlted t?> the aealoua efforts of
? who have carried ?>n summer cam
IA.KDJS against infant mortality by pro
OLD CITY OF NEW YORK (MANHATTAN AND THE BRONX). DEATH RATE PER 10.000 POPULATION
FROM SCARLET FEVER FOR THE PERIOD 1873-1906. SCARLET FEVER QUARANTINED IN 1888.
LAST YEAR THE RATE FOR THE ?AME TERRITORY WAS 145, WHICH WOULD CARRY THE BLACK
AREA UP TO A POINT ALMOST HALF WAY BETWEEN LINES "1" AND "2."
??ding pure milk for babies anil inatruc-'
linn to mothers in the proper care of their
children. These campaigns are common
now in many large cities. Last year the I
'ci,y of New York made un experimental
beginning by appropriating $40,000 for the
establishment of fifteen municipal milk
depots Under thS management of the De?
partment of Health. The New York Milk
Commit too, the New York Diet Kitchen,
Nathan Straus, the Brooklyn Aid Society
and other private agencie* maintained ad?
ditional agen? les during the last summer.
What bus been accomplished by this 0000?
binatlon i? shown by the figures of Infant
mortalilv during the last summer, aa com
pareil with pre? lotis years''
Commissioner Lederle doc* not empha- ?
?tm the fact that It was his own sugges?
tion which ? tarted the city milk dispen?
sarle?- ..ml that he found them so .success
fol that fifty-five instead of fifteen i\ill be '
Operated this year Never before in the
history of the city was such a systemati? ,
attempt made t?> lower the infant death J
OLD CITY OF NEW YORK (MANHATTAN AND THE BRONX). OLA" H RATE PER 100C0 POPULATION
FROM TYPHOID FEVER FOR THE PERIOD 1873-1906. LAST YEAR THE RATE FOR THE SAME
TERRITORY WAS 1.27, WHICH WOULD CARRY THE BLACK A REA DOWN TO A POINT MIDWAY
BETWEEN "1" AND THE NEXT LINE ABOVE.
PREPARATION OH DIPHTHERIA ANTITOXIN'-DRaWIN?. THE BIOQH
?
rate as was In force In lpt1, and this year
i? will he pushed ?vith even greater re?
sult- All told there were seventy-nine
milk station* In the city in Itll, end In
thOSO stations there were approximately
iweke thousand babies under supervision j
?if nurses and medical Inspectors. Ths
nurses of the department had Wider .on-!
tinuoiis control from Ma? i t" Beptember
\ 10, i?.!???: babies. Bach Infant was visited
[at lea-t on?e every ten da?-'', and oftetier j
when asca?ary.
The Board <>f Beatmete was so im?
pressed with the number of babies saved
that Instead of $10.mm being appropriated
for the work In . 191 ?_? the liuge sum of
$H.i.ooo is now available for us?? to ..inv
on the fifty-five stations and to provide
nurses, and physicians for the same.
'In my opinion," said Ihe Health Com?
missioner, '?there Is r.o fiehl In which the
egpehdltt-re Of fund-? for the protection of
I public health brings surer o. more satis
factory results than in the aafUguardtna.
I of a city's milk supply Mm li has bee>i
done In this direction in New York, bin
more remains to be done."
In line with his arguments for clean
milk the OomtnlSOlonor has brought about.
through the Board <>f Health, an order for
the classification <<f the milk supply which
le Bays will bring to all ?'?asses a grade
of milk which win reduce to ? minimum
1 the chances of contagian from that source
l?ail> 1..?Oil,o?"? quarts of milk are shipped
to the consumer in this city from 44,Oui?
farms, which are handled by Id cream?
eries ami sold In 1 L'.'iOl stores In New
York City,
"As a result of our atadles of typhoid
fever outbreaks,'' saht the Health t'oni
I missioner, "It has been found that sev?
eral distinct outbreaks of the disease were
traceable to infected milk."
According to Commissioner Lederte, dis?
ease Is largely a removable evil. It con?
tinue** to afflict humanity not only be?
cause of Incomplete knowledge of its
causes and lack of a.le.iuate individual and
public hygiene, but also because it Is ex?
tensively fostered by harsh eaononiio and
industrial OOUdltMBS and by Wratched
housing in congested communities. Tl.es?.
conditions, and C0BOe<l_ently the ?linease??
which spring from them, can be removed
by better social ?-?militions, in his opinion.
Again. It is his helief that it is the duty
of health officers, organisations and Indi?
viduals interested in public health move- I
merits to lead lb? attacks on diseaif Hn?l
bring home to public o.iinion the fact that I
tho community can buy Its own health
protection, I? tllf' li,t,t analysis it |R
through M?e <*du?'ailon of the .?immunity
that better fadlltlej far curtai disease
will com?
Although wonderful inn-iri.. has ?,,._,,
made m reducing the death rate from such
IIlifSCttOUS diseases as diphtheria, measles
111 I
PREPARATION OF DIPHTHERIA ANTITOXIN
FILTERING THE SERUM
anil scnrlet fever since 1??7">. Conimi.-Pion
j er Lederle soumis a note of S ai'liing to the
1 city authorities i.y Informing them that
the Impression hi too likely to ri ? that
?Itch ? o m mon Infectious maladie.-? are il?
ways with us and lliat the city can g"t
along with the same tadlttlm for oon
t roiling the?-e ??s-ases Which have Peen fur?
nished in previous yearn
"This overlooks the fact," said Commis?
sioner Lederle. "that the city is grow
n:-d thai any decrease in the prevalen-??? of
sich diseases is relative rather than
lute. If the staff remains the sam?- from
year to year the amount of work whi? h it
has to perform muFf soon be?-ome greater
than can be undertaken with ?Hi leccy.
There is a still more vital falla? v contained
In this attitude. This is the lmpli?-1 as?
sumption that the facilities are now and
have been of late years all that the city
should be exj?ecte?l to provide for this pur?
pose. This is far from trim. Th?? s_Jston<*c
of many infectious diseases in th.-lr pCI H '
numbers Is a constant reproach t?? a modem
muni? Ipality."
In the ear?? of such SCUtO ?ont.
diseases as m?asles ami s-arl? t fever, the
l'ommlssioner declared, the ? fli i? i i
public control depend? Lergel; on the
??mount of hospital accommodations avail?
able. In I.onilon then- are 8.500 be?ls for th.?
care ?if ?ontagious diseases, while in New
York there are epprOTlmstSly only IJM,
"There is no doubt," .-aid Dr. L-derl*.
"that if tills .-it>' should provide adequate
h?.spitai accommodatlone and a sufficient
number 0( Inape? tori to establish and main?
tain the proper quarantine of each <?????
i hese dleeaaee would be materially redue?
in the earn <>f dlphtherls and typhoid fever
and i?? rtaln other -loesses the work .?i : -
c.nt yean has shown that they are to ?
large extent spread by bacUhm ca?:
'I be dlOCOV? ry of the Indivl.lual carrh
fords the only means by which ti ? -??
nlscasri can b_ controlled. AI the present
time the department It hampered tat its
?v.nk ol combating typhoid by the lack il
f nda t?i carry on all the bacteriological ex?
a ml nations needed.
"in recent years substantial appropria?
lions have been granted for the extension
? f public sanitary control of tubeecttlosla la
New Ya.rk City. Provisions for normal
gi. nth m'.'s; ha? ma<le in this as In every
division, but the city must not remain con?
Item with the present achievements in tin?
fi? i?t The foremoal need in the develop*
?nu-nt of th?? city's progranune t'.?r the eradt?
lection of the white plague is the pro*
of ? m .? ii greater number <-f beds In hos?
I Itall and sanatoria."
j One of the notable achievements In re
I Cent yean the Health Commissioner d?
i ?land, wa the estahlishniont ?t the Re?
search Laboratories In UK, The labors
;t?-ries have supplied all the vaccine a-ld
diphtheria antitoxin and other curative
products ??hieb have been distributed ?>>?
: th,- deportment They have recently 1|,'<,n
i enabled to t?ike over the routine produc?
tion and ?li-triMitl.'ii of the serum for the
euro of '?'?rei.ro-si'inal meningitis. Thl
seront was manufactured by t?a* ???
'men in is:?."!, but until lafgIts admlniatratiea
.was not very successful. Thon Dr Jock*
? msnn, a distinguished Oemmn physlelsi
discovered that hy Injea-ting II IntO I I
lower part of the spin.- the disease could
be ??r-?i Becaust of the epidemic la
Northern Texas at the present time Pr.
Abraham Bophiei of the Research Labom*
'tories. Is In Dallas supervising the in i? - -
1 tion of the serum Into persons afrii.-t?-.i with
! the d! ?
Diphtherie, once ? disease of great mor?
! tellty, has -in e the introduction ..f tn
! antitoxin serum becooae <?ne of ih?? miivr
??ins??? of death among Infectious die*
tasco, as will be icon in the accompany
i ing chart of the Department Of Health
rhortly after the Rrst ?uiailve Injection!
of this diphtheria antitoxin were mode hi
i?9t and UM there were promote from va?
rioi.s source! and warnings against ttM
?of the serum It waa ?-ai?! to parslyM otA
disorganize the bear! mus? le and to prodUCI
dieeases Of the kidneys Krom January ?"?
?UN, to April i, i:?n. more than UT.III cura?
tivo and Immunizing InJeetiOM i f ?uphill? r*
antitoxin had bOOfl administered h? the <b'
Ipartmenl Inspsetoro. In only one case waa
death canoed b) Injection, and thh, wa?
bocaum Of a poeullar lack of development
of the heart and arlen.- ThlM hi? boll
exploded an antitoxin bugbear,
Among tin? -meases the deaths, from which
are on the hsert-UM aw pneumonia, heart
dltoam and cancer. The increase of beert
dlkOaSO in N.w York ?'Ity Is lOOlKd SSOg
as a result of too inu.-h eating and dilut?
ing and too little oxer. Is.- The autotim
lile Is ?,ne Of the grogtOOt helps !o the in?
crease of heart disease, aai'onling to l'?"
Gullfoy, chi.-f statistician of the depart?
ment, for while it cans? a an api StltS U do*'*
not provide the exerdm nocoeoary to ?l'i*. rt
much foo?l. It Is therefore also a con?
trlbutoiy mum for the Increase of eancT.
"We do not us?> sor. legs enough n??wa
?'?>?,'? sai.l Dr. tlullfoy. "The automobile
furnlobm ? ?inick noedttmi <>f travel end ?*?
has a Stimulating tntlu n< e on the SP*
petite. Thus one of the cans?-! for can? or."
SIGN POSTS.
A ?.vornan Journalist of Chlc.iRo was ta'k
lug about the late Mafgaret llorton Potter
That Hosten clergynan who ai in dor H
hia sweetheart." si ?? said, "rsueM- i ?
epigram, a chnrltable and wise epigram,
that once fell from Margaret Potter's III?'
"She was talking about human natur?.
human nature as exemplified In her books?
nn?i she wld, with .? sad smile
?? ?ctergymdh as well as the rest of h ?
we're all signpost - I ? ?an point out '''
light way to otiiers, but wc- don't follow ?t
ourselveo.' "