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Show A NATION SAVED FROM EXTERMINATION Tho Heroic nnd Successful Fight of American l'lij.slcluns nnd N'urccs For a Stricken People. (FIUNK W. LECLEUE.) (Utah Public Health Association.) A soul stirring tale of almost miraculous mir-aculous achievements, of unselfish dovotlon to duty, and of heroic self sccrlflco Is the story ot the conquering conquer-ing of tho typhus plague In Serbia. It forms ono of tho few bright chapters chap-ters in tho history ot tho present war. Typhus Is n very contagious and highly fatal disease, due to a germ which Is transmitted by tho bites of the body louso. In former centuries typhus was a common scourage, especially es-pecially In times ot war and famine, and was known as "Jail fovor," "ship fever," camp fovor," etc. At present It Is raro oxcopt among half-clvlllzed peoples. In tho fall ot 1914, Serbia, already devastated by tho two Balkan wars, was fighting desperately to stem tho tldo ot Invasion from Austria on tho north, when an epidemic of typhus fover appeared and for the greater part of tho year swept through tho land. Every hospital, prison camp. barracks, and almost overy homo was Invaded. A conservative estimate placed tho deaths at 135,000 Including Includ-ing 30,000 Austrian prisoners. Tho nation was threatened with extermination. exterm-ination. As soon ns tho plight of Serbia became known a sanitary commission of surgeons and nurses, headed by Dr. Ilichard V. Strong, of Harvard medical school, was sent to the stricken nation by tho American Ited Cross to ro-onforco tho tow Serbian doctors and tho small group of Amorican physicians nnd nurses already al-ready on tho ground. Thoy arrived about tho end of April nnd began their work. Quarantlno and sanitation sanita-tion woro enforced. Tho peoplo wero bathed and disinfected. Hospital wero provided nnd reconstructed and modernized. In August tho plaguo wns routed nnd most of tho Ited Cross workers woro returning homo. Ilut this victory was not nchloved without Its sacrifices. Fully ono-third ono-third of tho natlvo doctors died of tho disease At ono tlmo nlno of twelvo American lied Cros3 nurses and five of six Ited Cross surgeons, at ono center, woro lying In nn old tobacco factory, tho victims of typhus. Two graves nro kopt green and flowor-strown by gratoful Serbians. Ser-bians. Thoy aro tho graves of Dr. James F. Donnelly and Dr. Ernest P. Magruder, two American physicians physici-ans who, for the honor ot their profession pro-fession and their lovo ot humanity, laid down lives in a tar distant land. EBbBbBbBbBKI |