Ogden Daily Standard | 1918-10-18 | Page 8 | Illinois Takes Drastic Steps to Check Influenza

Illinois Takes Drastic Steps to Check Influenza CHICAGO, Oct. 17. Further drastic steps to check the spread of Spanish influenza in Illinois were taken tonight to-night by the state influenza commission commis-sion when a proclamation was issued with the consent of the governor forbidding for-bidding "all public gatherings of a social soc-ial nature not absolutely essential to war work." In making public the proclamation the commission announced that there are 300,000 influenza cases in Illinois and that indications- were the number .would be doubled before the epidemic Is brought under control. New cases reported today totaled 4385. The proclamation, in referring lo meetings not held to be under the official of-ficial ban, imposed the following conditions con-ditions under which necessary gatherings gather-ings will be permitted: "A condition of crowding shall bo prohibited. "Persons with colds shall not be admitted. ad-mitted. "Coughers, sneezers" and spitters shall be excluded or expelled." In a statement explaining the proclamation proc-lamation Dr. St. Clair Drake, director of public health for Illinois, said: "This order means that there will be no football games Saturday, no wrestling wrestl-ing bouts and no olher public entertainment enter-tainment that will draw crowds. This includes club meetings, dinners, luncheons lunch-eons and everything not essential to war work." Churches were not specifically mentioned men-tioned either as being exempt from or Included in the prohibition class. It was assumed. that the matter of holding hold-ing meetings would be decided by the various congregations themselves.