| Show I Death th in the th Feathers How Hozo Immigrants Imf I m nor rJ rants Feather Bedding Feather Bedding Spread Infection Through a q Ship Ship and and A and Bring Deadly Diseases Into Our Great Cities w ww w fV NS MM M VV V J JI k kt n t I. I t e t c cI r I Ir l f I J R Y GER GERMS S LIVEN VEN IN PC FEATHERS BY L. L V W. W PEARSON A. A B B. B BM M M. D D. D Associate Surgeon at Samaritan Hospital Brooklyn y n N N. y THE pH E of ot fent hers hers' Int Infected 1 with filth cholera cholera I J diphtheria herla and other mall malignant ant germs Is la a problem lea lem m beset with so many difficulties 8 and the uncertainty taint of ot Its Us attainment so grave o that It will wiit bo unwise u to attempt It It In the laboratory and with culture media tho the comma bacillus the active agent In tho the propagation of or cholera Is easily destroyed but when imbedded In hi the rec recesses pro b by the structure of or feathers or possibly within the lumon lumen of ot tho the quills and covered wholly or In part b by organic material it becomes quite lIte another thing The means employed by tho New hew l' l w York state health department are chemicals In a a. gaseous state and steam The Tho one ono most used In the first class cias Is la of ot mercury but It forms torms an when hen In contact with organic material which Ich serves aa as a protective protective pro pro- coating to the substance benc beneath Ui Among the gaseous disinfectants is by far tar the m most st reliable But It It too too combines with forming new compounds and falls to penetrate beyond the surface of a feather the within the quill In IA which I the Ike germ arena enaa find haven hares RACING of recent outbreaks of T TRACING I cholera to infected feathers feathera withIn with- with In the beds of ot Immigrants from plague districts has led to a movement among public health officials to secure a Jaw law which shall protect the public against this menace Dr L. L V. W. Pearson bacteriological expert eXpert expert ex eX- pert and associate surgeon of ot the tho Brooklyn Samaritan hospital whose scientific denial of ot the possibility of ot sterilizing Infected feathers is printed on this page favors special legislation requiring all l manufacturers of ot feather feath feath- feather er be bedding to label Jabel each article bed bcd bed pillow or down quilt so quilt so that purchasers ers ma may know mow whether thc they arc are getting getting get get- ting n new f feathers athes athe's free from Infectious materials or ol old feathers whose freedom from front Infection cannot be guaranteed Below Belo is printed a graphic account by b Charles Phillips a distinguished traveler tra of a a. voyage from Naples to toNe Ne New York on a Infected cholera-Infected ship where the cause of eleven deaths death was traced to germs germ in the thc feather bedding of or immigrants rant BY CHARLES PHILLIPS Naples aples and the Banks s o of B Newfoundland in a boat on which I 1 from abroad recently came eleven out of some steerage passengers passengers passengers pas pas- died of ot cholera and were buried buried burled bur bur- led in the sea It H was a grim lesson Jesson to all aboard the tho ship who had sufficient Intelli Intelli- Intelligence Intelligence gence to perceive its wide wille significance for tor for all of or thc these e eleven eO souls owed one their transit to the infection carried In bedding stuffed with feathers feathers' From the tho upper decks at the port of ol we watched the emigrants throng aboard burdened with their bundles huncHes of ancient feather bedding Down the they went below But Bat as tho ship loosed her lines and the propellers began to church the waters waters wa wa- wa- wa of th the bay a huge Neapolitan roa ro- ro a speared appeared and ond doffed his hat to the alrea already already receding shores of his native land Janel He was joined by a youn younger r. r er man an old woman and a young oung girlA girl A rising storm sent them b below v lo an antOle and we tOle were off oft the Azores when the bl big Neapolitan reappeared He lie had to all appearances suffered much The old woman evidently his mother showed showe the effects of the rou rough h trip less than lIn any of ot the other passengers She ha had spread a lar large e feather felther bed on the deck decle The Tho Neapolitan threw himself on It Now and then he ho would grip the back bade backof backof of the bed In his teeth and tear It in his hla misery The doctor came to his I side several se times and administered a remedy while the old woman sat patiently at his head hend bathing his face and now and then pulling aWa away a feather from the bed near his face or hair One big goose Joose feather that had come loose stuck In tho the corner I of ot his mouth and he fiercely champed champell on Its quill chewing chewing- it until It fella fell a away wn Nearly Nearh all of the steerage folks folies ha hud had feather beds family beds family heirlooms heirlooms on on ln which doubtless generations had been b born rn sickened slept and died but which they would not part with and were determined to take with them Into nto tho the New World orld In fact these feather beds seemed to be their household house house- hold gods A young oun Italian doctor told the tho captain captain cap cap- tain at dinner that night that he had bad twenty one one serious cases on his hands In n the steerage e hospital When Vohen the captain made his inspection of the ship the following morning he became convinced convInced convinced con con- vinced that something more serious than seasickness had broken out among his passengers The fhe young young- doctor was as loath to admit that the passengers were afflicted with the scourge but tho the cap- cap J iq l I T r k r 1 fr Str i Y r t rE 14 rI 7 C A AN N yr r rf v f r L h bedding being beloG aired on a fire escape In one of ot New cw Yorks York's Italian Ital Itol- Inn ian tenement nt tarn tain told the thc chief o officers that there was cholera aboard Four da days s 's out from New lew York eight of the twenty twenty-oue sick steerage passengers passengers pas pas- ers Bens had been quietly burled at sea but hut in spite of ot all precautions the terrible terrible terrible ter ter- news spread throughout tho the ship The big Neapolitan was among the last to succumb and one ne night with his mother as tho the sole mourner ho he was buried in the tho sea The old woman sat on the deck disconsolate dis dis- consolate She h had d lost at one blow her nor son her niece and the latter's hitters hus hus- band She Sho brought a blanket and feather feath- feath c. c er pillow Plow on deck and sat gazing aft art all through the tho night In the mornIng morning morn morn- ing the doctor found her in agony agon her face burled buried in the pillow which she had nad torn open with her teeth to suppress sup- sup press her cries The same afternoon she she died dle and was burled buried at midnight Two Two days later silhouetted through the hea heavy mists the big steamer came slowly through h the Narrows the tho bl big diapason of ot her siren reverberating from the tho heights of ot Fort rort Hamilton and sending an echo that seemed to mock the alert medical watch at tho the quarantine quarantine tine station Just below With a snort the the little ti- ti i He to r fI flan tl flying ln il aloft tt- tt leaped rom t from from tho tho dock k and d I scurried toward the Incoming ship The captain as ho he came forward from the bridge e where he had bad spent sleepless sleepless sleep sleep- less nights was gaunt His relief was apparent when he gripped ped the tho doctors doctor's hand though ho lIe had to report Doctor we wo have cholera aboard l Eleven had died and had been burled bur bur- led at sea and the present sufferers had been seized only a a. few rew days be be- be fore tore All AU the steerage ra e passengers were Isolated An examination of ot the thc steerage steerage steer steer- age ago revealed revelled the usual conditions of smelling ill-smelling compartments and the general general gen gen- era eral disarray of or the temporary lodgIng lodging ing places of an unhealthy as well as unclean people Foetid feather bedding bedding bed bed- ding was In n abundance the abiding place said Raid the chief medical Inspector Inspector tor of ot all sorts of or germs uThe The i medical inspector ordered every bit of ot feather bedding taken to the boiler boner room of ot the steamship and burned barned In the furnaces as an well as the blankets and much of the tho clothing The ship was waR fumigated from keelson keelson keelson keel keel- son to the bridge All danger was apparently apparently ap ap- ap- ap parentI checked but one morning about three d days s 's after the ship had been placed under su surveillance the of officer officer of- of fleer was horrified to find another case of or cholera among among- the crow a crow a fireman was wal stricken The engineer remarked that the stricken man had holp helped d to carry carr a alot alot alot lot of the infected bedding to the tho furnace furnace furnace fur fur- nace room oom and he had noticed that while the man was carrying a n. bl big feather ler bed bcd on his back down tho the ladder ladder lad lad- der he had gathered tho the upper corners of the tick lick Into his mouth to prevent the bed from slipping over or hi his head When hen he had taken his load to the furnace fur tur- furnace nace nr-ce door he had pulled some Borne feathers from his hI mouth and had jocularly re remarked remarked remarked re- re marked he was wal hungry for tor chicken but not for tor Tho The doctor looked at the engineer quietly for a moment and then said Ah Ah I 1 know t the c bedding must have ha ben en infected Cholera can only take talc effect through h the th mouth and T I cnn can ca n now nosy understand how hors this epidemic started Old feather has man many y deaths to answer for The feather bed of the tho Neapolitan Neapolitan- In Infected Infected infected In- In with cholera germs erms had Imd killed eleven on of the tho c Pill an anat d at last one nc of ot the ships ship's s own crew Lastly we t have steam Roschan an authority upon declares that for tor disinfecting b bedding nothing but steam should houd be trusted He adds however t that a it tt cannot penetrate feathers While While hile most substances sub c can n be bo disinfected with reason reasonable ble certainty certain certain- J t ty feathers Be seem m to form an tion Hon Rather than Jeopardize the health and lives lI of ot human beings s it would be bo u L wiser to leR iem o iu-o oi U va contamination lon In fact tact it would bo ho criminal not to todo do so 1 I I y 1 i. i i rv of feather on 1 which fl lind nd met met- Minute o opening R of quill which nd- nd ad mite germs S A Iy car DIY I Immigrants landing at at N New TT York carrying carrying car car- ryn th their lr ancient 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