THE SMALLPOX OUTBREAK.

Evening Post, Volume LXVII, Issue 26, 1 February 1904, Page 5

THE SMALLPOX OUTBREAK.

PRECAUTIONS IN AUSTRALIA. [press association."! (Received Febmary 1, 10.37 a.m.) UOUART, This Day. Seven passengers by the Victoria have been sent into quarantine. The oilkors, orew, and thirl y -seven passengers weio vaccinated beforo sailing for Melbourne. SYDNEY, 31st January. The President of the Board uf Health has issued instruction?! in log.ud to tho unallpox. sc.ue thai all per-.ons arriving from .New Zealand not vaccinated w ithin *.ix montlis and not loss than tifteeu duyj», will have to undergo tweuty-ono days' quarantine, Tho Picbidcnl says that it i.s not ncccs«tiy to titko the same proenntions us wero taken with Tasmania, becau.so tho outbreak has hie-i promptly, ijitoiligcntly and thoroughly managed sunco 12th January ; and also on account of the- number of soparato towns and their widely-separated geographical petitions. Further, on account of tho extensive commercial relations and Jsew Zealand being tho port of call of several lines of ocoun steamers. At tho same time, incoming stcameis will bo subjected to a searching scrutiny. SUPPOSED CASE AT NELSON. fnX Tai.KQIt.lFH — PRESS ABSOOIATIOSJ.] NELSON, This Day. A suspected case of smallpox has been discovered at Wakeflold. ANOTHER SUSPECTED CASE AT CHRISTCHURCH. CHRISTCHURCH, This Day. The case of suspected smallpox at Richmond was removed this morning to tho subpects' ward at Bottle Lake for further ousarvation. HOB ART RESTRICTIONS. In view of tho strict precautions which are being adopted by tho Henlth authorities at Hobart, tho Union Steam Ship Company will not book passengers from this colony for Hobart who cannot comply with tho tol.owmij conditions :— Passengers fiom New Zealand for llobart must show evidence, of having undergone successful vaccination in four places not moro than Uvo years and not loss than fifteen days prior to arrival. If thrro unmiccetiaful attempts havo boon made to vaccinate, and tho latest is five days' old, re-vaccination \>iH be necessary on arrival. On tho arrival of tho s.s. Takapuna from tho North on Saturday two of the crew wero detained, as thoy wero suspiciously indisposed. They were sent across to the quarantine station until a careful examination could be made. This was done yesterday, with tho result that tho Health authorities wero satisfied that the man were not suffering from smallpox, but probably influenza. They will accordingly bo liberated to-day. A third member of tho crow was detained at Nelson, but ho alsp will now bo released. The smallpox patient already at Somes Island, and the other in tho Borhamporo Hospital, aro making excellent progress, and there have been no further developments among the contacts or suspects. As a . result of a visit paid by Dr. Valintino yesterday to tho Ebor-streot contaota, fhey havo been released from tho restrictions which havo kept them within a certain area since tho develop* meut of a case amongst them a week ainco. Dr. Frongley. left yesterday for Nelson, a suspicious case of sickness having boon reported there. The members of Mr. J. C. Williamson's Dramatic Company, at. present in Cbmtchuroh, wero vaccinated at Timaru while tho Christchurch oulbreuk was at its height. Ifc is calculated that somewhere about 17,000 persons were vaccinated in Christchurch during tho recent scare, ami probably about 10,000 havo undergone tho operation in Wellington. All the members of the WilloughbyGoach Comedy Company wore vaccinated tain morning. Dr. JI. C. Barclay, who has returned to Walmato after a visit to Christchurch, told a reporter that he woa convinced that tho disease discovered' afc Christchurch was undoubtedly smallpox. Many of the cases, so far as the rash weut, were unmistakably smallpox, though in many case* tho amount of illness was slight, and its infection was not so great as in many epidemics. This might bo attributed to the season of tho year, the present hot weather, for one thing, boing Inimical to tho growth of tho smallpox germs. Purthonmore, the virus had boon fitteminted and lessened in virulence through having to lio dormant for months without passing through an individual. The mildness of theso attacks was the most important part of tho danger, because in tho oarlier stages many cases were overlooked. There had been a number of cases in Chrisfchurch which no medical man had attended, and this had led to tho fairly wide distribution of the disease. Should the disease go rollim* from ono person to another it would grow more virulent, and in winter weather sraollpos might intervene with a heavy denth-rntc.