WELLINGTON UNDER THE WHIP

NZ Truth, Issue 701, 23 November 1918, Page 5

WELLINGTON UNDER THE WHIP

Soldiers and Civilians Succumb Citizens' Committee Set Up

The Wang of arms and the noises of marching war -hosts were scarcely stilled ere there came upon the people of New Zealand another horror m the shape of a. mysterious and virulent disease. 'At time of writing this disease has spread to such an extent and has been attended by such mortality as to create acute anxiety and apprehension throughout the land. For lack of accurate definition, and by reason of its mysterious origin and deadly effects, the malady is classed as influenza followed by pneumonia, but there - cim be little doubt that, although the aymptoms resemble those of influenza, & • CORRECT DIAGNOSIS OF THBJ DISEASE . atill awaits pronouncement, Opening its career of death and suffering In Auckland, having evidently been carried from abroad, the disease spread itself over the Dominion with a rapidity that is almost incredible. In a few days, among its. victims !were numbered representatives of every class. Men and women, In every part of the country, who, a week ago, were pictures of vigor and health, no longer move amongst us. The active man of yesterday is a corpse of to-day. Nor are the ravages of the disease confined to those who live m surroundings which are commonly regarded as. being the most susceptible to outbreaks of the kind. This fact, m itself, serves to present a serious obstacle to the Effective checking of the spread of the epidemic. News from country districts, ■where people do not congregate m masses/indicates that such, places have not been immune, and, while the steps taken by the. Public Health authorities to minimise the herding of people are ■ to be applauded, it would not appear that these measures, m themselves, can be wholly effective. Notwithstanding the lessons that should have been ■* learned from the experience of Britain, South Africa and Auckland City, the authorities* m Wellington and other southern centres awaited the coming of the recourge before moving m the directjgn of taking precautions. It was not until- '■: ; HALF THE POPULATION had been prostrated that Wellington awakened to the realisation that the opening of a public inhalation chamber ■would be advisable. Then followed the ' closing of schools and 1 places of amusement. The inhalation chamber fitted up at the Town Hall proved hopelessly • Inadequate to cope ■with the <crowda that sought treatment. Last Monday people, many of whom were obviously m advanced stages of the disease, crowded In the corridor to await their turn. Even to the lay mind it was apparent that more harm than good was being done m this hot-bed of infection. Tet, no steps were taken to bring: about an improvement. It was not until Wednesday, when only six doctors were left to attend to the whole of Wellington City* that an attempt to establish a fighting organisation was made. In the meantime conditions had become more than serious. The hospital was so full that no more cases could be taken. Only three hospital doctors remained on their feet. Nurses had gone down before the epidemic like corn before a reaper, until fifty had become incapacitated. The two hospital ambulances were working fourteen to fifteen hours a day and, even then, there was not the slightest possibility of their keeping pace with the numbers requiring transport. Businesses had to be closed. In hotels and boardinghouses visitors and staffs were sorely affected and had to be denied proper attention because there was nobody to give them any. In the poorer quartero of the city CONDITIONS WERE APPALLING. Thus matters stood on Wednesday, when a meeting of citizens was held and steps taken to split the city up into block's. Had such a meeting- been call r ed a week earlier, Wellington might have been enabled to keep the disease under control. Oh Tuesday somebody discovered that the spraying of street gutters with disinfectants would be a good thing. Had the discovery been xnade the previous Tuesday it would have been worth while. Altogether, the authorities seem to have been depending upon the good, old "wait and Bee" policy, a dependence which >has brought with it all the evils usually associated with "taihoa." It is good to know that the lack of precautions with regard to the steamer Niagara cannot, m any way, be held responsible for the awful scourge that hp.B eorno upon us. Mr. Masaey, Sir Joseph Ward, the Hon. G. W. Russell pnd the Hon. Dr. Pomarn .and Dr. Thackcr have Jold U3 so. The TWO PEREGRINATING POLITICIANS were highly indignant at such a suggestion In the House the* other day. They asserted that the Niagara's disease was pure influenza, that they had been given to understand that it was not contagious (probably they meant Infectious) and that the epidemic had obtained a hold m New Zealand before the Niagara entered port. As an offsot to these statements a leading Auckland surgeon declares that he is prepared to prove that the Niagara was responsible for the spread of the serious form of influenza m New Zealand. There the matter can be left at present to await the setting up. of the Eoyal Commission asked for by Mr. Holland, and agreed to by the Prime Minister. Before time can be given to testing the origin of the disease, all energies must be concentrated upon its extermination. "Whiio the situation m the cltle3 calls for much apprehension, that m the military camps of Trentham and Featherston is such as>to cause the gravest concern. In spite of the Minister's protestation that everything possible is; being done at Featherston, which has been afflicted much more severely than Trentham. relatives of 'soldiers are showing signs of justifiable uneasiness. Evidence goes to prove that, while the authorities may be doing: their best, that best falls a long way short of what Is necessary to give the men a reasonable chance of recovery. Last week, when the weather was of the most atrocious Featherston kind — and all men who have been, through Featherston Camp will realise what that means "influenza," began to make its presence felt. The first day SUFFICED TO FILL THE HOSPITAL. Then the various institutions' were •quipped. with cots and filled up with a rapidity that was' alarming. Even this accommodation proved hopelessly inaderiuate, and troops were shifted Dut of their huts to make room for sick men This was the position last Saturday when fully 2500 men were on 1 their backs, Recent bulletins indicate \ that there has been little- or no imWrovement m the position since. In doing what has been outlined above the Defence Department s "best" stops. This "best" has been severely handicapped by circumstances both within and beyond the department's control. Just when the epidemic began to take a firm hold on Featherston, Canvastown (containing the 4Gth and a portion of the 48th Reinforcements) was blown down. In drenching- rain and m a cale that raged with a violence even unprecedented m Featherston, men had to cet out m the middle of the night, Boaked through to the skin, and HUDDLE TOGETHER TILL DAYLIGHT -ame. Then, m the midst of indescribable chaos, they had to rescue their wet "gear" an 4 betake themselves to

the sick parade m wet clothes. For hours these men had to wait m a bitterly cold gale until such time, as the few doctors could give their examination and many of the 46ths have died — the only wonder is that the whole of the reinforcement was not carted oIT to the cemetery last week. The Defence Department cannot be blamed either for the epidemic or for the storm that swamped the 46ths. But the question that rises to the utterance of soldiers' wives and children is; "Why is it that canvas tents are employed at the model camps of the Dominion, and why is it that m bleak, windy Featherston, no provieion is made for the proper housing of troops m the, event of the tents being blown down?". People will also ask why no endeavor was made and no appliances supplied to fumigate huts m which the disease was known to exist; why beds, emptied thro.ugh their late occupants being taken to hospital, were filled with fit men culled from infected huts; why an inhalation chamber was not opened before Friday last; why the public were not appealed to to assist the worn-out nurses and orderlies who were hopelessly overburdened; why fit men were taken out m their "shorts," m a piercing wind, to sit down m the mud -for musketry exercises? To all these questions and to hundreds more, the Defence Department is called upon for an answer. People, In their indignation, must not blame Sir James Allen. The accusations of callousness, MUDDLEMENT AND INCAPABILITY must be directed against that marvellous and grotesque piece of military machinery which rejoices m the designation of "The Staff." When the camps are emptied — if there be anything animate within them to empty — we shall probably be given an accurate version of the department's "best." In the midst of it all there is no occasion for courting trouble before trouble arrives. There -seems to be a tendency to alarm even if one contracts a simple "cold m the head." At a time like this he who laughs has a better prospect of immunity than has he who weeps and imagines he can see his own' funeral m progress. The person who is well can, by keeping cheerful, exert a ' strong influence, not only over his own health's destiny, but upon that of those with whom he is associated. Who is there who has not heard of the Man of Bagdad? As the Man of Bag-, dad left the city, he met Plague entering the gates. "Whether goest thou?" asked the Man. "To slay m 'the city five hundred of its citizens," replied Plague. After a short absence the Man -of BagdoSl returned to his native city. As he nea'red the gates he met Plague leaving the city. "Oh, Plague," he cried, "Thou art the cruellest liar I have known!" "Wherefore auch reproaches?" queried Plague blandly. "Didn't thou not say that thou would'at 'kill five hundred citizens, and, 10, I am assured that two thousand of our people are dead?' 1 cried the Man of Bagdad. Then Plague: "I spoke thee truly. I ■ did slay hut five hundred. The other FIFTEEN HUNDRED DIED OF FRIGHT!" Don't be one of. those who die of fright. Obey instructions of medical advisers, live as much m the open air as you can. Keep your body clean — Inside as well as outside — be regular m your habits, and wear warm underclothing 1 , and there is a ten thousand to one chance of the disease, Spanish "flu" or whatever name it may be called, being wiped out. In this connection m another column will pc found a list of precautions by the Health Department. These precautions should not be lightly treated. They should be studied thoroughly* and put into Immediate operation wherever they apply. It is only by the utmost thoroughness that this dread scourge can be checked. ■ On Sunday Wellington was, literally, a. city of the dead. Funerals wended their depressing way along the thoroughfares with a monotony that ! came upon the senses interminable and } dismaying-. All that met the ear was. the rattle of ambulances, many of them improvised to meet the demands of suffering. One topic only came I uppermost to utterance. Wild rumor and preposterous exaggeration, m the absence of authentic news, served to stimulate public uneasiness. Fear carried many between the blankets. Funk sat tight upon the recovery of all . To the various inhalation chambers, established m numbers and m easily accessible localities, crowds came hurrying with an eagerness that was not so apparent a week before. Many visitants were obviously m the grip Of the malady; but, despite announcements to the effect that inhalation was to be regarded as a preventative, not as a cure, they made this last bid for health. An oppressive atj mosphere hung like <a pall upon the much-tried city, and helped not one bit to" promote that cheerfulness which is the best antidote for all ills. Everything REEKED OF FOREBODING GLOOMINESS, In the fading hours of the week, it seemed as though the wave of infection had reached the high-flood limit; that Sunday would see' it recede. The morning brought a record call upon those noble women who had already j bx-ought themselves to the threshold pf | insanity m an endeavor to shoulder a burden far beyond their ordinary endurance. But they never onco lost heart;, dismay at the seeming hopelessness of the situation never once presented itself. They set their teeth; fired with determination their heavy eyes, upon which the restfulness of sleep had fallen not for days and nights together;' gathered up their weary limbs into a make-believe of lithesomeness, and entered with unflagging spirit upon their herculean task. . Many a spirit that hovered on the bounds of earthly tenure was won back to its "muddy vesture of 'decay" by the wonderful devotion and heroic persistency of these splendid women. And success was the only reward they sought; the only encomium they desired was a sign that life was assured to a man whom, m most cases, they had never seen before. This unparalleled unselfishness of Wellington's women will ever stand out m the memories of those that passed through that tragic week-end — and m the memories of many, that period will remain indelibly marked. In the Town Hall and at the "block" headquarters, the scenes of. bustle and animation contrasted strangely with those ?n the thoroughfares, Nothing of fearsdmeness or resigned helplessness obtruded there, but cheerfulness was trust upon him. who moped; there was to be seen a gigantic endeavor to do something. From these places there literally poured thousands upon thousands of gallons of the liquors that make sick* people well; tons of delicacies were dispensed with incredible liberality by bands of workers who assumed their voluntary duties with gladfulness and wilMngness. The authorities were slow to get busy, but once organisation was decided upon, the result was marvellous. While the organised precautionary and remedial measures thus taken m a general way were we'.i-nigh perfect, much of their effectiveness was destroyed by the .failure of many hotel and boardinghouse proprietors to appreciate THE NECESSITY FOR COOPERATION. Often, no attempt at isolation of sick nm-sons was made. Greed overcame

all other considerations. In one instance the manager of a boardinghouse waxed Indignant because a visitor refused to accept a bed m a room wherein a man lay seriously ill. Some proprietors did make some endeavor to keep sick people and healthy people as far apart as possible. But, m the majority of cases no such endeavor was made. Sick people were compelled to use the same conveniences as those used by people who were not sick; the dishes of all went into a common, lukewarm washing-up sink;; no restrictions were enforced regarding the use of telephones or sitting-rooms. Some proprietors considered that an investment m a tin of J eyes' fluid completed their duty to their boarders and to the public. The result was that organised endeavors to cope with the epidemic were nullified to a great extent through callous indifference. Under such conditions it was not surprising that each day saw its toll of boardinghouse prostrates. Even worse than these are some of the revelations made to "block" nurses as the result of their experiences m some of these "high-class" establishments, and it is to be hoped that, when these ladies recover from the effects of their humanitarian labors, they will be asked to furnish a report to the Public Health, authorities as to th« conditions which came undor their observation m some of these hot -beds of infection. In one such private hotel all the w&itresses, housemaids and kitchenmalds were down at once. The nurse found them lying two m a room. None of these apartments had windows, the only ventilation available was that from a small skylight and from the door which FACED THE MEN'S LAVATORY, across a narrow passage. Here these unfortunates lay until the nurse's advent, without food and without attention of any kind, except such as were

provided by solicitous boarders, who bought supplies outside (the Town Hall organisation was not then m existence). The kind-hearted proprietor locked up his larder when he. retired. Not even a glass of hot water was obtainable. The nurse speedily ordered the girls into the empty, airy rooms of the house, and demanded that the kitchen be made available to her at night.- This, certainly, is one instance where further investigation by tho Health authorities might have a salubrious effect. It might bo mentioned that, m this establishment, two of these girla, out of only three really serious cases, are, at the time of writing, m grave danger. The control of boarding-houses and otbler places wherein people are 'herded together is a matter that calls for an organisation all unto itself, and, until some system of isolation and segregation is devised m connection with these breeding places of infection, the task of stamping out the disease must necessarily be a prolonged one. ]f proprietors cannot show reasonable prudence and commonsense, the best possible substitutes for these attributes must be forced upon them. In private homes solicitude for the inmates by the hjead of the household gives some guarantee of public security, but m boarding-houses, where no such sentiment exists, a GRAVE MENACE TO PUBLIC SAFETY is fostered. The closing of places of entertainment, hotels, barber's shops and other places likely to assist m the dissemmination of disease was a wise precaution, but the supervision of boarding-houses seems to have been overlooked; or, maybe, the depleted and over-burdened staffs have been unable to exercise it as they would have wished. When money-grabbing proprietors put well folk into rooms already tenanted by Ijhose stricken with influenza, and when strangers are thrust into apartments lately occupied by sick persons, without anything having being done m the way of fumigation, there is little prospect of success, for th.c great fight that publicspirited citizens and doctors are putting up with a view to checking the ravages of the disease and bringing about its speedy extermination. The closing of '.hotels came as a catastrophe bven greater than the epidemic upon the' crowds of individuals who never seem to have occupation other than lounging about the city or supporting lampposts. Driven from the chaunts of bars and billiard rooms, they gather m dejected groups at the corners to lament the hardship that has been put upon them, reviling, m the agony of a thirst that cannot be quenched, the authorities who adopted such harsh measures. To them never comes the inspiration that they might offer their services to those directing this great struggle against a treacherous disease. Those that are loudest m their criticism of tho efforts being made, are generally drones of THE MOST DESPICABLE TYPE. Anyhow, they don't really count; they're too insignificant to waste resentment over. When the edict went forth that no liquor would be supplied unless the request was accompanied by a doctor'^ order, all sorts of ingenious methods were brought into employment by those whose thirst beeam;e their greatest tormentor. Residences of doctors were besieged by "relatives of sick people," who told most pitiful tales of the urgent necessity that existed for a bottl.o of alcoholic nourishment. These subterfuges were without avail; much more difficult was it to secure a flask of whisky than it used to be to become possessor of a "military unfltness" certificate. As the doctors remained adamant, the thirsty ones betook themselves to the Town Hall where Mayor Luke was dispensing liquor "under doctor's orders" with a dexterity and Enthusiasm that would bring the flush of envy to the brow of the buxomest barmaid that ever pulled a beer pump. But Wih en it came to an uncertifioated application. Mayor Luke's reputation for- kind-heartedness became tarnished. His refusal was even more emphatic than that of the medical men. Then it was that the defeated OWNER OF A "SICK WIFE" wended his way back to the street corner to acquaint his companions of the utter hopelessness of his mission. When influenza first began to show its ugly face, chemists did a roaring trade m formalin, while the- several inhalation chambers that spran« . uo.

fcverywhere were equipped with nozzles that ejected fumes which irritated the throat. It -was not until Tuesday of this wieek that an offioial condemnation of irritants waa issued. By tihat time, if the expert opinion as to their harmfulness be correct, considei*able damage must have already been done.. It is to be regretted that this announcement was not made earlier. If those at tho head of affairs did not know that such irritant preventatives" were being sold m immense quantities, it was their duty to know; If they were aware of the fact, the delay m denouncing these "preventatives" calls for explanation.