FORCE ON SMALLPOX. 175 



WORK OF THE STATE HOARD OF HEALTH FOR THE RESTRIC- 

 TION AND l»REVENTION OF SMALLPOX. 



BY WILl.IA.M M. FOIU'E^ ("LERK IN THE OFFK'E OF TUB STATE BOARD OF HEALTH. 



Some of the Early Work. 



The woi'k of tlio State Board of Health for the restrietion and pre- 

 vention of smallpox ]»ra('tically began with the establishing of the board. 

 The act establishing the board took effect July 30, 1873, and in September 

 of that year a circular was issued by the board and sent to the clerk of 

 eyery townshi]), city and village, re(iuesting such clerk, in case smallpox 

 should become epidemic in his locality, to make a special rej)ort of the 

 same to the secretary of the board, in order that the conditions of the 

 progress and decline of the disease could be thoroughly studied. In 

 October of the same year, another circular was issued to the practicing 

 physicians of Michigan relative to the law requiring the reporting of all 

 cases of smallpox to the board of health or health officer where such 

 disease existed. With the circular was sent a form of notice recom- 

 mended by the board. 



Rules and Regulations. 



In 1875 the board recommended and published rules and regulations 

 for local boards to adopt, among Avhich were the following : The vaccina- 

 tion of every child before- two years of age ; the vaccination of all em- 

 ployees of incorjtorated manufacturing companies; the vaccination of all 

 members of public schools, and the revaccination of all persons as often 

 as once in every five years. These rules were highl}' commended by the 

 Sanitary Record of London, England, except the one recommending the 

 vaccination of every child before two years of age, the editor much pre- 

 ferring the English requirement that every child must be vaccinated 

 before three months old. 



Influence of yacvination. 



In 1875, Arthur Hazelwood, M. I)., of Gi-and Rapids, then a member of 

 the board, was requested to prepare a paper on "The Influence of Vac- 

 cination," giving statistics of deaths from smallpox before and since the 

 practice of vaccination. The paper was prepared and published in the 

 annual report of the board for 187G. In closing Dr. Hazelwood said: 

 "That vaccination is worthy of the confidence it enjo3'S in the minds of 

 the medical profession and of the public generality, is to my mind as posi- 

 tive as any well established truth can be. And also that any parent who 

 wilfully neglects to have his child vaccinated, not only exposes said child 

 to a not remote possibility of contagion from smallpox, but also main- 

 tains by that neglect a possible center of infecting his neighbors. * * * 

 I would not favor a compulsory law, but hope that all people will investi- 

 gate for themselves and that an enlightened public opinion shall demand 



