TRANSMISSION OB" YELLOW FEVER BY MOSQUITOES. 667 



this way the ])a.«sao;e of moRquitoes into this room \va.s effectually excluded. During 

 the day and until after sunset the house was kept securelj^ closed, while by means of 

 a suitable heating apparatus the temperature was raised to 92° to 95° F. Precaution 

 was taken at the same time to maintain a sufficient humidity of the atmosphere. 

 The average temi)erature of this house was thus kept at 76.2° F. for a period of sixty- 

 three days. 



Novemljer 30, 1900, the building now being ready for occupancy, three large boxes 

 filled with sheets, pillow slips, blankets, etc., contaminated by contact with cases of 

 yellow fever and their discharges were received and placed therein. The majority 

 of the articles had been taken from the beds of patients sick with yellow fever at 

 Las Animas Hospital, Havana, or at Columbia Barracks. Many of them had been 

 purposely soiled with a liberal quantity of black vomit, urine, and fecal matter. A 

 dirty "comfortaVjle" and much-soiled pair of blankets, removed from the bed of a 

 patient sick with yellow fever in the town of Quemados, were contained in one of 

 these ]x)xes. The same day, at 6 p. m., Dr. E. P. Cooke, acting assistant surgeon, 

 United States Army, and t\^'o privates of the Hospital Corps, all nonimmune young 

 Americans, entered this building and delil>erately unpacked these boxes, which had 

 been tightly closed and locked for a period of two weeks. They were careful at the 

 same time to give each article a thorough handling and shaking, in order to dissemi- 

 nate through the air of the room the specific agent of yellow fever, if contained in 

 these fomites. These soiled sheets, pillowcases, and blankets were used in prepar- 

 ing the beds in which the members of the Hos})ital Corps slept. Various soiled 

 articles were hung around the room and placed about the bed occupied by Doctor 

 Cooke. 



From this date until December 19, 1900, a period of twenty days, this room was 

 occupied each night by these three nonimmunes. Each morning the various soiled 

 articles were carefully packed in the aforesaid boxes and at night again unpacked 

 and distril)uted about the room. During the day the residents of this house were 

 permitted to occupy a tent pitched in the immediate vicinity, but were kept in strict 

 quarantine. 



Deceml)er 12 a fourth box of clothing and bedding was received from Las Animas 

 Hospital. These articles had been used on the beds of yellow fever patients, but in 

 addition had been purposely soiled with the bloody stools of a fatal case of this dis- 

 ease. As this box had been packed for a number of days, when opened and unpacked 

 by Doctor Cooke and his assistants, on Deceml)er 12, the odor was so offensive as to 

 compel them to retreat from tlie house. They pluckily returned, however, within 

 a short time and spent the night as usual. 



December 19 these three nonimmunes were i)lace(l in (|nurantine for five days and 

 then given the liljerty of the camp. All had remained in perfect healtji, notwith- 

 standing their stay of twenty nights amid such unwholesome surroundings. 



During the week, December 20-27, the following articles were also placed in this 

 house, viz, pajamas suits, 1; undershirts, 2; nightshirts, 4; pillow slips, 4; sheets, 6; 

 blankets, 5; pillows, 2; mattresses, 1. These articles had been removed from the 

 ])ersona and beds of four patients sick with yellow fever and were very much soiled, 

 as any change of clothing or bed linen during their attacks had been purposely 

 avoided, the object being to obtain articles as thoroughly contaminated as possible. 



From December 21, 1900, till January 10, 1901, this building was again occupied 

 t)y two nonimnume young Americans, under the same conditions as the preceding 

 occupants, excei)t that these men slept every night in the very garments worn by 

 yellow-fever patients throughout their entire attacks, besides making use exclusively 

 of their much-soiled pillow slips, sheets, and blankets. At the end of twenty-one 

 nights of such intimate contact with these fomites, they also went into ({uarantine, 

 from which they were released five days later in perfect health. 



