THE MINISINK EPIDEMIC. 11 



Within a short time following this celebration a large number of 

 illnesses occurred among those who had attended the Minisink ban- 

 quet. The first ill effects noticed among those attending this par- 

 ticular banquet were largely diarrheal in character; however, within 

 10 to 30 days following the banquet 17 well defined cases of typhoid 

 fever and 83 cases of diarrhea or bowel trouble developed. All of 

 the cases of typhoid and diarrhea were confined to those attending 

 the one banquet, although it was said by laymen that " bowel 

 trouble" was somewhat prevalent in the community during that 

 time, information which was not confirmed by the local physicians; 

 perhaps largely because the trouble was said to have been mild in 

 character and not sufficient to demand the attention of a physician. 



On November 17, 1911, there appeared in a number of the New 

 York newspapers a short account of an epidemic of typhoid and 

 other illnesses following a banquet given October 5, 1911, at Goshen, 

 N. Y. These accounts alleged that some of the oysters served on 

 this occasion were probably the cause of the trouble. The writer's 

 attention was first called to these reports on the above date while in 

 New York City engaged in making a sanitary survey of the oyster 

 grounds in that vicinity. 



Thinking perhaps it would be instructive to obtain a more detailed 

 account of the epidemic, a visit to Goshen was made that night. A 

 number of prominent citizens who attended the banquet were inter- 

 viewed, including the health officer and other local practicing physi- 

 cians, all of whom gave valuable information and assistance. 



After the data obtained had been compiled, certain links of evi- 

 dence which were essential in order to fully establish the origin of 

 the epidemic were found to be wanting. On November 28, 1911, a 

 second trip to Goshen was made and additional evidence obtained; 

 samples of water were also collected from the well furnishing the 

 water used for drinking purposes and for washing the oyster shells on 

 which the oysters were served. 



A third visit to Goshen was made on December 15, 1911, as great 

 difficulty had been experienced in securing positive evidence regarding 

 the origin and shipment of the oysters said to have been served at 

 the music hall the night of the banquet. This evidence was not 

 finally obtained until diligent search revealed the records at the 

 general office of the Wells-Fargo Co., New York City. During this 

 time an inspection was made of the source from which the oysters 

 were shipped, and samples of the shell stock and water were collected 

 for analysis. 



After all the data had been assembled, the evidence was care- 

 fully reviewed with four other experts, who were then in Wash- 

 ington attending the meetings of the American Association for the 

 Advancement of Science. These were Dr. H. W. Conn, of Connec- 



