PLAGUE PROCEDURE IN HONGKONG. 41 



from Hongkong. This rebuilding will of necessity be a slow process, but 

 it is being steadily effected by means of the new public health and 

 building ordinance and by the government each year resuming some of. 

 the most insanitary areas of the town. 



PLAGUE PROCEDURE, 1904. 



The following rules have been adopted and carried out : 



1. On finding a suspicious case of plague, notify the medical officer of 

 health at once. 



2. Eem ovals of sick must be to the district hospitals when they are 

 established, or to the existing-hospitals, as may be decided by the medical 

 officer. 



3. When a guard is required, the police must be applied to, the district 

 watchmen's committee being unable to arrange for the employment of 

 district watchmen. Further, when anyone reports a case of sickness or 

 a death in a house voluntarily, the guard, pending the diagnosis of the 

 case, may be dispensed with, provided that the occupants of the infected 

 floor are willing to give their clothes up for disinfection at once. In 

 such a case the tenants of the infected floor will be free to go where 

 they like after giving up their clothing, and if the case should be returned 

 as one of plague, the disinfection of the floor can then be proceeded with. 



4. On receiving confirmation of the suspicion of plague in a house, 

 proceed without delay to the house with the necessary assistance and 

 equipment, and disinfect. 



5. The disinfecting operations are to be confined to the floor in which 

 the case occurred, unless there is reason to believe that the sick person 

 frequented other floors. 



6. The whole of the house should, however, be cleansed and the 

 tenants of the noninfected floors may do this themselves if they are 

 willing. Disinfecting fluid (Jeyes's) to be. given for that purpose. 



7. In cases where it is considered necessary to pull down ceilings, etc., 

 in other than infected floors, the tenants may, if they wish, assist by 

 first removing their furniture and afterwards clearing away the debris ; 

 but the board's officers must see that the debris is properly sprayed be- 

 fore removal, so as to lay the dust, and that the debris is put into the 

 dust carts and not made use of by the people. The joints, etc., bared 

 by such removal of ceiling or linings should also be sprayed. 



8. The cleansing and disinfection of the infected floor must be wholly 

 done by the board's officers. 



9. People turned out of houses on account of plague must always 

 be offered shelter in the block of houses rented by the board for this 

 purpose, and help in the removal of their effects to such shelters must 

 be offered. 



