YELLOW FEVER PROPHYLAXIS IN NEW ORLEANS 37 



was certainly the universal opinion in New Orleans during the 

 epidemic. Another feature of the Marine Hospital Service is the 

 encouragement which is given to research. At the headquarters of 

 the Service in Washington there is a Bureau of Hygiene in the 

 Laboratories of which investigations are continually taking place iu 

 infective processes, preventive medicine, parasitology, pharmacology 

 and bio-chemistry. From time to time also expeditions are sent 

 abroad to study tropical diseases such, for instance, as Yellow Fever. 

 The representatives of the Marine Hospital Service stationed in 

 foreign towns, notably in the important fruit ports in Central America 

 and in the West Indies, have very important duties assigned to them. 

 They keep the Central Government at Washington informed of the 

 Health conditions of not only the ports in which they are stationed, 

 but of the surrounding country in addition. Thus they are the first 

 to cable to Washington the outbreak of quarantinable diseases. They 

 also exercise a very beneficial effect in the ports in which they are 

 stationed, and their services are often made use of by the local 

 authorities. Thus during the epidemic of Yellow Fever last year in 

 many of the Fruit Ports in Central America they took the lead in 

 organising anti-stegomyia measures. 



From the foregoing remarks it is clear that the title " Marine 

 Hospital Service " does not indicate the wide functions of this body, 

 and, indeed, in 1902 the Service was confirmed by Law as a National 

 Public Health Service of the United States, and it was enacted that 

 in future it should be known as the Public Health and Marine 

 Hospital Service. 



Descriftion and Progress of the Campaign under the 

 'New Organisation. 



With great tact Dr. White took over the local Ward organisations, 

 which, as we have seen, had already accomplished a great deal, and 

 were in fair w^orking order. He placed at the head of each Ward 

 a Marine Hospital Surgeon. In the originally infected quarter he 

 formed a special Depot in charge of Surgeon Berry, and together 

 with Surgeons Richardson and Lazard as his assistants, he established 

 his own headquarters in the centre of the City. The plan of cam- 

 paign was that which had already been adopted by the Ward 



