First Sanitary Work 281 



sponsible man. Only one entrance door to the 

 building was allowed, and a watchman was 

 stationed continuously at that door to see that it 

 was not left open a moment longer than necessary. 



It was unfortunate that greater power was not 

 given to the chief sanitary officer, to enable him to 

 prosecute the yellow fever campaign more rapidly. 

 Under the organization then in power, he was often 

 limited to making recommendations, which were 

 not always carried into effect. Those inexperi- 

 enced in matters pertaining to yellow fever control 

 cannot and should not be expected to take part 

 in the work of its suppression, unless they are sub- 

 ject to the orders and under the direct control of 

 the officer charged with the eradication of yellow 

 fever. 



A case in point was that of the so-called Canal 

 Building in Panama, the original headquarters of 

 the Canal force. There was much delay in having 

 the building properly screened. The architect who 

 had charge of this matter was overworked, and 

 busy with plans and estimates for the repair and 

 construction of buildings all along the line of the 

 Canal. Work was waiting for all the men avail- 

 able, and there was not enough room to accommo- 

 date the needed force. Of course, the architect's 

 first consideration was to provide housing facil- 



