Report of the city of Somerville 1914, Part 27

Author: Somerville (Mass.)
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Somerville, Mass.
Number of Pages: 596


USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Somerville > Report of the city of Somerville 1914 > Part 27


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Bacteriological Department.


During the year, 1,513 examinations were made of diphtheria cultures, 277 examinations of sputum, and twenty- five examinations of blood for typhoid fever.


Respectfully submitted, FRANK L. MORSE, Medical Inspector.


: : :


REPORT OF INSPECTOR OF ANIMALS AND PROVISIONS.


Somerville, Mass., January 1, 1915.


Board of Health,


Gentlemen,-I herewith present my report for the year ending December 31, 1914.


The following number of places have been inspected during the year for cleanliness and sanitary conditions.


Cold storage houses


119


Wholesale meat houses 137


Retail grocery and meat markets 3,674


Retail fish markets 542


Retail peddlers wagons


1,650


6,122


The cold storage houses, grocery, meat and fish markets as a rule are kept in a good sanitary condition.


The following list shows the goods condemned during the year.


Meats.


Fresh beef, 1032 pounds; corned beef, 792 pounds; lamb, 635 pounds ; poultry, 1,215 pounds; fresh pork, 269 pounds; salt pork, 167 pounds; whole swine, 1,456 pounds; frankforts, 305 pounds; liver, 92 pounds ; hamburg, 84 pounds; tripe, 116 pounds; pig's feet, 97 pounds ; veal, 128 pounds; bologna, 56 pounds.


Fish.


Haddock, 418 pounds; halibut, 121 pounds; pollock, 96 pounds ; salmon, 58 pounds; swordfish, 11 pounds; herrings, 1,490 whole; mack- erel, 530 whole; clams, 2 quarts; clams in shell, 1 1-2 bushels; oysters, 3 quarts.


Fruit.


Oranges, 11 boxes; grapefruit, 3 1-2 boxes; lemons, 41 dozen ; strawberries, 27 quarts; blackberries, 59 quarts; raspberries, 35 cups ; grapes, 11 baskets; bananas, 217 dozen; cantaloupes, 12 crates; aples, 8 barrels.


Vegetables.


Cabbage, 9 barrels ; string beans, 6 baskets; celery, 58 bunches ; cauli- flower, 14 heads; rhubarb, 11 crates; tomatoes, 21 baskets; onions, 8 bushels; turnips, 12 barrels; asparagus, 52 bunches; squash, 9 barrels ; current potatoes, 6 crates ; potatoes, 11 bushels; greens, 7 bushels; lettuce, 12 dozen; green corn, 5 bushels.


Eggs.


Eggs, 36 dozen.


Groceries.


Butter, 20 pounds; lard, 40 pounds; tea, 50 pounds; coffee, 20 pounds; bread, 30 loaves; canned goods, 120 cans; sugar, 200 pounds ; spices, 240 packages; cereals, 450. packages; salt, 135 bags; condensed milk, 56 cans.


357


HEALTH DEPARTMENT.


Slaughter House Inspection.


The following list shows the number of animals slaugh- tered in this city during the year.


Swine


1,000,871


Cattle


28,064


Calves


64,973


Sheep


364,859


Total


1,458,767


Animals.


A close watch has been kept of all domestic animals in the city, and 435 visits been made at the stables during the year.


Horses


Inspected. 4,317


Quarantined. 36


Killed. 28


Released 8


Cows


29


1


1


Goats


4


Swine


160


Dogs


2


2


Total


4,512


37


30


9


I wish to call attention to the fact that during 1914 there were only one half as many horses quarantined and killed on account of glanders as were destroyed in 1913, show- ing that this dread disease is being gradually stamped out.


All blacksmith shops, cow stables, stables for horses and milk stables were whitewashed and disinfected during the year.


Lunch rooms and bakeries have been required to screen all doors and windows and bakeries have been inspected 834 times.


P Barber shops are required to be kept in a sanitary con- dition all the time and to properly sterilize their utensils.


Factories.


There have been 168 inspections of fifty-three factories during the year.


Daily assistance has been rendered to the agent in his work and in conveying patients to the Contagious Hospital by ambulance.


One prosecution was made on account of vegetables unfit for food. The defendant was found guilty in the local court, and fined $35. He appealed to the superior court, and on recommendation of the district attorney the case was placed on file,


Respectfully submitted, CHARLES M, BERRY, V. S. Inspector,


REPORT OF THE INSPECTOR OF MILK AND VINEGAR.


LABORATORY OF THE INSPECTOR OF MILK AND VINEGAR.


City Hall, Somerville, Mass., January 1, 1915. To the Board of Health of the City of Somerville :--


Gentlemen,-I herewith present my annual report for the year ending December 31, 1914.


On the above date there were in this city licensed to sell milk, 517 stores and seventy-two pedlers, and nine stores to sell oleomargarine.


Thirty-four stores and three pedlers have gone out of business during the year.


Of the seventy-two pedlers thirty-three are located in this city and thirty-nine in the neighboring cities and towns.


There are approximately 6,200 gallons of milk dis- tributed in Somerville daily, and twenty dealers selling pasteurized milk supply over sixty per cent. of this amount.


Financial Statement.


Appropriation, 1914


$2,350 00


License fees


$299 00


Fees for analysis


296 00


Fines,


·


.


$700 00


Balance unexpended


23 03


Actual· expenses of department .


$1,626 97


Figured on a population of 85,000 and an appropriation of $2,350 the expenses of this department were (2-7-10) two and seven-tenths cents per capita.


Table 1.


Months.


License


Issued.


License


Fees.


Analytical


Fees.


Cash paid


City Tre: &;


Analyses


on Account.


Total


Income for


Dept.


January


.


15


$7.50


$5.00


$12.50


$ 7.50


$20.00


February .


15


7.50


2.00


9.50


3.00


12.00


March


11


5.50


....


5.50


24.00


29.00


April


10


5.00


....


5.00


31.00


36.00


May .


283


141.50


.50


142.00


42.50


184.50


June


177


88.50


·


88.50


18.00


106.00


July


.


16


8.00


4.00


12.00


20.00


32.00


August


11


5.50


1.00


6.50


18.00


24.50


September


15


7.50


3.00


10.50


20.50


31.00


October


15


7.50


. . . .


7.50


51.50


59.00


November


13


6.50


.50


7.00


27.50


34.50


December.


17


8.50


1.00


9.50


15.50


25.00


16.00


Total


598


$299.00


$17.00


$316.00


$279.00


$595.00


.


105 00


$1,650 00


359


HEALTH DEPARTMENT.


Table 2.


Months.


Milk,


Cream.


Vinegar.


Bact.


Collections.


Lorenz


Tests.


Total


Collections.


Samples


left at


Office.


Examina-


tions.


January


73


48


4


121


25


150


February


53


48


·2


103


10


113


March


70


80


48


198


48


246


April


86


96


49


231


58


289


May


84


55


36


175


78


253


June .


32


28


8


68


37


105


July .


44


39


4


87


40


127


August


122


20


0


142


36


178


September


60


80


0


140


41


181


October


56


124


9


189


103


292


November


60


96


6


162


55


217


December


47


38


9


94


33


127


Total


787


752


175


1,714


564


2,278


Table 3.


I


Months.


Chem.


Notices.


Bact.


Notices.


Sanitary


Notices.


Total


Notices.


I nspectios.


Infected


Samples.


January


8


15


.. ..


0


March


4


5


33


42


146


0


April


10


14


31


90


3


* May


6


9


49


64


90


6


t June


4


0


20


24


503


0


July .


13


4


19


36


24


0


August


14


2


10


26


29


0


September


3


5


12


20


29


0


October


5


8


4


17


40


4


November


6


8


9


23


24


2


December


1


0


8


9


29


0


Total


70


58


190


318


1,004


18


* 2 dairies out of State excluded for added water.


+ 1 dairy


City Inspection.


The department work in the city proper covers the su- pervision of milk at the receiving stations, the taking of temperatures, examination of utensils and wagons, examina- tion of milk from dairies for visible dirt and bateriological standard, inspection of milk plants and stores and the taking of samples of milk at railroad stations, teams, stores, lunch rooms and hotels,


February .


4


11


. .


Total


Ice Cream,l


360


ANNUAL REPORTS.


Laboratory work consists of the analysis of milk, cream, butter, ice cream and vinegar, chemically and bacteriologi- cally, with the exception of butter and vinegar (which are not examined for bact.) ; the sterilization of all apparatus used in this work; notifying dealers of chemical, bacteriological and sani- tary violations and the prosecution of court cases where advice and instruction do not accomplish the required results. Ice cream was added to the work of this department in July, when Chapter 743 of the Acts of 1913 became a law.


Nuisances dealt with by this department were as follows: Dirty milk containers, improper tasting of milk, milk con- taining foreign substance, improper use of milk bottles, dirty tanks, dirty chests, high temperature, unsanitary cow barn, tuberculous cattle, impure certified milk, and milk believed to be infected.


1


361


HEALTH DEPARTMENT.


Table 4.


1910


1911


1912


1913


1914


MILK INSPECTION-CITY.


Samples of milk and cream ice cream and vinegar for chemical analysis Number found below grade . Samples of milk and cream for bacteriological analysis Number found above 500,000 bacteria per C.C.


1,069


916


1,001


876


787


163


98


146


106


70


281


1,024


740


820


752


52


62


102


66


58


Temperatures of milk and cream taken


1,350


1,520


1,500


1,690


1,599


INSPECTIONS.


Number of stores and depots handling milk .


588


575


559


480


517


985


980


1,002


753


1,004


Number of inspections made Number of re-inspections made .


25


125


120


687


190


Number found contrary to regulations on 2d insp.


25


123


118


98


25


Average number of inspec- tions per store, including re-inspections


3


2.35


LICENSES.


Number of licenses for


wagons issued . .


109


105


98


78


72


Number of licenses for stores issued


472


470


461


480


517


Number of licenses refused .


...


1


2


2


0


Number of licenses revoked .


2


1


0


0


LEGAL CASES.


Suits instituted


22


10


9


7


11


Convictions


·


20


9


8


6


11


Pending


0


0


0


0


2


Fines imposed


$145


$125


$100


$62


$105


MISCELLANEOUS MILK DATA.


Total daily supply (gals.)


5,707


5,800


6,000


6,200


5,665


Per cent of milk pasteurized .


40


44


44


56


60


Average price of milk, winter Average price of milk, summer Letters or orders sent. (See sanitary notices.)


9


9


9


9


.09


8


8


8


8


.08


Total daily cream supply (gals.) -


.. .


420


..


362


ANNUAL REPORTS. Table 5 .- Infantile Mortality.


Year.


Births.


Deaths under 1 year, all diseases.


Deaths due to enteric diseases.


Per cent. of deaths from Entero-Col- itis under one year of age com- pared with births.


1910


1558


175


54


3.4


1911


1618


166


48


2.9


1912


1839


142


45


2.4


1913


1861


166


45


2.4


1914


Birth re turns in- complete


147


33


Unknown


Table 5 shows a steady increase in the number of births and a gradual decrease in deaths from intestinal troubles. The births for 1914 will unquestionably exceed those of pre- ceding years by a large number, and the deaths under one year of age from intestinal troubles have been reduced over twenty-five per cent.


Epidemics.


There have been no epidemics in this city due to milk during 1914. The epidemic of Foot and Mouth disease dis- covered among the cattle of this state, affected only two dairies which send milk to Somerville and the milk from these places was immediately excluded from this city.


During 1914 many changes have been made in the manner of handling the milk which is sold in this city. All dealers not equipped with live steam in their milk rooms have been required to install a sterilizing apparatus, and twenty-three dealers complied before they were granted a li- cense.


New Regulations.


Regulations 19 and 20 became operative in February and made it a violation of the milk rules of this city to sell milk, except in sealed containers, bottled in proper milk rooms under the strictest sanitary conditions. These regula- tions effected about forty per cent., of the stores selling milk in this city and improved conditions materially. No loose milk (dip tank milk) is now sold, except in lunch rooms


363


HEALTH DEPARTMENT.


or hotels and sold there only to be drunk on the premises, and these dealers have a special license. Each distributing plant doing business in Somerville has been scored with the United States score card for city milk plants, and seventy- two dealers average a score of 64.73 the highest being ninety- two, and the lowest 46.5.


Country Inspection.


Many rural districts have no health officer or if they have one, he is a man with no sanitary training. Milk comes from thinly settled sections lacking in health laws and health knowledge. If a city, from lack of inspectors must depend on country inspection for the purity of milk and sanitary surroundings, it will be sadly handicapped.


With the addition to this department of an assistant the work at the producers end can be taken up and much better results obtained.


Dairies.


By the Lorenz method the milk from each dairy is ex- amined for visible dirt; dairies that cannot be examined in this manner because a strainer has been in use at the farm, are examined bacteriologically and notices are sent, when there is a variation from our requirements.


A milk may be free from visible dirt and vet have a high bacteriological count if not properly cooled when shipped and stored.


By straining out the dirt you are simply resorting to "washing filth." All the soluble portions which contain the germs (diseased or otherwise) remain in the milk waiting a favorable opportunity to develop; i. e., when the milk becomes warm to anywhere above 50 degrees Fahrenheit.


New Legislation.


Chapter 744 of the Acts of 1914 reads as follows :---


An Act Relative to the Production and Sale of Milk. Be it enacted etc. as follows :-


SECTION 1. It shall be unlawful for any producer of milk or dealer in milk to sell or deliver for sale in any city or town in the common- wealth any milk produced or dealt in by him without first obtaining from the board of health of such city or town a permit authorizing such sale or delivery. Said boards of health are hereby authorized to issue such permits after an inspection, satisfactory to them, of the place in which and of the circumstances under which such milk is produced, has been made by them or by their authorized agent. Any permit so granted may contain such reasonable conditions as said board may think suit- able for protecting the public health and may be revoked for failure


364


ANNUAL REPORTS.


to comply with any of such conditions. No charge shall be made to the producer for the permit or for the inspection of the dairy where the milk is produced.


SECTION 2. In case any permit so granted is revoked, the board re- voking the permit shall immediately send notice of the revocation to the state board of health, and the state board of health shall at once inform the boards of health of other cities and towns in the commonwealth where, in its judgment, milk produced by the dairy to which the permit relates would be likely to be sold or delivered for sale, and the state board of health shall also give notice of such revocation to any dealer in milk who, in the judgment of the board, would be likely to purchase milk from such dairy; and upon receipt of such notice it shall be unlawful for any dealer so notified to sell or offer for sale in this commonwealth milk from the said dairy.


SECTION 3. After a permit has been revoked, it may be renewed in the same way in which the original permit was issued, in which case the same form of notification shall follow as is required in the issuance of the original permit.


SECTION 4. Any person, firm or corporation violating any provision of this act shall be punished by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars for each offence.


SECTION 5. It shall be the duty of the state board of health to en- force the provisions of section two of this act.


SECTION 6. It shall be the duty of the inspectors of milk appointed by the boards of health of cities and towns to enforce the provisions of section one, so far as relates to the milk supply of their respective cities and towns. (Approved July 3, 1914. )


This law makes it compulsory for each city to carry on its own dairy inspection and grant permits to the dealers for each dairy he wishes to use in supplying the city with milk. After an inspection of the premises where the milk is produced by some agent satisfactory to this department. This is very important and will be productive of beneficial results, as heretofore this department has had to rely more or less, on the inspection by health authorities in neighboring cities, who have a larger number of men and are able to carry on this work.


(See country Inspection.)


Bacteriological.


All bacteria samples have been subjected to microscopial examination by the Slack method, and only those samples rich in bacteria have been plated. This has shortened the work of the department materially and allowed for an in- creased number of microscopial examinations, which has proved of no little importance, as shown by the increased number of infected samples discovered. In table three the samples listed as infected, are those taken from wagons only. In one herd of ten cows, seven proved to be suffering from mastitis. From the eighteen samples of infected milk, forty- four animals were found to be diseased and removed from the herds,


365


HEALTH DEPARTMENT.


Pasteurization of Milk.


I should like to quote from an article published by the Marine Hospital Service at Washington :-


"Throughout the country there is today a rapid extension of the practise of pasteurizing milk. Some of the larger cities (New York and Chicago) have passed statutes requiring the pasteurization of all milk except that from tuberculin-tested cattle. This growing demand for pasteurization comes from the increasing realization of the fact that milk is a medium for distributing Tuberculosis, typhoid, diphtheria, scarlet fever, septic sore throat, and intestinal troubles, the past ten years having shown hun- dreds of serious epidemics traced to the milk supply. More- over it has been realized also that no safeguards placed around milk at its sources can wholly remove these dangers ; for occasionally such epidemics have been traced even to certified milk which has been produced under as ideal condi- tions as it is possible to devise. A typhoid bacillus carrier may at any time unconsciously be employed in a dairy and be the means of a typhoid epidemic among the patrons of the dairy. The impossibility of sufficiently guarding milk at its source has led health authorities to urge pasteurization as the only means of protecting the public from these consider- able dangers. This is urged the more confidently because by the American method of pasteurizing, the milk may be ren- dered safe without changing its physical or chemical char- acter, or its taste and the food value of the milk, but a higher temperature is used in Europe than on this side of the At- lantic. The American method of pasteurization consists in heating the milk to 140 to 145 degrees F. and maintaining that temperature for half an hour. Such treatment does not affect the taste, the cream line, or the digestibility of the milk, but it does destroy all the disease germs that get into the milk and render it safe even for use as food by the delicate in- fant. Public pasteurization or home pasteurization are equally efficient if performed with care. The only perfectly safe milk for drinking purposes is that which has been pas- teurized."


I should like further to quote from a report of the Health Commissioner of the City of Boston, in charge of the milk and dairy inspection service.


"Fully seventy per cent. of all market milk sold in Boston undergoes one or more heating processes before sale. Of the seventy per cent. mentioned, only five per cent. is per- fectly pasteurized by the process approved by the Board of Health. It is my opinion that no milk should be pasteurized for sale, unless each step in the process is watched by an inspector of the department. To carry out this plan in detail


366


ANNUAL REPORTS.


inspectors are being placed in the different receiving plants in Boston whose duty it will be to maintain close super- vision over this work during the day and night." Realizing the public demand for the protection of the milk supply, the smaller dealers are endeavoring to find a means to meet this demand. About forty per cent. of the milk used in Som- erville is raw milk. If means could be found to provide a Central Pasteurizing Plant under Municipal Control the safety of the citizens of Somerville from infected milk would be assured for all time and the problem of a safe milk supply solved.


Much of the milk pasteurized at present is done for com- mercial reasons and not for the purpose of destroying dis- ease germs. This is done by the flash system and also in holding tanks so large as to prevent a uniform temperature being maintained for the necessary time.


I believe that milk pasteurized and controlled by the city would involve the least possible loss in food value and flavor, also that this is a perfectly practical suggestion, and would involve the least expense to our city, of any system of in- spection and control that can be devised.


In closing I wish to remind the citizens of Somerville that the service of this department is at their disposal at all times upon any matter with which we can consistently deal.


Very respectfully, HERBERT E. BOWMAN,


Inspector of Milk and Vinegar.


SUPPORT OF POOR DEPARTMENT.


Board of Overseers of the Poor. HENRY F. CURTIS, M. D., President, ALBERT W. EDMANDS, Vice-President. PHILIP KOEN.


Committees. ON FINANCE, INVESTIGATION AND RELIEF, AND CITY HOME-Dr. Curtis, Mr. Edmands and Mr. Koen.


Secretary. CORA F. LEWIS.


Clerk. JEANNETTE M. HUTCHINS.


General Agent. CHARLES C. FOLSOM.


- City Physician. C. CLARKE TOWLE, M. D.


.. Warden and Matron, City Home Mr. and Mrs. J. FOSTER COLQUHOUN.


Office. City Hall Annex, Highland Avenue.


REPORT OF OVERSEERS OF THE POOR.


Somerville, Mass., December 31, 1914. To His Honor, the Mayor, and the Board of Aldermen of the City of Somerville :-


Gentlemen,-We herewith submit our annual report with tables showing the detail work of the department. We ex- pended during the year 1914 about $46,817, being an increase from the previous year of $14,044.05. We have had under Chapter 763, Acts of 1913, some over fifty cases. These cases have cost quite a large sum, but we think the results justify the expenditures. As we have had a full year's trial of this law, we are in a position to judge somewhat as to whether it is a real help to the family or stimulates shiftlessness as is claimed by some. We are of the opinion that in most cases it is a real help and prevents a great deal of suffering and hardship. We keep in touch with the families we are aid- ing, as the law requires that each family be visited as often as four times each year. Aid under the old law has been somewhat affected of course by the liberal way in which the new law governing mothers with dependent children is ad- ministered. Our family at the City Home is steadily increas, ing. We have had during the year ninety-three inmates and at the close of 1914, we have forty-nine in the Home and Hospital. The Hospital has been of great value to us in car- ing for the sick in the Home and many from the outside. We appreciate very much the work that has been done on the buildings at the Home-painting, building of an office and waiting-room, veranda, etc., and when the boiler is changed and a short fire-escape from the hospital has been provided, we shall feel well satisfied. We would like very much to have a faucet and bowl in the rear office or workroom at the Annex, as it would be a great convenience. We wish to refer to the fact that there has been the largest sum collected by the Treasurer for our department in its history, the total amount from both accounts is as follows : Miscellaneous ac- count, $11,317.95; City Home account, $4,573.28; total, $15,891.23. This is more than double the amount collected in any previous year.


Respectfully submitted, HENRY F. CURTIS, Overseers ALBERT W. EDMANDS, of the


PHILIP KOEN, Poor


REPORT OF THE GENERAL AGENT.


Somerville, Mass, December 31, 1914. To the Overseers of the Poor, Somerville, Mass.


Gentlemen,-The work has been greatly increased during the year past owing in part to the 1913 law, as a large amount of visiting has to be done, much more time also has to be put in at the hospital than formally, owing to the fact that a visitor from our office takes the histories of all the city cases, so collections for the hospital from other cities and towns and the state can be made. There has also been much more work required for looking up the Board of Health cases. All through the year our work has been dragging, and it seems to me only a matter of time when we will have to employ at the busy seasons additional office help. We moved in May and of course we miss our large vault that we had at the other office, it had been fixed up with shelves, drawers, etc., just right, and was said to be the best vault in the city. We have a fine large safe but it is very much smaller than the vault. We like the new offices much better than the old one in some respects, they are more roomy and are finished and furnished in fine style, the location is much better owing to the close proximity to the City Hall Proper, there is also much less noise than on Walnut Street, so on the whole we are well satisfied, or shall be, when we have toilet arrangement on the first floor, and electric lights changed in two or three places so that we can see better to do our work. The law will soon change so that taxes will not be requisite to gaining a settle- ment for men in any city or town, while this will revolu- tionize to some extent the working of the pauper laws, yet in some cases and in some cities it will work well we hope, and on the whole will be an improvement.


Respectfully submitted,


C. C. FOLSOM, General Agent.


370


ANNUAL REPORTS.


Table No. 1. FULL SUPPORT (During the year.)


In city home (men 58, women 39) 97




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