古巴的下水道工作。
与古巴进行任何改革之前，还应与彻底污水的哈瓦那和其他海港的任务联系起来，每个海港，尤其是哈瓦那，都是黄热病的巢穴，它被进口到这个国家，并不经常变得流行。由于塞尔波特人的不卫生状况 - 他们的污秽和缺陷，努力解决了纠正措施，因此已故的上校沃林遇到了他过早的死亡。在哈瓦那，即使现在天气凉爽，死亡率也很大 - 截至11月24日的一周中，黄热病，肠热，疟疾和其他发烧，也有119名受害者；肠炎，六十九岁；结核病，五十五；痢疾，二十六个；肺炎，九；和饥饿，一个。然后，这座城市有60例黄热病。ir。 Brunner,the United States sanitary inspector, gives some idea of what the filthy condition of the capital of Cuba is, and how ridiculous are the existing means and methods of cleansing it,when he reports as follows:
了一些试图清洁城市;部t, as they were not made intelligently, they were not effective. Fire engines have been used for flushing the sewers; but, as they merely pumped the water into the streets, allowing it to drain into sewers, little good was accomplished. The work could have been made effective by pumping into each one of the manholes,or catchbasins, beginning at the head of the sewer, and pumping to the outlet. An abortive attempt has been made to sweep some of the streets by means of withes tied together. The methods wereas ludicrous as they were futile. The excreta of hundreds of homeless people, and of hundreds of those who have homes, line the sidewalks of side streets, and the indifference shown to these conditions is remarkable, even when the character of the population is considered. It is to be hoped that the city will be made mechanically clean before the American troops are allowed to enter. If this is not done—and done at once, then the men will simply be exposed to the ravages of disease and death and each man invalided home may become a centre whence yellow fever may radiate and, even in winter, cause a mortality which is plainly avoidable. It is clear that, where any sewerage is to be found,an entirely new system is needed for Havana and the other seaports, while a proper system must be built where at present there is not even the appearance of such a thing. In Havana especially, where there is a good system of water works and an abundant supply of wholesome water, there should be no difficulty in securing the means of flushing the existing sewersand of sending (not into the harbor, where the sewage at present finds its abiding place but) far out to sea, through a series of main drains or one large drainage tunnel, the filth which now festers in the streets or the wellnigh stagnant water of the harbor and causes nine-tenths of the mortality. Memphis, Tenn., and Brunswick, Ga, have each gone through more than one siege of yellow fever; but Col. Waring’s skill in constructing an efficient system of sewage for these cities has rendered them virtually immune, so far, at least, as yellow fever is concerned, besides reducing to normal figures their former abnormal rate of mortality. It is to be hoped that the Federal Government will lose no time in following out the methods Col. Waring proposed and planned for the cleansing of Havana, and that ihe building of its new sewerage system will immediately be committed to the hands of competent contractors—if it is not undertaken by the Government itself.
