Outbreak of cholera among convicts : an etiological study of the influence of dwelling, food, drinking-water, occupation, age, state of health, and intercourse upon the course of cholera in a community living in precisely the same circumstances / by Max von Petternkofer.

  • Pettenkofer Max von, 1818-1901.
Date:
1876
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Outbreak of cholera among convicts : an etiological study of the influence of dwelling, food, drinking-water, occupation, age, state of health, and intercourse upon the course of cholera in a community living in precisely the same circumstances / by Max von Petternkofer. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

    24/128 (page 18)
    The number of inmates in the institution at the time of the epidemic was as follows: On December 1st 1873 the number of prisoners amounted to 509. During the period between December 1st and 5th, on which day no more prisoners wTere sent, there had been 11 fresh arrivals and 2 prisoners had returned from transport. So that the whole * contingent of prisoners to be taken into consideration during the epidemic amounted to 522. Of these 522 there were attacked according to the above-mentioned table: with cholera, simple and choleraic diarrhoea . 56a per cent „ cholera , . . . 24.5 ,, ,, choleraic diarrhoea . . 8.2 „ „ diarrhoea 23.9 ,, died 15.9 „ The few facts, which I have communicated here, already suffice to make this epidemic appear a problem well worthy of the most thorough investigation. With the consent of the Bavarian Minister of Justice and the Imperial Chancellor I not only went myself to the spot, where T made a number of inquiries from December 9th to 17th, but I induced the other members of the cholera commission for the German Empire to betake themselves also to Laufen, and convince themselves of the actual facts. I was unwilling in such an important matter to bear the wdiole responsibility, so that nothing, which might be of service to the investigation, should be neglected or overlooked. After the commission had held a full meeting at Munich on January 12th 1874 by order of the Imperial Chancellor, and had been made acquainted with the facts by me, as far as T knew them, they went, myself excepted, with the sanction of the Bavarian Minister of Justice to the prison at Laufen on January 15th, made a thorough examination of the institution, discussed many particulars with governor Scliicker and Dr. Berr, made some further important inquiries, and commissioned me after their return from Laufen at a meeting at Munich on January 19th to draw up a minute report. If now almost a year elapsed before this report was completed, it is partly due to the comprehensive nature of the task and the necessity of making many supplementary inquiries, partly to my endeavour to furnish a report as exact and comprehensive as possible. This endeavour determined me, not to comprise the cases at Laufen as isolated per se, but as far as possible in connection with others, which involved me in more work, than I had calculated at first, and obliged me to repeatedly trouble many others also with questions and answers. I shall now try to relate the facts arranged according to certain points of view. INTRODUCTION OF CHOLERA INTO THE PRISON AT LAUFEN. However convinced we may be, that the cholera did not arise spontaneously in Laufen, we have had little success in ascertaining the time or the mode of its introduction. It will be perhaps most practical to take the intercourse with Munich as the starting-point of our investigations. Quite apart from the fact, that the introduction of the disease from Munich was just as possible during the summer epidemic, but did not take place, those prisoners first claim our attention, who were sent to it from Munich several weeks before the outbreak of the malady in the institution, and especially those, who had resided some time in Munich. These are enumerated in the following table, which presents a list of all the prisoners 18 in number despatched from the goals for untried prisoners in Munich beginning with November 1st.