Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 280, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 November 1916 — St Louis Finds Its Dust Crowded With Bacilli [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

St Louis Finds Its Dust Crowded With Bacilli

ST. LOUIS. —Analysis of samples of dust picked up from downtown street* by the big vacuum street sweeper shows that each gram of dust, whichlß less than a teaspoonful, contains more than 60,000,000 bacilli, more than one-

half of which are dangerous diseases, so reported City Bacteriologist Baldwin to Director of Streets and Sewers Talbert. The tests show, Doctor Baldwin said, that the dust particles on the streets In the business district form one of the contributory causes of illhealth in St. Ronis. When inhaled or breathed by persons whose systems are run down they may cause serious Illness, he declared.

Among the germs found were large quantities of the colon and streptococci groups. The colon group include typhoid fever and kindred bacilli. Doctor Baldwin said. The streptococci group Include those which cause abscesses, inflammations, bowel troubles and similar ailments. The dust in the middle of the streets contains a greater percentage of dangerous germs than the dirt near the curbs, the analysis shows. The tests show that each gram of dust near the curbs contains Un, average ; of 52,420,000 germs. Of these. 7,344,000 are of the colon group and 29,976.000 are of the streptococci group. Each gram of dust from the middle of the streets averages 66.320,000 germs, of which 15,604,000 are of the colon typg tnd 23,405,000 are the streptococci.