Rensselaer Republican, Volume 22, Number 51, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 August 1890 — DIPHTHERIA DID NOT SPREAD. [ARTICLE]

DIPHTHERIA DID NOT SPREAD.

But One More of the Infected Ones Has , Died. Mary Yeager, the young girl mentioned last week as being very bad with the diphtheria at the Zerdan place, died on Friday, and was privately buried the same day. She was very nearly 12 years old, and was a daughter of Matt Yeager, of Milroy township. Little Mary, Mrs. Zimmer’s only surviving child, is still in a more or less dangerous condition, and may not survive. Maggie Zerdan also, is 'not making good progress, being still very Weak. The other cases of the diseas4, as mentioned last week, have all recovered, or are. well on the road to recovery. There have been no new cases since those reported last week, and with the great care that has been exercised” to keep the disease confined to the family affected, there is, practically, no further danger of any new cases.

Several children were sick in town ast week, in the families of George Hopkins and George Worden, with sore throats, with probably some seem ingly diphtheritic symptoms, and these circumstances gave rise to groundless and alarming reports of the speading of the disease; but these children all recovered in a few days, and there is now not a single case of sickness in the town which could, by any possibility, be suspected of being the diphtheria—excepting, of course, the single case of Mrs. John Healy. who contracted Jhe disease at the Zerdan place, and whoYs-nqw almost well. 'ln this connection we would state that there has been no other case of the disease at Mr. Healey’s except the one just mentionedThe statement published in the Democratic Sentinel to the effect that Miss Maggie Healey was affected by it, being a mistake. She is [entirely well, and has had pot even a symptom of diphtheria.

It is now the opinion of the physicians that the Zimmer family, who have been nearly exterminated by the disease, must have brought the germs of the contagion with them from Chicago, from which place they :came a few weeks before, and from a division of the city where there have been many recent cases of diphtheria. In conclusion, we feel justified in assuring the people of Rensselaer and surrounding country that there is no further danger, whatever, of any new cases of the disease.