The Situation Has Improved
Smallpox in Mercer County Now on Decrease
Authorities’ Efforts Fruitful
Only a Question of a Few Weeks Until the Disease Will be Entirely Wiped Out
Curtailment of Expenses
The Smallpox situation is greatly improved.
Yesterday, the last cases in the pest house at Coopers were discharged.
There are eight cases in private houses in the neighborhood of Coopers. Only one new case has developed in this locality during the last week.
There have been nearly a hundred cases in all – between forty and fifty at one time. This has dwindled to eight.
There have been between thirty and forty cases at Ingleside. There is only one now.
The disease has entirely disappeared at Oakvale, where there were quite a number of cases a short time back.
In Bluefield there have been, in all, seventy-two cases, but now there are only eight.
At Willowton, on the line between this county and Giles county, Va., a number of new cases have been reported.
From this is can be readily seen that there has been a great decrease also in the expense incident to smallpox visitation. At Ingleside, where there were twenty-two guards employed, only two are retained, and this curtailment of expenses is general.
Bluefield Daily Telegraph, 16 February 1902