The cause of an epidemic of typhoid fever among the 1,000
inhabitants of Three Oaks, Mich., was discovered when a member
of the Board of Health climbed to the top of the waterworks’
stand-pipe and found the bodies of several thousand young
sparrows covering the surface of the water. Immediately the
mayor gave instructions to empty the stand-pipe, scrub and paint
it.
Hundreds of sparrow nests have been built on a ledge that runs
around the summit of the stand-pipe and the young birds are
supposed to have fallen in while trying to fly. The cover made
for the stand-pipe when it was constructed was never put on. The
result was twenty-one cases of typhoid in the town.
(2178)
=Neglect in Church Attendance=--See CHURCH SERVICES.