TWENTY-EIGHTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE State Board of Health OF INDIANA FOR THE Fiscal and Board Year ending September 30, 1909 TO THE GOVERNOR INDIANAPOLIS : WM. B. BURFORD, CONTRACTOR FOR STATE PRINTING AND BINDING 1910 THE STATE OF INDIANA. November 30, 1909. Received by the Governor, examined and referred to the Auditor of State for verification of the financial statement. OFFICE OF AUDITOR OF STATE, INDIANAPOLIS, December 10, 1909. The within report, so far as the same relates to moneys drawn from the State Treasury, has been examined and found correct. JOHN C. BILLHEIMER, Auditor of State. December 11, 1909. Returned by the Auditor of State, with above certificate, and transmitted to Secretary of State for publication, upon the order of the Board of Commissioners of Public Printing and Binding. MARK THISTLETHWAITE, Secretary to the Governor. Filed in the office of the Secretary of State of the State of Indiana. December 28, 1909. FRED SIMS, Received the within report and delivered to the printer December 28, 1909. A. E. BUTLER, Clerk Printing Board. LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. INDIANAPOLIS, November 30, 1909. HON. THOMAS R. MARSHALL, Governor of Indiana: Sir I have the honor to present herewith the report of the State Board of Health for the fiscal and Board year, ending September 30, 1909. The law says: "They (State Board of Health) shall annually, on or before the first day of December, make a report to the Governor of their transactions and expenditures for the year ending September 30th next preceding, with such suggestions with regard to legislation as they may deem important in reference to the public health." The Vital Statistics Law commands: "The State Board of Health shall make an annual report of all vital statistics for each calendar year to the Governor, the same to be published with their report of transactions and expenditures for the fiscal year by the commissioners of the public printing and stationery." It is obviously impossible to furnish the vital statistics for the calendar year at this time, for the year is not ended. Even when the year is ended, December 31st, it will take at least three months, and very likely four months (with our present office force, which is hardly sufficient to carry on the ordinary daily work of the office), to classify, tabulate and analyze the thousands of deaths and births which have been reported to this office. It will be necessary, therefore, to hold the manuscript herewith submitted, or it may be printed, and the statistical report, when ready, can be printed and bound with it. We interpret the command of the law, "report of transactions," to mean that we shall give a complete account of the work of the Board, as appears in the minutes, but eliminating from said minutes such proceedings as pertain to mere routine affairs which must occur from month to month. I am sir, with highest respect, Very respectfully, J. N. HURTY, (4) Secretary. THIRTY-EIGHTH ANNUAL REPORT HON. THOMAS R. MARSHALL, Governor of Indiana: Sir The Indiana State Board of Health, in accordance with the law, has the honor to present herewith its Thirty-eighth Annual This report gives in full the "transactions and expenditures" of the Board for the year ending September 30, 1909; gives ac- count of the expenditures of its appropriations, and also gives ac- count of the work done in the State Laboratory of Hygiene, which has two divisions, namely, "The Chemical and the Bacteriological and Pathological." In connection with the report of the Chemical Laboratory is given an account of the work done in the matter of Vital statistics may be called the bookkeeping of humanity, for It is believed that the vital statistics collected for the calendar |