Ban Placed On State To Check 'Flu' Spread

• An order prohibiting all public gatherings until midnight, Oct. 20, was issued by the State Board of Health yesterday at its regular quarterly session; the date was arbitrarily set in hopes that the peak of the epidemic will have passed by then, but if conditions warrant, it will be extended past Oct. 20 or lifted earlier; health officers are of the opinion that no modification of the ban will be possible before the date set• The order, quoted in full by the Star, supersedes the state’s previous order and is to be enforced in every county regardless of conditions; “public gatherings” means churches, theaters, schools, political meetings, and any other kind of meeting open to the public, in a building or in the open air; the order also prohibits spitting in public, orders the use of handkerchiefs, regulates street cars and interurban cars by requiring cleansing and the opening of all ventilators and windows when the temperature is above 56 degrees and it is not storming, and demands the reporting of all cases• Hurty sent a letter supplementing the order, also quoted, which sets a penalty of no less than $5 and no more than $50 for every violation of the order; he also excludes essential war activities, such as Red Cross working units and conferences of Liberty Loan workers, from the ban; he also permits juvenile sporting events, as he encourages outdoor sport and play for children• Full board was present for the meeting; it included Dr. Charles B. Kern, President; Dr. Hugh Cowing, Vice-President; Dr. James S. Boyers, Dr. Hurty, and Dr. King• Dr. King said that the order did not necessarily include poolrooms and other like places; he said that local officials may extend the orders and interpret them to include such places and add any other preventive measure; King also noted that court rooms that excluded spectators or other persons not directly interested in the case would be allowed• The State Board of Health also adopted a rule forcing all soda fountains, hotels, restaurants, and eating houses to sterilize all dishes and utensils used by customers; previously the rule had been enforced only within a ten mile radius of military installations• Hurty began receiving reports from various sections of the state, indicating the rapid spread of the disease, though he hoped that the peak of the epidemic would be reached by Sunday 10/13Newspaper article1, 1