Vintage Vault - Stars And Stripes

  By Paul

Vintage Vault

A new monthly column giving the past a voice of it's own. Vintage Vault reprints newspaper columns from period publications. The first instalment comes from Stars and Stripes Newspaper, the trade newspaper of the United States forces. A previous newspaper that lasted only one issue during the American Civil War was the first to bare the name. The Great War version ran from 1918-19 and was the forerunner of Stars and Stripes Magazine which began in 1942.




 

 
Stars and Stripes 

January 25th, 1919

ARMY ALONG THE RHINE SETS LOW RECORD


Only 33 Venereal Cases in Week - Whole A.E.F. Rate Down


 

Thirty-three venereal cases among 233,000 men.
This report by the Army of Occupation for the week of December 25 marks a new low record in disease incidence in the history of the American Army, according to the chief surgeon’s office. It represents a yearly rate of 7 cases per thousand men. For the whole A.E.F., the rate has been cut down to 34 cases per 1,000 men a year. The Army’s before-the-war rate was 80 - 90 cases per 1,000 men, which itself, is far below the civilian rate.



Establishment of venereal disease segregation camps at Le Mans, St. Aignan, St. Nazaire, Nantes and Bordeaux, embarkation centres, mean that no soldier will be returned to the United States while capable of spreading infection, the Chief Surgeon says. Men found diseased will be kept in Quarantine at the embarkation points until they have been restored to health.


Intensive medical treatment and a program of daily working parties are features of the quarantine system. The quarantine is expected to average more than 40 days per man. All troops marked for embarkation for the States will undergo a series of rigid inspections.