no reliable reports as to the prevalence of disease in Europe, but in general, we know there has been considerable cholera in the southeastern part of the country and even as far as the western battle front. The same applies to typhus, and even in Germany where they have been remarkably well vaccinated, they had various outbreaks of smallpox. Plague has been reported as more widely prevalent in England in the past year than at any time in the past 30 years. Infection has been reported from Liverpool, Hull, Bristol, and London.

REEDY ISLAND (DEL.) QUARANTINE STATION.

The CHAIRMAN. The first place is Reedy Island quarantine station. That is in Delaware?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir. It is the quarantine station for Philadelphia and League Island, and as that port has been used as the port of embarkation for a number of troops, I presume they will be returned at various times to that same point.

The CHAIRMAN. Now, for this station you are asking a total of $32,000-$6,000 for attendants' quarters. How many attendants will this accommodate?

Dr. CREEL. That will practically double our present capacity. It would house, all told, probably 20 men.

OFFICERS' QUARTERS.

The CHAIRMAN. The next item is for officers' quarters, $9,000. Dr. CREEL. We have two officers on duty there at present, but there is only one set of quarters, and the junior officer is living temporarily in a building that is intended as

The CHAIRMAN (interposing). What type of building do you erect for an officer costing $9,000?

Dr. CREEL. A frame cottage one and a half stories. I may say that construction at Reedy Island is costlier than at many places, because it is more or less made ground and is swampy and the construction has to be placed on piling. The duplication of the present set of quarters at Reedy Island was estimated for by a contractor in Delaware City, and his tentative bid was $9,000. It provides a six or seven room cottage one story and a half.

The CHAIRMAN. And that will cost $9,000?

Dr. CREEL. That was the tentative bid received from a contractor at Delaware City. Piling work is involved and that is costly, and, furthermore, Reedy Island is isolated and there is a question of transportation. The supervising architect had an experience this past summer in expending an appropriation of $8,000 at Cape Charles quarantine, and the plan had to be revised a number of times to come within the $8,000, and it provided a very modest building.

BLANKETS, PILLOWS, SHEETS, ETC.

The CHAIRMAN. You are also estimating for blankets, pillows, sheets, etc.

Dr. CREEL. That is for the accommodation of 1,500 persons or rather the maximum capacity of the quarantine station which would be between ten and twelve hundred.

CAPE CHARLES, VA., QUARANTINE STATION.

The CHAIRMAN. The next is Cape Charles quarantine station, Norfolk, Va.

Dr. CREEL. This amounts to $225,826. It contemplates the establishment of an entire quarantine station. The Government owns Craney Island, which is midway between Cape Charles and Norfolk. The present quarantine facilities at Cape Charles are on a floating hulk, and there are hospital facilities there for eight persons and no more. In 1884 the Government acquired for quarantine purposes Fishermans Island, which is located 20 miles from Cape Charles. At that time is was selected chiefly on account of its isolation as a yellow-fever detention camp and it has probably served its purpose. The CHAIRMAN. Twenty miles in what direction?

Dr. CREEL. Twenty miles up the Chesapeake Bay.

Dr. BLUE. Directly east.

Dr. CREEL. It probably served its purpose at that time for lightdraft vessels for the West Indies that might have been yellow-tever infected; but with the increase of trans-Atlantic trade and deepdraft vessels, it has fallen into more or less disuse and it has been impracticable to get a ship anywhere near the island; that is, it has been of no practical use from a quarantine standpoint, certainly for the last 10 years. I may say in addition to facilitating the movement of transports and troop ships and anticipating various conditions that might arise in the course of the war, Norfolk has increased very greatly as a shipping center. In 1910, for instance, the number of ships inspected and passed through quarantine were considerably less than 300. In 1914 this number had increased to somewhat less than 600. During the past year it has increased to more than 1,900. The quarantine operations have increased more than threefold, and we have not even the facilities we had in 1884.

Mr. GILLETT. Would that cover the whole bay or just Norfolk. For instance, would it cover Baltimore?

Dr. CREEL. Not Baltimore; no, sir. It would cover Norfolk and James River, Richmond and the harbor of Norfolk, Newport News, and the new naval station that they are establishing there.

BARRACK BUILDINGS.

Mr. SHERLEY. You contemplate putting up seven barrack buildings there with a capacity of 300 beds each?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. What character of buildings?

Dr. CREEL. Of the cheapest possible frame construction.

Mr. SHERLEY. Then, you do not contemplate making this a permanent quarantine station?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir; we do; but even the cheapest frame construction, while it would not be as desirable as more permanent construction, yet at the same time it would probably last, with ordinary repairs, 20 or 25 years. While it is more or less temporary construction, it is cheaper construction than the Supervising Architect's Office would recommend for permanent structures, but at the same time it would serve its purpose for 20 or 25 years. Dr. BLUE. In a mild climate.

MESS HALLS.

Mr. SHERLEY. "Three mess halls, $12,000." Is that the same construction?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir; the cheapest construction.

OFFICERS' QUARTERS.

Mr. SHERLEY. "One officers' quarters, $10,000." What is that to be?

Dr. CREEL. That will be practically a duplication of the officers' quarters at Fort Monroe, for which an appropriation was made some three or four years ago.

Mr. SHERLEY. What kind of a building will that be?

Dr. CREEL. The building that is now in the course of construction at Cape Charles is a frame building.

Mr. SHERLEY. Is not that rather expensive, $10,000 for a frame house?

Dr. CREEL. The expenditures are to be made under the Supervising Architect's office. I know that they had to change the plans three or four times, covering the lapse of an entire year, before they could get the cost of construction under $8,000. Certainly it is not a very pretentious building.

REMODELING OLD BRICK BUILDING FOR ATTENDANTS.

Mr. SHERLEY. "Remodeling old brick building for attendants, $4,000." What sort of a building is that?

Dr. CREEL. An old brick building, one of the large barracks now on the island. That is for remodeling, partitions, etc.

HEATING PLANT AND PLUMBING.

Mr. SHERLEY. "Heating plant and plumbing, $20,000." That covers the plumbing for all the buildings?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir; for the entire station.

STANDEE BUNKS.

Mr. SHERLEY."667 Standee bunks, triple, at $18 each, $12,006." What are those, beds?

Dr. CREEL. They are bunks which are made of canvas, with springs, suspended from the ceiling. Ordinarily the Standee bunk is a threetier bunk with supports of piping, and the framework also of piping. It requires a mattress.

Mr. SHERLEY. Do you keep people housed that closely?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir; it can be done, if the proper ventilation is furnished.

BLANKETS, SHEETS, ETC.-LIGHTING PLANT AND EQUIPMENT.

Mr. SHERLEY. Then you have "4,000 blankes at $4 each," "4,000 sheets," "2,000 pillows," "plumbing and lighting, $10,000." You have an item above that for plumbing. Why this item?

Dr. CREEL. The plumbing and lighting refers to the other building. Mr. SHERLEY. It does not say so.

Dr. CREEL. Those estimates were prepared by the representative of the Supervising Architect's Office to provide the necessary equipment and accommodations.

Mr. SHERLEY. You furnish specifications?

Dr. CREEL. We only tell them what we want the capacity of the plant to be.

HOSPITAL BUILDING AND EQUIPMENT.

Mr. SHERLEY. I notice "Hospital building and equipment." That is separate from the barracks building?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. How many beds will that have?

Dr. CREEL. It will also include the equipment. I can not say offhand, but I think it included 50 beds.

DISINFECTING AND BOARDING VESSEL.

Mr. SHERLEY. You have "Disinfecting and boarding vessel, $10,000 "?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir. That will provide a boarding and disinfecting vessel for Cape Charles of about the same size as the one at Boston, the one at Philadelphia, the one at San Francisco, and the other larger ports.

Mr. SHERLEY. Have you not a vessel there now?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir; a vessel which is wholly inadequate. We can do hardly any disinfecting at all.

Dr. BLUE. On account of the roughness of the weather, it is very necessary that a larger boat be provided. At certain times a man takes his life in his hand when he tries to board a vessel.

Dr. CREEL. In rough weather the officer has authority to rent a vessel, and sometimes for the rental of a vessel alone we pay $150 a month.

Mr. SHERLEY. Is this price figured on present prices?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. What did the vessel cost before?

Dr. CREEL. Probably $25,000.

Mr. SHERLEY. Have you in mind building this vessel?

Dr. CREEL. Either building or buying it; we need it at once.

Mr. SHERLEY. Have you made any inquiries whether you can get a vessel at this figure?

Dr. CREEL. We have not gone into any detailed investigation, but I understand from officers of the Coast Guard Service that smaller vessels can be obtained quite readily; that they are getting such vessels without any trouble.

SAVANNAH, GA., QUARANTINE.

INCREASED FACILITIES.

Mr. SHERLEY. The next station is the Savannah Station, and you are asking there for $98,644. What is the situation there?

Dr. CREEL. At Savannah we practically have no detention facilities, or small facilities. I think the figures are given in statement submitted.

Mr. SHERLEY. It states here that there are detention facilities for 40.

Dr. CREEL. And hospital facilities in addition, I believe.

Mr. SHERLEY. Hospital accommodations for from 12 to 15 patients. Dr. CREEL. It is very small. The difficulty there is when we get an infected vessel. Ordinarily, there is very little passenger traffic up the Savannah River, but if a vessel arrives there with any number of troops aboard there would be difficulty. During the Spanish-American War vessels had to be held up in order to accommodate the troops. Mr. SHERLEY. Is it contemplated that this will likely be a port where the troops will be received or embarked from?

Dr. CREEL. I do not know. I can not say whether they have definitely selected any particular port for the return of the troops.

Mr. SHERLEY. Are you contemplating providing facilities at all of the Atlantic ports to take care of any emergency that might grow out of this war?

Dr. CREEL. Not all of the ports, but Savannah would cover the entire South Atlantic, including Charleston and on down to Florida. All such ships would be sent there.

Mr. SHERLEY. Savannah was chosen to cover a certain area?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. What area?

Dr. CREEL. From Charleston on south.

Mr. SHERLEY. And Norfolk will take care of the ships down to Charleston?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir; and around through the Chesapeake Bay, and Boston will take care of the ships on the North Atlantic.

Mr. SHERLEY. Have you a sufficient area now for this enlarged station at Savannah?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir; we have sufficient ground there.

Mr. SHERLEY. How much ground have you?

Dr. CREEL. Several acres; I can not answer that question.

Dr. BLUE. I remember the station very well. We have sufficient ground there.

Dr. CREEL. I have been there. Area of station, 131 acres; 50 acres firm ground.

Mr. SHERLEY. Have you a station at Charleston?

Mr. CREEL. Yes, sir; but the capacity is only 90, and the reservation is somewhat restricted in area.

Mr. SHERLEY. Savannah was considered a more desirable place for an enlarged quarantine station?

Dr. CREEL. Yes, sir.

Mr. SHERLEY. And the buildings are to be of the type mentioned? Dr. CREEL. The cheapest type of frame building.

Mr. SHERLEY. Have you a vessel there?

Dr. CREEL. We have a vessel there which is sufficient.

BOSTON, MASS., QUARANTINE STATION.

INCREASED FACILITIES.

Mr. SHERLEY. You are asking at the Boston Quarantine Station $187,800, the plan being to increase the capacity of that station so as to accommodate a total of 2,400 people?