Note 2 — Chapter XVI · Health Conditions

The epidemic came soon after the close of a long-continued war, and there were at that time in Manila not a few evil-intentioned persons, both foreign and native, who welcomed every opportunity to make trouble. The difficulties arising from the claim advanced by a number of reputable but ignorant medical men that the disease was not cholera at all were sufficiently great. They were enormously increased by false and malicious stories to the effect that “contacts” were killed at the detention camp; that patients on arrival at the cholera hospital were given a drink of poisoned vino2 and instantly dropped dead; that the distilled water distributed free of charge was poisoned, and that the Americans were poisoning the wells.