CAUSE OF BOY'S DEATH
TO BE INVESTIGATED.
PARENTS CHARGE NEGLIGENCE
AND WILL FIX BLAME.
Father Says Consent for the Vaccin-
ation of Floyd Tinsley Was
Never Given to School
Authorities.
FLOYD M. TINSLEY.
"Thorough investigation of all the facts surrounding the death of Floyd M. Tinsley, the 12-year-old son of W. G. Tinsley, 2323 Prospect avenue, which resulted from an infected vaccination wound, will be made by the boy's parents as soon as possible, and every effort will be made to place the blame for any negligence that may have caused the child's death.
"Somebody has got to answer for the boy's death," said Mr. Tinsley last night. "Somebody is responsible for it, and I'm going to find out who it is."
The vaccination, which took place in the Irving school three weeks ago Tuesday was, it is said, performed contrary to the wishes of the parents. Mr. Tinsley wished to deny the statement of an afternoon paper, which said that he had written to the school's authorities asking that the child be vaccinated.
"It's a lie," said he; "no note was ever written by me to the school about the vaccination. I would not have had it done. I have always been opposed to vaccination, and when Floyd was vaccinated it was without my knowledge."
MOTHER DRESSED THE WOUND.
"Three weeks ago three of the five Tinsley children were vaccinated at the Irving school by Dr. Hasbrouck De Lamater, whose office is at Thirty-fifth street and Brooklyn avenue. A few days after the vaccination Floyd's arm began to trouble him. A pasteboard guard had been placed over the vaccination wound and the boy given instructions not to remove it. Over a week ago the wound became so foul and so much refuse matter collected around it that the boy's mother thought it best to take off the cap and dress the wound with antiseptic. This she did, using powdered burnt alum as a healing medicine, and bandaging the wound with medicated cotton and clean, white cloth three times each day.
Sunday afternoon Floyd was so much worse that he was kept in bed. Late Sunday afternoon the family physician, B. F. Watson, who lives at Howard and Prospect avenues, was called in. He examined they boy and, according to his own statement and that of the boy's parents, administered calomel and salts. The mother told him of the condition of the boy's arm and, according to Mrs. Tinsley, Dr. Watson washed it out with hot water and boric acid. Dr. Watson denies the washing of the wound.
"It was late, and the light in the room was insufficient," stated," stated the doctor last night. "I really didn't know what was the matter with the boy, but no thought of possible infection occurred to me. It was not until I returned to the house Monday morning that I saw the boy had lockjaw, and then I arranged to have him taken to the hospital. It was with my recommendation that the parents allowed Floyd to be taken to the general hospital.
DOCTOR WAS MISQUOTED.
"I was misquoted in the afternoon paper Wednesday. It credits me with saying that infection set up in the wound after it had been dressed by the boy's parents. I did not say that, nor do I pretend to know when infection set in. If the wound became infected before it was dressed by the parents, before the pasteboard guard was removed, then the boy's death was not due to negligence of the parents."
Floyd was taken to the general hospital Monday night, over twelve hours after lockjaw had set in. There he was operated on by Dr. J. Park Neal, who was unable to save his life. Dr. Neal stated last night that everything known to medical science had been tried to save the boy, but that the infection was of too long standing.
Mr. and Mrs. Tinsley have four surviving children: Myrtle, aged 13; William, aged 9; Hazel, aged 7, and Lester, aged 4. Hazel and Myrtle were vaccinated at the same time Floyd was, and Myrtle's arm is now causing much trouble. A physician has been called to treat her in hopes that she may be saved from her brother's fate. Mr. Tinsley and his wife said last night that neither of them knew their children were to be vaccinated. They were emphatic in their stand that none of the rest should be submitted to a similar operation. Floyd Tinsley was in the fourth grade at school and under the supervision of Miss Edna Miller, his teacher, and Miss Gertrude Green, the principal of the Irving school.
