An asymptomatic carrier of typhoid fever, she unknowingly infected 47 people, of whom three died, according to one account.

Born Mary Mallon (1869-1938), she was a gifted cook who also worked as a maid, and was good with children.

While she was in the employ of a wealthy banker at his rented holiday cottage in the summer of 1906, six of the banker's family members contracted typhoid fever.

Suspicion fell upon Mallon as the source of the infections. But when asked by public health authorities to submit to blood and urine tests, she reportedly refused, threatening them with a carving fork.

According to "Byoma to iu Aku no Monogatari" (A story of evil called disease), by Osamu Kanamori (1954-2016), Mallon was forcibly quarantined, but she simply could not understand why because she herself had no symptoms of the disease.

After she was released from quarantine three years later, Mallon went to work at a hospital under a false name, where she caused mass infections.

With no known cure for the disease at the time, newspapers sensationalized her case, characterizing her as "an innocent killer" and "the most dangerous woman in America."

She was returned to quarantine in 1915. This second quarantine lasted until her death 23 years later.

Kenichi Ohmi, 54, a researcher at the National Institute of Public Health of Japan, said Typhoid Mary is a name of profound importance in the history of public health.

"She represents the fundamental conflict between the notions of public welfare and personal freedom--the former having to do with the need to contain infections, and the latter with not forcing individuals into isolation unless absolutely necessary."

The current COVID-19 pandemic is impossible to fight without viable countermeasures against the spread of the virus by asymptomatic carriers.

I myself am practicing every precaution against infection, and I've been fine so far. Still, I become quite nervous every time I ride the train, wondering if I might be one of those asymptomatic carriers, or if the passenger next to me is one.

Mallon continued to be portrayed as an evil woman even after her death. Her tragic life has left us mulling and struggling over a very grave question.

--The Asahi Shimbun, June 16

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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