Entry 1

This play, An Enemy of the People, adapted by Arthur Miller, is somewhat confusing play concerned with the local politics of the town in the late nineteenth century. I understand majority of it, but most of my questions begin with why?
I understand that so far the Doctor, Dr. Stockmann, had people over at his house when his daughter, Petra, hands him a letter. He reads his letter which states that he has made a discovery about the town's bath water; it is polluted. The baths are crucial to the town's economy, and were supposed to be healing the sick, but since the source of the water was built near a tannery factory it contains a large quantity of bacteria that the Doctor states is infecting the town. He tells is brother, Mayor Peter Stockmann, of his discoveries. The Mayor is outraged that Dr. Stockmann would conduct an investigation without him, and then create such accusations. Plus, the repairs that would have to be made would be take two years and be too expensive. Dr. Stockmann writes a manuscript about his discovery that he intends to be put in the local paper. The editors of the paper decide not to publish it out of fear that the paper will be boycotted if the townspeople do not agree with the Doctor. So he decides to call a meeting at Captain Horster's house.
It breify mentions that the townspeople had differing reactions to the news; but I did not read what their reactions were or why they reacted such a way. I assume that the townspeople were skeptical, and did not agree with the Doctor.