Dr. Davis in his brief statement above wisely sums up the opinions and conclusions of the medical profession regarding fever. The word mechanism is mentioned twice in the above quotations. Webster defines mechanism as the arrangement or relation of the parts of a machine. Man, animal brutes and vegetables possess life, vital force, are not machines. Dorland s Dictionary gives 100 kinds of fever and Gould s 150.
Fever is a condition in which the bodily temperature is elevated above the normal.
The pulse is accelerated, its movement increased, there is general derangement of functions, thirst and loss of appetite. Thirst, a desire to drink because of dryness, because of an inflammation of the mucous membranes of the mouth, fauces, pharynx, esophagus and stomach. Excessive heat dries and thickens the mucus of the mucous membranes, water is cooling and moistens the mucus. Signs of disease may be objective, apparent to the observer by examination, and subjective, when known only by the patient. Fevers are essential when general, not depending on any local affection.