Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1857-05-09
ON THE LATE ENDEMIC II TAsHMGToN|
BY THOMAS ANTIsELL, ". D.

~ -, T. sse5
Read before the Natio1es Iasss,as, Aprz Is, 1857
To medical man the subject Of tiobgy is one of the
most pleasant subdivisions Of his Profession It's ne
rest increases with the obscaty in which the first ap
proches of disease wrapped and the subject seems
to be inexhaustibe for new customs of society,
modes of fe the introduction Of agents into our
households the progress of science and the increase in
the number of our artsdl wants dependent on prospe
rity are all SO many new of disease; every oc-
cupation is source of disease and the modern CONSOLE
dation of thousands of occupations within the limits of
city is dominant cause of many evils
In searching out the it is possible attribute
too much to the latter life; and it
behooves every phosophic medical to give more
than the due allowance to every agent and above all to
be critically careful that be assigned which is
not competent the effect and that the sequences of
assigned cause be always such usually and most Ne
queny belong to it; else negectng these precautins
Etioogy and the Science of Medicine generally wl I'D
revert into the condition in which CELSIUS found it wien
he called the latter the " AIRS Conjccturalis." II
The history of the late endemic in city furnishes
an example of disease numbering many victims-a Dis
ease remarkably circumscrbed and persistent for many
weeks the origin and of which is about obscure
as the first invention of letters -
believe there is no direct in which fatal reslt
followed The recovery from the disease slow IN
many cases. and there are some even at the presfat
Time not fully recuperaed, but notion case has teri-
mated fatally.
The symptoms point to some irritation of the mucous
membrane of the stomach and alimentary canal in tie
first instance unaccompanied by symptoms of infa
nation and without any concomitant fever uneasnes
with of distension of the abdomen prevailing
The diarrhea was frequent copious, and accompanied
by slight nausea, and followed by great prostration
tendency in the diarrha to relapse after being check
the characteristic feature of the inessthe relax
coming from the second to the fourth day, the icb
vidual often being able to be out of doors through
house in the interval.
The discharges watery yellow clay colored, ami
produced if suddenly poured out into the intestine b.
osmotc emulation. when, the dstenson producing peril
talic centraon the desire to discharge became sudden
| and irresistible.
Or6la Trae de Poisons vol q section q details 81
vera cases. with symptoms resembling those of this Ell
demic few of which terminated fatally, and the }e-
cropsy showed that condition of softenng Of the coa
the stomach which precedes perforation accompanying
which there is always vitiated condition of the BILE,
which has been looked upon by authorities as he
| immediate cause of the softenng.
To what these symptoms to be attributable mt
tiers taken in by TIE food is it due to atmospheric
| agencies
If dependent on the first condition-that is abnormal
food-it can arise only from improper articles of tod
used food cooked careessy, by the introduction OF
/ poison into the aliment before being served
/ If dependent the atmosphere, it must be by sme
special alteration of atmosphere otherwise healthy
which alteration is capable of producing those symptm
enumerated beforehand. 9
Regarding the food as it is the first cause likely tc
raise suspicion we have che evidence of DR.. Hall thai
the symptoms most frequently occurred in the morning
when the stomach was most empty that many who hae
not eaten drank there affected and it must als
be remembered that the large majority of those who die
board there were unaffected.
am free to confess that shared in the belief that th
poison, whatever it was, into the system through
the alimentary canal; but after the examinations which
made altered slowly that opinion.
The first week in February Messrs Guy Briggs EN-
ployed endeavor to find out the mdterus mori ant
it is but just and fair to them to say that they aforde
every facility which lay in their power With then
visited the whole under portion of the hotel the cellar
and passages The whole had been swept and
previous my visit in which was accompanied bv Or
Boyle With the exception of open water channel .,
gutter in which the hot suds from the LAUNDRY the
length of entire wing nothing which was often
sve to the there odor of fetd gases any
sewer escapements IN any of the passages vsih We
visited the kitchen, found the utensils bright ana Clean
the coppers In all free from oxdlsemen but not per-
fecy timed and from the soup copper boiling uplp the
fire took quantity of the dinner soup for examination.
The tables and the whole cuisine had air of clanl-
about them that think is always found naore
fortunate establishments. firmly believe that all chrges
of filth, vermin, rats in water &c. had never the lem
blance of foundation at this period. examined the
water csterns found them clean, and the upper inc,
which iay on the roof ana supplied the mouse, was
tied and reflled often five times day. | to6 q
demijohn of this for examination also examaed
the milk, and took fowl (parridge,) which wa
| suspected cause.
examined all the liquids for metallic poisons, with
out success Neither anthony arsenic mercury, lead,
or copper present; neither there trace #
! srychnine in the water.
Indeed, the symptoms did not indicate any Of these
metallic poisons except perhaps antimony but the quar-
tity of this metal needful to produce such darrhu
would have been detected in moment. The partridg4s
contained little poisonous matter that they served
pleasant meal.
Of the water is necessary to add few words The
water was derived from spring at Dr. Green's at the
back of the hotel The examination made after the
first heavy fall of and its rapid thaw gallon of
water yielded 40 grains of solid matter and of this
large amount was bicarbonate of lime. More exactly
Bicarbonate lime ...................2S
Suphate do ...............................s2 6
Chloride sodium f.
DO magnesium ......................... B.
In one gallon. 40
This quantity of solid matter in gallon is much more
than healthy potable should hold and therefore
at the moment in the absence of graver was led
attribute the darrha the drinking of this water