The southern aegis, and Harford County intelligencer., 1864-02-05

!. 2 8 " 4 - ls.t n IN
1905 .nt'tae -Ials - Ssgasi giiqafia
ND. FRIDAY MDRNfNG,i
.e 2ga7g
TO ,maintaihtthat contagiou. was necessary
sfpriits propagation, For along time It
was held that suppuration shoulds be en-
,eouraged III. order to throw off the morbid
matter asirapidly as possible. Hence hot
drinks andea hot atmosphere madelaplthe
treatment, only to increass.the mortality.
iSydenham was. the first toinculcate about
two hundred years ago, the necessity of
cooling drinks and'a freskventilation.-44-
Mild leases require but little medicines1--
In severe cases Stimulating drinks and'n
tritious food should be administered as
literally as the patient will BEAR Small
pox is most fatal to infancy, to those who
are over forty-fve years Of age, and tosail
who possess feeble constitutions The
mortality is estimated at one quarter o5f
all who are attacked. The average NOR.
itality in the London hospital forthe last
fifty years, is thirty per cent, or nearly
one third. But if this large number die
in the London hospital, with, the best of
medical attendance and the best of nurs-
ing, it is quite evident,that the mortality
must reach much higher figure among
the whole number who are attacked, else
hospitals, medical attendance and nursing
are of 'noaavail - fln fi4 ~.
% For the. prevention of smallpox two
famous remedies have been successfully
employed. Inoculation was first tried in
the East, and was introduced into civilized
Europe from Constantinople by Lady Ma.
ry Wortley Montague. Having suffered
from an attack. herself, and being con-
vinced of the merits of incubation, she
had the test applied to her only son in:
718, who was then five years old. Af!:
terwards five persons, under sentence of
death, were at her request, submitted to.
the experiment. Notwithstanding tho sue
cess Of the trial, great clamor was raised
against her. The philantrophic. (?) de-
nounced her as iuhuman, the medical fac:
ulty pfognosticated disastrous consequences
and the clergy regarded it az an interfer-
ence with Divine Providence. Cothen
Mather, an eminent Boston divine and
scholar, endeavored, to Introduce the prac-
tice of inoculation amongst the aPuritans,
but he was denounced as in league with
the devil, and no better than the witches
be had labored with such earnest piety
and general appreciation to bring to the
gallows. The mortality of those who are
inoculated is only one in 700 or 800.-
The malady is much less violent. when
thus communicated by the transfer of,
minute particle Of virus from onewho is
sick, and thrusting it under the skin Of
well person, than tits when communicated
through the air. There is something re-,
markable about this. .sr., a ,-,t,
After inoculation came vaccination, the
discovery of Jenner in 1876. At first it
was hoped that this would prove COM
plete. and 4rermanent protection against
attacks Of smallpox. But time hss fpro-
ven the contrary. Persons who have been
vaccinated are subject to attack Of small,
pox 10 mild form, called varioloid which,
sometimes results fatally. Then, through
the lapse of time, vaccination iappearsyfre.
quenty to lose all its protecting influence;
while the changes wroughtin the system
at the period of puberty also tend ito I'M
pair if not wholly to destroy its, powers. tF
Indeed, it now and then happens that
even persons whe have once suffered from
smallpox, are again attacked in after
years. A There seems TO be no absolute
protection. A few statistics will however,
show the great importance Of vaccination. Z
In England, during the half of last cen
tury, cut Of every 4 600 deaths, SO occur
small-pox, During the first half
Of the present century, after the introduo-
tion Of vaccination, the number Of the
latter was reduced TO 35. During the
last ten or fifteen years the ratio has been
considerably further reduced by o more
thorough enforcement Of the laws relating
to vaccination. Id London, in 1853, the
deaths from smallpox were l6sin thou. .
sand, while IN some other parts Of Europe.
where vaccination is yet more compulsory,
the number has been reduced as, low as'2
in a. A ,000-as for instance in Bohemia,
Lombardy and Venice. ,h Il,
Thisis proof enough Of the great im-
of vaccination. But a knowledge
of its importance is not enough TO secure
ity universal observance. In Europe there
ii na,,ch no m M, oor y l,nioiatinp ,uh;1a IN +.