The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1864-02-04
The Dangers of Cold Weather

g 90 WHAT WE MUST Do TO AVOID THEM.
From the New York Evening Post.
Intensely cold weather Is now upon us.
and already we hear accounts of persons
perishing from its rigor. Our pleasure
seekers at the skating ponds will be liable
to suffer from the extreme cold, and there
will doubtless be numerous cases of FROST
bites, frozen limbs, etc., the result of ex-
posure DOW while the thermometer indicates
temperature so near zero.
The FIRST sensation which indicates that
freezing is taking place is that of stiuging
main sehi.i. y r'Ai-ar 10 rrumpness and utter
insensibility. If the bone is frozen it per-
ishes and requires to be dssected aura.
80 eornlnun Iuea that brisk rubbing of
frozen part win restore the circulation,
generating heat to thaw it back to life. The
application of snow is also recommended
Every body has read the story of Madame
Rachel, the tragedienne. who was walking
in the street in St. Petersburgh, was sur
prised at the audacitv of stranger rubbing
her face with snow, he having discovered
that her nose was frozen. However true the
story, the application Of snow in such cases
must he judiciously made, or It will aggra-
vate the difficulty instead Of restoring the
parts to normal and healthy condition.
II the snow which is applied be colder
than the frozen flesh 1t viii still further ab-
stract the heat and freeze it worse than be.
fore. But If the snow Is Of the same tenn
perature 1t viii keep the flesh from thawing
till the heat from the rest of the body shall
have effected it, thus preventing gangrene.
Water in which snow or ice has been
placed, SO as to keep its temperature at
thirty-two degrees Fahrenheit, Is probably
better than snow.
But by no means should frozen flesh be
rubbed. Every chemist knows that fluids,
when congeaied, assume crystalline form
as cubes, or polyhedrons. The juices of the
fieshy tissues, when frozel. in their minute
sacs or cells, at once become in each Of those
enclosures crystals, having large number
of angles and sharp points; and hence rub
bing the flesh causes them to cut or tear
their way through the tissues, so that when
il is thawed the structure OF the muscle is
more or less destroyed. The freezing at the
outset is sufficiently unfortunate occur
renee. without destroying the flesh by this
injIdicious rubbing.
From all this it will be seen that whom
any part of the body is frozen it should be
kept perfectly quiet until thawed out, which
should be done as promptly as possible. Az
freezing takes place from the surface in.
wardly, so thawing should be in the reverse
order from the inside outwarily. The thaw-
ing out Of portion of flesh, without at the
same time putting the blood from the heart
inte circulation through it, produces mortifis
cation; but by keeping the more external
parts still CONCEALED till the internal heat
and the external blood gradually soften th
more interior parts, and produce circulation
ofthe blood as fast as the thawing takes place,
most Of these dangers are obyiated.
The use of alcoholic liquor to 1keeu out
cold" to sustain the vital energy, or to pre-
vent freezing mechanically by pouring Il
into the shoes. Is OF doubtful utiiit, But
exercise during the whole period Of expo, ure
to the cold II Of essential importance.