The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-02-12
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Gle these facts, we must suppose, either
that the period of Incubation extended
from few hours to as many weeks, OF
that during these few weeks the blood
itself acquired some property, tayorlne
the, reproduction of the poison which
did not exist In the beginning. If the
Doctor, without any prophyla8is, had
gone into the midst OF an epidemic OF
smallpox, and remained for few
hours, he would have returned home
with certainty that he would not sick
en- until the ninth or tenthlday, and al
most with an equal certainty, that, al
the end Of that time. he would be at
tackled with the disease. So with the
nurse, it would seem to be impossible
that he could be constantly exposed to
the contagion, of small I7ppx, dpFinS ma
ny weeks, and not contract the disease
until nearly the end of that time. In
the class of contagious diseases, now
under consideration, period oil sever
al weeks cannot be allowed for incuba-
tion, nor can be limited to a.few'hours
1t might safely be considered an Absurd
ity to say'that the period can vary, in
any one of these diseases, from eight or
ten hours to as many weeks. We think
then 1t may be fairly asserted that cho-
lera, unlike the contagious diseases ot
this class, has no definite period of in
cubation, and that the poison which
causes ~ uOeS MOI possesS l1S PIopeAty
of reproduction within the living sys-
Again, does cholera run through
any regular stages, either to death or
convalescence, or can it be arrested in
its progress by the appliances of our
art2 In contagious diseases, when
once contracted, nothing can put stop
sician can do, is, to guide his patient
safely through the disease, like frail
bark through the rapids of stream,
keeping the open channel and avoiding,
with ali due diligence, the rocks and
shoals which. endanger his passage.-
The reverse of this is pre-eminently
the case with cholertf. The whole his
tory of the disease proves that, by pro-
per care and management, it can be
almost always cut short iii the first, or
commencement OF the SECOND stage. In
hundreds of eases, whiclffell under my
own observation, the disease was arrest
ed, and the patients restored to their
usual health in very few days.
Whom thus arrested there was
of the results of congestion which
showed themselves in those who
were so fortunate as to recover from the
third stage. They all returned to their
usual occupations as soon as persons
recovering from slight attack of any
ordinary 1ndlSpoSltlon.
It may be asixell ITO state here that
one attack did not furnish protection
against subsequent attacks of the dis
ease. In some, who exerted themselves
too soon, relapsesItook place, but, in
many instances, some eeksintervened
between the attacks. This is inconsist-
ent with the idea aofcontagion, as before
laid down, and is, in ITSELF almost con-
elusive against the doctrine of conta-
Does cholera, commencing ut one
point, spread gradually aud show
itself in those only who have been ex-
posed to contact with the sick? The
history of the disease proves the CON
traryto be true. We have before stated
that the disease appeared simultaneous
ly in different parts of the city, and in
persons between whom no possible
communication could be traced. The
same statement Will apply TO all those
places where in 1928 the cholera COM
mittedfi its most fearful ravages. Its ac-
cess was uniformly sudden, its spread
rapid, and its continuance of limited
Duration "A. remarkable fact, connect
ed with the history of the disease IN
Wheeling, be D directly on many OF
the points CONNECTED. with this discus
sion.
At the. distance Of. half 81 mile, and
separated from the city, by two branch-
as of the Ohio river and an island, the
shores ofwhich were clothed with trees,
is situated the small village of Bridge
port. At the time in question 1t was IN
avery filthy condition, and, contained
only two or three hundred inhabitants.
The two branches of the river were
crossed by ferry-boats, which trans
ported all the travel on the great na-
ltional road. Although very much re-
stricted by the. fear of cholera, yet more
tIN1
kept up between the two places. The
disease commenced in Wheeling about
the 18th of May and continued until
the first week. in July, and yet itjwas
not until the last week in June that II
made its appearances in bridgeport.
The disease broke out IN the night, and
during the next thirty-six hours, not
less than twenty-five of the inhabit-
ants were numbered among its victims.
When visited at the end of that time by
the benevolent citizens and ph ysicians
of Wheeling, not enough of the inhab-
itants were left in the place to attend to
the wantsrof the sick and bury the
dead. They had aH taken refuge IN the
Now, can, such facts as fhesebe ac-
counted for on the principle of conta-
gion ialone2 Why, If the disease were
Contagious, was II not sooner conveyed
by the constant intercourse, between
the two places, carried on, during five
or six weeks, and why, when it did
cross the river, did it strikegd6wn9 at
one fell swoQp, not less than tenth
part Of the " hole opnlation2 vgonta-
gion travels by slower and more nsils-
ured steps, andt'is never guiltY'of such
violent freaks tls this. .,.. i.,.e'si ~.
si; But has cholera ever been extended,
during indefnitei periods, by the sue
cessive contact of individuals? As far
as my knowledge extends, this ques-
ton must be answered in the negative.
The rule is that its access is sudden,
thatOit ragesi like a tempest while il
;tasIs, Cand, Il that having exhausted 5its
power, its exit is as sudden as was. its
advent. Once gone, dll fear of its speedy
return may reasonably, be dismissed
! Those who had fled from their homes
returned with perfect tsecurity, and hun,
dreds OF houses once haunted by the
Eof garments, hnt recentfy enclosed an
| its embrace We're handled, blythe re.
turned refugees, and yet not one Of
them suffered from an attack. Are
these facts consistent with the doctrine
of contagion3 "A single INSTANCE may
| be worthy OF mention. The questiono o.
contagious and non. n.eohtagiona was, al
the TINA, very generally discussed. "A
| fool-hardy editor of one of the Wheel
non -contagi business or the disease, haj
the filthy temeritY to gsleep or lie al
night, in the berth of a steam boat
wrapped IN the same bed clothes, which
enye1oped u man, who had died .lthf
same, evening of cholera. He escaped
every symptom of the disease, althougt
he snHered all the terrors OF intense
fear during several subsequent weeks
| Here was q man exposed, under GlI the
I circumstances known to favor thS
propagation of contagious ypoisons, aiic
| Vet he escaped with imppnity. Ons
single ecasets entitled to but iftaeweighr
but when added to the hundreds o.