The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1870-03-11
SCARLET FEVER.

DIR. Both of Boston, furnishes Good
Health with paper in which he dis
cusses scarlet fever and its treatment
1t always begins with loss of appe-
ute; then fever and sore throat; then
red patches; then recovery, or other
wise quick or slow death, according to
circumstances. TO arrest its course and
prevent its ravages, medicine and man.
ipulation adj li6itam have been tried in
vain for more children die of scarlet
fever now than one thousand years ago.
But why? Because nothing, absolutely
nothing, is as yet known as to what
scarlet fever is; and what is still worse,
there was, until recently, no need felt of
such knowledge.
1t is as unnecessary for child to die
of scarlet fever as it is that it should be
blind with cataract. Let us see. At
any time before the body had finished
its Intellectual struggle we are able to
help it, not by wonderful medicine, but
by the knowledge of anatomy, and the
application of common sense. We con-
suit the sympathetic nerve, and do what
it commands us to do. We must give
this child salt when it wants it; we must
give it acid when it has fever and anx-
iously Graves it-not vinegar, but lemon
juice, because the first coagulates albu-
men, the latter does not, on account of
the surplus oxygen which it contains.
To initiate tho soothing mucus in the in
testines, which is now wanting, and to
give some respiratory food at the same
time, we add some gum arabic. To re-
store and relieve the injured nerve, we
apply moist warmth.
In practice we can fulfill all this with
the following simple manipulation: Un-
dress the child and bring it to bed at the
very first signs of sickness. Give it, if
it has already fever, nothing but sourish
warm lemonade, with some gum arabic
in it. Then cover its abdomen with dry
flannel. Take a well-folded bed sheet,
and put it in boiling hot water: wiring
it out dry by means of dry towels, and
put this over the flannel on the child's
abdomen. Then cover the whole, and
wait. The hot cloth will require re-
peated heat. According to the severity
of the case, and its stage of progress,
perspiration will commence in the child
in from ten minutes to two hours. The
child then is saved; it soon falls to sleep.
Soon after the child awakes it shows
slight symptoms of returning inclina-
ton for food help its bowels, if neces-
sary, with injections of oil, soap and
water, and its recovery will be as steady
as the growth of a green house plant, if
well treated. OF course, if the child
was already dying, nOInlnS cOulQ save
it, or if it has already illusions in the
lining of the heart or brain, it is much
better that it should die. But if the
above is applied in due time, under the
eyes and direction of competent ply
stefan, will guarantee that not one in a
hundred children will die of the scarlet
fever. 1 know this viii startle some of
my readers, especially those who have
lost children already, but shall go still
further 1 maintain that a child Will
never get scarlet fever if properly treat
ed. Ifa child has correctly mixed blood,
it will not catch the disorder if put in
bed with sick child. This is still more
startling, but nothing is easier of proof.
The same is also true of whooping
cough, cholera infantum, etc. refer to
Professor Won Niemeyer's treatment of
whooping cough; it consists of equal
temperature in a room of 759, and the
regulation of appropriate digestion. He
warrants, by following this simple
course, every case of whooping cough
to disappear in three weeks. / think
even this could be shortened. Lemon
juice, salt, gum arabic and heat, are all
that is required in cholera infantum-
only the restoration of digestion is here
more difficult on account of the intes-
final Innings being injured directly.