Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1873-02-20
What We Breathe.


The Scientific american saws. W,
have all heard of the Black Hole at Cal
cutta. 1t was room eighteen fee
square. In this room one hundred ant
forty-six persons were confined. It hat
but one window, and that a small one
DR.. Dunglison, in his Elements O.
Hygiene, says: ''In less than an hour
many OF the prisoners were attacked
with extreme difficulty of breathing
several were dehrious, and the place
was filled with incoherent rawlings, in
which the cry for water was predomi.
nant. This was handed to them by the
sentlnels, but without the effect of al.
laying their thirst. In less than fou1
hours many were suffocated or died in
dellrlum. In five hours the survivors,
except those at the gate, were frantic
and outrageous. At length, most of
them became insensible. Eleven hours
after they were imprisoned, twenty
three only of the one hundred and forty
six came out alive, and these were in a
highly putrid fever
There are many "black holes" like
this used for sleeping-rooms, says the
London CO-0perator; the difference be-
tween them and the one at Calcutta is
that they are not crammed quite so full
of human beings. In a word, then, we
may say sleeping apartment should be
large, lofty, and airy. 1t is a poor
economy for health to have large and
spacious parlors, and small, ill-ventilat-
ed bedrooms. Fashion, however, is a
reigning deity in this respect, and Will,
no doubt, continue to bear sway, not
withstanding our protest against her
dominion.
You will scarcely drink after another
person from the same glass, yet you will
breathe over and over the same air
charged with the filth and poison of a
hundred human bodies around you You
cannot bear to touch dead body be-
cause it is so poisonous and polluting :;
but you can take right into your lungs,
and consequently into your body, your
system, those poisonous particles and
noxious exhalations which the bodies
around you have refused, and which
have been cast into the atmosphere by
their lungs, because the health of their
bodies required them to be thrown off.
Ii the " tlmorOusly nice creatures who
can scarcely set a foot on the ground, !"
who are SO delicate that they run dis
tracted at the crawling of worm, flying
OF bat, or squeaking of a mouse, could
see what they breathe at the midnight
carousal, the very polite ball, and bright
theater, they would never be caught in
such company again. Nay, if they could
see what they breathe in their own dwell
ings, after the doors and windows had
been closed little while, they would
Gnn G-00
is caused by vitiated air than can be
named. tits one of the most prominent
causes of scrofula, which is but another
name for half the diseases that attack
the human body. 1t vitiates and de-
stroys the whole fountain of life-the
blood.
In the sick room it often augments the
disease, or renders it incurable. If the
physician comes in and opens window.
or door stands ajar for moment, the
good nurse, or the tender mother, or the
kind wife, or the loving sister, will fly
up and close it as though the life of the
sick were at stake All this is we'll
meant kindness, but really cruel.
If you would have health, breathe fresh
air; open your windows every morn
ing, ano often during the day; leave off
your muff1ers from the chin. For TWEEN
ty years I was accustomed to never 60
ing out without a handkerchief tied
closely around the mouth, and for
nearly that period have left it off. Ihave
had fewer colds and suffered far less
from changes of climate than previous
ly. Let the air into your bedrooms
you cannot have too much of it, pro-
vided it does not blow directly upon
you.