The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1874-09-03
THE CLIMATE OF COLORADO AND
THE PLAINS.
Fort WALLACE, KANSAS, |

most painful objects of contemplation
to a medical man is the prevailing
ignorance among the people as to the
methods Of preventing or relieving
the various diseased conditions of the
human body by sanitary or hygienic
means, precautionary or aggressive.
During over eight years. residence in
the extreme West-the high and dry
and non-malarial West-I have re-
peatedly had occasion to regret the
deficient information of my friends at
the East regarding the preventive and
remedial merits Of the dry Western
air, and the obstinacy of Eastern
physicians who seem so unwilling that
their poor asthmatic or consumptive
patients should leave the damp air of
the coast States, in some cases thus
OBTAINING to perish even their own
children.
AS in Minnesota, I did not cease
urging suitable cases to seek the re-
lief its delightful atmosphere could
afford, so now I wish to give. through
your columns, such items concerning
the climate of these plains and the
Rocky Mountain country as I have
gathered during the past year or more
spent in this region.
For the class of cases we are con-
sidering, I believe it is now generally
understood that dry air de.rimg the
cool olmo,atls- say, November to March,
inclusive-is the most important eli
matte requisite, whether for prevention
or cure. Many lay great stress on
equableness of climate, but as that is
rarely attainable in the United States,
and where it exists is generally only to
be had with protracted and debiitating
heat, and with extreme moisture, it
seems to me to be far from the most
desirable single climatic element. By
this standard I have no hesitation in
pointing out Northern Michigan and
Wisconsin, Minnesota, most of Daco-
tab, the elevated plains Of Western
Nebraska and Kansas, with all the
Rocky Mountain Territories-among
which last I shall refer chiefly to
Colorado-as offering to invalids from
the Atlantic States resources of health
not to be imagined in Florida or the
South Of France, or in the milk cures
and grape cures in various parts o1
Europe, nor yet, except for small
proportion of cases, in Southern Cali
| fornia.
The months November and Marcel
with the three winter months are un
questionably the most trying to per
sons struggling with pulmonary af
fections, and the combination of COLI
and moisture furnishes the climax 70:
their sufferings. I claim that the re
gions above named offer the smalles
percentage Of moisture in cold wealth
er, and that the dry cold>>afords tn
best air for invalids to inhale-toni
and bracing. If we add to this tn
favorable influence of elevation am
the consequent rarefaction of the al
| (supposed to act mechanically upo,
the lungs, as beneficial to asthmatic
as it is disastrous to advanced cor
sumptives), we have great reason 70
commencing the plains and noun
tains as health resorts.
I know that statistics are wear
ness to most readers, but intelliger
health-seekers will profit by the stud
of those pertaining to climate, so
shall furnish a few figures to elucidat
my topic. Let us notice temperate,
first. New York has mean annu.
temperature Of 51.7 degrees; Mimi
sofa 44.6, and Denver latitude, 5,31
feet), and Colorado Springs (altitud
1915 feet), the two best known plac'
+ in Colorado, mark 48 and 47.5 d
grees respectively. The variation b
tween Minnesota and New York d
pends, of course, on that grand Gle.
cold of your winters, crisp and spar
ling, but the difference between Ne
York and Colorado, though smal
? will appear much less when we no
t the cold and hot seasons in the COZ
parison; the mean winter temperatu
!. for the mountain territory being q
and 1873 in the same two localitit
against 31.3 for New York Cit,
! while Minnesota drops to 1853 for