Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1875-10-21
Cause of Cholera Infantum.

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beloved children, and one of the principal
causes he finds in the patent nursing bot
ties, an American invention, which has
reached Berlin, by reason OF Its conven-
lent form. 1t consists of glass bottle,
which is filled with warm milk; through
to its bottom and at the top of the glass
tube is rubber tube with mouth piece
for the child. The physician referred to
publishes the following remarks and adj
vice: The supposed advantage of these
bottles consists in this, that they can be
placed beside the infant in bed, while
other bottles must be held in the hand all
the time What sensible mother or nurse
would leave child with bottle without
watching it? The danger of the bottle
consists in this, that it is absolutely i'm
possible to cleanse it. When sucked on,
little particles of milk become attached to
the tube and cork; these curdle and soon
turn sour; if some of this deposit be
placed under microscope we see in
Vulnerable Interchangeable beings which
indicate decomposition and decay. At
every meal the child draws in thousands
of these germs. The decomposing proc
ess acts upon what it finds in the mouth,
esophagus and stomach; and the result i,
diarrh@a, cholera infantum, etc. I will
here expressly remark that the usual
method of placing the apparatus in water,
or merely rinsing it out with stream of
water, is in no way sufficient. Some deal
ers sell suitable little wire brush with
the bottle; but even this does not answer
the purpose, for the apparatus is not clean
by a long way after drawing the brush
through it several times; and who will
take the trouble to clean it so thoroughly
eight or ten times a day? How much
time it would require! Another disad
vantage is that the bottle is air-tight and a
partial vacuum is formed, which renders
sucking so difficult as to exhaust the
child, and it stops before its hunger is sat
isfied Hence, parents, you who are
compelled to feed your children with a
bottle, throw away this apparatus, which
children, and either select bottle with a
glass mouth piece which is filled from be-
low, or take a large rubber mouth-piece
which is perforated by small hole, and
can be drawn directly over the neck of
the glass bottle. This large mouth piece
or nipple can readily be turned inside out
and thoroughly cleaned and rubbed with
dry salt"
For our part, we are in favor of the old
fashioned piece of sponge fixed n the
neck of the bottle, and projecting only far
enough to enable the child easily to take
hold of it. This piece of sponge is thrown
away every day, or twice a day, and a new
piece substituted If a strong glass bottle
is used, it may be washed with boiling
water every time before fresh milk is put
in. 1t is we'll to use two bottles alter
nately, letting one rest with hot water in
it, and never to add any other milk to
that which is in the bottle.
Observing these simple precautions may
save hundreds of infantile lives; but after
all many more might be saved of the 400
babies who now die in New York every
week if good milk was sure to be had
Those who can afford to give the child
milk from human breast should for no
consideration whatsoever neglect it; no
cows or goats milk, no nursing bottle,
nor any other continuance can equal ma
lures provision. Only in cases where the
financial condition of the parents makes it
utterly impossible to hire wet nurse
should the nursing bottle be resOrted to.
Under the existing circumstances in this
city, it is best to use condensed milk, di
luted sufficiently with water, to which a
little white sugar can be added to initiate
better the nature of human milk. But
we repeat that nursing bottles are extreme
measures, and should never be allowed by
mothers to be used when they have nour-
ishment themselves, or by fathers when
they have money to pay for a wet nurse.
Forty years ago, before we had the
knowledge now in our possession, we lost
four children in succession through the
use Of nursing bottles, notwithstanding
good country milkwas used and no patent
bottles had been invented the life of
fifth one was saved by securing wctn
Immediately after the childs birth.-Man-
utacturer and Builder.
An expressman named Queal, OF Os-
wego, n. Y, went out sailing with two
friends last June, who returned wet and
he'd ra mmlad Onnal hauinn heen drowned