, 1876-08-06
OUR CLIMATE.
A Comparison with That OF East
ern Cities.
To What Chicago Owes It's Delight
fully Cool Summers.
This City the Best Summer.Home Tor
Children.

This City the Best Summer.Home fo]
Children.
CHICAGO CLIMATE.
COMPARISON WITH EASTERN CITIES.
DR.. 7. c. Duncan, President Of the Chicago
Academy Of Homeopathic Physicians aud Sur
! geons, having recently made y tour OF th'
Eastern cities, related his experience and oh
| servation at the meeting OF the above. Society
| Tuesday evening. His remarks we're substan
TALLY as follows:
was surprised to find the Difference they pay to
the hot weather In the Eastern cities. Churches
| are closed, Sabbath-schools adjourned, businesa
physician. who remain at hong have little to do,
| for the bulk of the better ca& are off TO the
| mountains OF seaside. l tried to account for the
greater heat Of the Atlantic cities. Cities, OF
course, hotter than the country, but the coun
try is hotter on the scashose than is correspond
ing latitude in the Aississipp Valley for example
difference. But there are other causes that have
tried to solve for the Eastern cities being very
hot Heat is snpposed to be due to the Light pass
ing through our dcnee atmosphere The shape Of
this atmospheric envelope, our friend Dr. Adam
Miller has pointed out, il like that Of vast con-
cave-convex lens. lie says rays Of light passing
more directly through this wonderful refractiye
lens give us the greater heat OF summer. Now it
il easy to see that the depression Of valley will
produce local double conease lens which will con
cent7ate the rays Of light like an immense sun
glass. 1t is thus account for the great heat Of
Pittsburg. Their large furnaces and smoky atmos-
phcre do not tend to lessen the heat. They have u
great amount of cholera infantum and heat pros
trutiOn there
BUT NEW YORK
ia not shut in by hills and III on u bay. Why should
it b. SO hot: There arc two explanations, think.
We all know the increased heat Of \ moist atmo-
sphere. Now, when evaporation IL going on the
air is more dense New York is situated between
$.En 1,r1o hnfJfA NJ AtAr
highly refractiye yapor both sides, 1t seems to
me- corresponds closely in effect TO two mountains,
go that New York is really in valley, The heat
thus reflected and concentrated upon the city rem
ders it intensely uncomfortable. Another Cause il,
that the whole city slopes towards the sun. The
streets are barrow and the buildings high which
Of the city the rooms are small, the ceilings
low, and the poor people seem crowded together
The ante fre days. / do not wonder that New York
is hot and very sickly. Dr.. Lilenthal writes that
they have not so much cholera fnfantum Us heat
prostration to deal with. He says that Gelsemium
is the best remedy.
PHILADELPHIA
is situated very much like New York, between two
bodies Of water, from which must rise banks of
dense moist mir, rejecting ind concentrating the
heat upon the city. The red brick Buildings and
brick and stone pavements give large amount ct
fadiating surface It s fa;t shat the Ire
rays OF the SUM- The mountains to the west and
tho oceans to the east form IN outer will, giving
double LAaL pEuQuCGs QeHt kuA%
viii not be forgotten by rhuse who visited the Cen.
ss9s'ee aSes dfsaase loas IL viii dssdy
great amount OF sickness in Philadelphia
Washington was the hottest city visited: It is
situated on the north bank Of the Potomac Valley,
lhS hopsh Is s ens arc 81
the hills on either side upon it with great tntcnsi-
ty. The sanitary authorities have done much to
make Washington charming, healthy city during
the cool eeason.
returned to Chicago on one OF the hottest days
we have hnd this season, and found it delightfully."-
cool compared to tue heat endured in Pittsburg,
Jersey City, New York, Brooklyn, Philadelphia,
Wilmington, Baltimore, and Washington Here
perspring all night as we'll all day. We have it
is true, dense bank Of yapor to the east of Chi
caeo rising out Of Lake Michigan, but fortunately
west We * Of u.s. This accounts, think, for the fact
that it is hotter few miles west OF the city than 1t
is in Chicago.
Some years ago, you will remember. pub
lshed in the Medical Investigator article by Prof.
Winchel1, il which he gave the comparative tenn
peratnre Of the lake REGION lie drew lines through
temperature for Chicago was given at u degrees
for July. that Of st. Paul was given at over u de-
grees so that the isotherma1 line passing through
this city runs nearly north northwest Strange as
it may seem, Chicago is cooler than ST. Paul Some
OF our well-to-do St. Louis physicians who leave
that semi tropic city during the months OF August
a. the coolest and at the same time the most COM
Portable summer resort they can ind.
THE HEALTn1EsT CITY.
Dr.. Hawkes. remarked that it WAS not only the
coolest city on the continent, but also the most
healthy.
Dr.. duncan said that he was rather surprised
the other day when Dr. Gatclell. who has given
vital statistics close study, states that Chicago
has only about Z per cent Of deaths from con-
sumption, while be said in the Eastern States
the rate was 20 or Is, and in Boston about 30
per cent.
TIE DRINKING WATER.
DR.. Duncan also said that the water supplied
the Eastern cities Is all from rivers. These are
shallow, and loaded with organic matter, and
during the hot weather the water is nauseat-
ing1y warm. Ice water is necessity in those
cities, and the constant use OF it chilled the
stomach, weakened the digestive organs, dc
stroyed the appetite, and produced q weak, few
crish state OF the system. The luxury Of a cool
stream Of hydrant water flowing on the heated
hands Of working man WAS something un-
known in the East.
Dr.. Duncan returned with the conviction that
ne do not appreciate Chicago as We should, and
as it will be appreciated in the future.