Morning journal and courier., 1882-10-09

ice. After several hours suffering the pains began to leave him, and he slept little. It was week, however, before he had fully re- covered h1s strength.
 On taking charge of the men he had their time changed, so that after working two hours they would be given three hours rest before returning to the caisson. They still, however, continued to work six hours per
 day, the only change being an hours longer rest after each interval of work The men were made to remain sixteen minutes in the air lock before entering the air chamber, and eight minutes in the lock again before turning to the outer atmosphere. This was giving them minute to every six pounds of pressure going in and minute to every six pounds of pressure coming out A floating hospital was arranged at the east pier, and the men were taken to it soon as stricken down and attended. No case occurred under
 this system until April 4. It was noticed that the men suffered greatly from exhaus- tion. It was also observed that whenever 8 man took sick immediately after leaving the air chambers. his pulse was 95 to 115 per minute and very feeble. When, however. it happened that they did not take sick until a lapse of twenty minutes or longer the pulse was very slow, often being as low as 60 per minute. In both cases they were covered
 with cold profuse precipitation. In most of the serious cases the legs were cold and the skin clammy The temperature was other wise unchanged, The face pale and livid and the lips discolored, but the pupils remained unchanged. After the patient had been lying down five or ten minutes at per feet rest, with his legs more elevated than his head. this all changed.
 Dr. Jaminet directed that the workingmen as soon as they came up from the air cham
 bers. should rest and keep quiet for an hour, and if any taken sick his treatment as follows: The patient was put in bed, lying on his back or right side. the head low-level with the body-the legs stretched, the feet elevated at least one foot above the head, and all clothing loosened. He prescribed half an ounce of the following cordial, which always relieved the violent epigastric pains:
 K. spritus Jamaicensis vii fluid ounces. Oleum ,isi, ii nuid drams.
 After taking this cordial and from to 10 minutes after it. it followed by two ta- blespoonfuls of beef tea, (made with Liebig's extract of meat in the proportion of one dram to six ounces of boiling water), two tablespoonfuls were given from to 10 min. utes, and as the patient always after while complained of thirst ice water was freely used, but no water any other drink was allowed for at least two hours. The beef tea ] was continued regularly; the position of the patient was still adhered to but afterward the legs were left in the most comfortable position soon as the pulse was getting stronger and less frequent-that is to say, for the cases where the pulse was over 95 per 1 minute and feeble and more frequent in the cases where the pulse had fallen as low as 60 per minute. Then, and not until then, was the patient allowed to change his position. The necessity of placing tho patient on his back, with the head low and the feet elevat. ed, was to send more stimulus to the brain and prevent return of syncope, which some- times happened and which, if repeated in a state of exhaustion, might have had fatal termination. And when the position was al- ternately changed from the back to the right side, 1t was to relieve the spine, and at the same time the heart, to let 1t resume its regu- lar function, which was more less dis | turbed at the time the patient was taken ! sick. No bath of any kind was given to any of the sufferers, having been positively for bidden.
 the men when coming up from work, and in- on moving about, and many of them went l ashore and drank very freely. As conse- quence thirty-two cases occurred between 1 April and April 25, but after that the doc 1 tor got control of the men and the caees were | less frequent. Out of the twenty eight cases which occurred during the sinking of the east l abutment oaisson twenty seven recovered l completely and many returned to the same work. The nly death which occurred was ! caused by the failure of the men to follow the directions laid down for the man working
 in the air chambers It was demonstrated
 that men of low medium stature. we'll
 built, single and of steady habits, stood the | work best. Dr. Jaminet thinks that if every
 man is properly examined to his fitness l before being placed at work, and the proper precautions are taken, there need be no fatal | cases of caisson disease.