The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1882-02-17
A FATAL NEGLECT.
How Careless Oversight Brought About
the Most Serious Results, and How
1t Might Have Been Avoided.
The Importance Of Attention TO the Details
OF Life.

Early last spring the elegant mansion
of II OF New York's wealthest CAPT
~talists, situated on u beautiful hill in
New Jersey, vas turned into u house Of
mourning. 1t had been constructed on
the most appSoYed sanitary and scientific
principles. Thousands of dollars had
been expended in the drainage, plumb
ing and ventilation. The surroundings
were healthful, the air was pure, and
yet an epidemic of diphtheria swept
away a family of young beautiful child
rem. 1t Ia the theory OF the physicians
that the house was filled with malaria,
which always invites d~iphtherla, and,
skeptical as the father was, he institut-
ed "a rigid examination. Every closet,
pipe aud dram was found to be perfect,
and they were about to give up, bafled,
when by accident they examined the
furnace fresh air box, and a few feet
from its opening, in a neighbours lot,
they. discovered a mass OF putrefying
garbagel The mystery was explained.
The malaria had found an entrance
through tho fresh" air iue, and three
loved ones persisted because somebody
had ~blundered!n The same result was
seen at Princeton college, seven students
losing their lives by h faulty drainage
of the college grounds. These occur
rences were not"dispensations of ProVi-
dence,n they were the result Of plain
carelesSness.
Life is a constant struggle for exist
.ence, and as the tittest always survives,
il is the Guty of every man to acquaint
himself with the methods of prevention
and cure of influences which would
hurry him to the grave. There is much.
doubt nowadays as to what, for in
stance, causes malaria, but there is no
doubt hat it is the basis of the most
obstinate chronic disorders. Not many
years ago a celebrated physician of Lon
don discovered what is known as
Bright's disease Of the kidneys. While
most of the characteristics Of this
dreadful malady have been known, yet
n of its most peculiar features is of
recent discovery, /. e., that it produces
general arrangement of the tissues, and
involves other organs of the body long be-
fore the kidneys themselves seem to be
affected. There is no pain in the kid
neys nor In their vicinity. The water
may not be albuminous; there may be
no casts, and yet Bright's disease may
exist and disorder the entire system.
Prof. VIM. II. Thompson, NJ. D., of
the chair of Materia Medica, in the
university of the city of New York, in
a recent lecture before the students of
Bellevue college hospital, says "Bright's
Disease has no symptoms of its own,
but has the symptoms of every other
disease you can think of.n Albumen
and casts may or may not be present;
nor is the specific gravity an absolute
and infallible test. DR.. Thompson says
kidney disease is probably the common
est cause OF death In this climate among
adults. more so even than consumption,
but it is a very deceptive disease. If a
man breaks a limb he will expect pain
in the injured member; if a bullet crash
es into the body he will at least suffer
pain in the wounded part, but in dis
eases of the kidneys he will suffer most
In the other organs of the body. These
sufferings are only the effects, the cause
is behind them, and if that cannot be
removed there car be no cure of the de-
fects. Some of the commonest ailments
of humanity are the sure symptoms of
Bright's disease. When the kidneys
have been diseased for a certain time
there will occur strange disorders in the
head, throbbingdisturbed headaches, Wis.,
ion; the memory loses its power. These
are secondary symptoms of Brlght's
Disease.
Again, the lungs are a favorlte field
of operations, and diseased kidneys pro-
duce pleurisy, bronchitis, with or with
out cough, great paleness, sudden and
strange attacks of asthma, and splitting
of blood. These are secondary effects of
Bright's Disease.
The heart, III the efortto force blood
into the diseased organs, which are
swollen by reason of kidney disease, be-
comes exhausted, hardened or enlarged,
or v~alvular disease follows, with great
distress under the breast bone. These
are secondary symptoms of Bright's
Disease.
DR.. George johnson, a greatauthority,
owe 20 years ago pointed out that what
eve disease affects the kidneys produces
the same effect in the liver, and the
purging of blood, nausea, vomiting of
bile and food, indigestion, constipation,
piles, dizziness, persistent diarrh9a
coming on suddenly to a person who
has always been robust are certain Sec
ondary symptoms of Bright's Disease
Having made a Jul of the body and
finding no other organs which 1t can
destroy, then the disease returns to the
kidneys; the back aches intolerably, the
urine is dark, full of brickdust and
ropy; casts appear, albumen is abund-
ant; then come great muscular relax
alton and ervou prostration; great
puffs appear under the eyes, the count
enance is pale and wears an appearance
of fright, commissions ensue, the fatal
diarrhea or pneumonia SITS in, and
death is the end. These declarations
are the warnings of men of high auth
GRITTY in medical science, whom we can
not dispute if we would. We expect,
when our physician visits our bedcham-
Der, he will come with the possibility of
healing, but there is no disease which
he approaches with the certainty of
failure like Bright's Disease. Is there
no hore of curep Must this great ma
lady increase the number of its victims
at the rate of % per cent. a year, and
we be powerless to prevent? DR.. Hol-
land says all medical practice is expert
mental, and that any remedy that cures
is entitled to the confidence and patron
g of the people. The only criterion
of excellence is success, and, he says,
this is the basis of popular judgment.
The doctors admit they can do nothing
for a person in the tolls of Bright's Dis
ease; but happily, the oftimes wiser