Los Angeles daily herald., 1886-12-03
A bse N ce Of sickness Compelling
People to Die of old Age.

Absence of sickness competing
People to Die of old age.
From valuable paper, due to the pen
of DR.. Fl. S. Orme. of this city, printed in
the Ninth Biennial Report of the State
Board of Health, recently published,
some very interesting data regarding the
diseases of Southern California are
gathered.
In this county rheumatism is repor ted
only from three localities, noted for their
westerly exposure and damp see breezes'
and most of the cases are not acute rheu'
matism, but myalgia. Malarial affec'
tions-intermit ent and remi,tent fevefs'
are entirely unknown or very rare. Iy'
phoid fever is reported as frequent only
at Compton. Intestinal affections, which
by reason of the probable indiscreet use
OF fruit might be considered to prevail III
this section are rare with one eAoep.ion.
Diarrhea occurs at San PEDRO ahonss.
sailors. Dysentery is reported irequen.
at Azusa, otherwise one OF tne Anoso
healthful sections of the State, ourinB
the irrigating season. Cases OF iniantile
commissions have been recorded, aue W
the ingestion of unripe oranges -.
Respiratory affections have been 1aitn'
fully considered. Mild cases OF lnnuehza
or inf animation of the upper AIR pass,
ages. also called cold in the head, ana
catarrhal fever, q superficial congestion
of the lower uir passages, stopping short
of bronchitis, are occasionally reported,
but seldom demand medical treatment
These two slight affections generally
constitute the procs IS of acclimatization,
which must be undergone by nearly all
newcomers. The persistent want OF care
during such attacks may establish nasal
or naso. pharyngeal catarrh. Group is
of an infrequent occurrence and bronch-
tits only occurs at the seaport of San
Pedro. Pneumonia is almost stranger
in this county and asthma does not
originate in this section. Many people
come here for relief from asthma and OBJ
tain it, but that relief is not found In
any one locality for all cases. Nordhoff,
in Santa Barbara county and Cotton, in
San Bernardino county, are said to at
ford the environments demanded in the
majority of instances. There is no hay
fever and people who have suffered from
this miserable affection back east, enj oy
complete immunity here.
Tie reports of the Health Officer of
this city published monthly in the HER
AID have shown that greater percent
age of deaths occur from pulmonary
phtisis than from any other cause. The
HERALD has in all such reports shown
that most of these cases were i'm
ported. DIR. Orme in speaking about
pulmonary phtisis says that the
vast majority of these deaths occur
among persons who have come here, al
ready infected, in the hope OF restora.
tion. Very few of them have resided
here so long as one year. But IN the
case of the native Spanish population
of the poorer class the disease is rather
prevalent, and is ascribed to close inter.
marriage through long series OF years
and to the change of habits of these
people since the coming of the Anglo
Americans. They live more indoors
olhan formerly; are perhaps not so we'll
nourished, and in many ways are not
hygienically so favorably situated as in
times past. Whilst tubercular disease
was almost unknown among them forty
years ago, it is now, each year, becom-
ing more common. 1t is not probable
that any arrest in this downward tend
ency may be expected.
Cardiac affections, or diseases of the
heart, are all imported. Diseases OF the
liver, except slight functional derange.
ments, are common only with hard
drinkers.
Ordinary contagious affections are al
most as infrequent as the non contagious, |
and when brought here have never OBJ
tained foothold; but in all cases the
general mildness of the attacks and the
absence of serious results have been re.
marked. No epidemic has ever visited |
this part of the State.
Tapeworm is occasional, but as an in
stance of the enterprise of quacks who
make living by making hearty eaters
believe that they are troubled with
tenia which needs removing, it is report
ed that not a few specimens preserved
il. bottles, said to have been removed
pm victims, proved to be celueloid.
From the foregoing it may be judged
chat whatever the commercial import |
ance or the future Of Southern Califor-
MIA and Los Angeles county may be, its
excellence as health resort cannot be |
exaggerated.