Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-11-12
AMONG THE DOCTORS,

AMONG THE DOCTORS.
CHRONIC diarrhea is said to be
speedily controlled in many cases by
saturated solution of common salt in
cider vinegar, the dose being tea
spoonful three or four times day.
In an address before the British
Medical Association, DIR. John s. Bill
ings Sturgeon, U. s. A. added another
to the recognized ills to which flesh is
heir. Speaking of a certain class of
physicians--the "clear-headed. shrewd,
practical men"-who don't bother them
selves especially about legislation to
protect them from the competition of
quacks and ignoramuses, he says:
"Fhey are not inclined to risk the fate
of the Mexican donkey who died of
congo;as agenas-that is, of other pee
pies troubles" The complaint, though
not often fatal, is pretty widespread.
SCIENTIFIC surgery is of compare
lively modern date. It could not exist
when the natural sciences had no ex-
istence as such; when chemistry was
in the hands of the alchemists; when
astrology was recognized element in
medicine; when remedies were applied
to the weapon which inflicted the wound
in order sympathetically to cure that
very wound-as Sir Walter Scott has
graphically described in the "Lav Of
the Last Minstrel
She bade the cash be cleansed and bound:
No longer by his couch she stood,
But she had tn en- tho broken lance
And wash'd it from tho clotted gore
And salved tho splinter DER and DER.
William of Deloralne, in trance.
Wheno'er she turned it round and round
Twisted as if she galld his wound.
In Won Ziemssen's work on diseases
of the skin, DR.. Heinrich Auspitz, of
Vienna, makes the following observa-
tions on the subject of identifying the
skin:
I. A healthy skin is not necessarily
beautiful. Even if all requirements
concerning diet, residence, atmospheric
and climatic conditions, etc., are car
ried out, the complexion is often ex-
tremely bad. The general condition
of health has no influence upon the
beauty OF the complexion, though it
has upon the health of the skin.
2. Cleanliness is sine qua non Of
the beauty of the complexion, though
health Of the skin.
3. Water is serviceable to the skin
in only moderate amounts and at mod
crate temperature. Very cold OF warm
baths, when used in excess, diminish
the elasticity of the skin and its power
of resistance to external irritants.
4. Distilled and so-called soft water
are more suitable for washing and less
irritating than hard water.
S. The hard soda soaps are usually
preferable to the soft potash soaps for
toilet purposes. The quality Of soaps
depends upon the quality OF their con
stituents and the thoroughness of their
saponifcation. Good soaps must not
contain free alkali Or any foreign irri-
tating substance. The addition of
moderate quantities Of perfumes does
not materially change the quality.
6. Simple, finely ground powders,
such as starch, magnesia, ETC., are en-
useful protection against external irri-
tants.
z. Frequent application OF alcohol
Gas in bay rum, Florida water, cologne
spirits, etc. } abstracts the water OF the
ski, udkeS III uIy ;buu DTlttl0, anu ill.,
pairs its nutrition. This is also true
of glycerine. All toilet washes con-
tanning alcohol to any considerable ex--
tent should be avoided.
s. This is true to still greater ex-
tent of other additions to washes, such
as corrosive sublimate, mineral acids,
certain metallic salts, etc.
8. Camphor acts merely as q bleach
ing powder. This is also true of ben
zoic resin. sulphur flowers, and sub
stances containing tannic acid.
10. The use of sweet-smelling oils
and fats should be employed to great
Ell extent than is now done for toilet
purposes.
II. This is particularly true with re-
gard to the growth Of the hair. Tho
nutrition of the scalp should be in
creased by the rational application Of
fat (for example, in the form of oil
baths by means Of the application at
night OF sponge soaked in oil upon.
the scalp and the greater use of sim
pie pomades. These should be ap-
piled to the roots of the hair rather
than the shafts.
-. Substances should be avoided,
or sparingly used, which abstract water
from the skin and the roots of the
| hair.