The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1888-03-29
NO ONE. NEED DIE.

NO ONE NEED DIE.
DIR. Hammond's Plan for Living Forcycr--
a Startling but Plausible Eheory--Lif, a
Process OF Death and Restoration.
DIR. William A. Hammond, the emf
nent physician, furnishes the following
to the Washington Post
People die through their ignorance Of
the laws which govern their existence
aud also from their inability or iuuispo-
sltlon to obey those laws with which
they arc acquainted. We arc told in the
first chapter of Genesis that before
Adam ate the forbidden fruit the life of
man was TO be eternal. But with the
acquisition Of the knowledge of good
and evil death became his portion. 1t
seemed to me that it would DO moro in
accordance with the actual state of
affairs at the present time to believe that
his death, came through the loss of
knowledge rather than from his obtain
ing 1t, Tor now he loses his life not
throug h an excess Of knowledge but
through an excess of ignorance.
do not see that there is any physio-
Logical reason why even at the present
day man should die. From knowledge
of the causes of disease greater than that
possessed fifty years ago, and flom the
advance OF medical science leading to
bettor methods Of treating the deviutions
from the normal standard of health to
which we are subject, the life of gen
Grafton has within the period mention. d
been lengthened five or six years. That
ls, the average man instead OF living
thirty years, as he did fifty years ago,
now lives nearly thirty-six years. Look
ing at the question from tLis standpoint
only it will be seen that ii is merely q
question of time when his lifo will be
extended to thousands Of years, and that
with an eternity of time his life will also
be eternal.
Let us take ono aspect Of tho subject
and we shal. not, think, fail to perceive
that when we thoroughly understand it
and are willing to live in accordance with
Its requirements, death, unless by acci-
dent, will cease to exist
We know that this life is continued
through the death OF the various atoms
of the several tissues that enter into the
composition Of his body. His orTnns
are kept i'll action by force and tits force
results as does all other forcc from the
mctamorphosis of matter. Thus TO OBJ
tam heat we burn wood or coal, and
ashes and gases are evolved III this
process; to generate electricity we con
vert zine or some other metal into q salt
through the action of an acid and Circ-
trcity IS set free In the body, the
brain, the heart, tho liver, tho muscles
all act through the destruction or ratbcr
alteration Of tho substance Of which they
arc composed. With every thought that
cmanatcs from the brain, with cv"ry
emotion which it feels, with every &C. OF
the will Which it originates, with every
perception which it experiences, Ger
tain portion Of the central tissue is
broken down into simpler substance and
through various channels is CXcrcntcd
from the body. With every Dul8atiOm
that the heart makes some part of the
organ, though small it may be in
amount, is destroyed, and is cast out Of
the system to make room for new sub
stance. With every contraction Of Il
muscle, no matter how Bmali, from the
effort required to WELD the heaviest
KIND OF slcdgo hammer to that nccys-
sary to lift pin or crook a finger or
wink on oyCiid, muscular tissue dies, and
being no longer fitted for tho purpose
for which it Was formed, is taken up by
the veins and like that coming from the
brain Nnd heart and the lungs and tho
stomach and oil tho other organs which
serve tho purposes Of tho body, is gotten
rid of through tho kidneys and tho skin
and the respiration t" be reformed out
side OF the Systom into other substances
which in their turn mako the food by
which tho body is again nourishcd.
The food that man ta) 9 into biz
stomach ought to be Of SIC. quantity
and quality rs would exactly repair thl
losses which, through the action Of The
several organs, his body is to undergo
II II Is excessive III either Of these dirCc
tiona, or if it is deficient, disease Of som,
KIND will certainly be the result. il ii,
knew enough to be- able to adjust hi
daily food to the expected daily rCquirc
monts of his system, disease could ncve
ensuo through the exhaustion OF any on
of his vital organs. 4 large majority 0
= tho morbid affections to which ho is sub
= Jcct arc duo to o lack Of this knowledge
Suppose, for instance, that man on
, rising in the morning should say to him
+ self, ''Io-day [ hNyo to read ten page
' OF 'BlackstOno's Commentaries, twont,
pages Of don QuiXotc,' to walk thre
!: miles and half, to pay visit Of half al
, hours duration TO my grandmother anC
- to take my sweetheart to tho theatr
@ where ] shall spend two hours; to d,
n this l require (tokjng out his p neil am
s memorandum book as he speaks) 81
r much carbon, so much nitrogen Giving
G Of course, tho exact weight Of thcs
+ several elementary nbstanccs.) / ca
- got (hOsO precise quantities from eigh
+ ounces Of bread, four lnceg Of eggs
8 eight ounces Of beef, six ounces Of pOta
;, toes, four ounces of fish, half pint q
!" beef soup, eight ounces Of water an
|. eight ounces Of strong coffee to max
'e them go Il little farther than they wouI
h otherwise. In case / have an extra ord
d nary demand made upon mo for ment