, 1889-03-10
DANGERS In DRUGS.
WARNING TO THOSE DISPOSED TO
USE THEM cARELESSLY.

More men are killed by drugs than
disease is an expression one occasion
ally hears. How much truth it con-
tains is, of course, problematical. But,
without doubt, no small proportion of
the deaths occurring are directly or in
directly duo TO an unwise use of medi-
cincs. Children furnish the readiest
victims to the direct destructive inhu-
ences of drugs.
Here is an instance where drugs, abso-
lutely harmless in anything like reason
able doses, may yet be tho cause of DEATH:
The patient is an infant, and 1t suffers
from diarrhea. The mother doctors it
herself. She goes to the nearest drug
gist and asks for n diarrhea mixture.
He gives her one made up of catechu
and chalk mixture, two of the simplest
Of agents, with which almost every
mother is familiar. This she admins
tcrs to her child in the proper doses.
Tho diarrhca lessons, but the child's
condition does not improve. 1t even
grows rapidly worse. Fever Ia on, the
bowels are swollen, and, what is more
alarming, "head symptoms" nave APP
peared.
THE PHYSICIAN PowERLRss.
A physician is called, but he is power
less, for the brain is affected. The little
one fingers along for days and days per-
haps, and finally dies from disease of the
brain. Now, for tho child's death the
catechu and chalk mixture, harmless us
they are. were yet responsible. The
mixture lessened the diarrhea, but in 80
doing invited an Inflammation of the
bowels; the little ones brain, always ex-
ceedingly sensitive and susceptible TO in
jury, became songested as n natural con-
sequence, other and more serious changes
followed, as in all such cases, and 1t
finally died-a victim TO dosing. Had
not the bowels been damned up by tho
catcchu and chalk mixture, but instead,
Ind they been unloaded and then treated
properly, neither the inflammation
therein nor the brain trouble would nave
occurred. In much the way described
are thousands pom thousands of chill
dren killed every year. And this terrible
mortality will only lessen when people
learn the dangers of trifing with drugs.
lhave been for several weeks discuss
ing in The Sunday Herald the remedies
in common use. Continuing to do so, ]
come now to calomel, an agent which
has been much abused. As every one
knows, it is n preparation of mercury.
II bears the name mild chloride" in
contradistinction to corrosive sublimate,
which is called the corrosive chloride"
of mercury. Calomel is very nearly
three times rs strong as blue pin. In
ono respect it is fortunate that there is,
ON tho part of the people, the strongest
prejudice against this agent. 1t is likely
10 deter them from ever using 1t on their
own responsibility. So STRONG is the
prejudice there is scarcely q day passes
in the life of the busy practitioner that
some patient OF other does not question
him about his medicines and enjoin that
there be no calomel in il. Without doubt
there is good and sufficient reason for
this distrust of the drug. In times past
it was, unquestionably, not only used too
often. but in much too large doses. Sail
walton was then the rule, and by some it
was believed that calomel only had n
curative effect when carried TO that point.
But all that ia changed now.
rRoPER M IMPROPER USE.
Physicians no longer hold that It has
such great power Owe the liver, nor that
it controls inilammatory attacks, as their
fathers before them believed. When
calomel is given them now they never
push it TO salvation. That condition is
very rare indeed at the present time, and
never occurs when tho drug is wisely
given, unless the patient is very suscepti-
bio to it. physicians occasionally en-
counter people who have the popularity
of constitution hat makes salvation
easy for them. With the compound
cathartic pill almost every ono Is ia
miliar. 1t contains one grain of calomel
and three pills are a purging dose. They
are usually given at bedtime, and, If
failing to act the next morning, 1t is
quite n common custom to give two
more of them. This treatment is prnc-
tically safe, and no ono would expect
salvation to follow. And yet 1t has lone
so, but very rarely indeed, however, be-
cause of the peculiar susceptibility of
the patient to the drug.
h prejudice against calomel seems
to nave grown with general enlighten-
ment. 1t does not exist with those ''be-
hind the times" In the ''far western
country" it is still held in high esteem,
and given in enormous doses-even more
than half Misrepresentation almost every
conceivable ailment. After taking one
cathartic dose of calomel alone, no one
Is likely to court another such experience,
unless his confidence in it is absolute, for
it causes intense pain. For that reason
it was in olden times given with jalap,
to quicken its action. But after what
has been said, and all that can be said
about calomel, it is not an agent which
can be dispensed with. Given in proper
doses in cases wisely selected, 1t will
prove one of the most efficacious rene
dies known to man. And so admins
tered it is perfectly safe. One who does
not thoroughly understand all about II
should not, of course meddle with it, foi
it is like an open razor in o child's hand,
But If an intelligent physician ever rec
smmends it for q patient, either old oil
young, it should be unhesitatingly ad
ministered.-Boston Herald.
Advances of Science.
The "drop a nickel in the slot" fad ha
been utilized for many things, but Ineve