Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1889-12-14
ACUTE RHEUMATISM.

The Miasmatic Theory Recently Advanced
by German Authorities.
Tomost practitioners acute rheumatism
must appear essentially q personal or
constitutional ailment occurring most
readily under certain unfavorable con-
ditions. suCn as fatigue, exposure, de-
preston, with wet or cold weather.
There is disposition, however, among
some physicians to regard it as depend
emit essentially on miasmatic conditions.
One of the latest expositions of this
view is to be found in paper read be-
fore the German Medical Society of New
York by DR.. Leonard Weber. DR..
Weber considers it nearly proved by the
labors of Immermann, Edlefsen, Fried
lander and their pupils, that what he
calls inflammatory rheumatism, and
what is generally termed acute
rheumatism, is not produced by
taking cold, i. e., the refrigeration of
the heated surface of the body, but that
it belongs to the class of miasmatic in
fictitious diseases assuming an epidemic
like character at certain times, in so far
as we are apt to see larger number of
cases when there is decreasing rain and
moisture, while with an increase of the
same the number of cases is diminished
Among other points, he considers as
nearly proved that rheumatism is also
house disease, the subsoil of houses in
certain locations being infiltrated with
the virus, which, after prolonged dry
ness. may be set free by the air currents
carried into the apartments.
In masked forms of rheumatism there
NAV be an absence of one or other of the
main symptoms and of the polyarthritis.
Neuralgia of the trigeminal, sclatlc,
spinal accessory or other nerves, with
slight febrile movement, may be OF
rheumatic nature, and yield to alkaline
and salicylate treatment after other
remedies have failed. DR.. Webster says
that his records show that the greater
number of his cases of polyarthrltls
rheumatica occurred in February and
March, and again in the hot and dry
summer months We do not commit
ourselves to the theory of the miasmatic
or external origin of acute rheumatism.
BY the way, DR.. Weber does scant JUS
tice to our own countryman, DR.. Mac
lagan, who must be chiefly credited
with this theory, which, indeed, led him
to the use of salicin. We incline strong
ly to the personal and constitutional
theory of its origin. But it is well to
keep all well-argued theories in view
1t is satisfactory to note that DR.. Weber
regards the salicylate of soda, which he
gives generally with the bicarbonate, as
standing in the foremost rank of valu-
able drugs with which modern chemis-
try has presented us.-Lancet.
The Roman Catholic Bishop of Hav-
ana appealed to the Government of the
island to close the cemetery which the
Baptists had opened in thatci but the
Government in Spain has decided that
the Baptists were acting according to
the laws, and may have their place of
burial.
General" Booth, in opening a new
salvation hall in Liverpool, recently,
dehed any one to point out any author
lied doing of the Salvation Army not
justified from the Bible. They had
2,7oO societies and 5000 officers, for the
most part self-supported, and the annual
income was not less than s., 600, 900.