The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1889-09-28
ANTIQUATED NONSENSE.
No Other Term Will Describe
Some Popular Beliefs,
People Who Are Content With Ideas
Originated Centuries Ago Aged
Medical Theories Exploded
Some Practical Health
Hints.

The savage is always child, and so
are millions as well clothed, housed
and policed as ourselves-slaves to
their passions, prejudices and super
ytitions. These are all fetich-worship-
crS to a greater or less extent. Of all
people that doctors have to deal with
they are the hardest to treat that have
some superstition or other in regard to
diseases or medicines. Some of these
superstitions, almost all of them, in
fact. are the remains of bygone medical
theories or methods OF practice
''Stuif colo and starve fever is a
superstition very frequently met with.
Until fifty years ago doctors never had
an idea that fever patient should be
fed; they were well starved, and if
they recovered they had to thank their
strong constitutions. But even at this
day, when every doctor knows that
feeding is the most important part of
the treatment in a case of fever, peo-
pie still believe that it is death war
rant to feed person with fever. With
che starving of fever patients may be
placed the belief that persons with
fever. measles and some other diseases
should have only warm drinks. OF
course such a person should not have
ice-water. but a man that will alloS
only warm drinks and cruel to such
patients deserves to be roasted for
awhile. Let him have measles once
and he will change his views.
There are good many queer ideas
afiOat in regard to bathing. One man
can take cold bath every morning in
she year and feel better for it; conse-
quently he thinks every person should
take cold bath on getting out of bed.
Some people can't stand this, and there
is no use trying to force the body to
withstand a severe shock. The cold
bath crank thinks his children should
be trained to do what he does. 1t is
fOOlhardy to try to harden" children
in this way. If a young child likes a
cold bath it is all right, but to put a
struggling and screaming child into
water that makes its teeth chatter and
its surface turn blue is cruelty. 1t is
cruel. too, to make children go about
IN winter with thinly-clad legs, thin
stockings and knee-breeches, or short
breaches and short stockings. For one
child that can be hardened in this way
ten will have the foundations laid for
weak constitutions.
The proper way to harden child is
70 give it plenty of pure air, pure and
wholesome food, plenty of playtime, as
little brain work as possible, and plenty
Of sleep, training it to regular habits
Of life. OF course the proper time to
begin to train a child is to begin with
It's ancestors. but there are some diff
culties in the waytof doing this. Still,
as every child is presumably an an
eestor of future children, we can train
the ancestors of those future children,
giving them sound bodies, sound
minds. and even tempers.
The notion that a person should not
cat before going to bed is another fet-
ich. Why shouldn't people eat before
going to bed if they are hungry? Some
will say that digestion stops during
sleep 1t does nothing of the kind; it
Is slower during sleep, but there is no
hurry about the matter. People start
out in life, as babies, by eating and
chen going to sleep. The truth is, eat
ing just before going to bed is one of
the best means of treating insomnia
khat have ever tried. We Americans
are always so much in haste that dur
ing the day we do not give our food
proper time to be digested; and if any
shing should say that our digestive Or
gans have better opportunity for do
ing good work during sleep than at
any other time.
You hear a great many people say
when there is measles around: ''Well,
every child must have measles, and
mime may as well have it now as any
other time" No child is under any
obligations to have any disease, especi-
ally one that may kill it, or leave it an
Invalid for life, as measles may.
Ono OF the ways that people have of
being silly is to be eternally taking
medicine for one thing or another.
"A great many people think that
shere is something peculiar about
abe spring months that makes
II necessary for them to take
medicine, blood sirups. Indian rene
Sies anJ other things. Now, every
GAs that bas any thing to do with In