The Southern herald., 1889-05-10

ventilation. Here again the air is viii
ated by the breaths, clothing; many Of
the pupils scarcely know the luxury Of
good bath and plenty Of clean under
clothing. Now, can the air be any
thing but bad under such circumstances
II the windows are opened long the
teacher and children take cold, and
some are afraid and think they can not
stand the smallest breath Of fresh air.
A school-room 80 feet square and eight
feet high contains 1900 cubic feet Of
air. This room will seat 60 pupils; alr
lowing 10 cubit feet Of air to each pupN
pcr minutes all the air in the room win
be vitiated in 12 minutes Now, grant
ing that every means is used regarding
ventilation, and goodly supply of soap
and water to scrub the floors instead Of
sweeping. "a recess Of five minutes
ought 20 be given every hour, SO that
the children could move about, have
the windows and doors wide open, ana
let them breathe in freely the pure air
Of nature, to repair their mental and
physical condition.
Effects are proportioned to causes,
and if an atmosphere filled with five
per cent. of carbonic acid will produce
death in few minutes, what must be
the effect Of breathing for 10, 20 or 40
years, the much smaller proportion
which must be present in every inhab-
tied room where there is not con-
slant incoming and outgoing of ARP II
must and does lower the standard OF
health and shorten our lives. Let a
person who is in good health with a
sound nasal organ take brisk walk in
the open air, then come at once into
the inhabited room. and II there is any
unpleasant odor The air Of that room is
hurtful.
How many dwellings, sitting-rooms
or bedrooms would pass such an ordeal
in the early morning after being occu-
pied all nightP
Bad air being heavy always sinks to
the floor. and to be got rid OF must be
drawn from the floor, either by open
Fireplace, or some means Of ventilation.
A room 10x12x12 contains LAO cubic
feet of air, the available oxygen OF
which is used up by one person in hali
an hour.
What to breathe then becomes the
great question, especially for persons
unacquainted with the only way of pro
ducing good health and long life.
Breath is our life more to us than
food. Breathe pure, fresh air day and
night You can not get too much of it.
Fresh air is the one mighty disinfect-
ant 1t certainly is Its own purifier.
nothing can take the place Of pure ven
| tilation
We suffer most in winter from want
Of ventilation; the outside cold makes
us close all the apertures in the rooms,
while in summer the heat makes us
open all the doors and windows. ]
think it preferable from my standpoint
to have less heat in the rooms, to air
them every two hours, to get rid Of the
furnace gases, and in the evenings to
get away with the deadly carbon from
our gas jets Let cleanliness be the
watchword in every home, from attic to
cellar. Keep plenty Of dlsinfectants
around the wash bowls and water
closets In damp cellars keep charcoal
always. 1t is simple and cheap. Let
in the blessed sunlight everywhere you
can. Never mind the fading Of furni-
ture or carpets; better that than our
lives and those Of our children be the
forfeit. Sunshine not only gladdens
our hearts, but it steals into the corners
and makes the surroundings pure.
Where sunlight enters, every room will
be healthy Get the musty odor out Of
your offices, stores, every place of bust.
ness. Better stand cold air than breathe
slow death. Live in open air all you
can, Take brisk walk countrywards
every day. Go to the hill tops, but re-
member God breathed into your nos
trils the breath of life" So learn to
keep your mouths closed. 'Tis good
thing to practice. Breathe through
your noses at all times, as mouth
breathing is only an acquired habit and
brings thousands Of evils. Boston
| Globe.