The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-02-09
CTR NATIONAL SCOURGE.
.,,rrrNoNIA A PENALTY OF HIGH
PRESSURE CIVILIZATION.

,,srsss hat Produce Pneumonia
,-ara5itary Observation-Disclosures Over
baated Dwellings - Drinking Men
15sva Little Charce-What is Known
.pour the Blood, Bacilln ana Bac-
+aria in Lung Diseases.
NEW YoRK, Feb. S.-Within the lifetime
= the present genera 10 pneumonia has in
,,-sas-d in the United States to an exten
mar makes IL almost a national scourge. In
che larger cities it is specially dreaded The
Mortality lists show that it is resp >nsible
for a very large pr portion OF deaths, and
sc,eace has thus far been apparently I'M
availing in restricting its ravages. In a
MAORI V of cases, even the most skilled
-bgsicaus acknowledge themselves power
isss to do more than soothe the sufferer,
as the disease, once begun, must run its
course.
Lately public attention has been specially
directed to this modern scOurge, which has
come 10 be recog IL d as the natural sequel
If many of the milder forms of lung
trouble. Mt III many years has death
mad 50 wide a swath among the ranks of
The famous as during the present white
monia that folio ed in the wake of la
grippe carried off hund eds who were emf
1ent in all the notable paths of life-kings.
sayauts. authors and statesmen alike. For
weeks tue press in almOsJ every Ameri, an
city printed long and omi1ous daily lists of
tbe dead If ever visitation Of cholera or
yellow fever had produced one q uarter of
The number of deaths directly traceable to
pneumonia in any one season, the COM
mu ty would We been panic-str. cken.
There is a very general movement on the
mart of the medical fraternity here and
elsewhere 10 devote the fullest investigation
TO pneumonia q its train Of kindred dis
eases as the most important question that
affects the public health at the present time
It my presently be expected TO occupy
lie ding place as a topic IN the medical jour
nals and among hospital studies there
are already several undred works upon
the subject. mainly European. but only
few are text books, and even these are in
adequate.
Yesterday 1 called upon one of New
Yolk's most distinguished physicians, DR..
Thomas Theodore Janeway. and talked
with hi - about he remarkable growth OF
this deadly di ease.
up eumonia is a comparatively recent
name for what was known fifty years ag
under a var ETY. of fferent Designations
he aid. 1T is the same with dIphtheria,
which many people regard as new disease;
but it isn't. 1t is identical wi h an ailment
which some four or five centuries ago was
known "a the Syrian sore throa > because
it was thought to have been imported to
Europe from Syria.
10 hat causes do you attribute the re-
markabie increase of pneumoniap
1T is chiefly due to our changed habits Of
life and to the high-pre sure civiizato of
the age we are living in" he replied "The
higher the civilization the more liable we
are to diseases While | believe that on the
whole men and women are better physi-
cally to-day than they were in the time OF
our forefathers, still there are manyener-
waiting habits contracted I'd many d 9bili-
tating usages. Men are, perhaps, more
liable to diseases from these causes than
women. IL is one of the penalties of high
pressure civilization.
at would be tedious to enumerate the
causes tuat pr duce such effects. Our pc
pie live in rooms hea ed by steam or by
furnaces, and lily ventilated; indeed, not
fresh air IS almost shu5 out
from superheated dwellings Late b urs
and improper food have, | thin s., very lit
tie to do with it, although, Of course, they
help along the general deterioration. The
habit OF promiscuols drinking has TODD
with it a great deal. 1t may not act
directly on the individual, but the
next generation feels tue effects. In
this way hereditary deterioration is
There is a consta { influx of
bright men from the country districts to
the cities, and their families very oftel
amount to nothing. from the cause | have
How few brilliant men of the
la generation have children anyway equal
to themselves? If there is any deteriora ion
in the race, it is in the cities. But it wouli
be unjust to claim, bee use of numerous
instances, that the whole race is therefore
1ete Tor ting"
rs it among this class that the national
disease find readlest su jects?"
"Unquestionably. Now, great deal
has bean said lately concerning the ondi-
tion of the blood in diseases like the grippe,
and pneum mia. The fact is
the condition of the bl oil in mai ,rity of
diseases is sill a debatabe qles;i m. By
that mean at it Is not at all settled that
it really dergoes any radical change in
any of the lung diseases
"You have read of the discovery BY
Professo Weichselbaum of Vienna of the
grip bacillusP
YES with smile. 81 am not prepared
to either give assent or denial to the report.
The professor is a wei known savant, but
he cannot be placed in the same category
as Koch. / should not care to con
slider as serious any alleged discov-
cry that was not conducted on
and scientific plan of inves-
tigation. The bacillus of consumption has
been fully investigated and is well defined;
but the experiments with the bacilhi Of
pneumonia are yet in their infancy. The
system of producing these minute bacillii
by the culture process is an extremely deli
cate one and calls for great skill"
snow that the grip is about over, what
syour conclusion as to its real characuerl"
1.-The grip is pure MISUNDERSTANDING
else"
There are many people living in the in
terror, far from any la &c city, who find it
impossible to call in the aid of skilled ply-
sicians when attacked by pneumonia. Can
you Lot furnish few practical hints for
such cases?"
IA few simple rules might be laid down.
On the first appeara ice of the disease, til Q
patient should ne put to bed Immediately,
and OF allowed to leave it until the danger
Is over. H. should given small d se of
calomel. This should be followed by
Browns Mixture, or the compound liquor
ice mixture, as it is called in the pharma-
copia. Two grams of qui inc every
three hours will keep down the
fever. Milk or light broth every two
or three hours should be given. The room
should be kept at u form temperature o;
about TO-, aud ventilated from the adjoin-
lng room, SO as not to subject the patient to
a draught. A wooden cloth should be
thrown over the chest, but the patient mus
not be smotherad with pillows, blister