Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1890-09-11
THE THIRSTY LEIGH.
AN oLD-TIME AID TO BLOOD
LETTING.
An Industry that Is Now but the
Shadow Of What tt Once Was.

According to the psalmist ''The
daughters OF the horse-leech cry con-
tinually, 'Give, give.n According to the
natural history neither the horse-leech
nor his daughters do anything of the
sort, the appetite of this variety of the
once popular worm being quite easily satis-
fed. Neither has it the blood-sucking
tastes OF the ordinary leech, for it is
well established that it will not attack
man, while it is equally well known that
the leech Of the medical world will. 1t
is doubtful whether it ever attaches itself
to horses or other animals, and it is con-
tent to make meal off another worm,
which it does by swallowing it whole
after the fashion Of that other worm, the
snake. The horse-leech, it is true, is big
and looks fierce, but, as in the case of
the big black ant.and the little red one,
tits the little one that is to be avoided.
Lastly, although this objection may be
considered hypercritical, the horse e-leech
never had any daughters, all of its child
rem being bi-sexed, true hermaphrodites.
Possibly what the erudite translators
of the Old Testament set down in Saxon
as the horse-leech was not the horse leech
at all in the original or perhaps what
was meant was the leech which is gather
ed by horses. In the great leech ponds
and streams of Europe and Asia big
haul of the worm used to be made by
driving horses in the infected localities.
The little bloodsuckers would then fasten
themselves to the poor animals legs and
body, from which, when the worms were
saturated, the gatherers would pick them
off. Leeches have to be gathered with a
little more care, the sources of supply
having become much more limited than
they were fifty years ago, They former
ly inhabited in great numbers the marshes
and streams of most countries eff Europe,
but now they are successfully cultivated
only in France and Hungary, although
they come from Turkey, Wallachia, Rus
sia, Egypt and Algeria. The best leeches
were long supposed to come from Swe-
den, but the supplies have run short.
Paris is now the center of the European
export trade. many of the leeches that
come from there being labeled as Swe-
dish.
Prior to 1889 there was no regular i'm
port trade of leeches into this country,
the supply being kept up by sea captains
who occasionally brought them over in
small numbers on private speculation.
Leechers were, therefore, obliged to de-
pend largely on the native leech for draw
ing blood, the native species being in
considerable demand during the early
part of the present century. twas found
that there were many American species,
its habitat being quite widely distributed,
but the best came from Eastern Pennsyl-
vania, especially Berks and Bucks coun-
ties. The European species is generally
conceded to be superior to the American,
but during the earlier period Of impor-
tation the prices charged for the Europ-
can blood-sucker was so high that the
American leech held its ground for a
time. Gradually, however, prices fell,
until now, although the European leech
is still trifle more expensive than the
native, its cost is so slight that it is al
most universally employed, excepting in
special cases, and in few localities
where the American leech is preferred.
No American leeches, it is believed, are
now used in any American city except
Philadelphia, where they are still in
slight demand. In fact, the latter city
appears to have held to the old custom
of leeching more than any other Amer
ican city of which there is any inform
alton. Now, perhaps, scarcely more than
1000 American leeches are used in year,
although more than that number are
sold to the druggist, the supply coming
from one person who collects them in the
Pennsylvania. counties mentioned and in
the ponds about Trenton, N. ].
Up to 1878 New York was the only
port that was in the leech-import busi-
ness, but in that year New Orleans also
began their importation, while San Fran
cisco has long been the the third import
er. In San Francisco the business is in
the hands OF French woman Madame
Patural. They are imported during
most of the year, but only to, aslight ex-
tent in summer, as they are easily killed
by an excess of heat. In June, July and
August the mortality in the East some
times reaches as high as 25 per cent.
They are brought here packed in swamp
earth in air and water-tight wooden cases,
holding 1900 leeches each. These cases
are made rather light, and are about
twenty -one inches long, fifteen inches
wide, and thirteen inches high. In
shipping leeches from place to place in
this country the same cases are used for
sending large quantities, and tight wood
en- pals for smaller numbers, the pack
ing of swamp earth being also employed.
American leeches, on the contrary, are
kept best in water, in earthern or glass
jars in cool place. In the case of very
large quantities storage ponds are EN-
ployed, the principal being on Long Is
land, between Winfield and Newtown.
Though but slightly used now, there
are few people who do not know that the
leech is used as blood-letting machine,
its use dating back to Galen, and the
process by which it fills itself with blood
being graphically described by naturalists
who lived contemporaneously with Pliny
and Herodotus. Cupping and leeching
were the curative methods employed in
all febrile disorders, and indeed for al
most any i'll. They were applied to any
part of the skin. as well as to the mouth
and other available inlets. When the
distinct locality was to be attacked the
leech was applied in thimble or leech
glass, the latter being small tube with
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