Morning journal and courier., 1894-01-25

NV ~ ~ eno m u
Arteries.
From the Washington Postl
While Ii has long been known that q
man who follows strong drink may arrive
at a milestone where the way 10 besieged
with all sorts of serpets and fiery dra-
gone, medicine and fcIencs are now able
to demonstrate that snakes live and move
in ones being. An important discovery
in this direction, only few months old in
Europe and just announced IN this coun-
try, was toli the other day by DR.. G. W.
Stiles, of the Bureau of Animal Industry,
small white snake that lives in the veins,
securing entrance into the body through
the medium of drinking water II wris-
gles about and chases up and down the
avenues Of the blood at its pleasure.
These little reptiles have strange domestic
habit-. The male is about four fifths of
an inch In length and curves himself into
the form of a half circle On the inside
of the curve he forms a little canal with
the edges of his body and there be keeps
Mrs. Snake. He lent larger than a cotton
thread nor longer than the breadth of ones
finger, but tsgether they srs capable of
working q great deal of damage to q
healthy mans circulation It is certainly
not . comfortable thought to know that
you may have few pairs of theee animals
tucked away inside your jacket. The
medical men have another name fer the
disesse which results from their devssta-
tions, but it would be popuIsrly called
'poor blood"
The story of this parasite's existence Is
curious. Ii name has long btsa known,
but its life history, which is the most in
teresting and the most important thing to
know, was only recently discovered by
Professor Sonsino, q learned man of Piss,
Italy. In some respects this snake is like
fuke worm. The eggs or lsrvs from
which Ii matches are found in the water,
whittier they have come from come mans
body. They swim about there until they
find q certain kind of microscopic crab.
This crab they seize upon and live with
They stay inside of him till some one
drinks the water and the crab, which is
nothing but harmless snimalculs, and
then the human snake is In it's element
1t grows and grows, and bores Its way
through the wallis of the intestines with
the persistency of a wood worm till Il
finds a lodgment in the veins.
As this pestiferous reptile infests cattle
as well as human beings, some knowledge
of 1t ia necessary for the farmer as well az
the pbysicisn, and DR.. Stiles has been
| searching vigorously for its existence In
| drinking water since the discovery was an
nounced, and is prosecuting his search al
4 the Bureau of Animal Industry.
The disease is best known In southern
| Europe and in Africa. An Egyptian q;
| the Worlds Fair who danced with one OF
the attractions in the Midway Plsissnce
was afflicted with this disease and became
/ q patient at the United States Army hes
pital. Aside from this case, TIE parasite
| has probably never been recorded in this
/ country, but DIR. Stiles thinks 1t by nc
means improbable that 1t will bs found
among the negores of the south. In fact,
| the original slaves imported from Africs
brought with them kindred Ills, and
through them, perhsps, this snake hal
been living for two or three hundred
/ years. SO long as the sffiction spreads
| with such wonderful rspidity II Ia not i'm
probable that Chicsgo may have q Siege o.
1t on account of she lucklsss Egyptian
1t 10 difficult to conceive how the Chicsgt
water could have escsped pollution, as tn,
lsrvs are given of readily and In grsa
| numbers.
Indeed. there are many species of snake
that wander about and find pasture In tn
blood, and 30 far ss they are concerned II
America, their history is intimately con
nscted With the negro race. All appear Il
have come out of the east. One of tn
most peculiar is the fiery dragon of tn
children of Isrsel. DR.. Stiles has one o
these Biblical monsters at the Bureau o
Animal Industry, which can be seen fec
to face. 1t throws q deal Of light upol
the Scriptural version of the story ant
leaves one no longer to look at 1t dsrkl
through the glass. The Mosaic narrativ
says that the Lord sent this plague upol
the people as they journeyed 10 the neigh
borhood of the Red Sss, but this is the ia
fiery dragon to this day. They are long
slim, white creations, and they get inu
the body, IN the same manner as tn
snskes frst mentioned, through drlukin
water. The scientific men reason that 9
Israel journeyed camps were oftsn pitche,
beside the waters, and there was littl
means of filtering what was drank Tn
lsrva, from which the dragon derives II
existence, has an unique friendship ais
for a minute crab whose home is In goo
drinking water. So the people of Isras
became sa,ctsd, and Moses devised th
cure of the brszsd serpent, upon whic
they might look and live.
Some of the scientific men have an e.
PLANTATION for Moses cure. They beliey
1t to have been q physician's knife fash
ioned like unto . serpent and used for el
tracing dragons from the body. Thes
dragons have . curious way of breakin
out at the groins, through which they res
their heads dehantly and gna1 away ia
muscles. If extracted whole the sutfsre
may live. But If the dragon be parted 1
twain during the operation of taking hiI
out the patient dies q most excruoiatin
death. These monsters have many chal
acteristics of the dragons of the world
and Israel was probably warranted In thu
calling them by name. They seem I
.. make the body . hiding place, and whe
|. touched they dash back and coil then
selves mp in the muscles, where they hs,
!. followed out cavities In which 10 rest
repoee. A province of Arabia borderiu
upon the Red Sea is their koms. The
= were Visited upon the nsgroes snd q
dark races of Africa, however, and wei
brought over to the new world with Il
slaves.
3 There is another specie of ills resultir
= from snakes in the blood that the negro
- brought to this country, and 1t is not se
/, ond to either of the Others In importanc
! II is called the diseafe which King Her.
disd with. No one knows that 1t was q