The Portland daily press., 1896-05-12
NERVOUS DISEASES IN AMERICA.
No More OF Them Here Than in European
Countries.

[Dr, Philip c. Knapp i'll the Century,
Tbs belief in the greater nervousness
CT the American seems very widespread.
Iho late Or. Eeard OF New York was
one Of the first to describe nervous pros
trat,on, and to give it its medical name
Of neurasthe2ia, SO that it has often
bean spoken OF as the American dis
ease" In his work ON American ner-
yousness he treats chiefly of the causes
CT tho nervousness, and it's symptoms,
accepting almost as an axiom the state
mepG that Americans are mora nervous
tAan any other race, and that there is
q vastly greater amount Of nervous dis
ease in this country than IN Europe. He
aauaits, however, that the seyerer forms
OF organic nervous disease such as loco
motor ataxia and apoplexy, are probably
less frequent, the increase being in the
so-called functional conditions, neuras-
thenia, hysteEia and the like. It is prob
abIe that the majority of educated people
not physicians ia this country would ad
init without murmur thai as II people
We are peculiarly subject to nervous
disease.
Although, as I have said, the statistics
ara 800 conclusive nevertheless such stat
isios as VIC have, and the conclusions
drawn 1Fom various general Impressions,
absolutely contradict this beliof. 1t is
OILY since the war OF 1879 that tho Amer
lean has acquired his reputation for
restless energy; before that he was de-
nounoei as indolent and sluggish. Up
10 t1a period OF the civil war he was also
denounced as physically degenerate, in
1eTior il bulk, strength and eDdura nGe
TO his EDgleh cousin. The civil war
put an enc to such talk. No armies en-
durad more than ours in the field; no
people endured IEole than those who
s6ayed behind waiting and helping.
The record OF the 1st Kentucky brigade
in the Confederate army almost continu-
onsly in action or on the march for a
hundred days in 1861 retreaging from
thQlr 1oMes, with the hope OF SUCCESS
stsaaily fading away; l140 strong at the
beginning, suffering 1860 fatal or hospital
wolGGs, with only 90 left unWounded,
yet n.uaterlng go ct the end, with less
than 10 desertions-such q record has
never been surpassed. These men were of
TIE 2tlE5st American stock.
III aEoU6 the Same time Dr. Brown
Sequard found tha5 the American mann
Hl'sIs survived injuries that were inevit-
ably l. tnI TO the European, and our sur
ceoDS found surprising percentage of
recovery IfOm severe gunshot wounds,
greater probably than had ever been ob-
served Ia Aurops. Dr.. B. A. Gould
foUnd shat tho American soldier was
physically as well developed as the Eur
opsan, and Dr. H. P Bowditch found
tEa6 the American schooIboy was 1.-THE
equal in measurement OF the boys OF
Elton and Rugby. american life insur-
aae9 underwriters, too, have found that
tie longevity in This country is as great
rs it is in Europe, or greater. The rise of
the South since the civil war, and the
prompt recovery of individual oommuni-
Ties, such as Chicago, Boston and Port
laud, after great confiagrations, are
further instances Of the great recupera-
tive power of our people.
Since the civil war our physical con-
d6ton Las greatly improved. The great
e. interest IN athletics, and better cook
ing, have probably had something to do
With this improvement. We have held
tbs Americas cup for nearly so years.
III shooting, cricket, rowing aad tennis
we have not been inferior In information
al contest. In track athletics Yale has
recently Shown her superiority to Cam
bridge and the New York athletes have
not only surpassed their London rivals,
but have established new worlds records
IN more than one event. in the famous
ride a fow yeaEs ago between Berlin and
Vienna the picked riders andshcrsesonf the
Austrian and German armies were used
up, yet our oavairYinen and express mes
sengers on the plains, with ordinary
mounts, have IL ale better records both
fer time and distance, without the
slightest injury to horses OF men.