The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1897-01-20
CHANCES OF LIFE OF OLD MEN,

Science says Age Il NO More Dlseass
Than Chndhoed.
DR.. Adolph Bloch rend a paper the
other day before the Paris Society OF
Anthropology. in which he ridicuied the
theory that old age is disease, con,
tending that it is no more q disease thar
childhood. With precautions an Old
man Il no more exposed to maisdies
than is a younger man, provided he has
not taxed his strength too heavily.
1t is difficult to say at what period d
life old age arrives There are many
causes that bring on preoscious sem
iiity. Sometimes one man in very old as
30, and another presents all the sttriS-.
utes OF second youth at 90. It II more
logical to deseribeold age as that period
in life during which man dies natural
". ii he does not succumb to q maiady
or an accident Very few old men. an .
matter of fact, die of disease howevee
strange this may appear. Agreat many
Of them drop OF from simple exhaus-
ton, without leaving the least trace OF
any n,alady- No doubt, there are mala-
dies that sstack old men, such. for in-
stance, as congestion Of the brain, IN,
flammation OF the lungs, and arteriai
etheromA that is to say. q degree Of
thickness. moro marked In tho tfnics Of
the arteries, which become as solid and
brittle as pipestems- Many deaths OF
Did peoplcu re attributed to these causes.
but wemust not forget that they do noe
suffice to explain oil. Bichat csms
nearer the truth when he said that wa
die in detail. and continue to die until
the day when wequit this earthly scene
altogether.
DR.. Bloch shares the ideas of Bichat,
and he cites statistics 70 prove that they
are not wrong. he secured from NJ.
Jacques Bertiilon the Pa1sian record
Of the deaths from scnility of both mon
and women duringa period OF II years.
taking the age OF GO as tho average,
From these figures it appears that mor-
tality among old people is greatest be.
tween the ages of SO -snd IS, while ID
dimiuishes suddenly from the goth year.
That II to say, the u,alady takes . light.
er hold upon an old person who has
reached that age and passed theoretical
period named above. In other words,
an old person who reaches 90 without
accident has q good chance of bocornin3
Q centenarian and dying otold age only.
Tho deaths of old people in whom no
disease can DO discovered are always
put down In statistics under the name OF
senile debility. senile exhaustion, scnils
cachexy. and senility. Now, the natural
death through senility is not known,
according to Or. Bloch. II has some
times been noticed among old people in
the hospital of Salnte-PeTtne. but the
anatomical examination in most cases
no defect. and IL was natural
TO come 20 the conclusion that death
was dae TO progressive weakness
Mortality among the old is variables
according TO the periods of the year. II
Is highest during the winter months,
at al being assisted by pnsr@
monia. It is also variable according Ia
as can be proved by consult.
ing the statistics Of The departments Of
France. There are some regions where
men live longer than they do IN others,
For instance, Yonno and Gironde ara
favored I'm Shis matter.
How this is nobody can ten. bot IL Is Z
fact duly observai--S. Y. Sun