The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1898-01-05
FACTS ALL SHOULD KNOW.
"A Physician Tells all About the Disease Of
Small Pox.

the influence OF small pOX, and In this
way established its protective power.
The story Of Jcnner's struggles to
convince his contemporaries Of the
value Of his observations forms most
interesting and instructive chapter in
the history Of medical progress. No
member Of the profession ever recciv-
ed more anathcmas or more scurrilOus
abuse than did this great apostle Of
vaccination. Undauntcd, Jcnner kept
bravcly at work and by repeated ex
pcrimcnts became convinced that by
vaccination perfect protection could
be obtained against small pox. Within
the space Of few years Jcnncr COM
pcllcd the profession TO admit his
statements and adopt his practice,
and few years after its recognition,
the practice became fixed therapeutic
procedure, until to-day after standing
the test Of practice for century, it is
the greatest medical preventive the
world has ever known There is no
question among the intelligent portion
Of the profession but that vaccination,
properly performed. is Il perfect pro
lection against the Infection Of small
pox indeed, il has been authOrita-
lively asserted that if person con
tract the disease after he has been
vaccinatcd, then the operation has not
been properly performed.
Now what is the relation existing
between small pox and COW pox !?
Jcnncr was the first to advance the
belief that the two diseases have a
common ancestry, Or are identical /;
recent investigations seem to strength
eli this view. but controversy still
wages hotly around the question, and
it still awaits q definite solution. A
common origin does scom probable,
since it is not unlikely that small pox
may have departed widely from the
primal type and by successive repro
ductions on man have gained an c1-
altcd virulcncc.
1t is seen that vaccination, like all
active measures for protecting the
public health, has emanatcd from and
has been fostcrcd by tho medical pro
fcsson the assertion sometimes made
by ignorant laymcn that the profcs-
sion has been influenced in it's efforts
to maintain the practice by motives of
rccuniary benefit, is SO obviously in.
generous as to call for no notice. The
practice stands to-day as one Of the
greatest blessings that human thought
and observation have conferred upon
mankind. Formerly, small pox wns so
common that according to tho philoso-
ply of the times, every person had
either passed through it, or was des-
tined some time to experience an
attack. Now we never hear Of an
epidemic, and when sporadic cases
occur the disease is quickly stamped
out. The facts of all epidcmics since
the practice became general bear un-
answerable testimony to the value Of
vaccination. The failing oe vaccina-
ton is largely due to the absence of
any widespread epidemic VI small rox
within recent years the feeling Of
false security thus created has led the
people to put off for the moment the
temporary Inconvenience Of being vac
cinatcd. When the disease does
threaten tn spread in community,
by straining the local resources to
their limits, renders it difficult to
secure the most efficient protection in
all cases. 1t is important to undergo
the operation before the epidemic ar
rivcs, for when once the disease is
fully manifested, vaccination is prac-
tically without avail, for it is proba-
bic that immunity does not reach its
maximum Until the fourth week after
vaccination. Now, an attack Of small
poX docs not invariably confer i'm
munity from the disease. \accina-
tion efficiently performed in infancy
a";! repeated iii the 18TH UT lith year
has shown itself to be almost an abso-
lutte protection against small pox. In
those cases in which small poX occurs
after vaccination, the disease is almost
without exception so far modified that
its identity in it's earliest stages is
frequently unrccognizcd.
1t must not be supposed that vacci-
nation. however valuable to the com
murity at large, is not exempt from
that liability to accident which exists
in all human affairs. Operations Of
even trivial nature sometimes prove
fatal. There is an average Of one
death to IL IL? primary vaccinations.
If the virus be carefully selected and
properly used, and if reasonable care
be exercised after vaccination. there is