Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1899-01-12
HYGIENIC TOPICS.
Various Matters OF General Interest 10
the Whole Public.

The uyerGry air OF houses in winter
is a subject of Interesting discussion
in Il recent number OF the Youths
Companion. The air from furnaces
and steam pipes, II unduly dry, alb
serbs moisture from whatever i;
tcuch,s BY virtue OF It's absorbency
the surface OF the body. and in greater
degree the membrane lining the nose,
throat and bronchial tuSes, suffer from
the rapid evaporation OF moisture, anu
lose heat in the process. Experiments
by different observers have demon
strated marked difference between
the actual and the sensible tempera-
lures OF rooms heated by furnaces and
steam pipes without the addition OF
moisture arliGcially introduced. Ere
quently difference oT at least 20 de-
grees has been noticed \ hysrO-
meter, moisJened 10 the same degree
as the average human ska, has re-
peated4y shown a temperature many
degrees below the actual air temper
azure, both in public buildings and N
private houses, In winter the warmth
Of the kitchen is often more graceful
than hat OF other rooms in which IN,
temperature is as high, but n which
there is no steaming teakettie to
moisten the air There is no question
regarding the baneful sniuenCe OF hoi
dry air in the production of catarrha
conditions of the nose, throat anc
bronchial tubes. It has been suggest
ed that diphtheria owes in part IL
common occurrence to the present i'm
perfect methods of heating school
houses The dryness of the air pro
duces condition OF the throat upo,
which the disease 5 easily engrafted
An easy method OF furnishing moist
ure consists of the conduction OF &
thin stream of steam into the heated
air. This may 5e done by exposing
wide vessels filled with water in the
air-boXes OF furnaces, or by more elab
orately planned sprays, made effective
by the Introduction into the hot All
pipes OF evaporatiye surfaces com
posed of cotton fiber
The use OF soaps containing a dis
QfeCtant OF some kind has become 81
general, says the Medical Press, tina
observations on the practical value o
such combinations cannot fail to b.
OF interest Or. Reithoffer has recent
~ publisched the results Of some eX-
perments carried out by him with var
ious kinds Of soap, having for objec
to determine their vfsue as micro
bicides He used the ordinary mot
tied soap, white almond soap perfume'
with nitrobenz.ne, and hard potasl
soap. He found that these soaps wer
very inlmical 10 the cholera microbe
l per cent. solution killing them II
a short space OF time. while a pc
{ cent. solution of the potash soap kille
Z them in five minutes. We are, there
: fore, AT liberty TO infer that, as !.
! washing the hands the strength of IN
soap solution Is never less than an
! may 80 as high as is per cent, thi
Z method OF disinfecGng the hands, a
; well as the clothes, etc, is fairly trust
3 worthy. Much stronger solutions ar
; required, however, to destroy tn
\ bdNii4A " - PhOAHf hAS wi ''''4i''
) etc, not less than 10 per cent bein
sufficient None OF the soaps expert
, mented with appeared TO have any ei
feet on the pyogeuic microbe. Th
5 practical results OF these iuyestiga
tons Is that il is always preferable {
, use soap and water first OF all, rinsin
the hands in the disinteetant solutio
. aHerward This is an ImDortan
point. which merits 10 be general
: made known.