The Tucson citizen., 1901-12-16

many (as the writer sleep out during
the whole yepr. There are not FIVE days
IN the wholc year but the most dciscate
invalid can spend part of the day, at
least, out of doors. In this climate in
iuries and wounds heal very rapidly;
contagious diseases are usually very
mild. There has been no epidemic, ex :
cept in whooping cough, for years.
The winter months, from the middle
Of September to the 6rst OF May. are in
this locality the finest in the world. One
bright sunshiny day succeeds another;
the nights are cool and exhilaratinR; the
| verduc and the brightest flowers. Truly
it 10 a joy TO live.
AT present have never known q per-
son coming to this Territory in the early
| stages OF pulmonary disease and locating
in the altitude suited to their particular
case that did not get well; nor have
knowu of one in the second stage that
did not improve. But cannot refrain
from raising my voice against the out
rage of sending advanced cases 10 this
or other sections to die among strang
ers."
DR.. H. w. Penner, of Tucson, Surgeon
Of the Southern Paci6c X. r., says
Tucson 10 city OF IL. 900 inhabitants.
on the main line Of the Southern Pacific
Railway, altitude 2,4oo feet above the
sea level. Tucson 10 one Of the oldest
settlements made by the Spanish con
querors. II 10 now the commercial and
railroad center Of Southern Arizona. The
climate is exceedingly dry and bracing,
the humidity being exceedingly low: the
yearly minimum and maximum being
go and So respectively. The rainfall
is small and but httle irrigation 10 car
ried on. The water supply 10 excellent.
The summers are long. the Thermometer
ranges high. but the low degree Of humid
ity makes the clear warmth tolerabie.
and the most heaithfuI part OF the year.
Sunstrokes and heat prostrations are
unknown. The climate Of Tucson has
been found by experience to be particui-
arly beneficial to most cases of puamon,
AIRY phthisis, especially those of the
earlier or pre-tubercuiar periods.
DR.. Mark A. Rogers. of Tucson, says:
My experience has impressed upon
me the necessity for outdoor life in the
order that the patient may live contin-
uously in the open air for period of sew
eral months, or, for that matter, for q
year, or several years, a climate is re-
quired which is continuously warm and
dry. Sssch a climate the United States
does not possess, bat the nearest ap-
proa III to it is Arizona.
physicians rurc'v send their paints
to the arid -sg:oas eSxriag simmer nd
this ! consider a great .-.stake. ihe
patients should be sent to the arid re-
gious so soon as there is evidence of I'M
fiction from the tubercle bacillus, and
should be made to remain there until
they are well. or until it is apparent that
the case 10 hopeless.
Many physicians in the east order
patients to California for the winter.
apparently with view Of sending them
to dry climate. The relative humidity
in southern California 10 as great, and
IN some instances greater, than that uf
the Atlantic coast, and many Of the best
physicians in California regularly send
their tubercular and asthmatie patients
to Tucson. California IL a beautiful
country, but the fogs which come in
rom the sea, and the emanatious from
the vast irrigated regions, make it far
inferior to the inland desert regions for
phthisscal patients. think il may be
assumed as a general rule that wber-
ever there is irrigation there is high
degree of relative humidity and patients
suffering from pulmonary phthisis
should never be sent to an irrigated dis
trict. Indeed. some of the California
physicians have declared that irrigation
and malaria go together
The city of Tucson has. in my opin-
ion, advantages as a health resort
which can not be equalled anywhere in
North America. | know of no locality
where such a moderate winter climate
and such n low degree of relative humid
ity are combined with the same latit ude
and altitude. Ii is no longer considered
imperative TO send tubercuiar patients
to an altitude of 5. 900 feet, or over. In
fact, clinical experience has proven that
more frequently patients required to b.
sent TO an altitude or less, rather than
more than 5000 feet. The altitude OF
Tucson is 2, 400 feet. and that seems to
be amply high for all but the most ex-
ceptional cases. The city is situated in
basin near the underground Santa
Cruz river. 1t is completely walled in
by massive mountain ranges. To the
north is the Santa Catalina range; to
the east, the Rincon; to the south, the
Santa Rita; and ON the west, the Tue
son. Each of these ranges has an siti-
tude of 5000 feet at least. Mount Le-
mon. the highest peak of the catalinas,
has an elevation of 10000 feet, and
Mount Wrightson in the Santa Ritas.
reaches an altitude of nearly IL ,000
feet.
"The scenery at Tucson is as impress
sive as anywhere in the Rocky noun
tains. and the gorgeous sunrisc and SUM-
set beggar description.
During the nine months, October Ia
June. inclusive, 1S94-5, there were bat
twenty-five cloudy days, and nine Oh
these were In one month. Some idea OF
the transparency of the atmosphere NAV
be had when state that, at midday.
and with the unaided eye, have seen
Venus when It was but ten degrces eas-
az kN~