The Savannah morning news., 1901-09-30
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HY GIENIO BATHING.
Physicians Raise Objections 10 the
Use of the Swimming Pool.

Physicians Raise Objections TO the
Use of the Swimming Pool.
From Philadelphia American Medicine.
The dangers Of the public swimming
pool should not be forgotten by those
suddenly interested in the subject of
cleanliness among the poor of the
cities. In the first place, only a small
portion of the citizens of the United
States can or will avail themselves of
the supposed benefits of unregulated
free bathing. The city poor is a small
part of the whole number of citizens.
Indeed, the proper place for cleansing
the body is at home, and effort should
be made by hygenists to educate the
people in this matter. Then again it
is only on the ocean shore that suffi-
cient pure water can be had for clean
bathing. The water of our streams and
rivers is so fouled that without filter
ing, etc, no competent sanitary au-
thority would advise its indiscriminata
use In the eyes, mouth, nose, ears and
upon the skin.
To make our public water supplies
sufficiently pure and plenteous for
free baths and swimming pools for all
who needing bathing would at once
bankrupt every city and State But
the worst is yet to come! Supposing
the purified water could be supplied in
such quantities, the free swimming
tank or pool is Immediately fouied,
and almost inevitably infected, when
the bathing has begun. The contagion
OF any person having an infectious dis
ease may be given off in the water and
carried to another bather. To carry off
or change the dirty and possibly in
fected water in a popular tank RAPIDLY
enough to avoid this would be i'm
possible.
The proper methods of bathing are
four: % BY the bath in ocean water
at the seashore. For only very few
or the entire people, and for but one
fourth OF the year is this possible Such
batning, like many other kinds of bath
ing is not for cleansing the body. CD
BY the bath-tub with pure water, pos
sible only for the well-to-do and for
a limited number in public lighthouses.
go BY the spray or rain bath, the
sole method ADVISABLE in public
baths. and especially II supported by
the benevolent, by the State. or by
city appropriations. 90 BY means Of
spong or towel at home, even with
only few gollons of water. This
method should be encouraged by hy-
gienists, physicians and ali those who
FcNiN AASNA nefD FORWARD
the cause of the public health. The
free swimming bath for the vast
majority of our people is impossible
TO provide if the water shall be pure,
and 1t is impossible to keep the water
pure when it is provided. We leave o<.
OF the count the not-to- be- sneered at
fact that unless the bathing is done
unclothed, soap and cleanliness are not
thought of. and. even at best, modesty.
that hardly won virtue. is not en-
couraged in public bathing. The only
uncomfortable fact is that the public
swimming pool is danger to, not
promoter of, the public health. The
newspapers, the politician. and the
selfishly charitable are right in their
efforts to encourage cleanliness, but the
mere desire to do good nowadays does
not prevent the final result from show
ing wasted effort. and, not infrequent-
iy, positive mentalism, and nowhere
more carefully than in socialistic ex-
pertinent and fervors.