The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-11-15
HEART BEATS OF A LIFETIME.
At the Age of Threescore and Ten The

At the Age of Threescore and Ten They Have Mounted Up Into the Billions Did you ever take the trouble to fig-
 ure out how many times the normal heart would hutter in lfetime?" the young staistician inquired of a friend. Well, the subject cannot be treated with absolute accuracy, but one may make good guess at 1t. All hearts do not beat at the same rate of speed, and there are lapses even in the rate of speed at which the normal heart flutters. Shocks and undue excitement will frequently either suppress momen- tarily the hearts activities or produce the opposite effect in a quickened rate of speed. an excited, cratic sort of flut- tering generally referred to as palpi- tation. However the wise men who have burnt much oil In studying this important organ in its relation to the other organs of the human system have decided that the normal heart will beat 72 times evry minute. Frequently the heart of an apparently we'll person will fiutter 100 times a minute, and it some- times happens that a heart will fall be- low the normal. But 72 is the normal agreed upon and we may take this as a basis of computation. If a heart beats 72 times every minute in the course of one hour, 1t will beat 4,320 times. Dur ing one day or twenty-four hours, 1t will fiutter 103, 6S0 times, assuming that there are no lapses and no activities above the normal. At this rate of speed the heart will beat 725, ,760 times during one week, or seven days, or about 903,- 040 during an average month. On the same basis of computation drfng a year the human heart would flutter 37,843, 200 times, allowing S65 days for a year. Taking 35 years as an average mans life, and we will find that during that period of time this sleepless, restless or gan of the human body will beat about 1,324512,000 times. If am an should live to be 50 years of age his heart would beat 1892, 900 times. If he lived to be 60 years old it would beat 2,41O 592, ,O00 times. If he should live to be a cen tenarian the heart would flutter 3,7S4,- 320, COG, times
 Mind you, have been talking about the normal heart, or the heart that is called normal by the men who ought to know. The hearts are found in this age. The human heart is overworked for one reason and another. A sur plusage of poison in the blood, undue excitement resulting from the stress of modern business methods, and thing of that sort, have tended to increase the rate of speed at which the average heart must beat. Impurities of every kind which find Judgement in the arter- ies must be weeded out by this tireless engine and thrown off into the lungs, and an increase in the quantity of im- pure substances necessarily means in- creased activity on the part of the heart Hearts never break. The ex- precision Is poetic flight, a mere meta phor. but one which is universally un- stood. But hearts do wear out and in this age of rush and exciting clamor the human heart is unquestionably im- posed upon, an in cases, for instance, of the excessive use of alcohol and tobacco or other stimulating ingredients whicls find lodgement in the human stomach.
 The figures I have given are based on the normal agreed upon by the authori- ties, but my own view Is that they are much below the real figures when it comes to the average heart of this day. New Orleans Times Democrat.