The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1907-08-09
THE STORY
OF MALARIA

Referring to malaria liz talk before
the Royal Colonial Institute of Great
Britain, the other day, Maj Ronald
Rose said that it is the most interest
ing disease of all medical science.
For 1000 years men have been
studying it and only now does success
seem in sight.
One of the most remarkable things
admitted by physicians now in dis
cussing the disease is that we have
not disproved any OF the more impor-
tant theories of the ancients on the
subject, but have only elaborated on
them and verified them.
Four hundred years before the
Christian era that great Greek, Hippo
crates, wrote learnedly on malaria.
Yet, today it is encountered with
dread by physicians. Full of astound-
ing facts is its story.
Between man and nature, seeming
ly, has the malarial war been waged.
Perhaps, though, it would be nearer
correct to say that it has been fought
between man and himself
For scientists believe that this, as
other diseases, is a violation of ma
lures laws, rather than a proclivity |
of nature herself, that has wrought |
the trouble
One hears nowadays of 'intermit-
tent fever" and is apt to imagine it |
is modern term. Only in phraseol-
Ogy Is 1t so.
The ancients knew of intermittent
fever. About 400 B. C. the Romans
and Greeks had decided that malarial
fevers were not continuous in type
and divided them into three classes
those occurring every day, every 9th
n day, and every third day.
And that classification, in it's essen
tails, stands today.
Again, those ancients had discov- {
cred a direct connection between the &
disease and swamp or marshy places,
md even suggested that it was dis {
eminated to man by germ. All of t
some elaboration-is Z
low known to be true. L
A long time afterward a visitor of g
in Ecuador, discovered that a
PERUVIAN bark would alleviate mala- e
ial fever. In 1910 Europe learned it, n
nd Louis XIV. had his agues helped S
y it. fl
Then, in 1920, the French chemists Ii
eparated quinine from the bark, and II
cit that they had made progress s.
re step in the treatment of malaria. r,
, And SO they had, for today quinine
amains the accepted specific against
lalaria.
About the middle of the last century
anne another important discovery: q
was found-thanks to the micro
,ope-that the "malarial pigment"
'anules in the blood are the waste
after thrown off by little parasites -,
hich, living in the blood, cause the or
sease -,
Then, at later period, Pasteur, 10
och, Lister, and others were discov-
ing that bacteria were the cause of 4;
Ithrax, tuberculosis, cholera, ty- n,
loid and leprosy. 40
The difference is that the malaria -
rms are the lowest form of animal =,
e.
- Sc
at children In the tropics carry -,
out myriads OF malaria germs In
cir systems all the time, and, IL 80
ey live to maturity-which very 90,
my OF them do not-they become -
mune.
Only about ten years ago was 1t A..
covered-although some such
ng had been suspected for centu-
shat when mosquitoes of a GER
n species suck the blood of an In
ted person, animal or bird, they
NV in the parasites of malaria and "
part them to the next victim they 80
e.
lever can tell when you'll mash a tn
ger or suffer a cut, bruise, burn or
Id. Be prepared DR.. Thomas