The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1907-04-11
A SPLENDID LECTURE.
Eminent Physician Gives Talk On
Timely Topics.

~ 70 q 6iSob PiSJ buS WSdtuST uudI
could not have arranged a better
working program Saturday night wher
DR.. Mccormack of Louisville, KY
advertised to lecture on the Sanitary
Questions Of the Day. But the mar
up in the tower at Anes, or wher
ever he is, mad arranged for frainy
enevi1g, lecture or no lecture, and sc
it was.
Yet a few people yenturei out tc
hear the famous speaker,-some oil
the doctors, few of their wives, an
occasional nurse, wee sprinkling OF
.swyers and few club women. The
flecturer said what it lacked in quality
the audience made up in quantity ,and
everybody felt good over that compli
ment
DR.. Mccormack is the official rep.
resentative of the American Medical
Association and for five years he has
Deen going about over the country lee.
turing on those questions which are
vital to the health and life of a com.
munity.
Previous to his engaging in this
work DR.. Mccormack was president of
the Kentucky Board of Health, DO
sition which he attained after long
years of successful practice. DR..
Mccormack is man of striking per-
sonal appearance, large, strongly built,
and of very pleasant face. He speaks
In conversational tone without at
tempt at anything but telling the
truth.
The audience was so small that
Mayor Williams said in his introduc.
tory speech that Dr. Mccormack
would not give a complete lecture,
but merely outline his subject. That
outline was Of intense interest.
The speaker began by saying that
the questions vital to any community
were, how can unnecessary sickness
a1d death be prevented. He declared
that one.third of all disease was pre-
ventable, that one-third of the deaths
were needless. He said as far as Iowa
was concerned ne could find no relia-
BILE vital statistics, and he must Judge
of it by comparison with states in the
same latitude and with same climatic
conditions. Iowa should make proper
provision for health statistics.
Then DR.. Mccormack plunged into
a talk on the great question of disease
prevention. He said that in this state
1000 people die annually of consump-
ton, and $4,000 more are i'll from it.
Yet the disease is not inherited and
is contagious. If all germs were de-
stroyed by proper disilfectioa, If all
tuberculosis cows were killed, con
sumption would disappear. ~..
Typhoid fever is also preventable,
and the Doctor said smilingly that it
was a disgrace for family to have it.
He instanced number of cases where
the raj germ came into the system
through a bad water supply. Flies
also are great spreaders Of the fever
germs, and will carry them for the
infection is urged by all doctors, yet
it is not attended to by the families
where the disease exists. Scarlet few
er and diphtheria are carried along
the line of the emigrant or are COM
municated by the wearing of sweat
shop clothing. He said diphtheria
germs will live for months, scarlet
fever germs for years. -
Bad meat inspection, bad milk in
spection came in for their share of
blame for public sickness. DR.. Nc
Cormack also mentioned poor yentila-
ton in schools a1d homes as pro-
life source of sickness.
He gave patent medicines great
scoring, declaring most of them were
second.rate whiskey with a little flaw
oring, and ne had the courage to name
Peruna, Paine's Celery Compound,
Lydia Pinkham's remedies and Duffy's
Malt whiskey as fair samples of the
stuff people pour into themselves for
medicine. For example he declared
that while beer had per cent OF
alcohol, and champagne 5 per cent,
Peruna had AZ per cent.
His general plea was for better
understanding between doctors and
pepole His lucas of the true doctor
are high, and ideals of their life and
laDors are lofty and inspiring. He
believes that if doctors, druggists and
the community should work side by
side for the greatest good to public
health, there would be great de-
crease in the death rate.
The talk was practical one and
deserved the rapt attention with
which it was received. The County
Medical Association is to be congrat-
ulated on the excellent lecture. 1t is
too bad that more people were not
out to listen to a talk on matters
''icn are of the greatest Importance.