The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1907-03-09

nous green discs. one much oenfr In
| color than the other, stood bot
! stop me when the colOrs are
/ matched''
The right-hand disc BEGAN to re-
/ volve rapidly through varirs crada-
lions Of green until at length the
shades of both cOincided
THAT is the light passing Trough
aluminium discs of varying thickness.
! The one shows the penetration We
want, and thereby gives the penetra-
hility of the rays. SO you see. we are
now able not only to regulate the
dosage, but to some extent the intcn-
sity OF the light. Not altogether with
absolute accuracy, though. The inten-
sity varies with the preservation of the
vacuum in the tube itself But here.
too, we have sort of safety valve
that gives us warning if much Of the
current is being lost"
He moved metal rod behind the
tube fraction nearer the one OPP
posite to it. Instantly tiny fork of
lightning leapt cracking across the in-
terval.
That's the sparkling point which
tells us when the current is being vast
ed. The dial here gives US tho spark.
ling points for the varying intensf-
ties.'
Complex as the installation was,
hnI tic fvyv,c
and every one of them was the OUT
come Of years of trained observation
and uYwearying study of the mysteri-
Gus Jtys Tat still kept the secret Of
thei/ healing power unriddled. To
Wat end this laborious study OF q
strange force, the very nature Of
which still eluded the searching quest
Of science? The doctor, at the scep-
tic sentiment, laughed.
well. you have seen the results Of
the treatment in cases of rodent ulcer
for yourself. Ii we cannot tell you the
why of it, our methods every year
approach a greater degree of scientific
accuracy in dealing with an evil which
often could not be dealt with other
wise. That is to our credit, surely.
You saw a man outside just now with
an ulcer on his cheek. To remove It
surgically would involve the section Of
nerve, with facial paralysis for it's
consequence. Economically, no doubt,
the treatment of ringworm by the x
rays is likely to be one of the most
valuable assets of our improved meth
eds. AS you know, it is extremely con-
tagious usually for several months,
and, failing the provision of special
schools, means the exclusion of the
child from the advantages Of the edu-
cation the public purse provides for
him. The X-rays remove the hair.
and with it the spores-the trouble
is due to a vegetable parasite, you re-
member-Of the growth almost with
The first application. We can cure it.
though of course ringworm is not
strictly speaking a hospital case, in
about three weeks and prevent all
risks Of infection in even less. In Par
is, where this method of treatment has
superseded the special "ringworm
S'ioolo. IL IL estimated " nave dr.
ready saved the State a very large
sum Of public money. -
Cancer? No, one would not care to
say that we had ever cured cancer
here. though rodent ulcer starting
from the seBaceous glands of the skin
IS OF course, Of q cancerons nature:
All we are justified in saying in oths
err cases is that the rays often seem to
relieve the patient of pain and to pre-
vent the spread of the disease For
example, there was a patient with can
Ger recurrent after operation who,
with occasional treatment, is after two
and half years, certainly no worse,
and is able to go about and earn her
living. But this would not justify one
nspeaking of her as cured of can
Ger. The lay public has often been de-
luded by the wild promises held out
by quacks who played about with the
light without in the least knowing
what they were doing. The rays, OF
course, ought never to be administered
except under the supervision of quail.
fled medical man. Fortunately, these
irregular practitioners have been so
thoroughly scared by the mischief
they have done in some cases that
they now usually handle the light so
timidly that their mnistrations have
little effect one way or the other"