Mexico weekly ledger. (Mexico, Mo.) 1855-1956, 1908-11-19
NO bad SYMPTOMS
DEVELOPED Yet
KATHERINE WAITE is DOING NICE.
LY UNDER THE PAsTEUR TREAT.
MENT IN ST. LOUIS = LITTLE
QUESTION CONCERNING HER UL-
INNATE RECOVERY.
Interesting Excerpts From Articles
on Mad Dog seares and Epidemics
OF Hydrophobia = A Matter Of
Nerves in Many Instances.

TIE latest reports from little Miss
Katherine Waite, who recently was
bitten by q rabid dog in this city, are
TO the effect she is well and no symp-
toms Of the dreaded disease have made
their appearance. She Is taxing the
Pasteur treatment under DIR. Fish, Of
st. Louis and her many friends will
be glad to learn OF her excellent
health.
The following excerpts from an ar
ticle on mad dog scares and another
on Hydropaobia will be OF more than
passing interest at this time. They
are both from scientific journals and
the result Of systematic research
along this line.
MAD DOG scAREs
That Chicago's recent mad dog
scare, the reports of mad dogs through
out the city, and the consequent
shooting of many dogs are nine-tenths
nonsense is the contention OF Or. John
]. Millar, veterinarian to the Lincoln
Park Zoo, Chicago.
DR.. Millar advances the belief that
rabies cannot be contracted with fatal
results by q human being save in most
exceptional cases, and backs up bis
opinion with statistics and expert
ments, the latest Of which was the
incubation of himself and an assistant
with rabies In q virulent form, and
with NO development Of the disease,
although there was no effort to escape
by application Of the Pasteur treat
ment.
''Fiye years Of experimentation and
treatment Of dogs suffering from
rabies have about convinced me that
the annual mad dog scares which
seem to spread all over our great cities
are nine-tenths nonsense, declared
DR. Millar recently. II have begun
to doubt whether human being can
contract rabies in a fatal form, even
| II no recourse to pasteurazation is
had. My own experiment. strength
ems my conviction.
ION July 18th q dog was brought to
me for examination which showed
that 1t was suffering from acute
rabies. In working upon the animal
and treating IL, was bitten accident
ally In the banda clean, we'll defined
flesh wound. My assistant, DR.. W.
s. Buchanan, also was bitten, the ami
NAL biting him through the hip. Fol
lowing my theories, neither of us
sought other treatment than washing
and cleansing our wounds. On July
18th, three days after the accident,
the dog died, and we knew we had a
case Of acute rabies to deal with.
We did,nothing to prevent incubation
and yesterday the outside period with
| in which the disease could possibly
develop passed and neither Of us has
fallen victim.
"Further than this, / have collect
ed statistics to show the nonsense in
these mad dog scares. or 346 cases OF
supposed billings by dogs. afflicted with
rabies turned In to the police depart
ment since May 1st, every case has
been investigated by me personally,
OF the number Of dogs thought &c
have been afflicted, l found by mic
roscopic examination that really only
nine showed traces Of rabies. The
health department also reported 2sl
cases OF rabid dogs to us, and the re
suits were almost the same. or al
this number of people who were bit
ten supposedly by mad dogs, not
single case Of rabies in human beint
has been reported.
"Cauterlzatlon cannot account fol
this result, as only abrasions anc
minor wounds are remedied by thai
means. The deep, clearly defnet
flesh wounds, especially a wound In
flicted In the large muscles, cannot Dt
reached by cauterizatlon. 1t is fright
ened women and children who have
been bitten by dogs who rush for .
physician to cauterize their wound
when they might use simple prevent
lives with equally beneficial results.
"The mad dog panic and the killing
of hundreds Of dogs are unjustifable
and If people would only stay thei
fright, clean wounds made by dogs b.
sucking, cleansing, and the applica
tion Of q little lemon juice they meet
have no fear Of contracting rabies"
HYDRoPHoBIA
DR.. Charles W. Dulles, lecturer oil
History of Medicine in the University
LOT Pennsylvania, who has been repeat
edly appointed by the medical societie
of the State to investigate rabies, ant
uhb Icdu NdIAuun p6POAo Oh onO DN"JSS
and has corresponded on the subjec
with most distinguished medical mel
of Europe, recently said: II do no
believe there is anything specific ii
the saliva of dog to cause this dis
order, because it has appeared after
great many injuries Of totally differ
ent character. read before medi
cal society twenty years ago, a papel
| in which described more than thirtl
diseases In which the symptoms attri
buted to hydrophobia appeared.
have made a careful study of a larg'
number of reported cases Of mad dol
bites and found that only small pro
portion of them resulted in death
not more than two or three per cent
The condition is what is called psy
Ghosts, and it may be due to manI
different causes, one Of the common
est Of which is fear. / would make
most earnest appeal to.the newspaper
to cease printing reports Of deaths b!
lhydrophobia.' For twenty-five year
| have been studying the subject, ant
gathered data upon it from every par
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