The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1909-02-09

out q parallel IN human history put,
as has ..een shown, it has never been
appreciated, largely because Of the
public sentiment created by jealousies
and dissensiOnS in our own ranks.
Had our profession been as united
and taken as much pains to keep IN
touch with and lead the peop1e in a
public way, during the formative and
growing of our government, as the
lawyers did, health and medical boards
would have been made as much q
part Of the warp and woOf Of our
national, State and county machinery
as the courts have always been. They
ought to ave been because they are
more important, just in proportion
as health and life are more import
ant than any mere property interests.
Since this has been SO persistently
urged by political economists. PreSl-
dent Roosevelt and a few other pub
lie men have ONE to realize, as Glad
stone, Disraelli, Bismarck. Gambetta
and other rea! statesmen in the older
countries did long ago. that a great
health department at Washington
with laboratories and research work
nrs in proportion to the wealth ana
power OF our government and the vast
interests involved. such as would in
vestigate the causes and methods Of
prevention of diseases not yet known
with such a system as would gather.
tabulate and distribute the facts in
REGARD to every case OF slcknesS and
death which occurs in the United
States, with prevention only ds the
object, 5 as much q necessity, If our
people are to have the benefits Of mod
ern knowledge applied in their daily
home lives, as the Supreme Court.
Science is thus utilized in other we'll
governed countries, as 1T is regardless
of expense for domestic animals in
this country, and the time has come
for voters to protect their wives and
children. and to quit sending men to
Congress-, or to Legislative, or other
positions who haven't the sense to I'M
derstand the Importance of doing it.
For similar reasons a State board OF
health, with proper laboratories and
funds, and with bers 50 supported
that they can give time to this life
saving work, is just as important as
your Appellate Court.
And q board of health in each city
and county, or for the two combined.
with laboratories to which any citizen
may bring water, food, drugs or any
other thing suspected as q danger to
his family, for analysis without per
SOnal expense, with school inspectors,
with constant supervision of abattoirs,
lairies, groceries, factories, tenemenis
and everything else affecting health
StAtNA AI1' 10 vi to it21tl pkSIt tId XII
p~ortance as any court or other official
agency can be. 1t is hardly worth
while to try to do these things without
a health officer who has special apti-
tude and raining for his work and
with such q salary that he can devote
his entire time to these duties. No
man can be such a health officer as !
have in mind and practice medicine.
The positions are incompatible, and it
wOul be just as reasonable to expect
q ludge to occupy the bench and prac-
tice law at the same time. 1t will
pay a hundred fold to provide q com
prehensive system for these
as substitutes for the political
and make-shifts so generally in vogue
in this country, because the greatest
tax upon our people is not that paid
into the municipal, county, State and
national treasures. but the unrecog-
nized tax for ~preventible sickness and
funerals.
We fully relaiZe the magnitude of
this reform, and the sacrifice our pro-
fession must make to carry it on.
am here as the official mouth-piece.
and at the expense of my n
VINO live by the treatment of disease
to proclaim the gospel of health and
cut down their incomes.
In addition to it's scientific work
it is expected that each county socie+v
will hold frequent joint meetings with
the teachers, Women's clubs, editors,
lawyers, ministers, druggists, business.
b and other organizations for pur-
poses of mutual instruction as to
health and medical affairs. Later,
throueh the teachers and Others, it
is pronOSed that every school child
and family will be cache with prac-
teal information as to the cause and
prevention Of sickness. In all of this
the physician is also to be a moral
leader of his people, setting an ex-
ample Of clean. healthy living in. his
own person and home, urging the
same standard of morality fn~ men
and women, and securing the CO.
anaration of the. teachers dru ggiSfS