Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1909-02-07

BY That Tuberculosis IS Not
Necessarily la |! 6 I
Disease l.' y.
Treat Advances Being na 4 }
10 Successful Treatment :
Of White {. Phgse.

S@s&S $Ta< & Is - - -
Of White Plsgue. :
Doctor. G.. r. Ruediger. director OF
the state public health laboratory at
Tie Grand Forks university, and Pub
,hc Health Omcer Grassick. also OF
Grand Forks, delivered interesting
5and instructing lectures ON the Sub
Sject of tuberculosis before = Joint ~
sembly of the house and senate mem
.bers yesterday afternoon. y ~ y
Speaker Burdick presided in the
absence of President Lewis Of the sen
ute, whose time was taken up with
business Of Importance relating to the
work of the senate. DR.. Ruediger was
the first speaker and he said In part
sas follows: ".- H. ~.,-s e I
'.tLess than thirty years ago the hui
man race stood face to face with this
sscourge, hopeless and helpless ba-
cause its cause and real. nature were
unknown and ito onset so insidaous
that the fate Of its victim often
was sealed before the nature Of their
smalady was discovered. In. addition
III this the sorrcwful belief in an
hereditary faint hung over many
families, all the members Of which
fully expected to die Of the disease,
sand in many instances none escaped.
An analysis Of the death records
shows that one-tenth Of all deaths re-
corded are caused by pulmonary tub
serculosis (for North Dakota the per
lcentage Is about 1860, and II We con-
slider only the deaths occurring be-
tween the ages Of fifteen and forty
I'VE years, we find that at least thir-
Ety-five percent of them are caused
by@consumption. That is, during the
time when 4 person is Of the greatest
usefulness to society he is the most
apt "a fall prey to this insidious and
relentless disease and thus become
burden until he is finally carried OIL.
"Gesler computes that there are at
least l.25o, 900 cases of tuberculosis in
the United States all of the time.
If one-fourth Of these patients repre-
sent adults who have been obliged to
discontinue work on account of their
illness, and we figure their wages at
81 so . day, we find that there is here
an additional loss Of $140,000,000 a
year. That is, the loss to the United
States from consumption amounts to
at least 33SO,O00,000 per annum.
Since the brilliant discovery of
Robert Koch in 1881, we know that
tuberculosis is caused by very small
germ, the bacillus of tuberculosis.
Consumption, or tuberculosis OF the
lungs, is not caused by taking cold
but by an infection Of tubercle bacil'
Ii, which are usually derived from
another patient. 1t is true that q
cold or any other sickness may make
it easter for tubercle bacilli to get
foothold in an individuals lungs,
but the presence Of the germs is the
first requisite. The germs are, how
ever, rarely wanting because the mat
ter coughed up and spit out by eon-
sumptives, frequently contain them by
the millions and we know that most
consumptives expectorate whenever
and wherever the desire comes upon
them @ ~:>
a consumptive who properly dis
poses Of the spitum and does not scat
ter spittle bycoughdn is mot dan
gerous person to live with, but those
who have the filthy habit Of splitting
everywhere are a continual source Of
danger to others. :: 80. = & s
Infection may take place In num-
Der Of other ways than by inhalation
of the germs. 1t is frequently given
to children by consumptive parents
by fondling and kissing. Children
may also contract the disease from
toys which have been soiled by spit
tum. Infected food not infrequently
is, fruitful source of tuberculosis.
The greatest danger lies in the use OF
milk from tuberculosis cows, and this
is where many children contract the
disease. e. ID
Fortunately for us only a small
percent of persons who inhale living
tubercule bacilli In limited number.
are eAected with the disease IL any
body Who inhaled the germs would
die of consumption within one year
1t would not 30 long before the human
race would be wiped out Of existence.