Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1909-04-10
HEAT OF THE BODY.
Climatic Variations Do Not Affect
Internal Conditions.
MANS NORMAL TEMPERATURE
Il Is 1876 Degrees When Taken Under
the Tongue Whether One Lives In
the Arctic Regions or In the Tropics.
Some Record Fever Temperatures.

the Tongue Whether One Lives In
the Arctic Regions or In the Tropics.
Some Record Fever Temperatures.
The normal temperature of Il human
being is generally given rs 9s.d de.
grees but the statement must be slight
ly qualified. 1t is the normal temper
allure when taken by placing the Their
mometer under the tongue or in the
armpit or the groin.
The surface temperature of the head,
hands or abdomen varies from 0U de.
grees to % degrees or even lower, That
Of the internal regions may go up to
1922 degrees that being the average
heat of the blood circulating in the
liver and some other organs,
But 0S.G degrees is called the normal
temperature of human being, and it
doesn't matter whether he lives in the
desert of Sahara or in Greenland ac-
cording to writer in the Technical
World. Awake or asleep, at work or
just lOafng, a mans temperature re-
mains practically at this level,
When it varies more than the fraction
of degree it is because the heat reg
ulating mechanism is disarranged 10y
disease or by abnormal conditions of
some sort Excessively high measures
of heat may be borne for several min
utes by an individual without raising
his temperature more than fraction
of a degree. Persons who sometimes
are styled human salamanders have
given exhibitions of their ability to
stand high temperatures.
There is an authentic case recorded
of Martinez the SO called French sala-
mander, baker by trade, who exposed
himself to high temperatures from boy
hood, He remained in an oven erected
in the Tivoli gardens for fourteen min
utes when the temperature in it was
33S degrees. His pulse on entering
was seventy-slX a minute and had
reached 1870 when he came out. He
often duplicated this performance.
Chamouni, n celebrated Russian SAL
amander. who called himself the in
combustible," used to go into an oven
and stay while a leg Of mutton was
roasted there, not coming out until the
meat was we'll done He eventually
lost his life in one OF these perform
anCeS
Fever is a rise Of temperature above
the normal level This rise is seldom
beyond LOG degrees. Mental and nerv.
Gus influences may so act for time as
to disorder the control Of the Their.
motaXic nerve center and cause fever
1t is interesting to note some of the
high temperatures which are on mod
ical record as having actually occurred
In certain diseases Guys hospital in
London records the case Of hyster'
ical woman afflicted with tuberculosis
Of one lung who showed 100 degrees
At meeting of the Association of
American Physicians in 1898 DR.. ia
cobb Of New York reported patient
in whom fever reached the almost in
credible figure Of 14S degrees f. This
case occurred in a hysterical fireman
who had suffered severe injury from
a fall.
In the discussion which followed the
report Of this case among the members
Of the association DR.. WEIGH Of Balti
more referred to a condition Of hyper
thermy that had come to his knOwl
edge In which the temperature was
recorded as III degrees f. OF course
such exceedingly high temperatures
are Of only short duration or deatt
would ensue.
Fever is not the only disturbance
which may alter temperature. Certain
conditions, especially those due to dis
eases like tuberculosis, acute alcohol
ism, melanCholia, ConvaleSCenCe from
fevers. poisoning from various drugs
and so forth, ms cause the bodily
warmth to become subnOrmaI. In
1uries and surgical shock also Origi
nate the same effect. Starvation al
ways induces a gradual fall.
Low temperatures are always dan
gerous, and unless reaction quickl!
enSues. by aid Of relief measures,
fatal termination may be expected
The lowest recorded during life tina
may be regarded as reliable IS one re
ported by Duffy IN which the Their
mometer registered 81 degrees +
Death enSued the following day.
The body, however, can withstand
extreme cold more readily than 1t cal
extreme heat before the regulating
center becomes disordered, and SO
other things being equal, freezing t
death is not as common in cold eli
mates as Sunstroke is in warm,