The Washington herald., 1909-07-04
-Photo By HazaEEvias

With handling the milk. There had been
no recent cases Of typhoid fever IN her
family. and wo were greatly perplexed
until she told us she had suffered from
an attack of the disease several years
ago Well, a microscopic examination
showed that she was q bacillus carrier
that while she had recovered her health
and strength. she stiu harbored and dis
tributed the typhoid germs
Garry Germs About.
There was a medically famous case OF
the same kind in New York in the per-
son OF Typhoid Mary cook. who took
disease shd death with her wherever she
worked We now more thoroughly ap-
preeiate that there are persons who carry
the germs OF typhoid long after they
have left their beds and gone about
their usual business or employment Such
persons, IL they live IN villages or on
farms. cause soil pollution. and the drain
age from contaminated land goes into
wells or streams and may infect the
water supply OF a locality or city.
The house fy IS undoubtedly an agency
in the spread Of typhoid fever. People
do not realize that files ere a constant
menace 10 the life and health OF every
household They are born in manure
heaps. and that is the reason 50 many
OF them are always seen around the fsO-
lated home OF the average farmer. City
6ies are bred under the same loaths0me
conditions Female flies deposit their
larva IN man1re heaps or IN piles Of
decaying garbage in cities garbage IS
not permitted to accumulate. consequent
~ the manure heap becomes a matter
for close municipaI supervision. Screens
gor doors and windows would keep files
ouc Of houses. but laws should provide
that manure from stables be hauled away
promptly on kept IN tight bins or freely
treated with line
And while the people are fighting
files" Gen. Wynan said. they should not
overlook the rats. Not only are immense
quantities OF grain and other property
destroyed by rats. but sixteen years ago.
lurking in the dark places CT ships. they
carried the bubonic plague out OF China
until Il spread TO every. continent and in
fected ffty-two countries. including the
United States. We trapped and pois-
oned hundreds OF thousands Of rats along
the Pacific Coast and proved by IabOra-
tory tests that large number Of them
had the plague
Getting Acquainted with II.
why has appendicitis become such a
common dlsease?'
1T hasn't become q more common dis
case than It always has been. II IS rec
Ognized now, you understand. under its
proper name and not by another. A
simple case Of appendicitis to-day would
have been diagnosed as something else
twenty years ago"
Isn't modern life harmful to human
nerves.
''NotcriousIy so" Gen. Wynan an
swered- Insanity is increasing. I know
Of but one large city where. according TO
the statistics. it is decreasing. That city
is Berlin. in which there IS a system OF
insurance against illness and men are
watched and taken to hospitals before
they have a chance 10 break down. A
national association for mental hygiene
has been recently formed, and Mr.. Henry
Phipps the Pittsburg multimilliOnaire. has
contributed money for an inquiry into the
subject by Johns Hopkins University.
The increase Of insanity in the United
States makes II vital national question.
Specifically. what is the greatest cause
Of disease2"
"Enfeebled health which makes II
easy Tor micrOblc organisms to overcome
the customary defenses OF nature. We
know that persons may have the virulent
Glplococci of pneumonia in their respira-
tory tracts. but escape Illness through
the strength Of their cells in keeping the
microbe from becoming active. II is
the same. 10 a degree. with the bSclln
which cause diphtheria. During an cpl
demic men may be walking around who