Omaha daily bee., 1910-10-29
SCoURGE OF THE FAR EAST
How the Terrible Cholera Makes Its
Way from Southern China t0
Europe.

Cholera, the most dreaded Of the plaques
that occasionally find their way westward
from the crowded east has its real home
in southern China and round the mouth of
the Ganges. Every few years, however,
II comes drifting slowly to Europe, moving
steadily, It is said, at the rate at which
an average walker travels,
| Certainly the path II prefers is along
the ancient caravan routes through At
ghanistan and Persia to Russia. An old
tradition has II that this dreaded disease
always follows In the footsteps of the
wandering Jew.
Russia always suffers terribly when It
comes. In the last visit-that of two years
ago-there were 400 cases a day in St
Petersburg alone The terrible havoc IL
works in Russia Is largely due to the stu
pidity OF the peasants. and their disobedi-
ence to the medical authorities. Indeed.
only a few weeks ago. a whole village at
tackled a couple OF doctors, and accused
them OF putting the cholera poison into the
village wells. Some OF them drink fearful
mixtures OF tar, rosin and petroleum as
personalities. In some parts househoIders
hire men to stand at their front doors and
shoot guns to brighten the cholera away.
Cholera has several times got its grip
firmly fixed on England. The first time
was in 1902. But It is safe to say that II
never will again. On the last occasion
in lS92-a few scattered cases occurred in
Hull Grimsby and Yarmouth but the
scourge was soon stamped out
What is cholera? Well 1T shows Itself
in violent vomiting and diarrhoes, foIIowet
4 quickly by exhaustion and death. A mar
A who is well and strong at midday may q
hA ha ri M 9hr
recognizable, with sunken eyes ond cheel
bones almost protruding through the skin
IT is quite common for a patient to los,
two stone In four or five hours.
When cholera first came to England /
was thought that the disease came on thu
wind from Russia. as did influenza on IL
first visit. But now we know that II Il
infectious and that It spreads by tn
mouth. Drinking water is its favorit
path from the plague-stricken to tn
healthy. A person may carry choleri
germs on his clothing without injury. Blu
If infected clothing touches food or drinl
the plague begins Its work. 1t is believes
that what brings It west along the cara
van routes is the dirty habit pilgrims hav
Of washing their infected clothing In way
I side drinking wells.
3 When the germ is swallowed the diseas
germs on infected clothing lose all powe
y after twelve days. 1t was the famous Di
= Koch who discovered the real nature q
the disease. He went 10 Egypt in lsS
when the plague was raging there, dis
,, covered the bacillus and brought Il bac
A in a bottle. A certain cure has not bee
v found yet. though under the latest treat
i ment only one in five dies, as against thre
C in five twenty years ago. But medical SCI
a ence does know exactly how Il spreads. an
d at every port IN England there are kee
d eyes watching for the enemy.
= II is a curious fact that birds, withou
a making any meteorological examination
z are as quick to detect cholera as the mos
d skillful medical man. II has often bee
e noticed in India that birds at once desel
it an infected district. The first sign that n
d epidemic is dying ID, their return. The san
l. thing was noticed In Ireland during the tel
m rible year OF 1891
lie The strangest beliefs have been he
about cholera. Many ignorant people usS
Q 20 believe that the disease lay bottled 1
- in volcanoes and come out when an cru
ton took place Others thought Il swe
&c away only those who were mwiss enoul
= 10 sleep In beds with the head pointed d
nOrth-London Answers.