Rocky Ford enterprise., 1910-05-13
LIBRARIANS COLUMN
Edited by Geo. H. Taylor,
City Librarian.

containin~ a resume of the facts
about Tuberculosis he gave in his
talk at the Presbyterian church last
Friday night. The information is inn
portant and with the consent of The
Enterprise I feel that I cannot do
better than use large space in the
Librarians Column this week in re-
producing most of these tersely stat
ed facts. besides putting the Bulle-
tins on file in the Library.
Under the head of history of the
disease the bulletin gives these peril
nent points:
tuberculosis. or consumption. has
existed since the fall of man.
The cause of tuberculosis was not
known until 1882 when Robert Koch
discovered the tubercle bacillus.
The bacillus. or germ, is above
10000 of an inch in length and veg
etable in character.
Tuberculosis is communicable from
man to animal, and from animal to
man.
Tuberculosis is rarely inherited
with few exceptions, it is contracted
after birth.
Any part of the body may be at
tackled: Brain. lung. gland, kidney,
intestine, muscle and bone.
| Most cases of spinal meningitis,
hunch back. and hip-joint disease are
tubercular.
| Post-mortem proves that most peo-
pie reaching adult age have, or have
had, tuberculosis.
Sun light destroys tubercle bacilli
in a few hours.
Boiling water destroys the germ
| in 4 few minutes.
The germ may live a long time un-
/ der favorable conditions.
And the bulletin then adds these
startling figures: :,
Under present conditions, eight mil
lions of the living people in the Uni
ted States must die of tuberculosis.
In the United States one dies every
4 minutes: 100000 die before the age
Of I6 years; 100000 die each year:
100000 constantly i'll; one-half to-
tally incapacitated, other half work
part time.
In the world two die a minute; B.
900 a day: 100000 a year.
| Tuberculosis causes more deaths
than typhoid fever, diphthcria. scarlet
| fever, bronchitis, influenza, whooping
cough, measles and small pox COM
bincd.
] Yellow fever. in the past lis years.
has not caused as manv deaths as
tuberculosis does in one year.
| Bubonic plague in India has not
| caused as many deaths in proportion
! to its population as tuberculosis does
! in the United States.
| tuberculosis. in the past four years.
caused more than three times as many
! deaths in this country as occurred IN
/ action. and from wounds received.
during the entire period of the Civil
|! War.
u The 10Th century wars were re-
i sponsible for four million deaths.
The 10th century tuberculosis was
responsible for thirty million deaths.
The Government spends two mil
lion dollars 4 year to prevent acci-
dents at sea: four and a half million
dollars a year to protect elm trees
from insects, cattle from plcuro-
pneumonia and hogs from cholera;
but not a dollar directly for the
physical welfare OF the human fam
ily."
| Definite instruction concerning the
nature and methods of prevention OF
tuberculosis is being given to less
/ than six per cent of the public school
children of the United States.
On an average each child who dies
: OF tuberculosis has had six years of
schooling. the aggregate loss to the
country in wasted education each
year amounts to SI,I52,ooo.
| Tuberculosis costs the United
States a BILLION dollars year.
| Then the bulletin adds:
The ONLY CAUSE OF tuberculosis
is the tuberclc bacillus.
How is tuberculosis spread,
By sputum containing tuberculosis
germs.
By foods: Infected meat. milk. but
ter. cheese, dust-covcred fruits and
vegetables: by soiled handkerchiefs,
hands, fnger-nails, shoes, skirts; by
| flies.
| How contracted?
BY the germ entering the body.
| Taken with air into the lungs.
| Taken with food into the stomach.
Taken from lung to stomach.
How is the body made suitable for
the growth OF the germ?
| By living in impure air and over
heated houses.
By unwholesome food and impure
water.
| By lack of exercise and over-work.
By pneumonia. la grippe, neglected
colds. enlarged tonsils and adenoids.
By dissipation of every sort, swal-
lowing infected mucous. neglected
teeth and unclcanlincss.
By lowering the resistance of the
body from any cause.
| Prevention:
| Destroy the germ in the body. and
out of the body, OF both man and an
imal.
Destroy sputum. kill the germ in
handkcrchicfs used by the consump-
tive.
Inspection of dairics and meat mar
kets by experts.
Prohibit the sale OF tuberculous