The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1910-06-19
By DR.. Claude A. Smith, of Atlanta.

take place. The extreme cases are
usually emaciated, but the emaciation
may not be apparent at first. In the
extreme cases the skin is of a yell
lowish white parchment color and over
the exposed portions of the body as
the cheeks and the hands it appears
to be much thickened.
A Pitiable Spectacle.
1t is most pitiable sight to see
these severe cases in bright children
who are unable to walk two hundred
yards without being almost complete
ly exhausted and who have to sit down
and rest before they can go further.
| They are unable to be in the games
with other children but drag out their
| lives sitting and lying around watch
| ing the other children in their games
and yearning for the strength to join
| in with them. Sometimes they sue
cumb to additional infection of the I'M
cinaria or to attacks of other diseases.
In their earnest desire to be cured
and become strong like other children,
they are willing to undergo any treat
ment which will offer any change of
doing them good, and often you will
find that they have made the rounds
of all physicians in their districts, but
| W ho DIV all mere was OH6 pOOT DOy
who was hardly able to drag himself
about and on being told that there
was a chance of something being done
for him, he arose early in the morning
only to find that the rain was pouring
in torrents, but nothing daupted, he
dragged himself along all alone three
miles through the pouring rain to the
physicians Office, drenched to the
skin and shivering wit hthe cold but
willing and anxious to begin at once
with any treatment that offered any
chance of doing him good. After
three weeks he showed remarkable
improvement and was able to go to
work on the farm.
The poor farmers throughout the
country who have a home full of chill
dren to support are dependent to a
great extent on the assistance of their
children ito make sufficient for their
maintenance. and when the children
are affected with this disease and are
unable 10 assist him to any extent,
! but rather instead are burden to him
to pay their physicians bills and to
supply medicine.
| Seek the Cotton Mill.
These are the ones who often seek
the cotton mill, where most of the
children, although dwarfed and stunt.
ed and incapable of severe exertion,
yet have sufficient strength to sit at
a loom and do light work about the
mills. Many of the cases of children
whose lives are supposed to be blight.
ed in the cotton mills (give the devil
his dues) were blighted before they
went there and the confinement and
tedious work is but assisting in the
work of the destruction already begun
We read our statistics of the de-
struction wrought by the dread tuber
culosis and pneumonia, ETC., but we
Ihave here disease which is literally
sapping the life blood of the south
But, unlike tuberculosis and pneu
lmonia, we have for this terrible dis
lease an easy means of diagnosis and q
cure which is simple and certain. The
treatment is very simple and what is
necessary is for the physicians
Ithroue bout the country to become
familiar with the diagnosis.
If every person will wear shoes
which thoroughly cover the feet in
rainy weather or in damp places, there
is little chance of infection.
In all Southern States.
This disease exists in all the south
fern states from Virginia to Texas
| ASIS ID uO SSCllOu VI ILLS AREA II ct
from it. 1t seems that the entire
country is literally saturated with it
1t is found on the highlands as well as
1.-THE lowlands, and on the mountain as
well as the valleys.
No one set of symptoms can be pu
down as diagnostic of uncineriasis as
they vary with the amounts of infec
ton and with. different individuals
For convenience let us classify the dis
lease under the heads:
First Mild cases which have only
one or two attacks of ground itch and
therefore, have only a small number
of the parasites of the intestines mo-
sufficient to produce any lack of color
in the face.
Second. The medium type which
have usually had two or more attack:
of ground itch and have a larger mum
Der of parasites sufficient to produce {
. lack of color to the blood determined
b ymicroscopical examination.
Third. The severe type of the dis
ease, those cases about which so mucI
has been said in the past, and which
nave had numerous attacks of grounC
itch and present an the symptoms o
extreme anemia and which is often
times so great as TO interfere VIII
the development of the child with the
production of the disease.
The PuzzIins Cases.
Again the food is bolted down il
large masses which passes the natura
/ source undigested. In this severe
, type of the diease the child some
= times become so weak that he Il
: scarcely able to drag himself abou
: the house and there is general swell
, ing or puffiness which is especial,
= marked about the feet, legs and aldo
; men. He may remain in this condi
: ton for some time and then begin t
: gradually improve or he may gradual.
get worse until he dies. These case
have puzzled the physicians in tn,
past as they were unable to accoun
for the cause of the death. Whel
: this bloated stage is reached, If
: seems to hang by mere thread, bu
/ many cases which have recovere,
, from the disease give a history o
: having passed through this condition
: In the mild cases there is absolutel
{ Lcthing in The general appearance tina
l.