The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1910-08-31
HABIT OF KISSING is COSTLY
The American Fondness for Oscillation Is Dangerous in
More Ways Than One.

dealt with lightly, says the Chlca8I
Tribune. The little old doggerel
sung upon every possible occasion II
English music halls, with its catchy
rhythm, is not to be Carelessly fol
lowed If you remember, it runs
something as follows:
ooh. my lovey, Q, my dovey, o, my
duck, duck, duck.
If you love me you must have little
pluck, pluck, pluck.
So put your arms around me, KISS me
once, twice, thrice,
For kissing may be naughty-but, by
lingo, it is nice!'
kissing may be nice. kissing may
or may not be naughty-authoritie
disagree. But kissing is dangerous
in more ways than one. Read the
following:
Science made the first attack upon
the kiss.
Several years ago at the interna-
tional tuberculosis congress held in
Paris the subject of kissing was
treated scientifically. Learned saw
ants advanced formidable reasons
why kissing should be abolished. At
this congress it was asserted with
vehemence by many of the learned
ones present that kissing was but lit
tie short of criminal.
In Atlantic City not long after
wards Health officer Somers made
the kiss an object of official ukase.
He held that 9 per cent. of all kisses
were germ laden, and he was backed
by the chief inspector and the board
of health Notices condemning the
kiss were thereupon posted in pub
lie places.
Recently a well-known French
doctor conducted a series of brilliant
experiments aimed at the practice of
placing two sets of lips together for
even the most evanescent period.
He enlisted the services of two men,
one bearded and one shaven He
hired girl to be kissed and had
her lips carefully sterilized. And
guess what was the result.
After each kiss had been admins
tered a sterilized brush was passed
over the girls lips and dropped into
a test tube, the top of which was
sealed.
Four days later the tubes were
opened. The first, taken from the
shaver man, was speekled with dots
showing colonies of yeast germs.
These were practically harmless.
The second, taken from the beard
ed man, swarmed with microbes.
There was a tubercle bacillus and a
diptheria germ There were putre-
factive germs, minute bits of food.
a hair from spiders leg, and all
sorts of horrible things.
The young woman survived, but
had her lips not been so carefully
steriliZed she might have become the
victim of one of several diseases
which could easily have cost her her
life or have left her a helpless in
valid
This is one way in which kissing
might prove fatal. Another was
demonstrated only the other day.
Two young people, man and a
girl, were walking along in an ap-
parently engrossing conversation.
They reached the parting of their
ways and parted. AS the girl started
across the street, however, the young
arms about her and kissed her.
Around the corner came an automo-
bile. The chauffeur gave a startled
warning honk, but it was too late.
The machine struck the two, instant
ly killing the girl and seriously in
juring the man.
So you see that in more ways than
one kissing is a menace to life
Now regarding it as an expensive
evil.
If Harry Thurston Peck, editor of
the Bookman and professor of Latin
at Columbia University, had never
kissed Esther Quinn, as he is said
30 have done, he probably would not
be at the present time involved in a
breach of promise suit for $4,000
The first kiss, no doubt, was the mis-
chief maker Without a kiss no man
can make any girl believe that he is
madly in love with her, and it is
usually a kiss that not only seals a
vow but sets the Imagination work
ing. Mr.. Peck's first kiss to Esther
Quinn is costing him dear.
Ferdinand Pinney Earle would
doubtless be insulted if his kisses
were called anything but soul kisses.
TO class them in the same category
with the common class of oscillation
might not please him. But soul kiss
es, or otherwise, they have resulted
most detrimentally to him more
times than there is time to tell, and
according TO report every woman who
has ever kissed him has repented of
her bargain and in the courts has
bemoaned her mistake.
In New York former Fire Commits
sioner John ]. Scannell had to APP