The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1911-06-10
The WHITE Peril,
Consumption Must Be Prevented
Rather Than Cured.
STAMP OUT THE INFECTION.
Unless the Germs Of the Disease In the
, Habitation, Whether II Be HOUSE, or
Tent, Are Utterly Destroyed Fresh
Air and "cures" Avail Little.


There is no cure for tuberculosis,
and probably never will be, accepting
the word "cure" in the sense of some
special medicine. A disease prevented
is better than cured. for no one IS SO
well of physically or financially after
any illness. and particularly does TINS
truth apply to tuberculosis. the sue
cessful prevention of disease does
away with any need for It's cure.
This is well exemplifed in the case OF
yellow fever. We have never succeed
ed In finding cure for that former
scourge of the south. but we nave
done far better. We have wipeGsout
the disease bodily, bag and baggage
by simple preventive methods.
SO writes DR.. r. G. Walsh in the
Technical World Magazine. and be de-
clares that Notwithstanding the OPP
timists," the disease is on the Increase.
He singles out and lays great stress on
the fact that consumption is conta'
gious disease and on the contention
TINT IL is not contracted to any great
extent through infected milk or even
by the using the drinking cups that
consumptives use or through the spit
ting nuisance" Its spread is through
the infection of the habitation: Here
is one Of his parallels:
Brown had moved in the month OF
May into n house in another part OF
the town where he had always hved.
By fall he had contracted tuberculosis.
1t was discovered later that several
different families who had occupied
this same house in succession had iost
several members from tuberculosis. NO
attempt had ever been made to disin-
feet the house. Brown went 10 q rar
western state, pitched his tent on
certain spot. and never made any
change from that one spot until bis
death. Note that fact. AS a result
the soil over which he slept night
after night became saturated with the
accumulated germs which he expelled
In coughing. sofhat he was continually
at night rebreathing into his system
the very seeds" which cause the dis
ease He was repoisouing himself
nightly and didn't know II. His sys-
tenn would have been able to throw of
the original germ poison which II
contracted. but 1t was not strong
enough to withstand a new dose OF
the poison every night. Had he chang
ed the location of his tent daily he
could have slept each night in an at
mosphere practically germ free.
Jones is another victim. He goes TO
the same state. He has an idea that
he can get along without any tent and
sleeps with only the stars above, rolled
up In his blanket He naturally moves
from place to place, each day sleeping
on new and different ground each
night He ends by being cured.
smith has the disease and goes to
the west. He feels and looks In per
feet health long before year Is gone.
He returns home, satisfied that be Is
cured. In less than four months be Is
again IN the tenacious clutches of the
disease.
There is lesson in this. The open
air treatment is all right, but It must
be carried out by right methods. All
early cases of consumption which
have failed TO recover by outdoor
treatment must lay the blame TO
faulty treatment Jones. who recover
ed you will remember. did change his
location every day. having no tent to
bother him. and in doing so avoided
the fatal mistake of Brown.
How about Smith? The case of
Smith is of the greatest Importance.
He had recovered, you will remember,
and returned to his home feeling fine
back to what7 To the very same
plague ridden room in which he had
FIRST contracted the disease--a room
reeking with tubercular germ life and
which had been occupied. 1t was
learned later, by FIVE different con-
sumptives at various times The dis
ease got hold on him q second time
for the simple reason that be came
back to the original source of his dis
ease. He should have sought new
quarters, or else the house. and partic-
ularly the room he occupied. should
have been disinfected before being oc-
cupied by him or any one else. These
three cases cited are but typical In
stances. There are thousands upon
thousands of Browns. Joneses and
Smiths living and dying this very day
whose story. If told in its true light,
would match exactly the simple but
pathetic history of these three men.
The thing that the doctor brings out
is that consumption must be prevented
rather than cured; that prevention is
easy and cheap and lies in disinfection.
This. in the case of the consumpuve's
quarters. he insists should be at least
once week The formula is simple;
I 'Fumigate every room IN the house
with a vapor given of by heating
formaldehyde; wash all the floors.
windows and woodwork with mild so
lutious OF corrosive sublimate and
water" Fresh air. either at home or
elsewhere, he establishes, is In itself
insufficient.
He reaches the conclusion that the
very existence of the hope of a cure
has been responsible for increase OF
the disease. He urges people TO fee
from consumption by killing il In the