El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-10-24
MONG the - surprIsing II

~ Ak-NAT tine many SUI ia -oAAAEa -Ih
n Citations afforded by the census !
4 = inquiries of last year none is /
more remarkable than the disclosure [
that preventive medicine and santa /
ton are saying half million lives /
annually in the United States. Only I
a little more than a third of a cen I
fury ago there were 90 deaths each I
year out Of each thousand Of pOpula- /
ton in the United States. The returns |
for that portion Of the United States {
in which deaths are registered by the |
health authorities. approximately half 1
of the whole country, show that the
death rate of 1910 was 10 per thou
sand. This means that II there had
been proportionately as many deaths
in 1910 as there were 80 odd years
ago. the death roll Of the nation for
the year would have carried half
million names more than it did.
It is these figures which give force
to the declarations Of the sanitarians
and public health authorities Of the
United States that preventive medi-
cine promises the abolition Of cOnta-
gious and infectious disease. Had
someone declared 80 years ago that IN
less imam LAAAAA VA a ~~r-------
death rate OF the United States would
be cut down from 20 to 10 per thou
sand, he would have been called
WIN be Better Than This.
Standing upon the record OF Jnree
decades Of progress the SANTA Ilon 70 70
day announces that there is no reason
why the death rate in the United
/ States might not be cut down even
more in the next 80 years Lnau IL "aa
( during the past so years. lie preoi 1l-Is
) that the average American OF q nan
3. century hence may live TO be 81 years
/ old. How well grounded IS TINS con-
/ clusiOn may be shown by the Iacl tiial
] with the possiblnues OF pre- 80
! medicine only beginning TO De rear
! lied, the life OF the average American
/ OF today Is some six years longer Jhan
/ it was only 20 years ago.
Adding Six Years to Life.
! The addition Of six years 70 Lne
I average life in the United states rep
/ resents the equivalent or a 1uA ~
[ time for 100000 people 1t represents
/ an economic value and a vital IoEce
I equivalent to the energy or the enltIS
I population Of Norway and sweden LOL
| more than a half century. In an tue
history Of mankind no tnVesrInenL Lne--
/ the people have made has yielded sucl
I great returns as the investment on
l money in the application OF Lne pI1H-
l ciples of sanitary science ana prev ~
| tive medicine. Nowhere else in the
followed by fuldnment more consist
! emily than in the course OF sanitary
When Pasteur. the famous French
pathologist, declared that parasitic
diseases might be banished from the
world if the people would lntelllgenuy
carry out the laws Of sanitary sclence,
few Of his fellow santtarlans " et9
able to accept that belief But IN the
| comma "a tivelv short time that mas
/ elapsed since then, the death rate from
| practically every one Of the great par
asitic diseases has been cut In Two IN
Europe and America
The Boon OF Prevention
But is is not when comparing Idsl
year with 90 or SO years ago lnal one
/ realizes fully the boon conferred upol-
humanity By sanitation and prevent
i've medicine. European RUSSIA Is 81.
maticaIly not different from lne
United States. Its people are Dy ma
| ture a sturdy race, and there Is ny
/ apparent reason why they Shoulu not
| he as IOng-lived and as healLny OF
body as the people OF the SnlL l5l
States Yet only 80 years ago Russia
! had So deaths annually OUT OF etoLs
/ thousand Of population II might %
| said that this represents norma
death rate in cool climates Wnefe san
itatiOn and preventive IleulC..L9 q
not applied Therefore lhs 49, 49,
between such a death rate ana ina
. [ now obtaining in the united Slete7
. may be taken to represent lhs NS 80
| of sanitary science to American me-
II such a fatality record existed III
the United States today there "oulc
be 100000 more new made grave
I every year than there are
The cutting down Of nauon
. death rate means that Its people nv
I Longer and that more years OF useIu!-
| moss are vouchsafed to them II u
probable that the past so years nay
seen the lives Of One-third or Lns
earth's population increased IN 1ens IL
by at least 10 years How much mi
means to the world no one can esll-
mate with any degree or accuracy 4
probably represents as much econoiLll'
| calIv as the combined energies on 1ly
/ | American people during the period ol
s0 ,-aa-s 1t means that in North
/ / American and Europe there are SONS
I000 900 fewer deaths year tnar
| / tbere were when modern sanitary SCI
| / ence had it's beginning.
Educating the People.
II In view Of such tremendous resulL q
in the past IL seems certain tnaJ WIZ
n | q vvfdesDread campaign OF eQucaL1ol
for the practice of the laws OF nealIl
At would require only a compafallg e
I " few decades to realize the promls'
~ the sanitariau that the average
American may live to what the psalm
o list prOnOunces the natural spa"
+ life. .,,s
Z The microscope is largely respons
1 / ibTa for the progress made in pre-
Z / ventive medicine w nen the lllS
" A. T.