The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1912-09-13
Conservation
In Indianapolis
ProIongation of Human Life
a Leading Topic For
Discussion.

violence were reduced only 35 per cent
human life would be increased by SO
a year. The prevention Of 45 per cent
Of cases of pneumonia would lengthen
life by .94 a year. These diseases
alone could easily be reduced by these
amounts 30 as to lengthen life by sew
eral years. This could be done sim
ply through insistence by the public
on pure milk, pure water, pure air and
reasonable protection from accidents.
Influence Of Hygiene.
safe minimum estimate of prolonga-
ton Of life because, first, 1t takes no
account Of future medical discoveries,
such as method of curing or pre-
venting cancer and of postponing old
age, as would Metchnikoff second, 1t
takes little account of the cumulative
influence Of hygiene. The full benefit
Of hygiene cannot be felt until II is
pracdced throughout life and not at
the approach of specific danger. Most
so called causes of death are merely
the last straws which break the cam
els back. When a pure water supply
prevents deaths from typhoid fever it
prevents two or three times as many
deaths from other causes. Third, 1t
takes no account of the racial effects
Of new health ideals, leading in gen
eral way, as they must, to healthier
marriages.
Need For Longer Life.
with increase of knowledge the
period Of education Of preparation for
life must constantly increase. This
fact creates a need for a longer life,
with the later periods of life increased
in proportion. The result of such a
prolongation will be not the keeping
alive of invalids, but the creation of
population containing large num-
Der Of vigorous old men. Metchnikoff
says: The old man will no longer be
subject to loss of memory or to intel
lectual weakness. He will be able to
apply his great experience to the most
complicated and most delicate parts
of social life
at is usually recognized that human
life is abnormally short, but no exact
determination has ever been made Of
what constitutes a normal lifetime
Flourens maintains that n mammal
lives five times the length Of its grow
ing period, which would mean, since
the growing period for man does not
cease until about thirty, normal hu
man lifetime of $50 years.
Old Age Abnormal.
"Another method of estimating nor
NAL life is to reckon the length Of nor
NAL life as the time Of old age now
sets in, eighty-three years. But clear
~, If Metchnikoff is right In thinking
that old age is abnormal, the normal
lifetime must exceed eighty-three.
Many remarkable cases of longevity
are on record, but most cases Of re-
Gated. Drakenburg's record was au-
thentic, and he lived to be 146. Mrs.
Wood Of Portland, Ore, recently died
at 100. To what extent these excep-
tional cases could be made common
cannot as yet be known"
Value of Increased Activity.
Professor Fisher discusses at length
the factors that contribute to lessen
Ing the span of life and pays particular
attention to the money value of In
creased vitality.
Discussing the general value Of in
creased vitality, he says: Money esti-
mates of waste Of life are necessarily
imperfect and sometimes misleading.
The real wastes can only be expressed
In terms of human misery. Poverty
and disease are twin evils, and each
plays into the hands of the other.
From each spring vice and crime.
Again, whatever diminishes poverty
tends TO improve health. and vice
versa.
Conservation of Resources.
THE conservation Of our natural re-
sources-iand, raw materials, forests
and water-will provide the food,
clothing, shelter and other means of
maintaining healthy life, while the
conservation Of health likewise tends,
in many ways, to conserve and in
crease wealth. The more vigorous and