Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1912-09-20
VENTILATION IS
prime FACTOR IN
RULES OF HEALTH
Gospel Of Pure Air Has
Been Accepted by the
People.
THE OLD ORDER OF
THINGS IS CHANGED
No Longer Do People Sleep in Alright
Rooms With the Kerosene Lamp
Turned low-illustrations Which
Show the Good Results Of the Awak-
enins Of the People on the Subject
Of Ventilation.
BY Frederic J. Haskin.

VonS OF tne progress that Is DclnS
made in the spread of the gospel of
disease prevention is to be found in
the growing number Of people who in
sist on proper ventilation, Thirty
years ago the humber OF families in
the rural districts who slept with win
doWB down and coal oil lamps turned
low was almost equal to the whole
number Of houses. 1t was not un-
usual FOR two or three Of the smaller
children to sleep in trundle bed in
the room with their father and mother.
Thus there were often five persons in
single room, with a turned down
lamp aiding them in vltiating the air,
and yet not window was up to per-
NIT the escape of the bad air and the
coming in Of the good.
No full appraisement of the evil eff
fects Of bad air has yet been made.
1t has been demonstrated so plainly
that he who runs may read that peo-
pie who live In ill-yentilated quarters
are much more susceptible to disease
than those who live where pure air
is to be had in abundance. But 1t
must be remembered that good ven-
tilation usually implies better SANTA
ton in other directions, and perhaps
all of the added number OF cases of
sickness in illventilated places are not
attributable to bad air. But certain 1t
is, from figures that have been brought
out, that impure air Is handmaiden
of disease and the crimes to be laid
at it's door are foul and numerous
enough at best
Governments Experience.
nnh1n illIlSf raf ~ ha OWLS oF
bad ventilation comes from an ex-
perience of the United States govern
ment some years ago. When the pen
sion bureau was located in number
OF scattered and poorly ventilated
buildings, the average number OF days
Of sick leave per year taken by en-
ployes of the bureau was about eigh-
teen thousand When the bureau come
to be housed in the present building
the average number Of days of sick
leave fell to about ten thousand, in the
face OF considerable increase Of
force.
Some years ago a big hat factory
was built in Baltimore in which no
adequate ventilating apparatus was
installed. During the first two win
tiers the factory was operated, more
than 81 per cent of the time of the
employees was lost through sickness.
The sick rate was so great that the
owners OF the factory decided to in
stall a ventilating apparatus The
following winter the sick rate was cut
down to 7 per cent. In other words.
three-fourths Of the sickness of that
factory. 1t was demonstrated, came
from bad ventilation. In neighbor-
ing clothing factory conditions were
remedied by the installation of Ven
tilating equipment and thereafter less
than half as much time was lost
Not only do the statistics in hand
tend to show conclusively that bad
ventilation promotes sickness. but also
that it tends to retard recovery. 1t Is
shown that in the S. r. Smith SAM
tarium on Staten Island. New York,
there We're two wards in which pa
tients of the same class were treated.
The one ward was well ventilated. the
other was not. The average patient
recovered in ten days In the well ven
rtilated ward, while the average patient
in the poorly ventilated ward required
is days to recover. Some years ago!
: the Boston City hospital improved its
bdIlitdiy N'iiuitipiiS, ilhiilN ny Tue III
stallation of good ventilation The
death rate in the hospital declined
from A per cent to 10 per cent as a
result.
Acts as Dilutins Agent
The air we breathe is the one thing
that cannot be affected by the high
cost OF living. Normal air contains
slightly more than onc-ffth oxygen,
the only part Of IT essential for breath
Ing purposes. The nitrogen acts only
as dilutins agent. II we reduce the
amount Of oxygen in given quantity
of air by one-f fifth il thereafter be-
comes incapable of supporting life.
Passing into our lungs the air there
has extracted from it one fourth of
its oxygen. Carbon dioxide is given
to II in exchange.
The lungs are never entirely filled
with pure air after the first inspira-
ton following birth, since they are
never wholly emptied. and what re-
mains is vitiated. The upper part Of
the respiratory tract is the only part
that receives strictly pure air. 1t has
been demonstrated that IL an animal is
forced to breathe through long tube
It Will die Of asphyxia. The amount Of
oxygen used, of course, varies with
age. An average adult inhalcs "a
pounds of air day, about seven
pounds of which is oxygen. He uses
about two pounds OF the oxygen and
exhsles the rest.
The exhalation Of carbonic acid gas
by animal life Is one Of the wonders
Of creation. It has been estimated
that the amount given off from all
sources, which includes the products
OF all combustion, amounts to five
billion tons q year. A ton Of coal.
burning, yields $1,000 cubic feet. While |
animals and fires and decaying matter