The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1916-08-17

needed.
"In the regular army these SAM
tAry units have been brought to a
high degree of efficiency, and in the
National Guard the doctors and sur
geOns are of high ability, but neither
they nor their enlisted men have had
the special instruction or intensified
training which those Of the regular
army receive and in consequence, with
all professional skill and good inten-
ton on their part, the same degree
Of excellence cannot be expected from
them.
mo matter how efficient may be
the sanitary companies Of the National
/ Guard, they can accomplish very little
/ if they are not provided with medical
/ and surgical supplies enough To meet
/ any probable emergency. with view
/ 10 any emergency as far as our means
/ will permit, we have been creating n
/ reserve Of medicines, bandagcs dis
I infectnnts. surgical appliances, water
/ filters aud similar things.
] L lllN l''N't w llf1 b''ll 'I'dN'i ~
/ forc.hought and economy in past
| years; and it Is very fortunate, for,
rs Is well known, the prices Of all
/ drugs have advanced and some have
gone about out Of sight.
Reserve OF Surgeons.
! But II reserve of even more I'm
| poriance has been steadily growing,
which today Is one of the comforts
! 10 this office, as 1t should be 10 all
who have friends In the National
| Guard None ever called in vain on
| the medical profession when help was
needed; and the army medical Of
/ ficers, six years ago fOreseeing that a
| time would come when the co-opera-
| ton of the medical fraternity would be
needed, began to prepare by calling
| upon their brethren to enter medical
! reserve.
Nor did they call in vain, for, led
| by some of the foremost men In the
| profession, doctors have submitted
| their records and have been graded
until over 1000 carefully selected have
! been enrolled Their work has been
assigned to them, and they await only
| the order of the surgeon general to
| take up their duties rs surgeons whrr-
! ever needed, presumably In the base
! hospitals. These men, II called into
the service, would be engaged in the
! humanitarian work of treating the sick
and the wounded rather than In that
Of prevention and sanitation,
"PrcvcntOn work Is twofold. BY
means of serums and vnCcineS the in
dviduals are made immune. even when
exposed to certain very fatal COntH-
| giOns, and by camp sanitation and per
SOnal hygiene certain diseases may be
kept from making their appearance
altogether
"rhe success Of the first will de
pend upon the Skill Of the specialized
members of the medical staff, par
ticularIy the bacteriologistS; the lat
ter, upon the sanitary companies in
the field, the intelligence and efficiency
Of the line officers and the discipline
and obedience of the troops.
THE oldest incubation practiced
against cOntagion Is vaccination To pre-
vent smallpox. This Is now in SO gen
eral use that its importance IS hardly
realized.
"Thc incubation most talked Of just
now is the prOphylaXIs against ty-
| phOIl, which In war has caused more
deaths mnny times over than any hui
man enemy can inllict. AntI-typhoid
prophylaXis has eliminated the dis
| ruSe.
Principle OF Prevention.
THE principle Of the preventive is
simple enough, All contagious dis
! cnsns are caused by some organism.
mostly of the lower forms OF vegetable
! life, which finds It's way Into the sys-
| tenn develops at a prodiglOuS rate and
| attacks various organs Of the body,
| These organisms, however, by some
| benign provision Of nature not yet UNI
derStoo1 produce an anttoxin or anti
! bodies which destroy their own germs.
This may or may not be the prod.
! net Of the death of some of the or
| ganlsms but practical way has been
| found of taking the living organism
developing colonies of many trIIiOnS
Of them. killing and stcrillzlng them
! and making from them a prophylactic
| which has the power to produce the
| nntItOXin without the virulent proper
! ties of the living germ. If this be prop
orIy mndc II person inOculatcd with II
Is practically immune from typhoid for
at least three yeurs.
In 1911 the use of this prophylactIc
was made compulsory In the regular
army; and typhoid in the army, like
the little boys apple core, 'aIn't going
to be any core
"Mulnrn and yellow fever, the Inter
a dreadful disease appearing In cpl
drmIc form, are both cnrrIed by mos
quitoeS. The mosquito sucks blood
from pntient of either OF the dis.
eases, and then on thrus'Iug his pro.
hOscls into NE veins OF some sound
man iuocuIntes him "ith the dlsens,
as easily md effectively as Few
weeks before n sanitary officer may
have used his hypodcrmic syringe I,
administer the protecting typhoid pro
phytnctic
p "Ihe only defense known agnfns
this attack Is TO kin the mosquitoes. o
prevent them from getting NJ the ma,
T. by The use of mosquito bars. In
great undertaking such us the Pan
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5 hre house and two of the baby rat