The Waterbury Democrat., 1931-10-02
A GARDEN IS A GOOD PLACE TO
 GROW HEALTH

A GARDEN IS A GOOD PLACE TO
 GROW HEALTH
 An Indian girl came under the care of Dr E. R. Hardin, health officer of Robeson county, North Carolina. She had a silk dress and pei lagra, and on questioning her the doctor learned that she had an excellent diet. She denied that there was anything deficient about her food. But Dr Hardin knew his business. By patient questioning he finally found out that the girls regular diet was of character that IS too popular among the poorer folk in the south. She lived on white bread melasses and meat. She knew she ought to have other foods, such as fresh vegeta bes and milk, but she wanted to save money for silk dress. Peliagra is I dye berger of the United States public health serv- ice. whose studies of pelagra and its cause and cure constitute one of the great achievements of American medicine called the pellagrin's diet the three M's'-meat meal and molasses. One might get some Vitamin out of fresh meat, possibly even little Vitamin c, but all the meat meal and molasses in the country will scarcely furnish enough vitamn to keep small rabbit in healthy condition, and as for Vitamin F, there's positively none in such food. Often the meat is mainly salt or preserved, even canned meat, and that is even worse than fresh meat so far furnishing vitamins is concerned
 There must be a reasonable proportion of fresh vegetables and greens, fresh milk and fresh eggs butter, and fresh fruit in the diet to prevent pellagra.
 ment company has project which will contrib ute much toward the prevention of pellagra The company operates twelve thousand acres of farm land there and in Scotland county, with three hundred tenant families. This year each of the tenant families is required to have a first class garden one-fourth acre of garden for a one-horse family one-half acre if the family operates two horses. Any tenant who fails to cultivate his garden in first class order Is required in his contract to vacate the prem. ses Next year the company expects to compel every tenant family to keep pigs and poultry
 One land owner down there said he could not persuade a certain tenant family to cultivate a garden or to keep COW. They considered that too much trouble and preferred to go to the village each week and buy white flour, meat and molasses on which they believed they could subsist we'll enough. All the family soon showed the ravages of pelagra.
 Town and village dwellers who have the ground and the means and the ambition to have a garden of their own are douby blessed with health, for in the first place these Is no exercise or recreation more healthfui for man.. women there is no kind of food more beneficial, cerrec- tive or protective than the greens, relishes and vegetables one raises in the little Kitchen gar den, or the more pretentious garden on the va- cant lot or out on the roadside.
 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS Disinfecting a Well
 have heard that carbOiic acid purifies water would like to know how much to put in well 25 feet deep. The water has been tested and found to be pure, but 1t has an iron taste.
 Answer-I know of no convenient way to re- move iron or iron taste from we'll water. To dis infect well of average capacity. say 5000 gal Ions, this method is most practical; first dis solve half pound of fresh chlornated lime in gallon of water. After this has settled, add one ounce of the clear chlorinated lime solution to the water in the we'll each evening for perhaps week, or until taste of chlorin becomes mo- ticeable in the water next morning. Such disin- lection of well water is not permanent in effect if the source of pollution remains unchecked Repeat the disinfection process in two or three weeks.
 The Mrs, baby and I enjoy taking the Model T out where the blackberries grow. We fre- quently encounter pest called "chigger." This last week picked two quarts of berries and l estimate four quarts of chisgers. e. J. M.)
 Answer-Pulex penetrans, sand flea. chigoe and chigger are all the same parasite, almost invisible to the naked eye The female Gas usual) penetrates the skin and burrows beneath the epiderms. depositing her eggs in the bur row, after the fashion of the well known but often unrecognized itch mite. The irritation oft en produces wheals and papules resembling hives Amounting the surface with kerosene (coal oil) or carbolized petrolatum relieves the dis tress. If you can see the little brown insect with the aid of a lens, dig it out with heated needle and dress the little wound by smear of iodin and some aseptic cover.
 Running Sore on Leg
 One of your correspondents reported that the iodin ration had apparently brought about heal- ing of a running sore on the leg. which had been there 25 years. My grandfather aften pre- scribed iodides internally for just such chronic leg ulcers Hans Eppingcr has recently reported local myxedema or hypethyroidism. Your iodin ration may have been less of . coincidence than you think. @. F., M. D.
 Answer-Thank you. Doctor. Anyway there can be no harm in taking a suitable iodn ra- ton. in such a case.
 The Clinic Racket
 Do you know anything about the varsosc clinic fin -? sent for their radio book let. (Mrs A. B.)
 Answer-Yes, know enough about 1t now. You have just told me. If doctor or group of doctors is fairly good at anything, pleased patrons will see to it that he or they are kept busy. If he Is not so good he goes into huddle, divests himself of PERSONAL responsibility by assuming some such name as "clinic." 'insti- tute," Association" and proceeds to canvass the sucker population for business. The radio appeal brings lem in. not only from the nick towns but from the big burg as we'll; If you seek obliteration of your varicose veins, you had better entrust the treatment to some re- putable physician who has the moral courage to practice under his own name.
 Child stops Sfanlniering
 The son of friend of mine began to stam- mer after long sicgc of scarlet fever. The parents tried various treatments unsuccessful ly. Then the doctor gave the boy Q few full. dosage ultraviolet ray treatments for general health effect and the boy stopped stammering. Answer--Thank you. When the child re- sained fair general health he stopped stam- rnorina.