Evening star., 1940-02-17
Of Stors. Men
And Atoms
Notebook Of Science Progress
In Field, Laboratory
And Study
BY Thomas r. Henry.

By Thomas r. Henry.
Pneumonia. which . few years ago was
killing nearly 100000 In the United
States annually. has taken bad beating.
It has been denoted, reports to the
United States Public Health Service
show, from third to NTH rank as killer
and from yearly slaughter record Of
about IS persons per 100000 OF the gen.
eral population to 81.
The big drop came In the years 1887
and 1888. Records for 1880 still are
fragmentary for the country rs whole,
but they indicate that the drop is still
continuing. Much Of the decline, the
Public Health Service doctors explain,
must be attributed to medical advances
serums for some Of the rarer types be-
came available In 1887 and those for the
common types were more generally dis
tributed. Sulfanilamide was helping
save cases for which no serums were
available. The big decline came, how
ever, before sulfapyridine, probably the
most effective single agent for combat
ting the disease, was available except to
few selected physicians. The Public
Health Service physicians question, how
ever. whether the entire decline can be
credited to these new remedies. There
are fewer actual cases, both fatal and
non-fatal, reported, but figures for sew
eral years will be required before It will
be possible to demonstrate an actual
decline in the incidence of the disease.
Two maladies have jumped ahead into
second and third places as killers-brain
hemorrhage and kidney disease. The
rise Of the former from about II to SO
deaths per 100000 in single year is
puzzling to the Government doctors who
see little to be done about it. It has
risen from ninth place to third as a
cause of death since 1910. This, the
physicians believe, is partly due to the in
creasing age of the population and per-
haps to more intensive living. 1t strikes
and kills, sometimes without warning and
often In the prime of life.
The rise Of kidney diseases as killers
has been more gradual, from 772 per
100000 of the population in 1897 to 79.6
in 1888, and from fourth to third place.
They fall largely among the degenera-
tive diseases, most frequent after the
peak of life has been past.
There can never be a specific remedy,
they point out, against the brain hemor-
rhage, or blood clot on the brain, which
is coming to the fore so rapidly as a
cause of death. In this respect it differs
markedly from its two chief competitors
as killers-heart diseases with 4 rate Of
1883 per 100000 and cancer which kills
slightly above ia per 100000. Both of
these give some warning. They are
likely to cause long. lingering illnesses
during which the ingenuity of the physi-
clan can be used to the utmost to prolong
life and not infrequently bring about
cure. There Is no way to repair damage
to the vital centers Of the brain.
Appearance. dress and manners of
Canadian Indians a century ago are pre-
served In the portraits from life of a
wilderness wandering painter, Paul Kane.
The story Of his adventurous life. to-
gether with many of his field sketches.
has just been compiled by David 1.
Bushnell, jr., Smithsonian Institution
anthropologist and issued as an institu-
tion publication. His pictures provide
one OF the best extant records of the
picturesque Crees. Obijways and Black
feet OF the Dominion before the great
spread OF civilization westward.
Kane's finished paintings are now at
the Royal Ontario Museum Of ARCHIE
ology at Toronto. the National Gallery at
Ottawa and in the chambers of the
Speaker of the Canadian House of Com
mons. In the field he made small, water
color portrait sketches Of the Indians he
encountered. The finished paintings
were, for the most part, elaborations Of
these sketches. Unfortunately, Kane
was painting for living. He tried, in
his finished work, to make more pleas
ing pictures, but IN doing so lessened
their value and interest both historically
and ethnologically. The sketches are
widely scattered. Mr.. Bushnell has re-
produced some of them for the first time.
Kane made his headquarters at To-
ronto. In 1845, when he made his first
short journey among the Indians, he set
out alone with only his painting equip
ment and gun. There were many
aboriginals to be encountered in the
neighborhood Of Toronto, with native
camps and villages on the shores of the
lakes and streams to the northward.
Georgian Bay was bordered by the
camps Of several tribes.
His second journey lasted nearly two
years, and took him from Toronto to the
Pacific Coast. Carrying credentials to
all the Hudson Bay Co.'s posts, he was
enabled to meet the Indians under the
most advantageous circumstances. He
went as far as Fort Victoria on Vancouver
Island and then started his long journey
back to Toronto with company brigade
of nine boats and between go and 10 men.
1t was on this return trip that his most
valuable sketches were made-a trip full
Of adventure in the course of which Kane
made several 10r0 sir1o trinc rYo ,torond