Vol. 60, 1909 - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

ORIGINAL COMMUNICATIONS. 299
stitutionisruiidownandatalowebbthat its deadly mission, to be inhaled by any
tuberculosis ,s most liable to be contracted, passer-by, and if lodged in suitable soil of
One of the chief characteristics of the tuber- the mouth, nose, throat or lungs in the
cle l,acillus is to start to grow and multiply course of a few weeks or months these viewhen
the soil is suitable. Weak constitu- tims go out on the same mission spreading
tions furnish this kind of soil. We find the same infection, as well as addin-re
these weakhngsni all lines of trade the cruits to that great armv of millions who
great majority of whom if put to the tuber- have gone before to that bourne, whence
culin test, will be found to have tubercu- no traveller returns
losis These weaklings can be found in Having merelv touched upon the chief
candy factories where rhe fly is a constant points of this mammoth subject giving some
visitor and on-looker and is ever ready to of the leading characteristics that should
deposit his share of infection on the candv claim the attention of the medical profession
that we purchase from the confectioners. in the fight that is now being made I «hall
Over half a million bacilli have been conclude my paper bv offering a few sufound
in one fly speck, and his flyship is gestions along the lines of prevention and
capable of carrying over 6,600,000 bacilli extermination of this world-wide scourge
on his legs and wings. One person who that is now challenging the skill of the
has tuberculosis in the worst stage is capa- whole medical profession. One of the
ble ^.f eKpectorating in a single day over strongest *and most important preventive
one billion of the bacilli. We have similar measures against pulmonary tuberculosis,
coiuluions to the above in our bakeries, is the careful management of the children
wliere possibly the head baker is a victim of tuberculous parents and grand-parents,
of tuberculosis, and with his usual domestic There is beyond all question, apredisposicoinpanions,
the flies, contribute a large tion to this disease in such children; also
share of this infection, in the way of depos- in adults who are the offspring of tubercnits.
to the bread we eat on our tables. The lous parents of grand-parents. The consame
rule applies to our tailor shops, where stitutions and general welfare of this class
tubercular cutters or seamstresses are con- should excite the interest of not only the
Btantly, but unwittingly, infecting the cloth- immediate relatives and friends, but of the
ing we purchase from them, tlie bargain family physician as well. While I do not
counters 111 some of our large department believe that the disease itself is hereditary,
stores, the "cheap John" clothing stores, yet I am fully convinced that there is'a
the unsanitary confectionery and grocery strong hereditary tendency.
Stores, ice cream saloons, common restau- When this tendency exists with marked
rants, fruit stands and stores, moving pic- anemic conditions, low vitality and slight
ture and vaudeville play-houses, waiting- cough or constant clearing of the throat,
rooms and toilets in railroad stations and dyspeptic symtoms, loss of appetite, tired
other public places, state-rooms in steam- feeling, slight evening fevers, etc., etc.,
ships, and berths in Pullman sleepers, there is good ground for suspicion of begin-
There are set free in the United States every ning tuberculosis. Where there is much
year one hundred thousand prisoners from doubt and anxiety on the part of friends
our jails and penitentiaries. Over 2.5^ of and relatives, it might be well to use the
these have some form of tuberculosis, and tuberculin test. If a positive result is
are allowed to roam the country, spreading found, this class of patients should take
the infection as they go. When we consid- a course of building-up treatment until all
er a company of 2.S,(HI() advance agents the worst symptoms are cleared up, then
from this one source spreading this deadly advise a climate of pure, dry atmosphere in
infection over our country should we not a high altitude, where such persons can
appeal to our national government for help? spend the rest of their lives in ease and
Tliese and thousands of other sources that comfort, following their ordinary avocacould
be mentioned in the same category, tions. This is the proper climate for all
are the homes and common dwelling places persons who have an inherited piedisposiof
the tubercle bacilli. They are carried to tion to pulmonary tuberculosis. One other
these places l)y the victims of tuberculosis important preventive measure should be inand
the common house fly. The infection, augurated in every country throughout the
when once lioused in a locality where the world. I refer to the prevention of marsoil
is favorable, is very hard to exterini- riage of all those who have pulmonary tunate.
The way by which this infection is berculosis. While such a law, if inauguspread
and taken into the .system, is by the rated, might at first seem radical, yet it
sputum of persons who have tuberculosis, would prove a step in the right direction
This sputum, after drying on the floor, toward eradicating the disease and saving
sidewalk or street, is taken upas dust by a future generations from the blight of this
Fraught of air, or gust of wind and sent on curse. It is a well known fact that the