The Health bulletin [serial] - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

276 THE HEALTH BULLETIN.And at home Mary was sitting halfheartedlypicking at a bit of unfinishedsewing, waiting to hear of a safe arrival.Loneliness had grown less endurablewith fvery hour. Anxiety hadmade the days a dragging suspense,the nights a prolonged terror. It hadbeen hard to let him go. But the doctorhad saidV/hat was it the doctor had said?The doctor had said just enough tosend a man with the sentence of immediatedeath upon him a torturingjourney of two thousand miles awayfrom such friends and comforts as hepossessed. He had gone with noknowledge of the disease he was combating,no resources for caring forhimself in a strange country, nothought of the precautions necessaryfor public safety.Three sufferers from the effects ofJohn Jones' wretched and ill-advisedjourney—John, Mary, the public. Buthow are John and Mary and the publicto know better? The Survey, January10, 1914.Our Respects to the FlyIt is said that the fly serves no goodpurpose. It is a mistake; he performstwo very good services. Heteaches the teachable to clean up andkeep clean, and he kills off the others.That is, he assiduously works to causea survival of the fittest.Let us give the , that is, thefly, his due. While we give him creditfor this much good, let us be amongthe teachable.Let us see that nothing around ourpremises breeds flies. Let us shun thepresence of flies in the house as wewould shun poison. Let us screen effectuallyour doors and windows, so asto avoid stray flies, and let us killevery fly that gets inside the sacredinclosure.It is wiser to do this than it is tocall the flies unkind names while theyswarm around our dining table. Ittakes a little more trouble, but it ismore pleasant, and it is safer. Especiallyif there is a baby in the familythe fly is dangerous. Funerals are expensive,and then we would miss baby.The fly is an undesirable guest. Hecontaminates every particle of food hecrawls over. He comes fresh from theprivy, or the manure pile, or the decayingheap, where he takes his firstfeed. Then he takes his dessert fromthe food you are to eat, and he doesit without first wiping his feet. Ifyou could see with a microscope whathe leaves, it would make you turnpale, and you would make more energeticefforts to keep him out of thehouse, and if possible you would stophis breeding.While you honor the fly for killingoff the unfit, see to it that he does notget you into the wrong class. Lifeand Health.The Trademark of Ignorance"I don't blame my mother, becausedoubtless she thought she was protectingme when she would not have mevaccinated. Many a time I have heardher say that virus was filthy andwould give me scrofula. I knew nobetter and grew up to manhood unvaccinated.While I was on the road,ten years ago, I stopped over night ina town where there was an epidemicof so-called 'chickenpox,' very mild,they said, and harmless. I went homeand in two weeks developed smallpoxin its virulent form. For three weeksI suffered the tortures of perdition,and when I was well again my facewas fearfully pitted, as you see. Thescars are bad enough, heaven knows,for they disfigure me for life, but Ihate them still more for another reason.Why? Because they brand mefor life with the trademark of ignoranceand useless suffering."Health Almanac.Virginia