10 CRUISE OF STEAMER CURWIN IN THE ARCTIC OCEAN. 
berth-deck was further increased by the humidity brought about by the habit of deluging the decks 
above and below every morning with water. At my suggestion this very reprehensible practice 
was happily abolished on the berth-deck, scraping and dry serubbing being substituted, and the 
deck was not wetted oftener than once or twice a month, and only at times when the prevalence of 
fine weather would justify doing so. } 
After procuring such a medical outfit as the exigencies of the cruise might require, and after 
taking the necessary precautions as to the hygienic condition of the vessel and erew, we started on 
our humane mission, putting to sea on May 4 and meeting with seven or eight uneventful days of 
pleasant weather, exceptionally so for the season. The ocean, somewhat deserving of the adjective 
that designates it, displayed its prettiest combinations of lapis lazuli and ultramarine tints and 
sunset effects as we steamed through miles of medusidee; and had it not been for the occasional 
sight of whales and little black divers, with the daily fall in the thermometer, we should not have 
known of our approach to the north. This happy state of affairs did not continue long on reaching 
a higher latitude, where we were beset by pelting hail and furious storms of snow and all the 
discomforts of sea life, causing a pénible navigation in every sense of the term. The increased 
cold, as we neared the north, had no perceptible effect for the worse on the health of the ship’s 
company; and it is gratifying to state that but few serious cases, either surgical or medical, 
occurred during the entire voyage, a happy event, undoubtedly owing to the careful precautionary 
ineasures taken to secure full efficiency and to the excellent routine and discipline. 
The Corwin is a good sea vessel, being tolerably dry in bad weather, and her oscillations are 
easy for a small craft. At the outset of the cruise, however, we were placed in the best possible 
conditions for studying both subjectively and objectively the strange phenomena of that doleful 
tribute of suffering that so many people are obliged to pay to the sea. Unfortunately so little is 
known of the nature and origin of this most distressing affection, and medical science has done so 
little to assuage its attacks, the wonder is that more extended experiments are not made by medical 
men in regard to seasickness. In spite of many theories and hypotheses that have been advanced 
to explain the phenomena of this so-called disease, we know that its causes are purely physical ; 
the swinging of the diaphragm, the disturbance of the equilibrium in the fluid contents of the 
body—just as the mercury pumps up and down in a barometer—and the consequent reflex impres- 
sibility of the ganglionic, pneumogastric, and cerebro-spinal system of nerves producing a kind of 
trisplanchnic neurosis, which varies in different individuals according to peculiarity of structure 
and susceptibility. 
Experience convinces that no drug known to the pharmacopeeia will prevent or cure seasick- 
ness, notwithstanding the assertions of eminent medical authority to the contrary. Resolute effort 
of the will and the resort to such palliatives as drinks containing an excess of carbon dioxide, 
iced champagne and bottled Milwaukee beer for example, and oranges, were found to be the 
most efficacious modes of treatment adopted in the numerous cases of this almost unmitigated 
evil coming under my observation. 
A portion of the crew suffered from violent phlegmon of the hand, arising doubtless from the 
combined influences of long confinement on shipboard, sea diet, and unusual climatic conditions. 
This affection was not confined to our vessel alone, for it prevailed extensively among the whale- 
men as well. The worst cases occurred among men whose history revealed the previous existence 
of syphilis. To remedy the condition it was recommended that the entire ship’s company be 
allowed a run ashore as often as practicable, and that there be added to the usual dietary a ration 
of cranberries, a supply of which had been laid in among other antiscorbuties. Happily, these 
directions were complied with as far as possible, and I had the satisfaction to witness the good 
results. 
Another affection prevailing extensively among the crew was a cutaneous eruption attended by 
excessive itching, which I at first suspected to be due to the presence of pediculi ; but subsequent 
experience showed that temporary alleviation could be brought about by the administration of 
calcined magnesia and the topical application of vinegar and water. I may mention incidentally 
that my friend Dr. Charles Smart, U.S. A., who has cruised in the Aretic as far as latitude 82° on 
a Peterhead whaleman, says that he has often noticed the foregoing symptoms in connection with 
rheumatism among sailors, and also among soldiers in Arizona, who had been living for some time 
