NERVE IMPULSES AND REFLEX ACTION 327 



name for an affection of the nervous system, concerning 

 the cause of which little is known. It sometimes occurs 

 when one has been living for a long time under great nervous 

 tension, such as comes from continued excitement, too little 

 sleep or constant anxiety. It occurs more frequently in 

 civilized life and the highly complex conditions of modern 

 society than in the simpler life of the country. The symp- 

 toms of this trouble are too varied to be described here, but 

 very often the person imagines himself ill from troubles which 

 do not exist, and is in a constant state of worry about his own 

 health. The remedy for nervous prostration is a complete 

 change of life to relieve the body from the kind of strains 

 which have been producing t^e trouble. If one lives simply, 

 takes life as calmly as possible, does not allow himself to 

 worry nor live too highly, he is well protected against this 

 illness. Nervous prostration does not usually result from 

 overwork, as has been frequently supposed. It is more 

 likely to follow wrong habits as regards food, sleep, recreation 

 etc. If one breaks the monotony of work occasionally with 

 a brief period of real recreation, he may work very hard and 

 long without serious consequences. 



Cerebro-spinal Meningitis. Meningitis is one of the very 

 serious diseases, frequently fatal, and is caused by a certain 

 bacterium which attacks the brain. It is more common 

 among children than adults and sometimes occurs in epidemics. 

 Its method of passing from individual to individual is not 

 known, nor its means of entering the body. It is certainly 

 not very contagious, rarely more than one case occurring in a 

 family. Our lack of knowledge as to its method of distribu- 

 tion has prevented the devising of efficient rules for avoiding 

 it, and the only suggestions now possible are to keep up the 

 general health and to avoid contact with those suffering from 

 the disease, and with secretions from their mouths. A method 

 of combatting it by inoculation has been devised that is fre- 

 quently successful in producing a cure. 



