160 The Involution of Medical Science. 



like wheat, they do not multiply when dry, but only in 

 proper soil, with proper temperature and moisture. 



Sanitary Science seeks to check the growth of these 

 germs and to destroy those already developed. To fight an 

 invisible foe is difficult work, but we are steadily improv- 

 ing in our ways of doing it. The general public are little 

 beyond the Middle Ages in their notions about how to give 

 them battle. True, they no longer dej^end on phylters, 

 charms, crosses, and prayers, for relief. They do, however, 

 maintain faith in bad-smelling carbolic acid, tar, and other 

 equally useless and abominable so-called disinfectants.* 

 Let every person, within hearing of my voice to-night, 

 learn that nothing will destroy the germs in a room, or 

 save themselves from contagion, so well as a deluge of 

 water such as would clean a sliower of lamp-black, and 

 plenty of pure air, to blow them out of the room, while 

 thorough dusting and sweeping, with wet brooms and 

 dusters, is being done. You can kill germs, that are not 

 too dry, by any means that will kill the hardiest plants 

 or animals. Nothing short of this is of the least avail. f 

 When your disinfecting has killed every croton-bug, bed- 

 bug, fly and plant in your room, some good has been done 

 in protecting yourself and children from disease. To buy 

 a few cents'-worth of carbolic acid, chloride of lime, Piatt's 

 chlorides, or any other disinfectant, leave it open in the 

 room, and expect immunity therefrom, is to believe in the 

 impossible. Such ideas belong to the age of magic. We 

 but play the ostrich in doing this, and think ourselves 

 saved from the enemy if our heads are covered. These 

 disinfectants are exceedingly useful as auxiliaries to floods 

 of water, or for the i)reparation of strong solutions, in 

 which to cleanse infected goods. t To expect any other 

 good from them is folly. 



Within the last decade progress has been made with 

 great rapidity. Indeed, the gain is more than in one thou- 

 sand years immediately after Galen's time. A doctor who 

 took his degree ten years ago, and who has not striven to 

 keep abreast of the times, is already an antiquated fossil. 

 He knows nothing of the way in which the comi)arison of 

 tlie anatomy of men and animals has shown how hundreds 

 of diseases are due in great part to weaknesses inherent in 



* Mediciil News. Vol. 4r., ]>. 144. 



t National I?oar<l of Ilfaltli bulletin, Vol. ,?, p. 21. 



t Medical News, Vol. 4<1, p. U<i. 



