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153 



Management of the Sick. 

 All persons arc either sick themselves at sonic 

 ^ime or have friends in that condition ; and it is 

 always necessary for each individual to be pre- 

 pared lor the emergencies of the sick room, it 

 is not easy to lay down rides lor treating the 

 sick which shall apply to all cases, for much de- 

 pends on the nature of the disease. Some gen- 

 eral directions may nevertheless he of service. 

 In Dr. Imray's Domestic Medicine wo find some 

 observations of value, from which we gather a 

 lew extracts : 



"Furniture. — This should always he both se- 

 lected and arranged so that every article when- 

 ever wanted, and however suddenly, may he in- 

 stantly found, and without needless disturbance 

 of the patient in any way. In cases of severe 

 sickness (to which alone we here refer) the sick 

 room should be disencumbered of all needless 

 furniture ; and all which can avail to the com- 

 fort and convenience of the invalid should, if 

 possible, be procured. 



"The entire room should be carpeted for sake 

 of stillness, cleanliness and dryness. If but a 

 part of the room can be thus covered, let the re- 

 mainder never he washed, but swept, and (to 

 avoid annoying the patient) with a brush, rather 

 than with a broom. 



" Beds and bedding. — Beds without curtains are 

 always preferable. In cases of fever especially, 

 the mattress should be placed uppermost. The 

 bed-clothing should not be burdensome, and 

 should be immediately removed and well aired, 

 when the patient is transferred from the bed. 

 The sheets used at night should be exchanged 

 for others in the morning, and again used, if not 

 soiled, at night. If this latter cannot be done, 

 the sheets should be changed once in twenty-four 

 hours, especially whenever the fever is infectious. 

 This will essentially prevent its communication 

 to the blankets or to the furniture of the room. 



"Noise. — Even the slightest is excessively irri- 

 tating and therefore injurious to the sick. To 

 prevent it — open and shut the doors with the ut- 

 most gentleness, list them and oil their hinges — 

 check the whistling of the wind through doors, 

 windows, and key-holes — move all articles in 

 the room with care — let every person in the 

 room be shod with slippers or with something 

 equivalent — forbid all needless conversation 

 even in whispers, for concealed conversation will 

 very probable excite the jealousy and fears of 

 the patient — and let no neighbor enter the room 

 merely to gratify curiosity, to express sympathy 

 or to give advice. 



" Ventilation. — Ventilation is always of primary 

 importance, particularly in those fevers in which 

 jruliary eruptions display themselves ; under no 

 circumstances is it so essential as in febrile dis- 

 eases of an infectious kind. Infection, however, 

 rarely extends above a few feet from the body of 

 the patient ; and, even in the most malignant dis- 

 ' eases, with the exception of confluent small-pox 

 and malignant scarlet-fever of the worst kind, its 

 influence does not exceed a few yards if the 

 room be well ventilated. On the contrary, if 

 _ ventilation is neglected, the power of infection 

 becomes greatly augmented, it even settles upon 

 the clothes of the attendants and on the furniture 

 of the room; and these imbibe most readily 

 when their texture is wool, fur, or cotton, or any 

 - 'loose or downy substance capable of receiving 

 and readily retaining the air. Smooth and 

 polished surfaces do not easily receive or retain 

 infectious matter; consequently the nurses and 

 . attendants, in cases of infectious diseases, should 



have glazed gowns, and aprons of oiled silk. 

 . , " Temperature. — Next to ventilation, nothing is 

 of more importance than the regulation of the 

 Aemperature of the sick room, avoiding both ex- 

 tremes of elevation and depression ; but much 

 depends on the nature of the disease. 



"So important is the regulation of tempera- 

 ture, especially in fevers, that it often does more 

 good than any other remedial measure. I have 

 seen patients laboring under high delirium, in a 

 Close, ill-ventilated room, become rapidly quite 

 collected by merely lowering the heat of the 

 •apartment twelve or fifteen degrees. 



" Cleanliness. — It is scarcely requisite to insist 

 mil the necessity of the utmost attention to the 

 cleanliness of every thing in the sick room. 

 The moment after any vessel or implement is 



used by the invalid, it should be removed from 

 the apartment, and returned as soon as cleansed. 



"The necessity of cleanliness in the vessels 

 used tor the food of invalids is strikingly illustra- 

 ted in the bad affects arising from the neglect of 

 it when an infa'it is brought Up by band. In 

 such a case, if either the feeding bottle or the 

 boat which is employed be not immediately 

 cleansed after the meal has been given, the 

 small portion of the pap or food which remains 

 in the vessel becomes tour, and taints the whole 

 of the fresh food mixed with it, causing colic 

 and convulsions in the infant. The same risk 

 of injury occurs in the sick room, if the vessels 

 used for administering food to the invalid be not 

 instantly and well cleansed, alier every lime they 

 are used. 



"Some medicines, when they are exposed to 

 the air, rapidly undergo changes which alter 

 their properties; and this alteration having been 

 undergone by the small portion which is always 

 left in the glass or cup, communicates the dispo- 

 sition to be decomposed to that which may be 

 next poured into the cup. An active medicine 

 may be thus rendered inert; or one which is 

 mild in its operation may be so changed as to 

 operate with hazardous energy." 



A State Agricultural Society. 



We take leave to suggest to the Farmers of 

 New Hampshire the propriety of establishing a 

 State Agricultural Society the present au- 

 tumn — and respectfully to invite the co-o'peration 

 of the press to promote the object. The com- 

 pletion of the various lines of railways through 

 our State will shortly give us facilities equal to 

 those of any other commonwealth, and we have 

 the faith to believe we can successfully rival, in 

 respect to our products, agricultural and me- 

 chanical, any territory iu the United States of 

 equal size. State Fairs held in our largest towns 

 successively on the New York system, say at 

 Concord, Manchester, Nashua, Portsmouth, Exe- 

 ter, Dover, Keene, Claremont, &c, would create 

 an interest through all the State' that would be 

 felt and seen in increased wealth and prosperity 

 for generations. — Claremont Eagle. 



Pithy hints. — Snuff on the necks and backs 

 of calves and young cattle, will do more good 

 than in the nose of any maiden lady or dandy 

 bachelor ; and brimstone bought for the hogs. 

 will not prove that the itch has got into the 

 house. Cards, on the cattle, make them look as 

 much better as children with their hair combed. 

 A clean barn is a bint to the woman who takes 

 care of the kitchen. Good milking stools save 

 much washing in the house. A scraper on the 

 door step saves brooms and dust. 



How much do our Crops obtain from the Air 1 



One of the most interesting and important 

 questions which employ the skill and science of 

 the vegetable physiologists, as well as the practi- 

 cal farmer, is — How much, or what per cent, of 

 the food of vegetables, is obtained from the at- 

 mosphere ? That a large amount is obtained 

 from this source has long been known or believ- 

 ed ; but what proportion is not so well known, 

 nor what conditions arc necessary iu order to 

 enable the plant to take the most of this food, 

 and assimilate it to its own system in the best 

 way, is not yet fully ascertained. We have been 

 very much interested in reading an address, de- 

 livered by Dr. Lee, of Buffalo, before the Mon- 

 roe County Agricultural Society. He there as- 

 serts that plants — a field of wheat, for instance — 

 obtain ninety-seven per cent, of their food, and 

 consequently ninety-seven per cent, of the 

 amount of the produce is derived from the at- 

 mosphere, and hut three per cent, only obtained 

 from the soil. How this fact is ascertained, or 

 how it may be demonstrated, does not appear. 



There cannot be a doubt that every plant has 

 some peculiar character of its own, which re- 

 quires it to be placed in certain circumstances, 

 in order to enable it to absorb what the air sup- 

 plies for food, and to make it convert the great- 

 est portion of it to the growth and maturing its 

 peculiar fruits. There cannot be a doubt that 

 oftentimes a plant may grow in an atmosphere 

 full of the necessary elements for its increase 

 and health, and yet some little requisite — the 

 absence or scanty supply of another element — 

 may prevent it from availing itself of this abund- 

 ant supply of atmospheric food. Hence the im- 

 poitance of thoroughly understanding all the 

 laws by which the germination, growth, and 

 maturity of every species of vegetable which we 

 cultivate are governed. But in order to ascer- 

 tain these exactly, it requires more critical know- 

 ledge of chemistry and botany than the great 

 bulk of farmers possess, and more time to be 

 employed iu research than many men, even of 

 scientific experience, have to bestow upon it. 

 For this reason, we suggest that agricultural so- 

 cieties should bestow some of their funds in the 

 shape of premiums, or otherwise, for the purpose 

 of instituting exact experiments upon this sub- 

 ject, and to elicit and make known to the public 

 all the knowledge which can possibly be thus 

 d iscovered. — Maine Farmer. 



Be xind to Animals. — There are few things 

 more disgraceful in children, than to be cruel to 

 those harmless creatures which are unable to 

 defend themselves. If I see a child pull off the 

 wings of an insect, or throw stones at a toad or 

 frog, or take pains to set his foot upon a worm, I 

 am sure there is something wrong about him, or 

 that be has not been well instructed. 



There was once a boy who loved to give pain 

 to every thing thai came in his way, over which 

 he could get any power. He would take the 

 eggs from the mourning robin, and torture the 

 unfledged sparrow ; cats and dogs, the peacea- 

 ble cow, and the faithful horse, he delighted to 

 worry and distress. I do not like to tell you of 

 the many cruel things that he did. He was told 

 that such deeds were wrong. An excellent lady, 

 with whom be lived, used to warn and reprove 

 him for his evil conduct. But he did not reform. 

 When he grew up, he became a soldier. He 

 was never sorry to see men wounded, and blood 

 running upon the earth. He became so wicked 

 as to lay a plan to betray his country, and to sell 

 it into the hands of the enemy. This is to be a 

 traitor. But be was discovered, and fled. He 

 never dared to return to bis native land, but liv- 

 ed despised, and died miserably in a foreign 

 clime. Such was the end of the cruel boy, who 

 loved to give pain to animals. His name was 

 Benedict Arnold ; he was born at Norwich, Ct., 

 in America, and the beautiful city of his birth is 

 ashamed of his memory. — (London) S. S. Teach- 

 ers Offering. 



« ^ 



Advantages or Trees. — Cattle thrive much 

 better in fields even but moderately sheltered 

 with trees than they do in an open and exposed 

 country. An Italian (Gaulieri) has enumerated 

 and illustrated the advantages in point of climate 

 which tracts of country derive from woods and 

 forests. "These," ho says, "are arresting the 

 progress of impetuous and dangerous winds; 

 maintaining the temperature of the air; regulat- 

 ing the seasons; lessening intense cold ; oppos- 

 ing the formation and increase of ice; moderat- 

 ing intense beats; producing abundance of wa- 

 ter in the rivers; discharging the electricity of 

 the atmosphere ; opposing a harrier to washing 

 away or undermining hanks; preserving from 

 inundations ; preserving the soil on bills and 

 mountains." — Selected. 



An Indian chief being in an eating-bouse, was 

 asked whether he would have a glass of ale. He 

 cast a very aboriginal look upon the pale face, 

 and replied — "Thank you, sir, I have not be- 

 come so far civilized as to drink liquor." 



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