92 THE TREATMENT OF DISEASES. 



however, no hesitation in saying that if we could provide better and healthier 

 dwellings for the poor, there would be a great decline not only in the amount of 

 drunkenness, but of other forms of crime with which it is associated with such 

 frightful frequency. Dickens once said : " Gin-drinking is a great vice in 

 England, but wretchedness and dirt are a greater; and until you improve the 

 homes of the poor, or persuade a half-famished wretch not to seek relief in the 

 temporary oblivion of his own misery with the pittance which, divided among his 

 family, would furnish a morsel of bread for each, gin-shops will increase in number 

 and splendour. If Temperance Societies would suggest an antidote against hunger, 

 filth, and foul air, or could establish dispensaries for the gratuitous distribution of 

 Lethe-water, gin-palaces would be numbered among the tilings that were." 



AN.EMIA, OR POORNESS OF BLOOD. 



Anaemia, or poorness of blood, is of frequent occurrence not only as a distinct 

 disease, but as a symptom of many other diseases. It is a chronic complaint, and is 

 so common in London and other large towns that you cannot walk down Regent 

 Street any afternoon without meeting with literally dozens of cases. It occurs more 

 commonly in women than in men, and more frequently in young people than in old. 

 The majority of cases are seen in young women of from fifteen to twenty. 



The symptoms are usually well marked, and no difficulty is experienced in 

 recognising the nature of the complaint. There is always more or less pallor of 

 the face and lips, which is very characteristic. It is quite distinct from the bilious 

 yellow colour you see in jaundice, and has rather a tendency to shade off into olive. 

 In some cases of anaemia this paleness of the face may be obscured by accidental cir- 

 cumstances. For instance, you would not observe it in people who had been browned 

 by exposure to the sun, and probably not in cooks and others who spend much of 

 their time over the fire. The nature of the case is, however, at once apparent if you 

 examine the skin of the neck or some other part of the body protected from exposure. 

 Another good way of detecting the presence of anaemia is to look at the nails, or to 

 turn down the lip or lower eyelid, and see if they present their natural red colour, 

 or are paler than usual. In turning down the eyelid you must be careful not to 

 make it tense, or you will drive the blood out of the part, and you may be deceived 

 by the pallor so caused. In cases of anaemia there is generally a little puffiness not 

 only about the face but about the legs and ankles. There is no fever, but the pulse 

 is usually increased in frequency, and is small and weak. The circulation is languid 

 and depressed, and even slight exertion will bring on palpitation of the heart. 

 Headache is very common, and is usually felt over the region of the temples, and at 

 the top of the head. As a rule it is not an intense or an agonising pain, but a dull 

 heavy sensation, as if something were pressing down and out. It is increased by 

 abstinence from food, and by the erect posture, but is better on lying down. It 

 usually comes on in the morning whilst dressing, goes off after breakfast, and comes 

 on again before lunch or dinner, and so on. It is aggravated by exertion, and is of 

 a throbbing character. It is sometimes accompanied by a feeling of fulness and 

 weight, and by noises in the ears, and a sense of pulsation all over. The noise in' 



