194 THE TREATMENT OF DISEASES. 



usually causes pulpy slimy stools of dark colour and offensive odour. They are 

 generally frequently repeated, and the quantity is often so great that the patient 

 expresses Ms astonishment, and often wonders where it all comes from. The treat- 

 ment will have to be continued for three weeks or a month. In some people it 

 produces very little purgative action. The beneficial effects are more marked when 

 dietary is adopted similar to that enjoined at Carlsbad. The Pullna or Friedrich- 

 shall waters are often used with advantage in constipation. 



In many cases the use of an enema or injection proves of the greatest service. 

 Unirritating in its operation, and acting directly on the seat of obstruction, an 

 injection is far preferable to the administration of strong drugs, which derange the 

 whole alimentary track and excite violent action, only in many cases to induce a 

 state of greater debility and torpor than existed in it before. It matters little of 

 what the injection is composed either hot or cold water or gruel or starch may 

 be conveniently used. 



CONSUMPTION. 



Consumption, or phthisis, as it is technically called, is an affection of the lungs 

 accompanied by general wasting. There is no doubt that consumption is hereditary, 

 though probably not to the extent that is commonly supposed. It does not follow 

 of necessity that because a person comes of a consumptive stock he will suffer from 

 that affection. By some authorities it is considered that the disease itself is 

 transmitted, whilst others think that it is only a general weakness or constitutional 

 debility that is hereditary. 



Most cases of consumption occur between the ages of twenty and thirty. The 

 disease is not often observed in early childhood or in old age, but it may come on 

 at any period of life. It occurs with nearly equal frequency in men and women. 



People whose general health is below par are the most likely to become the 

 subjects of consumption. Those who have a consumptive tendency should scru- 

 pulously avoid anything at all likely to weaken them. Nevertheless, cases com- 

 mencing with spitting of blood may originate in those whose health is a model of 

 excellence. 



There are certain occupations which predispose to the occurrence of consumption. 

 It is common amongst stonemasons, grinders and polishers of steel, dressers of flax 

 and feathers, straw plaiters, iron and coal miners, tailors and sempstresses. In 

 many of these the inhalation of foreign particles into the lungs sets up irritation, 

 which proves injurious and deteriorates the , constitution ; in others the result is 

 occasioned by the combined operation of sedentary employment, impure air, ex- 

 haustive work, and bad food. On the other hand, cooks, butchers, tanners, tallow- 

 chandlers, and soap-boilers, enjoy to a great extent an immunity from this terrible 

 scourge. They get good wages, and as a concomitant have plenty to eat and drink, 

 whilst the constant contact with oil and fat is probably not without its influence. 

 A consideration of these facts may in some instances be of service in deciding on the 

 choice of an occupation. Sedentary habits and want of exercise, intemperance in 

 any shape or form, excessive indulgence and debauchery of all kinds, powerfully 

 influence the development of phthisis, especially in the young. 



