surgeons' reports MAINE FOURTH DISTRICT. 177 



MAINE— FOURTH DISTRR'T. 



E.vtroctsfrnm rrpnrt of Dll. S. A. Pattkn. 



This (listiicr is coinposcd of tlie counties of Penobscot, Aroostook, and Piscatnqnis, nnd lias an 

 area of about 13,()5li sijuare miles. It forms all of tbe northern and more than half of the eastern 

 border of the State, and had, in ISOO, a jiopnlation of 110,1.' 10. In j^cneral terms, it may be said to 

 be hilly; and its surface is broken, especially in the northern part, into ridjj:es, detached eminences, 

 ami mountain-peaks. Several rivers, of no inconsiderable size, thread their winding way through 

 this territory toward the ocean ; and scores of lakes, among the largest of which are Moose Head, 

 Cliesnncook, and Apmogenegcmook, iiere s|)read out their waters. 



The general character of the inhabitants is that of intelligent, moral, and industrious citizens. 

 The bJessinjis of the common-scliool and religious instruction reach, with few exceptions, the 

 remotest settlements, and lia\(^ made their impress n|)on the mi:idsand hcaits of the iieople. Largi? 

 numbers of the inhabitants of Aroostook County have come IVom other jiorlions of the State within 

 comparatively a few years, lured thither by repiesentations of thi^ richness of the soil and the 

 sjiperior advantages it allords for agricultural |)ursuits. Its population was nearly doubled between 

 the years l.SoO and lS(j(». Living iu tbe northern portion of this county, and in a district known as 

 jMadawasUa, there is a ])eoi)le of foreign origin, mostly French, ]ioor and illiterate, who, though 

 enjoying the |)rivileges of citizenship, have utterly failed to respond to the calls of the Governiuent 

 dui-ing the late rebellion. 



The piincipal business of the people of this district is farming and lumbering. Scattered all 

 through the southern ami central portions of these counties are rich and highly cultivated farms, 

 and farther north are found wide-spread forests, where grow in abundance the pine, spruce, and tir, 

 inviting tbe energy and stimulating the enterprise of the Inmbernian. » * * 



The prevalent diseases of this district are rhenniatisni, typhoid fever, ])iienmonia, consumjition, 

 and diphtheria. Rheumatism is so common that few of the inhabitants icach the middle period of 

 life w ithout suH'ering fiom it in some one of its various lorms. Its piincipal cause, cold and moisture 

 combined, is almost always jtreseiit, especially dniiiig the spring nuuiths, while the ice and snows 

 are melting and the northeast winds from the Atlantic are blow ing fog and chill over the laud. 

 The same condition of the atmosphere, cold and damimess, which contributes so much to the prev- 

 alence of rheuraatisni, is also aiuoiig the principal agencies in the induction of consnmptiou. 



Diphtheria has made sad havoct in this locality during the last few yiars. Here, as elsewhere, 

 it has prevailed and been most fatal in remote country towns. Children have been the gresitest 

 sntlerers. Adults, however, have not always escaped. Among the drafted men whom I have 

 examined I have frequently found those who were suffering from some of the consequences of this 

 terrible scourge. The same cause, I doubt not, [iroduces this disease here as in other sections of 

 the country ; of which cause, I <>i)ine, very little is known, exce[)t that it originates in some obscure 

 miasmatic condition of the atmosphere, which deteriorates or poisons the circulating tluiils of the 

 body. 



The diseases and infirmities for which drafted men are to be rejected, as enumerated iu para- 

 graph. 8i3, Revised Regulations, I'rovost-Marshal-General's Bureau, are, in the main, 1 judge, ade- 

 (jiiate causes, and well stated. I would, however, respectfully suggest that section 20 be changed, 

 and wider scope given to the Judgment of the examining surgeon. Snpjiose the man being exam- 

 ined has not lost the particular teeth s[)ecitied in this section, but has lost most of those of the 

 ni)per jaw, including part of the incisors, and the remaining teeth are so defective as to be of little 

 use, should he not be exemiited? " Loss of a sufficient number of teeth to prevent proper inasti. 

 cation of food and tearing the cartridge" would, it seems to me, be a much better rule. 



Tbe last part of secitiou 29 reads us follows, viz : " Varicocele is not in itself disqualifying." It is 

 not stated that complications must exist to make it so. It is, perhaps, proper to infer that atro])hy 

 of the corres[ion(liiig testicle is not meant, since this is present, I believe, in the great majority of 

 cases. This difficulty, when it is excessive, occasioning great tenderness of the parts and a painful 

 seu.se of weight and dragging, is, in my opinion, an adequate cause for exeiiqition." Would it not 

 occasion far more discoiulbrt than sarcocele, though it be confirme:!, if of moderate .size? 



Under section oS is " loss of ungual p'.ialanx of the right thumb." Is this really disqualifying? 

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