May 27, 1887.] 



SCIENCE. 



509 



formerly dull senses are sharpened ; the formerly 

 half-closed eyes sparkle, and the flabby cheeks be- 

 come fuller and rosy ; the formerly prominent ab- 

 domen is reduced to more seemly dimensions, not- 

 withstanding that food and drink are taken with 

 greater relish ; and the chest is expanded. Dr. 

 Barkan thinks the European mountains are to be 

 preferred to those of America, principally on the 

 ground that better paths are provided. He makes 

 an exception to this rule in favor of the Adiron- 

 dacks and some other mountains in the eastern 

 states. In organizing mountain - parties, every 

 thing should, so far as possible, be previously ar- 

 ranged. Regulations should be established as to 

 the gradual increase in the extent of the daily 

 ascents, the periods of rest, the protection of the 

 feet and other parts of the body against chafing 

 and the formation of blisters. The advice of Dr. 

 Barkan vpill be found by inexperienced pedestrians 

 to be of great value, and we should advise those 

 vpIio contemplate mountain-climbing during the 

 coming summer to familiarize themselves with his 

 rules of action, and thus save time and avoid suf- 

 fering. 



The stomach. — Dr. A. H. P. Leuf , in an article 

 in the Medical news on the stomach, calls atten- 

 tion to several important errors in the anatomy 

 and physiology of that organ as described by most 

 of the authorities. He finds, as the result of many 

 post-mortem and other examinations, that instead 

 of lying in a horizontal position, the stomach in 

 its normal position is vertical, and that when it is 

 distended the lesser curvature remains compara- 

 tively stationary, while the greater moves to the 

 left and downward, and the pouch upward and to 

 the left. An empty stomach is in a contracted 

 condition, and assumes a tubular form : gaseous 

 distention, though frequently found, is not the 

 rule, nor is it strictly physiological. When water 

 is taken into the full or partly full stomach, it 

 does not mingle with the food, as we are gener- 

 ally taught, but passes along quickly between the 

 food and the lesser curvature, towards the pylorus, 

 through which it passes into the intestine. The 

 secretion of mucus by the lining membrane is con- 

 stant, and during the night a considerable amount 

 accumulates in the stomach : some of its liquid 

 portion is absorbed, and that which remains is 

 thick and tenacious. If food is taken into the 

 stomach when in this condition, it becomes coated 

 with this mucus, and the secretion of the gastric 

 juice and its action are delayed. These facts 

 show the value of a goblet of water before break- 

 fast. This washes out the tenacious mucus, and 

 stimulates the gastric glands to secretion. In old 

 or feeble persons, water should not be taken cold, 

 but it may be with great advantage then taken 



warm or hot. This removal of the accumulated 

 mucus from the stomach is probably one of the 

 reasons why taking soup at the beginning of a 

 meal has always been found so beneficial. Dr. 

 Leuf sums up his views as follows : l'^. The 

 position of the stomach is more nearly vertical 

 than horizontal ; 2°. An empty stomach, if in 

 good tone, is always tubular ; 3°. A tubular 

 stomach should be the rule on rising ; 4*^. Non- 

 irritating liquids pass directly through the tubular 

 stomach ; 5°. They do likewise if the stomach con- 

 tains food, and in such cases pass along the lesser 

 curvature ; 6®. The morning mucus contained in 

 the stomach hinders or retards digestion ; 7°. 

 Water drank before meals dilutes and washes out 

 this mucus, stimulates the gastro-enteric tract to 

 peristalsis, and causes hyperaemia of its Kning 

 membrane, thus greatly aiding digestion as well 

 as elimination ; 8°. Cold water should be given 

 to those who have the power to react, wliile warm 

 or hot water must be administered to all others ; 

 9°. Salt added to the water is very beneficial in 

 preventing the formation of unabsorbable para- 

 peptones ; 10". It is i)erfectly proper to drink 

 water before, during, and after meals. 



Cetti's fast. — M. Cetti, who began a fast of 

 thirty days at Berlin, maintained it but two 

 weeks, having been assured that a longer depriva- 

 tion would be of no scientific value. During the 

 fast he was under the observation of such scien- 

 tific men as Virchow and Senator ; and the results, 

 when published, will undoubtedly be of great in- 

 terest. He drank all the water he desired, and 

 was permitted to smoke cigarettes. His average 

 daily loss in weight was 585 grams. Accurate 

 measurements of the body were taken, and minute 

 analyses of the excreta made from time to time : 

 also examinations of the blood and sphygmo- 

 graphic tracings of the pulse. Estimations were 

 also made of the amounts of oxygen absorbed, 

 and of carbonic acid produced, during respira- 

 tion. 



Water - supply aj^d typhoh) - fever, — Dr. 

 Charles Smart, surgeon U.S.A., regards the water- 

 supply as the principal medium of the transmis- 

 sion of typhoid-fever, and refers to the statistics 

 of New Orleans and Philadelphia as sustaining 

 his views. In the former city, without a sewer 

 system, the drinking-water is pure rain-water ; 

 while in Philadelphia, with a sewer system, the 

 water-supply is contaminated. The death-rate 

 per 100,000, from typhoid-fever in New Orleans, 

 in 1866 was 68, and in 1885 but 16 ; the average 

 for the first decade, 1866-76, being 41.3, and for 

 the second, 34.6, a decrease of nearly 17. In 

 Philadelphia the average for the first decade was 



