286 THE PRESENT EVOLUTION OF MAN — PHYSICAL 



strikingly common occurrence of phthisis in nunneries, 

 seminaries, and such-like institutions, in evidence where- 

 of a number of observations have been brought forward 

 by Fourcault; also in the Oriental harems, not only 

 among the women but among the children also; again, 

 among badly-lodged troops, of which we have evidence 

 from England, France, Turkey, and India; and, above 

 all, in prisons. 



" Among many surgeons there is complete agreement 

 that cases of phthisis are least common in soldiers 

 when they are leading an active life in the open air, 

 on the march, or in manoeuvres and campaigns; and 

 that the cases mount up as soon as the troops enter 

 on their garrison life, as, for example, in winter, and 

 spend their time in ill-constructed, crowded, filthy, and 

 badly-ventilated barracks. Welch, who treats of this 

 matter with reference to the British army, says that 

 'nearly half of army consumption is connected with 

 vitiated barrack atmosphere,' a similar opinion having 

 been expressed by earlier writers such as TuUoch and 

 Maclean, the latter including in his statement the 

 British and native troops in India. With respect to 

 its frequency in the French army, we find a similaa- 

 reading of the facts in the papers by Champpouillon, 

 Tholozan, Viry, Lausies, and others. 



" ' L' augmentation considerable des d^c^s qui pfese 

 sur I'armde en temps de paix,' says Tholozan, 'est 

 surtout occasionn^e par les lesions pulmonaires d'un 

 caract^re particulier ; les lesions sont I'effet d'un vice 

 special, d'une diath^se spdcifique de I'^conomie qui se 

 developpe dans des conditions d'encombrement, d'ag- 

 glom^ration, de vie en commun, particuli^res aux 

 casernes.' " — Hirsch, vol. iii. pp. 221-3. 



We see, then, that tuberculosis is essentially a disease 

 of crowded and ill-ventilated habitations, and that bad 

 as are the conditions under which we normally live, 

 they may in relation to it be made infinitely worse. 

 That they ai-e yearly growing worse in the world at 

 large, in consequence of the increase of the population. 



