CHAPTER XVIIIFLIES AS CARRIERS OF DISEASE

Necessity of washing the hands after touching the sick

Fifth:Every person who touches a sick person, or handles anything that comes from a sickroom, should immediately wash his hands. Unless he washes his hands at once, the germs which may be on them may get into his mouth.

How dirt causes disease

Sixth:Dirt, which is an indirect cause of disease, must not be allowed to accumulate. If your yard were full of dirt, garbage, and manure, it would not cause disease unless the germs of some disease became planted there. But such a place is an indirect cause of disease, in that it furnishes a fine place for germs to grow in. If a fly with typhoid germs on its feet were to alight in such a yard, the germs would be planted in a most favorable spot and would grow very fast.

Fig. 41.A place that is an indirect cause of disease, since it furnishes a fine place for germs to grow in.

None of the disease germs like sunshine; neither do they like dry places. They die very quickly in the sunlight, and grow very slowly, if at all, in dry places; but in damp, dark places they grow very fast. Dirty back yards make ideal gardens for germs.

Let a fly with germs on its feet alight in a clean yard where sunshine can reach every corner, and what chance will the germs have to grow? They will not even get a start. Hence, while disease cannot be caused by dirt, disease germs stand a very good chance of living where there is plenty of dirt and no sunshine. Filthy habits are on an equality with filthy conditions, and go hand in hand with them. One of the worst of habits, and a cause of much sickness, is that of answering Nature's calls in places other than the closet.

Questions.1. Why should you never make unnecessary visits to a sick person? 2. Why should you avoid anything used by a sick person? 3. Why should everything taken from a sickroom be scalded? 4. What should be done with all discharges from a sick person? 5. How is dirt a source of disease?Remember.1. Unless it is necessary, do not go into a room where anyone is sick. 2. Never sleep in a room with a sick person. 3. Never eat from a spoon or plate that has been used by another. 4. Boil all the articles taken from the room of a sick person. 5. Always wash your hands after touching a sick person or anything that comes from his room. 6. Sunshine kills germs; let the sunshine into every corner of your house.

Remember.1. Unless it is necessary, do not go into a room where anyone is sick. 2. Never sleep in a room with a sick person. 3. Never eat from a spoon or plate that has been used by another. 4. Boil all the articles taken from the room of a sick person. 5. Always wash your hands after touching a sick person or anything that comes from his room. 6. Sunshine kills germs; let the sunshine into every corner of your house.

How germs get into our bodies

Disease germs get into our bodies in three principal ways: they are eaten with our food; they are taken in with the air we breathe; and they get in through breaks in our skin, even though these breaks be very small, as when made by the bite of a mosquito or other insect.

How germs get into our food:(1) From the air

How do germs get into our food or drink? You must remember that these germs are extremely small, so small that many of them can be carried by a particle of dust that you can see only in a ray of sunshine. When the germs become dried, they float about on these particles of dust, the dust alights on our food, which is moist and warm, and the germs immediately begin to grow.

(2) From the hands

Another way by which germs get on food is from the hands through which it passes. Did you ever think how many people handle an apple? First, the man who picks it from the tree; then the examiner in the packing house where apples are taken to see that they are the right kind to be packed in a certain box. Then it is wiped off by a boy or girl—handling number three; then it is wrapped in paper—number four. Next it is packed in a box, but in this case the paper protects the apple from dirty hands. When the merchant buys the apples he feels several of them, and puts them out on the display shelf; this makes handling number five. Everyone who thinks of buying apples will touch one or more of them, and when they are sold the clerk handles them again. In other words, every apple goes through the hands of at least seven people before you get it. Do you not think it needs washing?

Go into a butcher shop and see how many people will put their dirty fingers on the meat. Some of them even keep their gloves on when they do this. Imagine how many germs may be planted on the finger of a glove.

Our whole method of displaying foods for sale is wrong. The customer can see the fruits, vegetables, and meats just as well in a glass case as when they are on an open counter or shelf, and nothing is gained by poking a dirty finger into a piece of beef, or by rubbing your hands over the apples. A glass case not only will protect the fruits and meats from such practices, but will keep out germ-laden dust and flies whose feet are covered with germs.

Fig. 42.The foot of a fly, highly magnified.

(3) From flies

Probably the most common source of germs on food is the fly.Did you ever watch a fly very closely for a long time? Did you ever happen to see a manure pile early in the morning and notice how many tiny flies are on it? These flies have just been hatched.

Breeding places of flies

Flies like manure because it is the best place they can find in which to lay their eggs. Each female fly lays about three hundred eggs. They do not hatch directly into flies, as hen's eggs hatch into chickens, but when the fly's eggs hatch you find maggots, and these maggots later hatch into flies.

The journey of the fly

Turn over the manure some spring morning, and you will see it full of white specks. These specks are maggots that will hatch into flies. Watch the flies as they leave the manure pile and see where they go. If there is a dead dog or cat or a filthy garbage can near, they will fly to it. Thenthey will go into the water-closet and crawl over the filth there. Their next trip will probably bring them to the kitchen, where they will crawl over the food. From here they will go to the cuspidor and take a drink of water, and will get their feet covered with the dirt that is in the cuspidor. Next they will try a walk over the nipple of the baby's bottle, or they will light on your face, or get into the butter or milk.

After the fly has been in dirty places, he "washes" his face and hands, that is, he rubs his feet together and then rubs them over his head. Did you ever see a fly wash himself with water? No, you never did.

Fig. 43.Where a fly has walked; each little spot represents a growth of germs left by the fly.

After a fly has made his journey, you would suppose that his feet would be covered with dirt and germs, and so they are. Not only does he carry germs on his feet and body but he also eats dirty and diseased things. Moreover, fly specks contain the germs of disease, and the fly is not at all particular about where he puts his specks.

Proof that the fly is a germ carrier

If you let a fly walk over a culture plate, there will be a growth of germs wherever his feet touch. A culture plate is simply a glass plate covered with gelatine or something else in which these germs like to grow, and where they can easily be seen. Each germ will multiply so fast that there will soon be a spot of them large enough to be seen readily with the naked eye. In the picture showing a culture plateover which a fly has walked (Fig. 43), the little specks are not single germs, but each speck represents a growth containing many thousands of germs.

Fig. 44.Flies go from filth to food.

How to get rid of the fly:

How are we going to get rid of flies? We cannot get rid of them entirely, but there are a great many ways by which we can prevent there being so many of them, and whereby we may keep them out of our houses and away from our food.

(1) By removal of manure

We have learned that flies are always found about horse manure, because it makes a good place in which to hatch their eggs. If we could dispose of the manure, there would be one place less for the fly to lay her eggs. Behind barns we usually find piles of manure. It is in these heaps that the fly lays her eggs, not in the little lumps found in the streets. Now, there is no sense in keeping this great pile of manure about any barn. In towns the manure can be put into a box with a cover, so that the flies cannot get at it. In the country every well-managed farm has the barns cleaned out every day, and it would not be much more trouble for the farmer to throw the manure into a wagon and take it to the fields with him, than it is to pile it up beside his barn. If he did this, he would find that there would be few flies about his house.

(2) By covering garbage cans

Even if we were to take every particle of manure away as fast as possible, we should still have some flies, for when flies do not find manure for their hatching places, they will take the next best thing. It must be something dirty; clean things will not answer at all for a fly's home. Next to the manure pile, the fly likes a dirty garbage can, a dead animal, or anything that is decomposing. If she cannot find anything better, she will take a rotting apple; but she does not really like this, and if she cannot find anything better than an old apple in your yard, she will probably go elsewhere to lay her eggs.

(3) By keeping clean yards

We cannot entirely stop the hatching of flies, but if we do away with the old manure piles, keep fresh manure and garbage cans covered, and keep our yards free from everything that can decompose, we shall have very few flies about our houses.

How to keep flies out of the house

Since we cannot get rid of all the flies, the next best thing is to keep the few that may be left out of our houses and away from our food. This we can do by means of wire screens and netting. Wire screens are very cheap, and if there are no wire screens on your house, you should persuade your father to buy some. But a screen will not keep flies out unless it is kept closed, so do your part by never leaving the screen door open for a second longer than is necessary for you to go in or out.

Our houses are not the only places that need screens. Slaughterhouses, butcher shops, candy stores, grocery stores—every place where any kind of food is handled or sold—should be screened. Flies should never be allowed to alight on anything which is to be eaten.

Questions.1. Name three ways by which germs get into our bodies. 2. How do germs get into our food? 3. Why should foods be screened? 4. Trace the fly from his birth-place to our food. 5. How do we know that flies have germs on their feet? 6. Tell how we can get rid of most of the flies. 7. How can we keep flies out of the house? 8. What can boys and girls do to help keep them out?Remember.1. Always wash an apple, pear, or any other fruit before you eat it. 2. All foods are handled by many people, and are not clean until they have been washed. 3. Flies like to live in dirty places, and their feet and legs are covered with germs; get rid of the flies. 4. Flies hatch in manure piles and other dirty places; keep your yard and lot clean so that flies will have no place to lay their eggs. 5. Put screens on the house to keep flies out, and keep the screens closed.

Remember.1. Always wash an apple, pear, or any other fruit before you eat it. 2. All foods are handled by many people, and are not clean until they have been washed. 3. Flies like to live in dirty places, and their feet and legs are covered with germs; get rid of the flies. 4. Flies hatch in manure piles and other dirty places; keep your yard and lot clean so that flies will have no place to lay their eggs. 5. Put screens on the house to keep flies out, and keep the screens closed.

The water that we drink frequently contains disease germs. It is not always the clearest water that is freest from disease germs, for the germs do not make the water cloudy.

Fig. 45.An improperly located well; notice lines of seepage.

Why sewage should not be put into streams

Water does not get disease germs from the ground, but from man. Almost every town has a sewer system that empties into some stream. This practice was started a long time ago when men thought that running water would purify itself in the course of a few miles. We have learned, however, that this is not true. Germs will continue to live in running water just as they do in any other water, and disease germs will live in a stream from twenty-five to thirty-five days. Estimate how far a stream will flow in that length of time, and you will know how far disease germs will travel in that way. No sewage should ever be allowedto get into a stream until the germs in the sewage have been killed.

Other sources of germs in streams

Sewage is not the only means by which disease germs are carried into streams. Often we find people building barns, slaughterhouses, and mills on the banks of a stream. The filth from barns and slaughterhouses always contains disease germs, and often the filth of mills contains poisons that are just as harmful as germs when taken into our bodies. None of these things should ever be allowed to get into a stream. Water is a very important article of food, and we should take every care to keep it pure.

Fig. 46.A properly located well.

How germs get into wells

The water from most wells is clear and cool, but nevertheless may contain many disease germs. "How does this happen?" you ask. Because the well is too close to an out-house or some other source of filth. When a man in the country or in a small town builds a house, he immediately thinks of digging a well just as close to the house as he can, so that he need not carry the water far. Next hethinks of locating the closet, and this, too, he wants near the house. The well and the closet are often near each other, and often the closet is on higher ground than the well. The vault under the closet is seldom water-tight. In fact, the intention of the owner is that a great part of the vault contents shall soak away.

In many localities the ground is an open gravel, and the vault contents run through this gravel into the well, carrying disease germs with them. In one little town, with wells as a source of drinking water, the health officers found that the closet of every house was draining directly into its well. In some countries vaults can be used; but in any region where there is a gravel subsoil, the contents of the closet will find their way into the well, unless the closet is lower than the bottom of the well. In such places the vault must be made water-tight, in order to keep the vault contents out of the well.[2]

Why springs are not always pure

Springs are usually sources of pure water, but do not think that every particle of water that oozes from the ground is a spring. Near a certain town is a so-called "very fine spring." This "spring" appeared after a man had made a cesspool on the hill above, and is simply the drainage from the cesspool. Springs that come from deep sources, however, nearly always contain pure water.

The safest sources of water

The safest source of water for domestic use is a stream that is known to be free from contamination, or a well so deep in the ground that it is hard for any polluting matter to reach it. But remember that sewage may follow a well pipe along the outside and thus reach even a deep well, if the well is not properly protected at the top.

Keep disease germs out of your drinking water. You cannot drown them out and you cannot strain them out, so do not let them get in, for you cannot drink water containing disease germs without running the risk of becoming sick.

Questions.1. Mention more than one way in which germs get into streams. 2. How long may disease germs live in running water? 3. Mention some instances showing that running water does not purify itself. 4. How do disease germs get into milk? 5. Describe the proper location of a well in regard to refuse. 6. How may springs become polluted? 7. What are the best sources of water for domestic use?Remember.1. Disease germs get into water from dirty places along the banks of the streams; they do not come from the ground. 2. Clear water is not always pure; germs do not make the water cloudy or muddy. 3. Wells often become infected by matter from closets seeping into them; make your closet water-tight. 4. Spring water is usually pure, but not all water that oozes out of the ground is spring water.

Remember.1. Disease germs get into water from dirty places along the banks of the streams; they do not come from the ground. 2. Clear water is not always pure; germs do not make the water cloudy or muddy. 3. Wells often become infected by matter from closets seeping into them; make your closet water-tight. 4. Spring water is usually pure, but not all water that oozes out of the ground is spring water.

Disease germs in the air

We take germs into our bodies with the air that we breathe. Since we cannot stop breathing and live, we must see to it that the air we breathe is kept pure.

Fig. 47.(a) Prevalence of germs in air of thickly populated districts. (b) Prevalence of germs in air of sparsely populated districts.

There are always more germs in the air of places in which people live closely crowded together than where there are only a few people. This is proved by Figure 47, which shows that many more germs were found on a culture plate exposed in the downtown part of New York City than on another plate exposed far uptown, where there are not so many people. Remember, however, that all germs are not disease germs.

How we may keep disease germs out of the air:

How do the disease germs get into the air? When one sneezes, a spray of droplets is thrown into the air. If the person sneezing has the grip, these droplets contain the germs that cause grip. Whenever a person with consumption coughs, he sprays droplets which contain the germs that cause consumption.

(1) When coughing or sneezing

If a person would hold a handkerchief before his mouth when he coughs or sneezes, these droplets of moisture would not be sprayed into the air, and the disease germs in them would not be scattered about. You ask, "Shall everyone who is sick hold a handkerchief before the mouth when sneezing or coughing?" Everyone, whether sick or well, ought to hold a handkerchief before themouth when sneezing or coughing. Learn to do this at once, and never forget it.

(2) When spitting

Another way by which disease germs get into the air is from the sputum. People spit on the floor or the sidewalk, and the sputum becomes dried; it is then blown about as dust. The germs of disease are not killed by drying, and when they get into our bodies with the dust which we breathe in, they immediately begin to grow. Disease germs get into the air chiefly through careless habits of coughing, sneezing, and spitting, and these careless habits can easily be prevented.

Why well people should not spit on floor or sidewalk

A boy once said that if he saw a consumptive spit on the sidewalk, he would want to hit him, and to emphasize his remarks he spat on the floor of the room, just as you have seen boys spit on the ground when they were thinking of fighting. There might have been some germs of consumption in the sputum this boy left on the floor. Of course he was very positive that he did not have consumption, but this was no proof that his sputum was free from the germs of this disease.

Remember that it is not only the sick who should never spit on the floor or sidewalk, but that no person should ever spit on any floor or sidewalk, or into any place except into a cuspidor, handkerchief, or spit-cup of some kind. If you spit into a handkerchief, a paper napkin, or a bit of cloth, be sure to burn it as soon as you can, before it becomes dry.

Questions.1. In what places do we find germs most abundant in the air? 2. How do well-bred people avoid putting disease germs into the air? 3. Why is it important for well people to take the same precautions as sick people?Remember.1. Every person should hold a handkerchief before the face when coughing or sneezing. 2. Never spit except into a cuspidor, handkerchief, spit-cup, or other special receptacle. 3. If well people will practice clean habits, the sick will be helped and encouraged to follow their example. 4. Remember: No spit, no consumption.

Remember.1. Every person should hold a handkerchief before the face when coughing or sneezing. 2. Never spit except into a cuspidor, handkerchief, spit-cup, or other special receptacle. 3. If well people will practice clean habits, the sick will be helped and encouraged to follow their example. 4. Remember: No spit, no consumption.

Some insects that carry disease

Certain diseases are given to human beings by the bites of insects. We know that certain ticks and mosquitoes carry certain germs. It is also probable that disease germs are transferred from diseased to well persons by bedbugs and other insects that bite.

How yellow fever is transmitted

For a long time it was thought that yellow fever was carried through the air, but now it has been proved that yellow fever is not carried in this way. A well person can sleep with one who has yellow fever and not catch the disease. Yellow fever infection is carried from a yellow fever patient to a healthy person only by a certain mosquito. Keep this mosquito away from the yellow fever patients and there can be no spread of the disease.

Fig. 48.The mosquito that carries yellow fever.

It is not many years since yellow fever was one of the most dreaded diseases in warm countries. To-day there is not the same fear of it, for the source of the disease has been discovered and practical methods have been devised to get rid of the mosquito which carries it.

How malaria is transmitted

Malarial fever is another disease transmitted by the bite of a mosquito, but the mosquito that carries malarial fever is not the same as the one that carries yellow fever. For a long time it was supposed that malaria came from the gases which rise from marshes. To-day it is knownthat it is not the gases that cause the sickness, but a mosquito which lives and grows in the marshes. Many countries that have heretofore been practically worthless on account of malarial fever, are being made valuable by draining the marshes and doing away with places where mosquitoes can hatch.

Fig. 49.One of the places where mosquitoes hatch.

How to get rid of the mosquito

It might seem a very hard task to get rid of mosquitoes in countries where there are so many of them; but it can be done. The mosquito must have still water in which to lay her eggs. In countries where there is danger of yellow fever or malaria, the rain barrel and the cistern should be screened, and the swamps and water holes filled up. Puddles of water should not be allowed to form anywhere, and low places where water might stand should be drained. By giving her no place in which to lay her eggs, we can get rid of the mosquito; and when the mosquito disappears, yellow fever and malaria disappear also.

How wood-ticks transmit disease

In certain portions of Montana, Washington, Idaho, Utah,and Wyoming, there is a peculiar disease known as Rocky Mountain spotted (tick) fever. It is now known that this disease is transmitted to people by the bite of a wood-tick. Not all wood-ticks carry this fever, and for people living in districts where this disease does not exist there is no danger in the bite of a wood-tick; but in a part of the country where the disease prevails, the wood-tick should be avoided.

How disease-bearing insects can be destroyed

All insects that are known to transmit diseases can be destroyed. If we will do away with stagnant water, the mosquito cannot hatch; if we will cut out underbrush and oil the domestic animals, the wood-tick will not find a place to grow. If we wish to get rid of disease, we must spend money and labor; but it is worth while, for human life is at stake.

Questions.1. What insects are known to transmit diseases to man? 2. How is yellow fever transmitted? 3. Malarial fever? 4. What disease is transmitted by the wood-tick? 5. How can we get rid of the mosquito? 6. How can we get rid of ticks?Remember.1. It is a proved fact that diseases are transmitted to man by the bites of mosquitoes and wood-ticks. 2. It is possible to do away with both the mosquito and the wood-tick almost completely, although it requires a great deal of work and the expenditure of a large amount of money. 3. Health is the most valuable thing we have, and it is foolish to hesitate in giving the work and money necessary to exterminate disease-bearing insects, as well as the many other causes of sickness.

Remember.1. It is a proved fact that diseases are transmitted to man by the bites of mosquitoes and wood-ticks. 2. It is possible to do away with both the mosquito and the wood-tick almost completely, although it requires a great deal of work and the expenditure of a large amount of money. 3. Health is the most valuable thing we have, and it is foolish to hesitate in giving the work and money necessary to exterminate disease-bearing insects, as well as the many other causes of sickness.

How germs get through the skin

Germs get into our bodies through breaks in the skin. These breaks may be made by a cut or a scratch, by the bite of an insect, or even by the pulling out of a hair. There are some special germs, such as those which cause yellow fever, which are introduced by the bite of an insect; but at present we will consider only those germs that would naturally enter through any break in the skin.

Fig. 50.Small, deep wounds are very liable to become infected.

Effect of germs in wounds

The skin of the human body acts as an armor against certain germs that are constantly trying to get through it. There are several germs of this class. Some of them cause white pus, or matter, but this is the least dangerous kind of all. Another kind causes boils or even blood poisoning, and another kind causes erysipelas.

We cannot get rid of these germs, for they are everywhere, to a greater or less degree; but they are more abundant in dirty than in clean places. They cause every degree of inflammation, from a slight redness of the skin to the blood poisoning that brings death.

Real cause of suppuration

Sometimes you will hear people say that a wound suppurated (that is, became inflamed and full of matter) because the blood was in bad condition. As a matter of fact, there would have been no suppuration if germs had not got into the wound. It was not the condition of the blood that caused the suppuration, but the germs.

Sometimes, when only a few germs get into a wound, and when the cells of the body are all in good condition and doing their work properly, the suppuration will be very slight, because the healthy cells of the body will kill the germs. But if very many germs get in, even healthy body cells cannot kill them all.

We have said that the germs which cause suppuration are everywhere, so it would seem almost impossible to keep them out of a wound. This is true in a sense; but even after they have got into a wound, you can wash them out if you use plenty of soap and water to cleanse the wound thoroughly. When I said that it is impossible to keep them out of a wound, I meant an accidental wound, for it is quite possible to keep them out of a wound that is made intentionally, as is done by the surgeon.

How the surgeon prevents suppuration

Do you know how a surgeon gets ready to do an operation? The first thing he does is to see that the room is perfectly clean. He has the carpet taken up, the curtains taken down, and the floor and walls washed. This is to get rid of all the dirt and germs in the room. If you should look at the surgeon's instruments, so clean and bright, you would think it impossible for a germ to find a place to live on; but the surgeon knows how closely the germs cling, and therefore he boils all the instruments he is going to use. Then he puts the towels into a place wherethey are made so hot by steam that all the germs on them are killed. After everything in the room is perfectly clean, the surgeon cleans his patient with a very stiff brush, using plenty of soap and water which has been boiled to kill all the germs in it. He scrubs the part where the wound is to be made and the skin around it until it is red. Even then he is not satisfied, for he washes it off with alcohol and ether, to be sure that any germs that might be sticking in the fat are removed. He scrubs his hands in the same way. After all this is done, he can perform the operation without fear that any of the germs which cause suppuration will get in, for he knows that he has killed all of them that would touch the wound.

Figs.51 and 52. Always wash the simplest cut with soap and water; failure to do this may result in infection and much suffering.

How to prevent suppuration

Boys and girls cannot do all this before they cut their hands or skin their shins, but they can do the next bestthing—they can keep their hands and the rest of their bodies clean at all times, and thus have as few germs on them as possible. Then, when they have cut themselves, they can go straight to some place where there is soap and water, and can wash the wound thoroughly. After this is done, a clean bandage should be placed on the cut part to prevent any other germs from getting in. If this is done every time you cut yourself, you will probably never have an infection—that is, a wound that suppurates.

Two boys were playing together one day. They ran into each other and each got a little cut on his hand. One boy went home at once, washed the wound, and put on a clean bandage. He lost a little time from his play, but was soon back and never had any trouble on account of the cut. The other boy thought it was foolish to quit his play to take care of such a little thing, so he tied his hand up in a dirty handkerchief. Two weeks later he was very ill. His arm was badly swollen and had to be cut open in several places; indeed, he came near losing his arm. It always pays to take care of a wound, be it never so slight.

Deep wounds made with small instruments, such as small knives, nails or toy pistols, are especially dangerous, because they are hard to clean and because they quickly heal up on the surface and leave the germs to grow at the bottom of the wound. Such wounds as these are dangerous for another reason.

Where germs of lockjaw grow

There is a germ that gets into wounds but does not cause suppuration. It is the germ of tetanus, or lockjaw. It lives in the ground, especially in the ground about barns, and its peculiar feature is that it will not grow in the air. If it gets into a large, open wound, it is easily killed, becauseit cannot grow where there is air. But when it gets into a small, deep wound where it cannot be reached, it stays there until the wound heals over on the surface, and then it begins to grow. It does not make the parts swell, as the germs of suppuration do, but quietly continues to grow, without the wound showing any sign of infection. Finally it develops a very severe poison that is taken up by the blood; then the victim suddenly begins to have spasms about the face, and finally these spasms extend to the entire body and kill him. Whenever you get a wound so deep that you cannot wash it thoroughly, go to a doctor and let him clean it out with some medicine that will kill the germs that cannot be reached by washing.

How boils are caused

Sometimes the germs that cause suppuration get under the skin at a point where a hair has been pulled out, or even work down beside the hair itself. When this happens, they cause suppuration under the skin, and the result is a boil. A boil is merely an infection with the germs that cause suppuration.

Questions.1. How do germs get through the skin? 2. Can we get rid of all the germs that cause suppuration? 3. Why is it impossible for "bad blood" alone to cause suppuration? 4. How does the surgeon prevent suppuration? 5. How may you prevent suppuration? 6. What is the danger of cutting corns with an ordinary knife or razor? 7. Where do germs of lockjaw grow? 8. What causes boils?Remember.1. Germs and not "bad blood" are the cause of suppuration. 2. Always keep as clean as possible, and immediately wash any cut, no matter how small. 3. If you have a deep wound, go at once to a doctor, and let him clean it out and kill the germs that may be at the bottom of the wound.

Remember.1. Germs and not "bad blood" are the cause of suppuration. 2. Always keep as clean as possible, and immediately wash any cut, no matter how small. 3. If you have a deep wound, go at once to a doctor, and let him clean it out and kill the germs that may be at the bottom of the wound.

How germs may cause sickness without entering the body

Some germs that cause disease do not get into the body, but grow upon its surface, that is, they grow on the mucous membranes—the skin of the mouth, the throat, and the nose. As they grow, they develop poisons that are absorbed by the body, and that make us very sick. The germs that cause diphtheria belong to this class.

Prevalence of diphtheria

Diphtheria is one of the most common of all the preventable diseases. It causes more deaths than any of the other diseases that can be prevented, except tuberculosis. The great prevalence of diphtheria is due to lack of care on the part of those who have this disease and of those who come in contact with them.

Where the diphtheria germ comes from

The germ that causes diphtheria always comes from some person or animal that has diphtheria. It never "just happens." If you went into your yard in the morning and found some beets growing in your flower bed, you would know positively that beet seeds had got into your flower bed in some way. You would not say that the beets just happened to grow there. So diphtheria will not "just happen." Diphtheria is always caused by germs that come from some one who has diphtheria. They may have come in a letter that was written in the room with the sick person. They may have come from the library in a book that had been used by some one ill with diphtheria. They may have come on some toy that had been played with by a child that had the disease. There are a thousand ways by which the germs may be brought to you without your knowing where they come from.

How to confine diphtheria germs

The public health officers try hard to keep these germsfrom being brought to you. In order to do this, they have to shut away from other people those who have diphtheria germs; that is, they make the sick ones stay at home until they are free from the germs of the disease. We call thisquarantine. Quarantine means that you must stay away from other people when you are sick with a communicable disease, and that other people must stay away from you. People are not put in quarantine because they are sick, but because they are dangerous, and because we are trying to prevent other people from getting the same disease. Do not think the health officers unreasonable when they tell you that you must stay at home and that no one can come in to see you. This is done to protect other people and to keep them from getting the same disease that you have. If you ever have diphtheria, or any other communicable disease, you must remember that if any of your playmates come in to see you, they may get the same disease.

Fig. 53.Disease germs are as deadly as guns.

Seriousness of breaking quarantine

Diphtheria kills a great many children, and to play with your friends after you have had diphtheria, and before the health officer tells you that you may, is almost like tryingto kill them. They might be very sick and die, or they might be very sick and get well, or they might not be sick at all; but you never can tell what will happen if they are exposed to the disease. If you were to take a gun and shoot at a friend, you might kill him, or you might shoot his leg off, or you might not hit him at all; but you would be trying to hit him, and it would not be your fault if you did not. It is just the same if you play with a friend when you have a communicable disease; you shoot the disease germ at him, and if you do not hit him, it is not your fault.

Why quarantine is not raised sooner

Sometimes people who have been sick with a communicable disease feel perfectly well, but the health officer tells them he cannot let them out of quarantine. This is because he knows that such people still have in their bodies the germs that cause the disease, and that as long as these germs are there they can give the disease to other people. It is not pleasant to have to stay in quarantine when you feel that you are well, and children, as well as older people, are very likely to become restless under the circumstances. You see an illustration of such a patient in Figure 60, where the little girl, who is under quarantine for scarlet fever, but who is feeling quite well, is giving a book to two of her friends. The book contains the germs that cause scarlet fever, and the boys are very likely to contract the disease by handling the book.

Why some cases of diphtheria escape quarantine:(1) From failure to detect mild cases

If every case of diphtheria were quarantined, and the people obeyed the health officer, there would soon be no more diphtheria. But how does it happen that every case of diphtheria is not quarantined? Diphtheria is a very peculiar disease. Sometimes it makes people so sick that they die in spite of everything that can be done forthem; sometimes it makes the throat only a little sore, and the child seems so slightly ill that his mother says to herself, "He is fretful," and does not call the doctor. In the latter case the child often keeps on going to school, and exposes other children to the disease; some of them catch it, and become very sick or even die. In still other cases, the mother thinks that a child has only a case of tonsillitis and does not call a doctor; the child's brothers and sisters go to school and may carry the germs to other children. I have known a great many cases of diphtheria to be spread in this way.

Fig. 54.The old, insanitary slates and sponges have gone out of use, but many people of to-day still follow the dangerous habit of putting pencils into their mouths.

Sometimes a dairyman thinks that his child has nothing more serious than tonsillitis, and goes on selling milk. A great many epidemics have resulted from such cases. Sore throats should not be treated lightly, for the most severe forms of diphtheria may develop from germs that come from a throat that is only slightly sore. If there is a case of diphtheria in the town where you live, and if your throat feels the least bit sore, have your doctor examine it at once. If you do not wish to have your family doctor look at your throat, go to the health officer. Had you not rather stay at home for a week or two than see your best friends ill or dead because of your carelessness?

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