The best example that can be cited of the effect of this internal secretion is the male of the horse kind.
Most young men have seen either at horse shows or upon farms or ranches pedigreed stallions. No person can see one of these splendid animals without admiring, if not actually standing in awe of his inimitable physical force, beauty of form and grace and power of action. He is a physical ideal of the horse kind. What is the source of his strength and beauty?
The physical features that one notes peculiar to the stallion are, first, the great breadth and depth of chest, great mass of shoulder and hip muscles, and the high arched neck, fiery eye and luxuriant mane and tail. Second, the functional features next noticeableare the greater alertness and evident physical exuberance as manifested especially in the gait and the frequent whinnying. The thoughtful observer at the horse show or on the ranch cannot but compare these animals with the gelding.
Two colts on the ranch may be full brothers,—from the same pedigreed stallion and the same pedigreed dam. At the age of two years these two young horses may be as alike as two peas in a pod. One of these promising young animals is chosen, because of some commendable peculiarity of temperament or action, to remain unmutilated, as a procreator of his kind upon the ranch. The other is subjected to the veterinarian's knife and ecraseur and deprived of the testes,—the male sexual glands. From the day of this operation these two animals (in every respect alike, except that one is unmutilated while the other is deprived of the glands mentioned above) develop along radically different lines. The stallion develops during his third year into the noble animal described above. This third year is his period of puberty and the changes which he undergoes physically and psychically are closely parallel to the changes which the human subject undergoes during his period of puberty. The gelding, on the other hand, develops into an animal that is in every respect a neuter. Physically this animal develops a body almost identical with that of the female of the samespecies. Temperamentally the gelding is a patient, plodding, beast of burden, and though under good grooming he may show considerable life, while under the control of his driver, he seldom shows any interest in other members of the horse family, either male or female, and in the pasture or on the ranch his neutral sex temperament is ever apparent. While he may contend mildly for a place at the feeding trough, he never essays the defense of any weaker members of the herd, and one stallion would put a hundred like him to flight.
The thoughtful observer of this phenomenon cannot help wondering what has made this radical difference in the development of these two animals. The solution is not far to seek. From the beginning of puberty to the beginning of senile decay, the stallion derives from the testes what is referred to above as an internal secretion.
Physiologists have endeavored to determine exactly what substance formed by the testes is reabsorbed into the lymph and blood. It may be a substance calledspermin, but whatever the substance is, the physiologists agree thatthe testes form some substance which is absorbed by the blood and lymph, is carried to the brain and spinal cord and there produces these profound effects indicated above. So we have discovered the source of the stallion's strength and beauty.
What is true of the horse is true of man. Theyoung man at puberty begins to receive from his testes the internal secretion which leads to the development of his full manly powers. The sum total of the qualities peculiar to manhood has been called VIRILITY. For want of a better word, this term has been applied to the sum total of the male qualities of any animal whatsoever, so that the male qualities of the stallion are also compassed in the term virility.
The thoughtful and inquiring young man will naturally wish to know at this point if this lesson from the beast of the field can be applied in all its details to the human subject; if man, without any artificial or unnatural means would develop a full and complete virility; if like the horse, he can maintain a strict continence for months or even years without suffering any abatement of virility and of physical powers in general. The unequivocal answer of the medical profession to these questions would be in the affirmative.
An exact parallel to the gelding referred to above can be found in the eunuch of the Orient. If the human male is castrated before puberty he develops into a being as different from a virile man as the gelding is different from the stallion;—a being whose physique resembles in many respects that of a woman, and whose temperament manifests qualities of cringing servility and lack of initiative.
The external secretion of the testes differs from theinternal secretion in containing spermatozoa; it may be that there are other differences. It is, however, generally believed that one or more of the substances found in the external secretion appear in the internal secretion. If this is true, it must be evident that excessive sexual indulgence or masturbation can draw away from the system this precious vital substance that is necessary to produce or maintain the virility.
It cannot be assumed that the condition of virility once attained will necessarily always continue—it must be maintained. To be maintained, this vital substance produced by the testes must be continuously absorbed into the blood. When once the man or boy understands this, it must be evident to him that he has, to a certain extent, the making or marring of his own virility; that it is not simply an inexhaustible endowment of nature; but, like such a natural resource as a forest or a coal mine, may be exhausted and will be exhausted if not husbanded carefully.
It is a well known fact in the medical profession that the ovaries of the female exert upon her development an influence analogous to that which the testes exert on the development of the male. For that reason, a surgeon should, under no condition, remove both ovaries (sexual glands) unless they are diseased in such a way as to necessitate their complete removal in order to save the life of the individual. If a woman of twenty-fivewere to suffer the loss of both ovaries, she would go very early into a condition of senile decay. If a female before puberty is deprived of both ovaries, it leads her to develop masculine physical characteristics and her temperament is wholly lacking in those characteristics which, summed up, might, for the want of a better term, be called FEMININITY.
No rational or acceptable system of sexual hygiene for the human male can be worked out without constant reference to the lower ranks of the mammalian class and to primitive social conditions.
In our study of the anatomy and physiology of the sexual apparatus of the human male, it must have become evident that man has many things in common with other mammals, and that no adequate knowledge of man's physical or psychical attributes can be obtained without a study of similar phases of life among related animals.
All of the changes which Nature introduced into the physical and psychical development of the adolescent male were of a character to equip the individual for the maintenance and protection of a wife and children. This development has been reached by the time the young man is twenty-one to twenty-three years of age, when, in the average case, he would be able, so far as concerns his physique and temperament, to establish and maintain a home. The fact that his adolescent development is complete by the age of twenty-five, and that he has, by the time he arrives at that age, grown into the full stature of all his physical and mental powers, may certainly be interpreted as nature's indicationthat his home-building should be begun not later than the twenty-fifth year. This means, then, that young men ought, if possible, to marry as young as twenty-five.
But the conditions of society at the present time are such that a large proportion of the young men, particularly those who are preparing for any of the learned professions (theology, medicine, law, pedagogy, etc.) are hardly through their professional courses by the time they reach that age, and most of them feel that they must make a start in their profession before they assume the responsibilities of supporting a home. This means that a large proportion of them marry as late as thirty years of age.
If we consider now those commercial, financial and industrial vocations which involve considerable preparation in technical institutions or a long apprenticeship (engineering, pharmacy, manufacturing chemists, banking, journalism, etc., etc.) we find that the young man is hardly able to establish such a home as most such young men feel that they must maintain on any salary that they receive before they are twenty-eight to thirty years old. This consideration applies particularly to college and university men, as, almost without exception, these men are preparing for some of the above mentioned professions or vocations.
Now the conditions of college life, the field sportsand athletics, together with the social conditions, tend to develop in college circles a body of most virile young men. The problem which now confronts us is: How may these young men live a hygienic life under these unnatural circumstances?
If a man becomes able to procreate his kind at seventeen but is hardly able to marry before he is thirty he must solve the problem as to what his attitude shall be regarding matters of sex. The earlier this problem is solved the better it is for the young man. Unfortunately, a large proportion of young men do not realize that they have any problem in this field to solve until circumstances, more or less accidental, have already established in them a mental attitude and, perhaps, a habit of life that may not be either wholesome or wise.
From what has preceded, it must be evident that from the early months of the period of puberty, through the adolescent and adult period, even until some progress is made in the senile period, every normal male will experience sexual desires. It has been shown that these particular experiences are linked, more or less intimately, with the condition of the sexual apparatus; but whatever the cause, we are confronted with the question, What shall be done about it?
When a man experiences a sexual desire does it necessarily follow that the desire must be satisfied? Some have reasoned that the muscles of the arm, if notexercised, wither and become weak, therefore the sexual desires, if not exercised will become weak, and the sexual apparatus, if it does not exercise its function, must become withered and atrophied. While this course of reasoning may seem rational and the conclusion may seem tenable, it is well known to physiologists and sociologists that the reasoning is fallacious; the fallacy rests in the premises. It was assumed above that the activity of the sexual glands was comparable with that of muscles.
We must not lose sight of the fact that the male sexual glands are continuously active, and in this continuous activity get their exercise. This activity develops them and keeps them physically perfect after the onset of the period of puberty. Their activity consists very largely in the formation of an internal secretion, the office of which is to develop in the male the highest possible state of virility. Nor must we lose sight of the fact that every procreative act is performed at a sacrifice of some of this vital fluid on the part of the male. A wanton sacrifice of vital fluid either in the act of self abuse or in excessive venery is not justifiable under any consideration; nor may these acts, under any circumstances, be looked upon as sustaining to the gland a relation similar to that which muscular exercise sustains to muscle tissue.
In the light of these facts every normal man wouldadmit that frequent masturbation or excessive sexual intercourse, in wedlock or out, should certainly not be recommended as a method of developing the sexual apparatus.
Most men, however, raise the question: "Is any indulgence or any artificial means for satisfying the sexual inclination to be discouraged?" This inclination comes to us in the course of nature. Man in the primitive state would seek a mate as soon as he felt this inclination; would fight for the possession of her as soon as he had reached a sufficient stage of muscular development, and once in possession of his mate, would take her to his perch in the trees or to his cave. In his primitive home he would follow his sexual inclination, impregnate his wife and protect her against all dangers.
Under our present social conditions the young man experiences all these desires the same as his primitive ancestor, but he may not be able to choose a mate and begin with her the building of a home for a whole decade after he experiences the desire to do so. What is the solution?
It must be evident that the solution lies in the acceptance of one or another of three alternatives—either the young man may seek illicit intercourse with women to satisfy his sexual desire, or he may adopt some artificial measure, such as masturbation (selfabuse) or, finally, he may lead what is known as a continent life. By continence we mean to adopt neither one of the first two alternatives mentioned, but to leave the care of the sexual apparatus wholly with Nature.
We may now consider these three alternatives in turn.
By illicit intercourse with women we mean, sexual intercourse out of wedlock. The term applies either to intercourse between any man and a prostitute, between an unmarried man and a married woman, between an unmarried man and an unmarried woman or between a married man and a married woman not his wife. The term, illicit intercourse, applies to all sexual intercourse that is illegal.
In our discussion of the young man's problem, we may confine our consideration particularly to intercourse with professional prostitutes and with clandestines, or women who are willing to accept the sexual embrace for their own gratification or for money.
In this phase of sexual gratification, it is assumed that the woman has these relations with various men. We purposely eliminate from this discussion the deliberate seduction of pure girls for the purpose of sexual gratification, as such seduction is a heinous offense against the victim and against society, for whichoffense the man is legally responsible. We are here discussing not the crimes of men, but their vices.
The question that the young man naturally asks is—"Why should society hold these relations as a vice when the woman, who is party to the act, gives her free consent, perhaps even soliciting the relation, and has given herself up to this sort of a life, either as a sole occupation (prostitute) or as an auxiliary occupation (clandestine) to supplement a wage on which she may not be able to live in luxury?"
The answer to this question is not far to seek. Women so occupied have, as a rule, made themselves incapable of maternity. They are outcasts from society, unfortunately exerting a most harmful influence on all those who come into relation with them. Furthermore, they are centers for the dissemination of venereal diseases which wreck the health of all those who become infected. But for the uncontrolled passions of men, there would be no such women. So while we, individually, as men, may not be responsible for the ruin of any one woman, we must confess that men as a class are responsible for this condition of prostitution and clandestine intercourse. An overwhelming majority of women would, if following their inclinations, seek these relations in wedlock only and for procreation only. But many a young woman, under promise of marriage, sometimes even under a bogusmarriage, is brought into a condition of hypnotism or into a mental state that puts her in the power of the man whom she loves and respects. If he deceives her and betrays her, continuing such betrayal until the victim becomes pregnant, he will, in the average case, leave her to bear her child in shame, while he slips away to other scenes of activity. We cannot wonder then, that the girl—deserted, humiliated, crushed by the one in whom she reposed absolute confidence; cast out of society, perhaps thrust from the protection of her own father's roof—gives up the struggle and says—"What's the use?"
A vast majority of such poor girls make their way to houses of ill fame and give themselves over to a life of prostitution. Hardly one of these women, if married by the man who brought her to this condition, would have failed to make a true and loving wife and mother. So society, while it casts these women out, has come to recognize that men are the real sinners in such cases.
It may be added here, that an occasional girl goes wrong through temperamental shortcomings within herself—perhaps she may even be a degenerate; but the proportion of women who would willingly and deliberately sacrifice their virtue is vanishingly small as compared with the proportion of young men who seem to be willing to sacrifice their virtue. This isprobably in part due to their training. Mothers, as a rule, instruct their daughters carefully regarding their relations with boys and men. It is in part due to the instinctive and inherent purity of mind of the normal woman.
Nature has devised a retribution for illicit intercourse in the form of venereal disease. If the parties observe fidelity to the marriage vows venereal disease is experienced in wedlock only on very rare occasions, and then through some accidental infection, as from contact with some public utensils, as a public water closet, a public towel or drinking cup. So rare is this unfortunate accident, however, that we may say, that intercourse in undefiled wedlock results normally in pleasure and gratification to both parties, while intercourse out of wedlock, or illicit intercourse, is destined, as a rule, to be visited with retribution.
What form does this retribution that nature metes out to the vice of illicit intercourse take? Besides the various psychic punishments, the principal of which are remorse, and impure thoughts, there are physical punishments in the form of venereal diseases. So prevalent are these venereal diseases among lewd women, whether prostitutes or clandestines, that specialists in this field say that "all lewd women are diseased part of the time and some lewd women are diseased all the time."
These sexual diseases are contagious—that is, transmitted by contact. They are all germ diseases; one of them is practically local, one is capable of spreading the infection to contiguous organs and one is systemic.
a.Chancroid or Soft Chancre.—This is the least dangerous of the venereal diseases. It is a contagious disease of purely local type, usually acquired during the sexual act, the infection taking place through a break in the continuity of the mucous membrane.
Chancroid may be single, though most often is multiple. It makes its appearance in from one to five days after exposure, anywhere on the penis, but most frequently on the under side of the glans beside the frænulum as a small red spot. This rapidly takes the form of a blister containing serum and pus, and in a few days may become the size of a ten-cent piece. When the roof is removed the ulcer has the appearance of having been punched out, the floor being covered with pus. It is surrounded by a zone of inflammation and is painful.
If uncomplicated the disease runs its course in from two to five weeks. The most common complication is swollen and suppurating glands of the groin on one or both sides. This condition is termedbuboor "blue ball" in common language.
Sometimes serious complications arise which mayprove dangerous and require the individual to be confined to his bed for weeks.
b.Gonorrhea.—This is incomparably more serious than chancroid. This disease is very prevalent among the incontinent, and it is claimed by some specialists in this field that from sixty to seventy-five per cent. of men have had gonorrhea before the age of thirty.
It is a contagious disease, acquired usually during intercourse, though the individual may become infected innocently from water closets, bath tubs, etc.
To become infected it is not necessary that there be an abrasion of the mucous membrane.
The disease manifests itself in from three to seven days after exposure by swelling of the orifice of the urethra, peculiar sensations between tickling and itching, and smarting or burning during urination. The peculiar sensations fix the attention to the genitals, thus causing frequent passage of urine.
These symptoms increase for about a week, when the disease reaches its maximum degree of severity, which is maintained a variable time, the discharge from the urethra being thick, creamy and of a greenish yellow color.
In the majority of carefully treated cases, the discharge ceases in from three to six weeks with apparent recovery. Unfortunately, however, there is frequently a tendency for the disease to becomechronic. The discharge becomes thin and more watery and persists for an indefinite period. This condition—chronic gonorrhea—is commonly known as "gleet."
c.Syphilis, popularly termed the "pox," is a constitutional affection of the type known as "blood diseases."
It is by far the most important and most greatly to be feared of the venereal diseases. No disease has been so wide-spread in its dissemination or more potent in its influence upon humanity.
It has been known for centuries, having been mentioned by Japanese historians and in Chinese writings two thousand years ago.
Syphilis is contagious and is transmitted by inoculation. The infectious material enters the broken surface of either the skin or mucous membrane, called "contact" or "acquired" syphilis. When it is transmitted by the mother to the embryo, it is called "hereditary" or "inherited" syphilis.
The disease manifests itself first in a "primary lesion" which is a local ulcer (hard chancre) at the point or points of inoculation at a period ranging from ten to thirty days after exposure. It may appear as an erosion or as a dry scaling and indurated papule, varying in size from a pin-head to a silver dollar. The base of the ulcer is indurated. It is oval in shape, perhaps somewhat irregular, with a raw surface and red colored base devoid of pus.
Immediately following the appearance of the chancre, the glands in direct connection with it become enlarged, hard and rarely painful, but they have no tendency to suppurate like the enlarged glands of chancroid.
The chancre disappears in a few weeks and then there is a period when the individual has no outward manifestations of the disease. In about six weeks after the chancre the so-calledsecondary symptomsmake their appearance. They are heralded by headache, pains in the limbs and back, nausea, sleeplessness and nervous irritability and fever, followed by the appearance of a rash upon the face and body, falling out of the hair, sore throat and mouth. These symptoms disappear to be again followed by a period free from symptoms. After a longer or shorter time the so-calledtertiary symptomsmake their appearance, which are many and varied.
The disease presents a succession of morbid constitutional disturbances, appearing at variable intervals, and pursues a chronic course.
This disease remains in the body for years and affects the most vital organs, particularly the brain and spinal cord.
When one is infected with this disease he should seek the services of a reputable physician. The treatment of this extends over a long period, usually aboutthree years, and must be strictly and conscientiously carried out. Marriage upon the part of an individual once infected should be only upon the approval of a physician.
After having detailed, as above, the terrible consequences of the venereal diseases, it is hardly necessary to add that the young man who deliberately seeks any of the usual chances for illicit intercourse, is more than taking his life in his hands. If infection with a venereal disease meant simply the death of the infected individual, it would really be very much less deleterious to society than is the present condition. When the young man "sows wild oats" and catches incidently gonorrhea, that twenty years ago was considered a sort of a "good joke," he will, in a large proportion of cases, lay the foundation for broken health and will run a serious risk of transmitting the disease to an innocent, pure wife.
When a woman catches this disease, particularly from her husband, she is very likely to interpret the discharge as a leucorrhea, may say nothing about it to her husband or her physician, but adopt simple home treatment with antiseptic and astringent douches. Such treatment will usually result in allaying the inflammation in the superficial organs, but will not eradicate it from the deeper organs. It spreads to the uterus, Fallopian tubes and ovaries and may evenaffect peritoneal tissues, first of the pelvis, then of the abdomen—may even finally affect the heart and joints. Of course, these are rather the extreme limit, but they are not at all rare cases. Once this terrible disease gets into a woman's organs, it is very likely to lead to a sojourn in a hospital where she loses some portion of her body as a sacrifice to this mogul of gonorrhea.
It is claimed by specialists in this field that at least sixty-five per cent. of the operations that women are subjected to in the hospitals for diseases of the pelvic organs are the results of gonorrheal infection. Besides the cases that require operation, a large proportion of cases of sterility is due to gonorrheal infection, either in the man or woman, or both.
If we consider the revolting sequences of syphilis with its train of operations, and progeny of scrofulous children, it would seem to make the natural retribution for illicit intercourse infinitely outweigh any brief pleasures derived from the enjoyment of the stolen fruits.
It hardly seems possible that any young man who knows the whole truth about these venereal diseases and their terrible after-effects could be tempted to indulge in illicit intercourse.
The vice of masturbation or self-abuse is very likely to be learned in boyhood, perhaps even by boys of six or eight years of age through their associations with obscene playmates. It not infrequently happens, however, that the habit is learned independent of these evil associations. It has been explained above that secretions frequently accumulate under the prepuce and accumulating there serve as a local irritation, causing itching of the organ. This local irritation leads the boy to attempt to allay the irritation through rubbing. Such manipulation of the organ is very likely to excite it and to lead to the discovery on the part of the boy that such local manipulation may lead to pleasurable sensations of momentary duration. If he has not been instructed by his parents that these organs are sacred to the uses of manhood and that they will be injured if handled during childhood, he is very likely to repeat this act until it becomes a more or less fixed habit.
While it must be admitted that anything short of extreme excess in this habit among little boys will not be permanently injurious if the habit is stopped at puberty, it must be perfectly evident that if a boy enters puberty with this habit, the psychical and physical conditions of puberty are such as to make the habit very difficult to stop. If it is not stopped aserious injury may result. So the necessity hardly need be further urged for explaining to young boys that these organs should not be handled.
After the boy enters puberty, the habit of masturbation either acquired during puberty or carried into that stage from early boyhood, begins to have a distinctly deleterious effect.
Let us now consider just what is the character of this deleterious effect. From what we know of the physiology of the sexual apparatus, it must be evident that a sexual orgasm could be produced during waking hours only through strong stimulation of the activity of the testes, accompanied by liberation of spermatozoa and of the other elements of the vital fluid. Let us not forget in this connection, the statement made above: that the testis produces two forms of secretion, the internal secretion and the external secretion, the internal secretion being absorbed, produces those male characteristics which we group together under virility, while the external secretion is used for procreation. Spermatozoa do not make any part of the internal secretion. One reason for this must be evident, i.e., that being cellular elements, they could not pass through the vessel walls and be absorbed into the blood current, and if they could, by some special adaptation, get into the blood current, there is no conceivable action which they couldperform in the body. We must then look upon the internal secretion as composed of the liquid elements of the testicular secretion.
So far as physiologists know at present, the external secretion differs from the internal secretion only in possessing spermatozoa. When we say that the testes form their external secretion under sexual excitement only, we simply mean that they liberate or release spermatozoa under sexual excitement. The spermatozoa must be looked upon as the fertilizing element of the semen, while the liquid portion of the semen probably contains that mysterious element which, absorbed into the body, produces virility and which, passed out with the spermatozoa, may have an important role to perform in the fertilizing function.
If the adolescent young man is leading a continent life, we may assume that from time to time he is subjected to conditions which serve as strong sexual stimuli, arousing in him a definite desire for sexual intercourse; but leading a continent life, he curbs his desire and fixes his thoughts upon other subjects. In this way, though the sexual excitement is brought quickly under abeyance, we can rest assured that a certain number of spermatozoa have been released from the testes; and that the other secretions have been increased in volume. The excitement may be sufficient even to cause an erection, and produce afew drops of the secretion of Cowper's glands. The spermatozoa, together with a small amount of the liquid secretion, will make their way gradually along the vasa deferentia and collect in the ampullæ. The bulk of the liquid secretion, however, will, in the course of the following hours or days, be reabsorbed, thus making for virility. The small advance guard of spermatozoa that may have made their way to the ampullæ will undergo a gradual decrease of their nascent activity, as the days go by. On the occasion of the next nocturnal emission the ampullæ will empty along with the seminal vesicles and these spermatozoa pass out. If they be examined under the microscope as a part of a normal nocturnal emission, they will be found to be almost motionless or very greatly lacking in typical spermatozoon activity.
Now let us suppose that the young man, instead of curbing his sexual appetite, resorts, after a season of erotic imaginations, to the act of masturbation. We may picture the seminal ducts, vasa deferentia and ampullæ as being gorged with the secretion of the testes, including, of course, myriads of just released and nascent spermatozoa, together with several cubic centimeters of the liquid portion of the testicular secretion. The act of masturbation causes an orgasm and leads to a complete emptying of all these ducts. Thus we note that in this case the virile fluid is wasted,not being used in the procreative act or reabsorbed to exert its influence on virility. Nature's ends have been defeated. The system suffers a certain degree of depletion from which it recovers only after hours or even days. It must be evident from this picture of the processes that go on in the male sexual apparatus incident to the act of masturbation that the act cannot be performed repeatedly, as it naturally is when it becomes a habit, without interfering with the virility of the adolescent male.
In the study of a large number of cases the author has found that the principalphysicalchanges that occur in a young man as the result of this habit are, flabbiness of muscle and clamminess of hands. The really virile man possesses firm muscles and clear, direct eyes and a strong grip; usually also a warm grip.
It has been thought by some that pimples on the face are a sign of masturbation in the youth, but such is not the case. They are a sign of lack of elimination through the kidneys and bowels and are not to be interpreted as having any essential relation to masturbation. There may possibly be an incidental relation growing out of the fact that in some cases of masturbation that habit seems to affect the nutrition and that in turn may cause the appearance of pimples on the face of the adolescent. However, one must be very slow to pass judgment in these cases.
Not the least important among the results of masturbation is the attitude of the victim to society in general. Thispsychicalchange is noticed in immoderate cases of masturbation and takes the form of disinclination to enter into any physical contests, or games; and disinclination to cultivate the society of the opposite sex. Here again one must be conservative in his judgment, because there are individuals who possess a very retiring temperament naturally, and who may become so engrossed in study or productive work that they take little share in the society of either sex, so that individuals who may be wholly innocent of any abuse of their sexual apparatus would suffer a very grave injustice if they were classed among the masturbators. So allow the author at this place to emphasize the importance of never passing judgment on anybody in these matters on circumstantial evidence.
While the damage that one may do to his system through the practice of masturbation may not be very serious, in many cases that have come under the author's observation in which the habit has reached extreme limits, very serious, sometimes irretrievable damage has been done, yet the encouraging feature of this whole matter is, that if the adolescent youth, who is practicing this habit, is warned of its danger and stops at once absolutely, nature comes to his rescue, and gradually, step by step, but surely, rebuilds thewhole fabric of his virility, bringing back gradually the flush of perfect health into his cheek, the light of perfect manhood into his eye and the tone of perfect virility into his muscles.
This change can be wrought in from one to three years of absolute continence. Nature, like a loving mother, heals the wounds of her child with a kiss.
Such frequent reference has been made above to continence in antithesis to illicit intercourse and masturbation that little need be said in addition to that which has preceded. The young man who holds before his mental vision an ideal of the home he hopes some day to establish—in which a pure wife reigns as queen, sovereign of his life, and gently hovers over a brood of lusty boys and fair girls—cannot for a moment consider as a sane solution of his sexual problem, periodic visits to the house of ill fame or the periodic lapse into illicit intercourse with clandestines; nor can he expect to develop his powers, physically or intellectually to the highest possible degree if he permits himself to contract that habit [masturbation] which, step by step, undermines his development. There is open to the young man only one of the three alternatives mentioned above, i.e.,TO LEAD THE "CONTINENT LIFE."
The continent life is a goal which every healthyyoung man should strive to reach. To arrive at a goal that is before us and above us requires sacrifice and brings compensation. The sacrifice takes the form of the exertion of the whole will power of the man and the painstaking observance of those rules of hygiene which make continent living more easily attainable. The compensations of continence are those that come from the assurance that the young man has of his virility, of his worthiness to take the hand of a pure wife in wedlock, of the consciousness of his ability to establish and maintain a home, and to protect this home against all dangers.
It is proposed in this chapter to outline, very briefly, a few simple rules of hygiene, the observance of which will tend to bring the young man into the highest possible state of physical development. Assuming that he wishes to lead a continent life, the observance of these rules will make that much desired condition more easily attainable.
a.Choice of Food.—The young man who is boarding at a restaurant or in a boarding club can modify his diet only within the range of the menu provided. Fortunately, the young man can observe the most important rule of diet, i.e.,to eat abstemiously. Wherever one is boarding he can eat temperately; he can avoid highly spiced foods, tea and coffee. The observance of these simple rules will go a long way towards simplifying his sexual problem. It has been discovered by the study of the influence of diet upon sexual appetite, that the heavy eating of rich and highly spiced foods, indulgence in stimulants and narcotics, all tend to excite the sexual desires.
The author presents a menu that would be looked upon as a temperate one for a student:
Breakfast.FruitWell cooked cereal breakfast food with cream or a slice of bacon, an egg, with bread and butterGlass of milk, cocoa or cereal coffeeDinner.SoupMeat, potatoes and gravyOne vegetableDessert:(Custards, tapioca pudding, rice pudding, gelatin pudding or bread pudding)WaterSupper.Creamed potatoesSalmon or sardinesBread and butterCanned or stewed fruitCocoa or milk
Breakfast.FruitWell cooked cereal breakfast food with cream or a slice of bacon, an egg, with bread and butterGlass of milk, cocoa or cereal coffeeDinner.SoupMeat, potatoes and gravyOne vegetableDessert:(Custards, tapioca pudding, rice pudding, gelatin pudding or bread pudding)WaterSupper.Creamed potatoesSalmon or sardinesBread and butterCanned or stewed fruitCocoa or milk
If lunch is served at noon and dinner at night, the supper and dinner as given above would correspond with lunch and dinner when dinner is served at night.
If the young man is training heavily for foot ball or other heavy athletics in which a training table is provided, he may eat a much heavier diet than the oneabove outlined, having either eggs or meat three times a day instead of once or twice and larger portions of each food. However, even the man in athletic training needs less food than is customary for men in training to take. If the foot ball teams would eat somewhat less than they do and a smaller proportion of meat, they would be much less likely to "train stale."
b.Stimulants and Narcotics.—It will be noted that no provision is made for coffee or tea in the above menu. The general conditions of life in a student community serve as a sufficient stimulation. Tea and coffee are stimulants, and on general principles, it is not wise to use stimulants unless one needs them. The college student does not need any other stimulant than is afforded by the conditions in a college community.
It may be fairly said that stimulants never benefit anybody who does not need them. On the other hand, they may easily injure a person who does not need them. Coffee for example, or tea, not only does not assist digestion but actually retards it. All stimulants produce a quickening of brain activity which is uniformly followed by a reaction in which the brain activity is either slowed or confused. The coffee drinker is almost certain to experience within an hour after a cup of strong coffee an exhilaration, with heightened brain activity. If one could experience this stimulation without any reaction, it might be advisable,especially for those who need just such stimulation at just such a time. However, when one considers that he cannot experience stimulation without experiencing a compensatory depression, he will see that it certainly does not pay to get the one at the expense of the other, except under unusual conditions.
Now the question may naturally arise: What occasion would justify the drinking of a strong cup of coffee? Suppose that one were due in an examination and that he had only one examination in a day; suppose it came at 8 o'clock. Let the student retire early the night before, rise early, take a walk before breakfast and eat a very light breakfast. He may take a cup of strong unsweetened black coffee with the breakfast. He will find that this coffee proves a strong stimulant, particularly if he has not been using it regularly, and that it produces the stimulation just when he wants it. He will find that he is better able to marshal his thoughts and to recall the various facts that he may need to use in formulating his answers to the examination questions. Under such conditions the author believes that it is justifiable for a student to use coffee. But we must not forget that the coffee is a drug; used for its drug action; used to produce a physiological effect at a definite time. Having produced that effect, one may expect the depression to follow after the examination.
Now the natural tendency, and a tendency which causes many people to pass step by step into an excessive use of this stimulation, is to relieve the depression which follows the first cup of coffee by taking another cup and so on, taking coffee at each meal and perhaps occasionally between meals. While some people of phlegmatic temperament can stand such a drug habit for years without being very seriously injured, it is certainly a habit to be strongly discouraged. A person who does not use coffee or tea regularly, but wishes on rare occasions to get a stimulation, can resort to it to produce that effect, but after having gotten the effect let him get over the depression as best he can, and not relieve it by taking a second cup.
If he has a week of examinations, it might be permissible to follow such a regime as suggested above throughout the week. On the whole, however, the use of these stimulants is to be discouraged.
Narcoticsare those drugs which cause narcosis or a dulling of the senses and a decreased activity of both the muscular and nervous system.
One of the most common and typical narcotics is opium. Derived from opium is morphine. Cocaine belongs also to the narcotics as do the anæsthetics, such as chloroform, ether and common alcohol.
It is hardly necessary to say anything about the use of alcohol to intelligent college men. Very seldomdo college and university students resort to alcoholic drinks, either for their drug effect or in a spirit of conviviality.
The intelligent people of the country realize the dangers that follow the use of alcoholic beverages. It is very rare that educated people use any alcohol and when used it is only in most moderate quantities, and usually, on special occasions.
It is only comparatively recently that the absolute truth of the Bible dictum that, "Wine is a mocker" has been realized.
Brandy and whiskey were taken for generations to make one warm on a cold day because it gave one temporarily a flush of warm blood to the skin, only to cool down the temperature of the body later, so that instead of raising the temperature of the body, alcohol actually lowers the temperature of the body.
Many people took alcohol when excessively hot to cool the body, but if the temperature of the outside air is higher than the temperature of the body, as is the case on excessively hot days in summer, the rush of blood to the surface would only have the effect desired in the first few minutes of the action of the alcohol. The skin would tend to become dry, the temperature of the blood to rise, subject to the influence of the hot air. This heated blood striking the vital organs accounts for the fact that on those excessivelyhot days, when there are many sunstrokes, most of them are among men who not only habitually take alcohol, but who are under the influence of alcohol at the time.
Many people have taken alcohol to improve digestion, but scientific observations on digestion under the influence of alcohol have shown that the digestion is actually retarded.
Many people have taken alcohol to make their muscles strong, and one does actually imagine that he is stronger after a moderate dose of alcohol, but many careful experiments on the part of numerous observers have shown that the muscles are really less strong and can do progressively less work the larger the dose of alcohol.
Many thought that alcohol would stimulate the action of the brain and have taken it for that purpose; but experiments have shown that while there is temporarily a greater activity of the brain, this activity is less under control of the higher brain centers. The after dinner champagne may loosen the tongue of the post-prandial speaker but he may say many things which the judgment would not commend.
So, in all those applications that men have made of alcohol through the ages, we find on careful examination, that in every case the alcohol actually has an effect opposite to that which has been attributed to it.How true then are the words of the Bible: "Wine is a mocker."
If an alcoholic beverage actually helped the muscles, the brain or the glands, one would find it seriously commended by athletic trainers and coaches for preparation in athletic contests; one would find it commended by the trainers of prize fighters to help them in their preparation and in the final encounter; one would find it recommended by mountain climbers and by Arctic explorers, to stimulate the muscles for the exhausting ordeal of mountain climbing or to protect the system from the penetrating cold of the northern latitudes; alcoholic beverages are, however, not only not advised by these men for these purposes, but on the other hand, all participants in these activities are positively forbidden to use any alcoholic beverages, even in the smallest quantities.
So the young man who would develop a clear thinking brain and a sound body must leave alcoholic beverages alone. Further, the young man who would have absolute control of his sexual desires, must leave alcohol alone, for the first thing that alcohol does is to throw down the lines of control. It is under the influence of alcohol that the young man is almost sure to make his first visit to the house of prostitution. If a girl lose her virtue, it takes place in a majority of cases when she is under the influence of alcohol; but for thisinfluence lessening her control, she could not be seduced.Hence one of the requirements of continence isTOTAL ABSTINENCE.
Under the head of narcotics must be classed also tobacco, though tobacco has several other effects than the narcotic one. It exerts upon the mucous membranes an irritation and that is the reason why the mucous glands of the mouth secrete so freely when one chews or smokes, but the influence upon the nervous system is distinctly of a narcotic character, and while tobacco is a mild narcotic, and while it can be used by the adult moderately without serious results; this is certain, that no man has ever been benefited by the use of tobacco. And while many men have been injured, even by the moderate use, all men are injured by the excessive use. Furthermore, boys and young men who have not attained the full stature of their physical development are very seriously injured and retarded in their development through even the moderate use of tobacco. There is not an educator in America who will not testify to the fact that the use of tobacco in any form by young boys, retards both the physical and mental growth.
So tobacco certainly is another thing that is altogether proper to leave alone, and its use at the very best cannot be defended on any grounds other than that it is a sense gratification. And while it mustbe admitted that it may serve as a sense gratification in the case of the individual who participates in it, it must also be remembered that tobacco smoke or the smell of tobacco is, in a very high degree distasteful if not actually loathsome, to a large proportion of society, and the young man who gratifies sense at the expense of his neighbors, certainly is on the defensive.
In so far as tobacco is a narcotic, in just so far does it disarm and put to sleep those aesthetic and moral impulses which are so helpful in the maintenance of the continent life.
c.The Dietetic Control of the Bowels.—A most important hygienic rule is to maintain a strict regularity of the bowels. By regularity of the bowels we mean, a free, normal passage of the bowels at least once in twenty-four hours. Two or three passages in twenty-four hours are not too many.
A tendency towards constipation may be hereditary. The writer finds that at least one case in four of persistent chronic constipation among college men seems to be due to a hereditary tendency.
Those individuals who have from early infancy and throughout their whole life suffered from a tendency to constipation and perhaps from actual chronic constipation, find it exceedingly difficult to produce normal regular daily movements of the bowels. Whether constipation is chronic or occasional or whether it ishereditary or acquired, in any case, it should be corrected if possible through modification of the diet, and of daily habits.
First of all, one must remember in this connection that the lower bowel or rectum is subject to education, and not by any means the least important factor in overcoming a tendency to constipation, is the regular morning visit to the water closet.
The author would discourage the habit which some have of "straining at stool." This act of straining at stool together with the pressure which the hard fecal masses make on the blood vessels, increases the blood pressure in the veins of the rectum to such a high degree that it is likely to cause hemorrhoids or piles. But if the position favorable to the passage of the bowels be taken regularly, every morning, and a reasonable time spent in that position, and if the daily passage is brought about at that time, the muscles of the rectum will be educated to the point of contracting upon its contents at that time and under those conditions regularly, and this will be a strong factor towards regulating the movements of the bowels.
But the most important thing to consider in this condition is the dietetic regulation of the bowels. There are some foods that tend to constipate while others act as a laxative.
Such foods for example, as contain a considerableportion of tannin, are always constipating. Strong teas have a constipating effect, particularly such as the bitter English Breakfast teas, in which there is a very large proportion of tannin. This large percentage of tannin accounts for the prevalence of constipation among female tea drinkers.
Unripe fruits contain a high percentage of tannin which, in the ripening processes of the fruit, becomes changed into cellulose and sugar. Any fruit that quickly turns brown after a cut surface is exposed to the air and that stains a steel-bladed knife black quickly when the fruit is cut, possesses a high percentage of tannin, and is not in a wholesome condition to eat. Unripe peaches and apples possess this characteristic. These fruits should be eaten only when ripe.
If one's diet contains too small a percentage of cellulose or pulp material, a tendency to constipation will be noticed. It has been found from investigation of this subject that the cellulose or undigested material of the cereals, vegetables and fruits, is an absolute essential to good bowel action. The cellulose makes bulk in the bowels and the simple presence of this bulk of undigested material stimulates the muscular contractions.
If one were to choose for example, a diet of meat, eggs, nuts, corn starch, tapioca, sugar, fats and oils, i.e., diets which will be almost completely digested andabsorbed, leaving a very small amount of undigested material in the intestines, the bulk of the material in the intestines would be so small that they would not be stimulated to contract. Therefore this small bulk of material, together with certain excretions from the liver and other organs, would be retained in the bowel and undergo fermentation there. Injurious substances which result from the fermentation would be absorbed, causing what is known as autointoxication, complicated with constipation. If one, however, mixes with the condensed foods named above a good proportion of cereals, fruits and vegetables, all of which possess a considerable percentage of undigestible material, the presence of this undigestible material in the intestines leads to strong peristaltic movements, causing the passage of this material along the intestinal tract to the rectum, which will be periodically evacuated. In such cereal foods as the coarser meals (like oatmeal, various wheat preparations and corn meal), the proportion of bran substance serves as a local stimulation to the intestinal activity. The little bran scales being sharp-cornered and rough, serve as a local irritant or mechanical stimulation.
What has just been said regarding the advisability of eating some coarser cereals must not be taken to mean that white bread is not wholesome. On the other hand, white bread made from the roller process flouris in a high degree nutritious and wholesome, and may well make an important part of any dietary.
It is not hygienic to eat white bread or biscuits hot out of the oven. These hot breads tend to form doughy masses which are almost completely impervious to the digestive juices, and while they are eventually digested, it takes a very much longer time to do so than would be the case with stale bread, which is so readily masticated into a creamy consistency. If one is subjected to conditions where he must either eat hot biscuits or perhaps embarrass a most hospitable hostess, there is only one thing for him to do, i.e., to eat the biscuits.
It is possible, though difficult, to masticate hot bread so perfectly that it is reduced to a smooth, creamy consistency, and no one should ever swallow any bread which has not been so masticated.
Among the fruits, figs, prunes and apples seem to have the most clearly marked laxative effect, though all ripe fruits generally, and especially those that are taken uncooked, have a moderate laxative effect. Belonging to this class of foods is rhubarb which, though not a fruit, is usually served as a fruit either stewed or in puddings or pies. There is no doubt that it exerts its laxative effect better if taken stewed rather than with pastry.
If one then who is annoyed by a tendency to constipation wishes to correct it, a rational change of dietwould be,to eat freely of cereals and coarse breads and of various fruits, particularly apples, figs and prunes.
The most effective way to use these laxative fruits is to eat freely of them just before retiring. The apples and figs may be eaten just as they are received from the market. Prunes may be soaked in cold water for twenty-four hours, then taken directly from the cold water and eaten.
If this is not effective a supplementary regime may be adopted that is only in part dietetic, i.e.,to riseONE HOUR BEFORE BREAKFAST,drink two glasses of cold water and take a brisk walk of fifteen to thirty minutes. The cold water has a tonic effect upon the stomach, preparing it for a rapid digestion of the breakfast. It also washes out the accumulation of mucus in the stomach, which may easily equal a pint in volume. This pint of mucous plus the pint of water, making a quart of liquid altogether, pours through the pylorus, and during the rapid walk, works its way rapidly down through the alimentary tract, washing the whole tract and preparing it to receive and rapidly to digest the next meal. This slimy water, having washed out the stomach and small intestine, then passes into the large intestine, moistening and lubricating its contents and causing it to move gradually towards the rectum, where it stimulates a normal free passage of the bowels after breakfast.
Any usual case of constipation will yield to this treatment. Such a treatment is incomparably more rational than the taking of medicines.
d.The Dietetic Control of Sleep.—Most students study evenings. If their heavy meal is a dinner at 5:30 or 6 p.m. they are likely to feel very drowsy by 7:30 or 8 o'clock. This is a perfectly natural experience, all animals manifesting a drowsiness after a heavy meal. If one could lie down and sleep for an hour while his dinner is digesting, he could probably rise at 9 o'clock and put in two or three hours of good hard work. He would find himself at 11 or 12 o'clock so thoroughly awake, however, that he might have difficulty in getting to sleep if he retired at that hour. If, on the other hand, one has his dinner in the middle of the day and a light supper at night, he is able to begin studying within an hour after supper and keep it up until he is ready to retire. In this case also, he is likely to be so wide awake at the time of retiring that he may have difficulty in getting to sleep. In either of these cases, it is altogether proper and advisable to take a light lunch before retiring. A double purpose can be served by this lunch. In the first place, the taking of anything into the stomach that requires digestion tends to deplete the circulation from other organs (brain in this case) to the stomach. In the second place, the food may be so chosen as to exert a definitesomnolenteffect. Such foods are,celery,lettuce,onions,warm milk. It may not be convenient to get warm milk at midnight, but it would hardly be inconvenient to provide one's self with two or three graham crackers and a stalk of celery. These with a drink of water and a little brisk exercise before an open window ought so far to divert the circulation from the brain as to enable one to fall asleep quickly.
e.The Dietetic Control of the Kidneys and Skin.—The stimulation of excretion through the kidneys and skin may be an exceedingly important thing, particularly if one has just caught a cold and wishes to establish free excretion. The food which has a most clearly marked effect upon both kidneys and skin is the juice of the citrus fruits. These fruits, as they appear in our markets, arelemons,orangesandgrape fruit. All of these fruits are in a high degree wholesome as an addition to the dietary. Lemon juice is far more wholesome than vinegar in salads. The juices of lemons and oranges make most refreshing and deliciously cooling drinks in summer, and on occasions where one wishesto get a strong stimulation of the kidneys and skin, he has only to drink large quantities of hot lemonade.
f.The Dietetic Method of Curing a Cold.—A wholequart of hot lemonademay be taken on retiring after one has caught cold. The effect in such a case would be to cause a free sweating and copious urination. Boththe action of the kidneys and the skin would tend to carry away from the system the effete materials that have been retained as a result of the cold.
It is hardly necessary to add in this connection that care should be taken that during the sweating or immediately following it, thebody should not be exposed to catch more cold. In this method of treating a cold, one shouldtake a strong catharticsuch as two or three teaspoonfuls of castor oil, and should remain in bed twenty-four hours. During this twenty-four hoursno other food than a little light broth should be taken. This treatment usually completely breaks up a cold and one is able, in two or three days, to make good the loss of the twenty-four hours, during which time he was confined to his room.
This dietetic method of caring for an acute catarrhal cold is incomparably wiser and more economical than to drag around, hoping to "wear out the cold," only to be worn out by it.