Democratic Sentinel, Volume 2, Number 13, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 May 1878 — The Art of Prolonging Life. [ARTICLE]

The Art of Prolonging Life.

People generally desire long life and good health. Sickness and premature death are almost always due to violations of the laws that govern our physical being, and of which the masses are ignorant If men knew better they would do better; but how can they avoid an evil that they know not of? While efforts are made through the public aohools to give each child a so-called common English education. yet the children are permitted to grow up and enter upon the responsible duties of active life profoundly ignorant of the structure of their own bodies, and the lawß of physical being upon whioh their health and hves depend. They are sent to school and crammed with arithmetic, grammar and geography, by teachers who, in many instances, have never studied physiology and hygiene. They are taught to locate the mountains and trace the rivers of foreign countries, bnt are never taught to locate the vital organs and glands of their own bodies, or trace the veins, arteries and nerves in their various ramifications. They are instructed in the flow of the tides and the course of the ocean currents, and the philosophy of wind and storms; bnt they have no correct conception of the relative effects upon their health of breathing pure or impure air, nor has their attention ever been called to the imEortance of keeping their bodies clean and ealthy by regular bathing. The criminality of such neglect in teaching becomes apparent when we consider that the masses, ignorantly violating the laws of health, bring upon themselves sickness, suffering and death that might otherwise be avoided. In this condition of things we welcome into being any work that is calculated to impart to the masses a knowledge of the structure of their own bodies, the laws of health, and the importance of observing those laws. We find Dr. Pierce’s Common Sense Medical Adviser to be just such a work. It is physiological and pathological, and the major part of it should be converted into a text-book for the use of common schools. Its careful study will enable the healthy to preserve their'health, and the sickly to regain health. Every parent should read it, and, as their children become of proper age, instruct them in the all-important truths it contains. Were this done, much suffering and premature death wonld be prevented, and many a youth saved from a life of shame and licentiousness. The book contains nearly 1,000 pages, is profusely illustrated with colored plates and wood engravings, and can be had by addressing R. V. Pierce, M. D., World’s Dispensary and Invalids’ Hotel, Buffalo, N. Y. Price, post-paid, .$1.60.— United Brethren Aid Journal.