Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 188, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 August 1910 — Page 2

FOR THE LANDSMAN WHO GOES TO SEA

By LEONARD K. HIRSHBERG, A. B., M. D.

r * . ILL adjectives and Ills have A three degrees—save one. Seasick and seasickness I / are always in the superlal£“TL. tlve. Even a “light touch” [T His agony to the victim, and to him Is just as bad as the worst case ever suffered by ' ' mortal. I And yet, in Itself, seasickness Is no toore dangerous than a stubbed toe, *nd not nearly as terrible in Its possible effects as a severe bump of the knee. For the knee is one of the most sensitive portions of the anatomy, while the much-abused, yet patient, stomach can stand a lot of bad treatment. Just wnat the percentage of average travelers Is who succumb to Seasickness savants have neglected to fcgure, but a conservative may place tt at about 90 per cent So, when statistical steamship agents tell \f l** you that probably \ '*’ '** f *OO,OOO persons . iSffSl travel by boat on m the Atlantic and \ -hhk Pacific oceans Y.^/7.7 and the great lakes each year, M you can easily ■ compute the num- \ \\«s= s= ® ber of seasick W !S^\\ sufferers at 360,- I \\ 000 persons. And w \ VLo seasickness is no ks\ respecter of per- W M sons —prince and ' _ pauper, young and old, man and .■woman, all alike suffer from its pangs. Even animals teel it, and feel It sorely, while some Persons never qjitgrow it, no matter bow often they go to sea. Sailing out of port on regular trips are more than half a dozen wellknown navigators who “pay tribute to Neptune,” as it is euphemistically expressed, every time they strike deep Jwater. The attack does not last long iwith these victims, but it is doubly conspicuous because of their position. . As every one knows, seasickness is caused by the motion of a vessel at ■ea, but Just how the motion acts on the bodily organism is still an open question. According to some authorities, the violent and unaccustomed movements of the stomach produce gastric disturbances, and these disturbances cause vomiting. By others the theory Is advanced that the center of disturbance is the central nervous system, ■which becomes demoralized by the •trange impressions striking the eyes. Circulation in the medulla oblongata !» Impeded, say still others, with the result that a sort of storm develops in the nerve controlling the stomach. Finally, others aver that the imagination is much to blame, or that the brain itself is shocked, or that muscular fatigue, caused by efforts to maintain one's balance, is the real cause jof the trouble. * T>n the whole, probably all of these things help. At all events, it makes ■no difference to the sufferer, and you may select your own cause when you Bext travel on the briny. . But the first symptoms are somewhat alarming. Comes a,faint sense ■of giddiness; a creepy, chilly feeling of light-headedness. Ofttimes a pereplration breaks out on hands and forebead; your stomach seems sinking—■and then comes nausea. Regardless of the direction of the wind, the victim rushes to the side of the ship and gives up his’last meal.. Tears fill his eyes and his face grows white and his whole body becomes cold and clainmy. Hanging painfully to a stanchion, the sufferer wots not the passage of time nor cares for the coming of eternity. He is paralyzed, overcome by the pangs of a nameless, unearthly terror Then - kind hands lay hold on him and lead him to his cabin, where he lies in most abject misery •for periods varying from 24 hours to the length of the voyage, be it six days or sixteen. Sometimes, however, nausea does not develop, and this kind of sickness is described by its victims as even worse than that in which one gives up all within him. As the neuseated sufferers say that their form is the worse, the question is still open for discussion. At all events, no pang known to terra firms equals in sheer terror and misery the despairing, lost sensation ®f the seasick. First, say those who know whereof they speak, the victim barbors a horrible fear that he is going to die. In the next stage he becomes apathetic and doesn’t care a picayune whether he dies or not; In the third stage he hopes that he win die, and prays for surcease from suffering. - "Please throw me overboard,” is the ■tea frequently urged upon sea cap Sains by unhappy sufferers, and at the jttme they really mean it. Finally, the victim fears that he will pot die, and longs for strength to enKile him to rush to the side and hurl mself into the depthless ocean. Far from being a dangerous affliction, however, seasickness Is beneficial fit many cases, and a large majority _pf travelers ate improved” 4n health, gather than hrirmtd, by the complete JPest and total abstinence it enfprces. \ People who never are seasick invariably eat too much at sea, the salt, •lisp air whetting their appetites and

the luxurious bills of fare tempting their palates and stomachs to overindulgence in good things. But the victim of seasickness cannot eat, and an occasional fast is a mighty good thing for the system. As far as Is known, no one ever died of seasickness, although frequently this cause is ascribed in reports of the death of travelers. In practically all such cases, however, some organic disease has been the real cause, and not the simple seasickness itself. For example, a woman last summer was carried ashore from an Atlantic liner, unconscious and dying, after suffering from seasickness for the two weeks of the voyage. When the end came, her death was ascribed to exhaustion, following mal-de-mer, but the truth soon was demonstrated that she had been hopelessly ill with a heart malady when she had set sail. Some veteran traveler once counted one thousand and one alleged remedies but as the end was not in sight he stopped counting and roughly guessed that there must be ten thousand and ten. And each Is as good as the other—or as useless. Still, each satisfies the patient’s wild yearning to take something for It, and so eases hls mind and contributes for it, and so eases hls mand ondsOea in some degree to a sort of faith cure. A glass of water given to a nervous woman relievos her immensely, if she Is led to believe it contains in solution some subtle and powerful speclflq. So, too, with preventive measures; they are as numerous as the vain imaginings of man. Some are absurd and ethers may really be useful. As a general rule, a landsman preparing for a voyage should prepare by taking, for two or three before sailing, some mild aperient, preferably one of the less ardent bitter waters. The sea air has the peculiar effect ojf Impeding the intestinal functions of most persons, and the aperient serves to counteract this tendency. As soon as the first symptom of discomfort strikes you, retire to your cabin and lie down —stretching at full length on the couch. Lie on your side, with your face to the wall and close your eyes. If you use any pillow, let it be a flat x>ne, so that your head maty not be elevated. Then try to slee^ Should this treatment ease you and relieve you, give reverent thanks, and fervent. If however, nausea develops, prepare yourself for the worst of suffering and console yourself with the thought that “you are not the only one.” While the bromides, chloral, cocaine, chloroform and other drugs are useful In combating some of the more violent symptoms of seasickness, none should be taken without the advice of the ship’s surgeon. Various wines and iiquors also are recommended by certain authorities, but to be effective they must be taken in large quantities. And the relief 13 only temporary, the patient becoming gloriously drunk and sleeping off hls “bun,” only to wake up to renewed illness and nausea In some cases, however, champagne Is really effective iiTTelieving violent nausea, the effect being due to Its carbonic acid gas., and practically the same' result may be obtained by the use of soda water. Best of all, say some surgeons of vast experience, is the plan of permitting the Initial vomiting to continue. “Leave the patient alone In hls misery for a couple of heurs,” said one veteran to the writer. “By that time hls stomach will be empty. Then give him a goblet of warm water, which will at once be ejected. After that administer half a dram of bromide of potassium hi aa large a quantity of water as he cam swallow, if the bro-

mide solution is concentrated, it will make him vomit again, while If It la sufficiently diluted he will retain it. Put him to bed and an hour or so later give him another dose. Nine times out of ten he will drop off to sleep and will awaken well and hungry.” By other good authorities this treatment Is said to be good in smooth water, but Ineffective In stress of storm, when they aver, nature must take its course, and the seasick victims can only endure in what patience they may be able to muster. The growing custom of taking sedatives and sleeping powders on shipboard cannot be too strongly condemned. Cocaine, morphine and Blmllar depressants are contained in most of these elixirs, and, while effective enough when administered by a regular physician, such things are extremely risky when employed in an unscientific, haphazard manner. While morphine may make a person sleep, its other effects are often dissipation, and in many persons it excites vomiting rather than states it. In consequence, the prudent voyager will steer clear of all "bracers” that contaiu It. So, too, are cocaine, chloral and chloroform and similar “remedies” open to largely the same objection, albeit it is the theory of those who recommend there that they deaden the abnormal sensitiveness of the stomach lining and thus stop the vomiting. This may be all very true, but also it is true that their effects are not limited to the stomach, while, further than this, with healthy persons the vomiting of seasickness is by no means alarming. Indeed, severe «“fetching’ without vomiting, is often more painful and harmful than the vomiting, and fully as disagreeable. “Hot water for mine when I’m se» sick,” says one man, and, “Hot, black coffee for mine,” says another, and there you are. A iist of all remedies for seasickness would fill a large book, and would include all the bromides, ano dynes, narcotics, opiates and anesthetics, to say nothing of a thousand and one other fearsome things. Besides there is a long list of mechanical devices for the prevention or cure of seasickness. Some persons use tight belts and others are addicted to ice bags on their backs, while another reliß3 upon massage. Yet none of these measures has a sound theory to back it, and none has been found generally efficacious. Some persons are always seasick, no matter how many voyages they make; others have never been seasick and never will be, no matter how stormy the weather. May you be one of the latter number.

WORDS OF MASTER OF SATIRE

George Bernard Shaw at Hls Best in Answer to Invitation of Frenchmen. Rodin’s Parisian friends gave him a luncheon In recognition of his promotion to the rank of grand cross of the Legion of Honor. G. B. Shaw, whom the French papers call merely an English humorist, declined an Invitation to attend, saying he himself was already assured of Immortality, as the encyclopedias will henceforth catalogue him: “Shaw, subject of a bust by Rodin; otherwise unknown.” Shaw concludes:: “To entertain Rodin seems to me to be rather presumptuous. It is as if Adam, after the seven days of creation, had offered a snuffbox to the Almighty with the remark: ‘My congratulations! It’s quite nicely done.’ Personally Ido not dare, but I trust Rodin will forgive you. He already has much to forgive hls country, so he must be accustomed to It by now.”

What he Wished to Know.

“Here’s an article in this magazine entitled; r How to Meet Trouble,’ ” Mrs. Wedderly. “Shall * read It to you?" “No, thank you,” replied hls wife’* husband. “How to dodge trouble Is the brand of Information I’m looking for.- *

Avoiding Attention.

“You look sweet enough to kiss.* "Well, here is a railway station." “What’s that got to do with itT” 7 "Stupid! We’ll go in there and when a train comes in I will rush off to yon and throw myself later feu arms.” .

TRIBUTE IS LARGE

AMERICA PAYB HIGH PRICE FOR TRANSPORTATION. Flower of Its Youth and Strength Called Upon to Yield Up Life In Their Dally Round of Duties. It is the best American manhood In its youth and strength that We sacri-

work of a yard brakeman moje continuously and Inevitably involves risk to life and limb than any other trade, unless It be that of the acrobat, in which the risk taken Is a part of the commercial end Itself. The twelvehour working day or night of a yard brakeman is an almost continuous performance of what would be “feats" of skill and daring to an,ordinary man. The attention must not flag If he is to accomplish and avoid Injury. RAILROADERS KILLED IN ONE YEAR. Conductors g Engineers " Firemen Brakemen " 4g Trackmen 15 Laborers 14 Miscellaneous 20 Unknown 2 Total Frederick Hoffman, statistical expert of a big life insurance company, tells us that among brakemen who die between the ages of fifteen and twen-ty-four from 75 peF cent, to 85 per cant, die by accident. The table given here shows that out of the 125 railroad employes who during the one year met violent death in the course of their work 38 per cent, were brakemen. Among the injured about the same proportion (42 per cent.) are brakemen. “Hump shifting” (sending cuts of cars over the rise beyond which many tracks ramify from the main “lead”) is an operation that involves special danger to the brakeman. A brakeman must ride each draft of care as It is cut off on top of the rise. The cars are going fast, sometimes 15 miles an hour. It is the brakeman’s duty to slow down the cars, leaving them enough momentum to accomplish *the coupling with other cars of the train of which they are to become a part. It takes experience and skill to ride cars over the “hump,” and it takes nerve. The men admit that they do not like it Six of the brakemen included in the table were killed In One lost hls balance while putting on brakes; one slipped and fell while riding his cut down; another was jolted off when the cars bumped at the bottom. One was killed trying to save the man riding a cut ahead of him. He put on brakes, a third draft ran Into the cut he was riding and he met the very death from which he had saved the man in front. Another man’s death was due to a defective coupling. The sixth was a boy of eighteen who spent his first night of railroading on the hump—and his last. The cut he was riding was bumped by a following cut and he was thrown to his death. A yardmaster on that same road told me that a new man ought never to he put oh the hump at night—the fact that the force was short (a* 1 in this case) was no excuse for it.

Unique Locomotive.

A unique electric locomotive, that straddles a line of moving vehicles In the same way that a farmer might straddle a- row of growing vegetables in crossing a field, is a commonplace sight near Bremen, Germany. The locomotive is used for hauling canal boatß, and runs on a quay that has to be kept clear for the passage of drays and other vehicles. Consequently, it was built in the form of two U’s, connected by a girder. One side of the locomotive runs on a track on one edge of the quay and the other runs on a track on the opposite side, while the moving vehicles have a clear passage under it.

Motor Cars on Rail Lines.

In order to make a closer inspection of the tracks and property under thdir supervision than was formerly possible, the use of motor cars by its supervisors of tracks has Just been introduced by the Lehigh Valley railroad. The new motor cars look like the old hand-propelled velocipedes, but the motive power is a small gasoline engine. The motor cars can run from 20 to 25 miles an hour, but in practise they go much slqwer, so as to allow an Inspection of detail.

Birds Build Nests on Train.

The Berwickshire, England, bird which built its nest on a railroad wagon may now take a back seat. A guard on the Chester and Holyhead railway claims to hare discovered the nests of ten thrushes underneath one of the carriages of a workmen's train.

flee daily kin the cause of transportation, declares a magazine writer. Of the 125 railroad men conductors, brakemen, yardmen, etc. —killed in active service in Allegheny county, Pa., during the year under consideration 77 were under thirty and only 13 over forty years old. Eightynine were Americans. Pro b a bly the

SHORTENS LIFE OF BRIDGE

Effect of Smoke on Structure Is Just Now Engaging the Attention of Engineers. When a locomotive la making speed against a grade with. Its full complement of cars and tonnage behind It, the blast from the smokestack may attain almost explosive force. But regardless of how many pounds dead weight might be blown from the stack, Its corrosive and heat effects in passing under bridge and viaduct structures have been under careful study by engineers. The “Cotton Farm" bridge In Boston was built In 1896 with a clearance of only fifteen set above the line of the Boston & Maine road. The floor of the bridge was supported by hollow tile arches, resting upon flanges of steel “I" bearqs. These steel beams were protected by heavy lead plale and above were rendered rust proof by cement tiles. In ten years the locomotive blast had eaten into the lead shewing and into the tiling to such extent that much of the coating fell to the ground and all of it had to be torn out. At another point In Boston'" is a bridge spanning the road where locomotives In one direction take a heavy grade in passing. The height of the clearance is 18 feet, while the bridge has only wooden stringers. On the up grade end of the bridge, where forced blast is necessary, the stringers are eroded and burned to a depth of a quarter Inch; on the down grade end, damage is not noticeable. The judgment of the engineers Is that 18 feet clearance allows of a cheaper bridge and a longer life to It than the more costly structure at the minimum of 15 feet.

LEARN EARLY TO OBEY RULES

One of. the First of the Principles Instilled Into the Mind of Railroader. As a matter of fact, it is not the man in minor position who has the most regulations td follow and the most rules to observe, but that these Increase In proportion to the responsibility of a position. The officials of a railroad must acquire the same sense of duty as they pass up through the ranks in order that they may properly govern an army of railroad men. Railroad men are taught in the daily school of experience that it is much easier to obey even the simplest rules and Instructions than to disregard them. They have learned that the noncompliance with rules of instruction will invariably result in either the sacrifice of life or property. There Is no such thing as partial neglect In railroading. A trainman either must obey orders strictly o* be guilty of overlooking them entirely. Modern railroading Is marked In particular for the absolute regard for instructions in the book of rules. The safe and successful operation of railroad depends entirely upon the enforcement of the rules. In this day of railroading officials cannot afford to consider any violation of rules as petty violations. Nothing makes a deeper Impression upon a railroad man than the stjlet enforcement of rules in minor details, This makes all classes of employes careful and thoughtful regarding rules and regulations, and this feeling of regard for authority will rapidly permeate the entire army of railroad men.

Wages of Railroad Employes. The wages of railroad employes are at a higher level than ever before,” the Railway World says, “both actually and as compared with revenues and expenses. A table, compiled from the official figures of the Interstate commerce commission, shows that the average salary of the employes rose from $607 a year, In 1905, to $721 a year In 1908. It shows that an average of $623 per thousand dollars of total expenditure went to the worker In 1908, as against only $572 in 1905 The railroads received $39 of net earnings for each thousand dollars of capital In 1908, as against $44 in 1905. They received $143 of gross earnings for each thousand dollars of capital In 1908, as against $l6O In 1905. There was no reduction in the wage rate on the railroads of the country after the panic In 1907.”

Train Held Up by a Bear. As a passenger train was near the big fill on its approach to Tyrone, Pa., a few days ago, a large black bear! weighing at least 600 pounds, bounded upon the tracks, raised himself on Its hind legs and dared the Iron horse to come on. The train was stopped and the engineer and other trainmen endeavored to chase bruin away, but Instead of retreating he chased hls enemies back Into the cars and for five minutes showed signs of hls wrath. All at once he saw his way clear to escape and bounded off Into the mountains.

German Woman an Official. Elizabeth Hirech has been elected vice-president oif the city council of Liegnitz, Germany. She is the first woman to occupy that office and was chosen because of her ability as a business woman. Several years ago her husband died and she inherited his large manufacturing business.' She assumed the charge of the business, stepping at once Into her husband's place. Under her management the business has prospered. • ■■ ■ if .1 "Parsnips are good for the complexion,” hints a physician. And women will even go so far as to eat those things when they read thin. %

OS&>o!@| Vr * \\fcBUBDtNE3BfT f PIEMAN T l THAT Lo.m

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The man that won—we cheered him on, We shouted forth his name. We praised his words till all the earth Was ringing with hls fame. But what of him whose eyes grew dim Ere yet the goal was crossed? When came the end, who was hls friendf Who thought of the man that lost? The man that lost—-by fortune tossed Into the ruck of things Where day or night there Is no light And no song ever sings. The man that fate has hit with hate, The man who paid the cost Of shattered dreams and vanished gleams— Who thought of the man that lost? It Is hls lot to be forgot As it is for them all That lode the prize for which each tries. That falter, faint and fall. Full-well they know the weight of woe. Each stroke of fate must bruise— We cheer the men that win—but then Who thinks of the men that lose? Their day is gone, the world smiles on With those .that know success; The dally strife may wreck a life With all Its endless stress— But we see none but those who’ve won And smiling fortune woos The ones that lead in word and deed— God pity the men that lose!

Stingy.

"There goes old Scrlmpem. Did you hear what he did last Fourth of July?” “No,” says thd - person who has to ask the necessary question. What did he do last Fourth of July?” “Got some firecrackers for hls children and made thejn shoot them off in a sound-proof cellar. Said he wasn’t going to be so extravagant as to buy noise for all the neighbors.”

rUDMAN b/GIDDm rOftJERVEf:

MyAPTT ixIKVSCUT') ® ne man is as good /ff/IID Jas the next, unless / you get next. f ■SgS Some people are interested in your welfare; others are merely Inquisitive. One good thing about hunting for the north pole is that you miss most of the news about ‘sensational marriages. A man who has reformed three or four times can predict to the day how soon it will be before a new convert backslides. The ordinary boy can give the 6rdtnary cat eight lives the lead of him and beat i itn a contest with death by violence. 1 One of life’s disappointments is thinking up a good excuse and then finding that you do not need to make it.

The Chance.

VI dont’ think that poker is a game of chance, after all,” says the lamb who has been run up against a cold deck In the gambling parlors. “No?” Inquires the dealer, taking them off the bottom as he needs them. "No,” repeats the youth. Idly gazing at the two deuces he has been dealt. “Where’s my chance about thin game?” “Why, my boy, there’s always a chance that it will be pulled.'*

At Least.

“Doctor,” says the man who has suffered paralysis of the arms, “do you think you can do anything for me? Will I recover tha use of my hands and arms?” "Why, I think,” says the doctor, gravely, “that already your right hand Is Improving! and that no doubt within ar week-yen win be able to sign checks."

An Unfrenzied Financier.

“No doubt,” we say to the man who baa begun taking flyers in stocks, “by this time you have become so used to large deals that you can talk of millions aB if they were hundreds.” "Yes,” he confides, “and I’ve got so used to the markets that I can win hundreds with more Joy than if they ’ were the millions I talk about.” {