Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 28 December 1938 — Page 9

29odby in Arica, Chile.

Vagabo

From Indiana=Ernie Pyle

American Doctor Who Got Bored With Babies Now Chases Bubonic

: : Plague Up and Down South America. |

R10 DE JANEIRO, Dec. 28.—We saw him first in Beuador, And then one night in And then he was on our plane that day we had the forced landing. We said

Weeks went by. We heard of him here

and there. And then one night, when we went down to dinner here in Rio, there he sat, having his coffee and smoking a cigaret. He is a tall man, of middle : : age. He wears glasses and his hair is thin. It takes a long belt to go around his middle. He looks, to be specific, like your family doctor. And that, after a fashion, is what he is. Except he’s the family doctor to millions. I doubt that he has personally prescribed a pill in 30 years. Yet he has saved thousands and thousands of South American lives. | : His name is Dr. John D. Long. He gads about South America as swiftly as one of his yellow fever mosquitoes. He is probably the best customer Pan-American Airways has. He is the traveling director of the Pan-Amer-ican Sanitary Bureau. I. Dr. Long hasn't had a permanent home for 38 years. Not since the babies drove him out of his home town of Greensburg, Pa. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 1897, he went back to Greensburg. A maternity case turned out so nicely that people began to talk about him. His reputation grew. Before he knew it, he ‘had involuntarily become an obstetrics specialist. In his first year of practice, he delivered more than 100 babies. . “I just couldn’t stand it,” he says. So he quit practice and joined the U. S. Public Health Service to get away from the babies. He wen; to the Philippines in 1901. He worked with the now-famous Dr. Heiser in Manila. Between times he served in San Francisco, Boston, Washington, : ; "He made a trip through South America in 1923.

Mr. Pyle

“And since 1928 he has been roving this continent al-

most constantly. | South America has long had:¢a bad name for pestilence and disease. In. the past, many of its cities have been dangerous to live in; dangerous to visit. But in 1924, at the Pan-American conference in Havana, a “sanitary code” was adopted. This code, as 2 matter of fact, is the only treaty ever ratified by all 21 republics of the Pan-American Union. : : Well, to carry out the code. the U. S. Public Health

Service furnishes five men—three doctors ‘and two

sanitary engineers—and the 21 countries pay their expenses. !

Serve as Advisers

They work purely in an advisory capacity—directing, organizing and pushing health departments in the various cities; supervising sanitary measures in disease centers. - Dr. Long is head man of the five. The five have no homes. They go where they are called. In far southern Patagonia this month. Way up in Haiti next month. { Mrs. Long is in Ecuador with their 7-year-old daughter Isabelita. But she probably won't be there two months from now. Even little Isabelita now and then says “I'm ting tired of this” place. When are we going to move on?” Th This Sanitary Bureau has cleaned up such famous pest holes as Guayaquil and Belem, and have given yellow fever and bubonic plague a merry chase around this continent. In 15 years down here, he has never broken his own little set of rules: Never drink any water except carbonated mineral water; never drink milk that hasn’t been boiled; never eat lettuce or low-growing vegetables. Dr. Long sat in our rooms this evening after dinand chatted for an hour. Then he had to go to ed, for he’s geiting up at 5 tomorrow morning to

| %* fly to Buenos Aires.

I would like to talk with Dr. Long for a week. But we are just ships in the night, and he goes south, and I go north, - Him to curb pestilence; me to spread ib,

My Diary

By Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt

Deplores Report Revealing Women Less Active in Government Affairs.

: ASHINGTON, Tuesday—I have just seen a

statement given out by the National League of Women Voters on the trend, which seems fairly well established, of women’s indifference to public affairs. In the course of 10 years, the actual number of women in state legislatures has dropped from 149 in 38 states to 129 in 28 states. This is an indication of the fact that women, instead of taking a greater interest in public affairs, are taking less interest. In Congress the number of women has dropped from nine to five. It is evidently not just an aversion to holding public office, but a general lack of interest on the part of women either actively participating or

“supporting women who appear to be fitted for active

. participation. I deplore this and would like women in general to think about it, for it .does mean that they are not bringing to bear all the influence they could in favor of such things as seem to them important in the life in their community, I have a feeling that it is more important for women to begin their interest in public affairs in their local communities. They can hold office there, or promote other women for office, so that in local communifies the balance would be 50-50 between men and women, and the women’s point of view would be a vita, part of every community decision. If this could be done, there undoubtedly would be a gradual growth o injerest which would spread to state and national affairs, :

Niece Spends Busy Day

We had a quiet evening last night and saw a newsreel and a movie called “Trade Winds,” which everyone enjoyed, This morning, my- niece, Miss

Eleanor Roosevelt, and her brother, Henry Roosevelt,

have gone off sightseeing with Miss Anne Grant and some other friends. They probably will be busy most of the afternoon answering the telephone and making arrangements for various guests who have lost their admission cards for tonight's party and do not know what to do about this or that situation. I think the modern custom of having ushers at these parties of the young is a pleasant one. Now every usher is in charge of a certain number of girls and

it is his duty fo see that no boy or girl dance to-

gether so long that they may wish to be separated. : I am going fo lunch with some old friends today and then I expect to have a rather interesting group br, people In Yea, including Miss Linda Littlejohn who is a leader of a women’s movement, in | will tell you about her tomorrow, 4 in pastealia 1

Day-by-Day Science

B21 Cernialy, Wiis has made itself ridiculous in eyes 0 e world by bannin i knowledge obtained in the Ee of its ana ing Jewish scientists, could learn a grand lesson in international co-operation and good will by studying this month, the technical journal of American physi- ; sists, The Physical Review. | / e technical papers in the journal ar icated to Prof. Arnold Sommerfield of Munich S occision: of his 70th. birthday. By this tribute the worldwide collection of physicists who have contributed to the issue are ‘stressing—without saying it in so

-dmany -words—that science’ cuts through all inter-

jational boundaries and phrough hates and fears. I that science’ judges a. man’s reputation not by his ty, his race, or creed or color, but

t he has to the sum of human knowl

alone by

ianapolis

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Second Section

Entered as Sécond-Class Matter. Indianapolis. Ind.

at Postoffice.

PAGE 9

Pneumonia Assault Launched

Two New Chemicals, Plus Serum, May Save 50, 000 Lives Yearly

By Jane Stafford

_. Science Service Medical Writer

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 1938

EPRIEVE for 50,000 to 100,000 Americans otherwise doomed to die each year of pneumonia seems at hand. ~ Medical scientists have the “Captain of the Men of Death” penned in a hollow square, surrounded by four powerful pneumonia fighting weapons, two new chemical remedies, serum and a protective vaccine. They now seem in position to deal telling blows fo this terrifying killer

of mankind.

For three years quite experimental use of hydroxyethylapocupreine (that is the name of one chemical) upon human patients in Pittsburgh has halved the usual death toll from this disease. Doctors in England have cut pneumonia death rates enormously in an experimental group treated with another chemical which is related to sul-

fanilamide. And thousands of CCC boys in America are living testimonials to the fact that an antipneumonia vaccine may reduce pneumonia cases one-half and deaths to one-fifth their

present number. Neither chemical remedies nor vaccine, however, have as yet taken the place of serum treatment for saving pneumoniathreatened human lives.” This treatment, health and medical authorities agree, can save at least half the lives that are now snuffed out each year by pneumonia. Serums are commercially available for upward of 90 per cent of pneumococcus pneumonia. This might make you wonder why doctors bother to search for any other treatment. The answer is simple: Serum is expensive. Cost for an average case is estimated at $70. Serum, highly effective, is also highly specific. There are 32 different types of pneumonia, each caused by a different germ. Only Type I serum will cure pneumonia caused by Type I germ. Type I serum is no good in Types II, III. or any other types of pneumonia. This means that laboratory tests must be made of the patient's blood before the doctor knows which serum to give. 2 ” ” ®

OT nearly enough communities have laboratories where this test can be made, so in villages and small towns and on farms, nearly half a million pa-

tients must cough and gasp and fight their way through a bout of pneumonia, unaided by the serum that could save them. Each year about 100,000 such patients all over the country lose this tragic fight. A chemical that can be carried in every doctor’s satchel, that can be swallowed like quinine, that probably will not cost as much as serum, that can conquer any type of pneumonia, is obviously worth any amount of medical searching. Hydroxyethylapocupreine may prove to be such a chemical. It is derived from quinine, and, unlike other quinine derivatives that can kill pneumonia germs, this particular chemical does not affect the eyes. Earliest efforts to treat pneumonia with a chemical derived from quinine go back to a German observation in 1911. At that time it was found that ethylhydrocupreine or had strong pneumonia-germ-kill-ing powers, but when this chemical was tried on patients it caused temporary blindness. A similar quinine derivative without the blindness hazard has been the object of German, Japanese and Pittsburgh’s Melion Institute research since then. Without causing blindness, this latest quinine derivative has saved pneumonia patients from death. Its life-saving record, in a small group of ‘cases, is no better than that for serum treatment and it must be tried in many more than the few hundred cases now reported before its value can bi finally judged. : 5 n ” UT in Pittsburgh pneumonia is a particularly severe disease, and the ward patients, who form the largest group treated with this chemical so far, are more likely than any others to die of pneumonia because of previous condi-

optochin *

tions of alcoholism, malnutrition and physical negleet. ; The chemical has made a good showing as a life-saver under these particularly adverse conditions. : : Synthesized under the direction of Dr. L. H. Cretecher of the Mellon Institute, it was first given careful trials on mice, rabbits and

dogs. Then it was given to a small

number of the Pittsburghers who caught pneumonia during the last three winters. Doctors in charge of this clinical work are Drs. W. W. GG. Maclachlan, Bracken and George E. Crum of the University of Pittsburgh and ® Mercy Hospital. For many months after the last patient recovered, these doctors studied their records and compared them with records of other patients treated with serum or in other ways. Not until they were absolutely sure of the results, did they make any report. Such a careful, guarded report is now appearing in a journal read only by physicians, the American Jour-. “nal of Medical Science, published in Philadelphia. The report will state that among 167 patients receiving the chemical during a single year, 27.5 per cent cied, the rest recovering. Another group of 41 pneumonia patients did not: get the chemical nor did they get serum or other specific treatment. Of these, 56.2 per cent died—nearly twice as many as in the chemically treated group. Serum treatment was given’ to another 285 pneumonia patients. Of these 22 per cent died. In the hope of saving still more lives, Dr. Maclachlan and associates plan next to give both chemical and serum treatment to pneumonia patients. Experimentally, there is evidence that the chemical increases the protective power of antipneumonia serum.

® » "

EST results with the chemical are apparently obtained when it is given on the third day of the illness, but Dr. Maclachlan is not yet prepared to say why this is so.

Mark M.

Doctor, nurse and serum help the pneumonia patient in her fight for life today in a scene from a U. S. Public Health Service motion picture.

Pr. W. W. G. Maclachlan, widely known specialist in pneumonia directs the experiments.

In a few cases during the past year the chemical was given within a few minutes or at most within four hours after the initial chill. In these cases the temperature came down within 24 hours and remained normal. These patients were treated at home and no X-ray pictures were taken. Although they had bloody sputum containing pneumonia germs, no typical physical signs of pneumonia ever appeared and these patients were not included as pneumonia cases in the records.

Tomor- pletely.

“Captain of the Men of Death,” germ at its death-dealing work in lun Medical Museum’s “Rogues Gallery” fo

The experience with these few cases may mean that the ideal time to give the remedy is immediately following the first chill, and although Dr. Maclachlan does not say so directly, it appears that such treatment might have the effect of warding off any further illness. . This winter more pneumonia patients will get hydroxyethellacupreine, more will get sulfanila-mide-related chemicals, and more CCC boys will have had shots of pneumonia vaccine.

| l Te f f

row there may be two ‘chemical remedies for treatment, or a vaccine to ward off the disease com-=

the double-barreled pneumonia tissue, as shown in the Army ! germs. ie When the records are compiled at the end of the pneumonia De medical scientists will perhaps be ready for a major offensive on this ‘major killer. or the present, there is stiil serum, a tried and proved weapon. Latest reports show that the oe death rate in the

United Sates during 1938 reached t lowest point ever recorded. This particular triumph can be credited to wider, more extensive use of antipneumonia serum. | (Copyright, 1938)

Dariger of War With Nazis Remote, but We Should

Check on Our Defenses, Clapper Thinks |

By Reymond Clapper Times Special Writer - I ASHINGTON, Dec. 28.—Tense as. the relations between the United States and Germany may be dt the moment, nothing now in prospect indicates that the situation is heeding into war. ie

Reassurance on this point would be welcome because there is belligerency in the air which—while designed to have en effect on Germany—may arouse American sentiment unwisely. If the German Government wants to know the truth, it can see clearly that the American people are

oe to conceive of Germany being

able to undertake any aggressive~ ness in the Western Hemisphere, beyond that of trade and propaganda. ” Germany will be in no position to do more than that until Herr Hitler has removed the menace of Great Britain, France and Russia. He dare not turn his back and leave such neighbors to pounce upon him.

oo» # 2

OWEVER, sufficient justification exists for our taking precautions without arousing unwarranted fears and dangerous hysteria. Some here see grave danger of a

European war in the spring. It may not come off. If it doesn’t, so much the better. But the safest course is to proceed on the assumption that there may be one. If the war should come, it inevitably will bring with it various developments, the nature of which cannot possibly be enticipated. In August, 1914, few, if any, in America, expécted that incidents would occur that eventually would draw us in. If, on the other hand, war is averted, that will leave Herr Hitler more free for South American trade and propaganda activities. In either case, therefore, it behooves the United States to be sure

that its defenses are in order and are effective for any task that might befall them. And it is better to consider that question in an atmosphere of calm confidence, in the tter-of-fact attitude of a man who checks up on his insurance policies, than in a wave of hysteria and fear of war, with the exaggerations that you get during a case of national jitters. { = s HERE are no grounds for jitters. There is need for checking over our national defense -insurance policies.

The best place in which to do

&'hat would be in a joint Congres-

overwhelmingly out of sympathy®

with its brutal and ruthless policies and its reckless disregard for the peace of the world. In this situation, we are prepared to do only two things, if I correctly size up public sentiment. First, we do not care to conceal our contempt for what the German Government is doing. Second, we intend to protect the Western Hemisphere from the contagion of the pestilence which is devastating Europe. At this stage of affairs, it is impossible to conceive of the American people consenting to send an army to Europe again. On that we are isolationist. Likewise, it is impos-

‘Rain-Maker’ Promises ‘Deluge’

UENOS AIRES, Dec. 28 (U. P)). —Juan Baigorri-Velar, Argentine engineer and geophysicist, who claims he has invented a machine to make rain, promised today to give a “special demonstrative deluge” Jan. 3. : He was provoked into the promise by Alfredo .Galmarini, director general of meteorology, who ridiculed

his machine.

Mr. Baigorri said he was conducting experiments in arid Santiago ae

Lestero Province, under auspices of the Central Argentine Railroad, where, according to observers of the railroad, he has produced rain on several occasions with the aid of a small, portable machine which “attracts electro-magnetic waves.” Observers also said that the machine changed the direction of the wind 90 degrees almost instantaneously. Mr. Galmarini, scoffing at Mr. Baigorri’s claims, said the odds on man producing rain were “about a million to one.”

sional committee of House and Senate, which would bring together key embers from committees concerned with Army, Navy, aviation, neutrality legislation and financing.

| Our anxieties, by comparison with those which hang over Europe, are ight. appens that we were blessed with 0 great ocean barriers. Our anxieties need not increase materially, ovided we make certain that we Iways are prepared to dominate hose barriers with adequate seapower, and supporting auxiliary trength in land forces, coast deense and airpower.

Side Glances—By Clark

L Ot 1916 Nea SERVICE mK. 3eo Us PAT OO, \

"I'll dress tor dinner just once more. After that our daughter's

friends will have to jud = 5 g 3 ©

for themselves what kind

Everyday Movies—By Wortman

how quick Christmas gets to be the day before |

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE

1—Where are the Jura Mountains? . 2—What color is emerald? 3—Name the famous Englishman who recently visited the U. S. on a good-will tour. 4—How many world’s boxing championships did Mickey Walker hold? 5—The flag of which country is red with a white crescent and white star? 6—What does “short covering” mean on the stock exchange? 79—In what city is the University of Arizona?

» » #

Answers

1—Between France and Switzerland.’ 2—Green. : 3—Capt. Anthony Eden. 4-—Two; welterweight and middleweight. 5—Turkey. ° ;

6—Buying on a rising market to

avoid a loss after selling short. i : 7—Tueson.

# ” ”

ASK THE TIMES

Inclose a 3-cent stamp for reply | whén addressing any question of fact or information to The Indianapolis Times W gton Service Bureau, 1013 13th St, N. W., Washing- , Jon, D. C. Legal and medical Advis

They are slight because it

Our Town

By Anton Scherrer

Mrs. Sewall’s Conversazione Proved Monolog by Mr. Alcott, but Guests Learned of Famed Little Women.

A DIVERSION that gives me much innocent pleasure [is the charting of Mrs. May Wright Sewall’s exact place in the cultural life of iy You have no idea how much fun it lis. The other day, for instance, I learned that she was. the first

| one around here to jssue invitations for a “cone

versazione,” a form of [intellectual entertainment lime ited to localities where |the brainy element is powerful enough to make it hot {for the other element, commonly known as fashionable society. Mrs. Sewall staged her party in the parlors of her home, 243 N. Pennsylvania St., on |the evening of Jan. 25, 1880, and make certain that it would be a real-for-sure conversazione, she paid Amos Bronson Alcott his ice to come all the way from Concord, Mass., to lead the talk. Mr. Alcott was 80 years old at the time with only eight more years to live, but despite his advanced age he kept his word and got Mrs. Sewall started right. At any rate, that’s the way it looked when Mr. Al= cott took his place that night and met the 30 or more people Mrs. Sewall had collected to match wits with him. I might as well mention names, otherwise it wouldn’t be possible to show how Mrs. Sewall had combed the town to get what represented the intel lectual aristocracy of [Indianapolis at the time. There was Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Smart, for instance, and Dr, Alembert Brayton, Nebraska Cropsey, Gertrude Gare rison, Mr. and Mrs. George Merritt, Col. James Black and Mr. and Mrs. Butterfield which, I guess, ought to be enough to give you an idea. : Fo Well, after going to all the trouble Mrs. Sewall did you'd suppose, of urse, that her -conversazione would be a success from staft to finish. 1t was any= thing but that. Soon as Mr. Alcott got under way, it

Mr. ScHerrer

ments, ‘even less. being a conversazione as billed, Mrs. Sewall’s party ended up as monolog with Mr. Alcott doing all the talking. :

It Turned Out I Right

It was a mighty good monolog, though, especially the part where he brought in the Alcott girls. Sure, the Little Women his daughter, Louisa, had immore talized. When his [children were young, said Mr, Alcott, he was a visionary with a scheme to benefit humanity. He wanted to discountenance the selfishe ness and swindling | which were constantly gaining

ground in the world; and to do so he believed it his duty to give up everything in the line of food and clothing which was cursed with the taint of slavery or slaughter. Love was to be the currency adopted in the Paradise he was to found. : And so with Charles Lane, an Englishman, he bought a hundred acres of rocky land for the site of the new Eden ahd called it Fruitland. He had quite a number of followers, he said, but for some reason everything nt wrong. Finally came winter ‘with only the Alcoti’s left on the farm, and nothing to eat. The experiment enlightened him, he said. He came to the conclusion that he could do far more for humanity by taking care of his little girls (his wife, too) than by a plan for the amelioration of the race. And so he returned to Concord, near Emerson, a wiser and not sadder man. After which, of course, there wasn’t anything to do but pronounce Mrs. Sewall’s party a huge success, even if it wasn’t a conversazione.

Jane Jordan—

2 Girls Urged to Widen Circle of Friends | to Enhance Popularity.

8 JANE JORDAN—We are two girl friends. We come from fine, respectable families. One of us used to go with la fellow, but split up about a year ago. Now it seems| that whenever we have dates, the fellows never call us again. We live in the southwest part of town. We are considered the best dressed girls on that street. We often analyze ourselves to

Most of our friends are married and at times it makes us feel very unnecessary. Please advise us what to do? UR

Answer—Perhaps you're afraid of men and this fear makes you excessively timid. Many girls feel

interested in anyo

Generally speaking we like the people who like us. Do not be afraid tp show your interest in the men you meet. I do not mean that you should try to make the dates by writing only by being responsive and cordial when you meet men. Men are attracted to the girl whose eyes light

spontaneous. friends. Another thing:

A [face with no expression wins few

If you want to meet men you will Usually a girl meets men through her women friengls. If you two girls hang together like Siamese twins instead of increasing your circle

so, this is a mistake, for if these girls like you they

meet you.

‘your own charms. Perhaps youre too wrapped up in yourself and are| not really vitally interested in new people. The re interests you have, the more | interesting you are. Whatever you do don’t retire | into your homes, but keep in circulation. : JANE JORDAN.

Put your problems ‘in a letter to Jane Jordan who will ; answer vour questions in this column daily.. vom

New Books Today

Public Library Presents—

AX inspired answer to the often repeated question, - “Can these children ever grow up to be normal human beihgs?? is the unique book THE FIVE SISe TERS (Morrow). Yes, you've guessed — Yvo: Annette, Cecile; Emilie and Marie are the heroines of this study by William E. Blatz, ‘professor of child psychology of the University of Toronto, who has been an adviser in the training of -the Dionne quintuplets since their 10th month. Sip : The traditional goldfish in their crystal bowl seem to possess sedlusion indeed compared with - these charming 4-year-olds, whose every physical attribute, movement and emotion have been studied and charted by experts. Yet in spite of a complete revemtion of those findings here and the fact that the children play in a specially constructed enclosure surrounded by a covered runway through which more than a mile lion visitors to the little north woods community have passed to view [the Quins, one is made to feel that their ultimate privacy has somehow been held inviolate; Exquisite care| and the highest idealism direct r activities, while every allowance is made for the per

sonality develgpment of each child. To us peeping, enchanted, into the realm of childe hood through | the story of these five adorable ‘little girls who occupy an unequivocal place in the affection and interest [of the world, the: r at the miracle of ‘their biz

cannot be given nor can: | %

developed that he didn’t like interruptions. Argue . /ith the result that instead of

jotes or making telephone calls, but

will encourage their husbands to bring friends to

You tell me So little that I only can guess that | you are low in self-esteem and have no confidence in |

jos

He J]

see what is wrong with us but we can’t find fault.

up, whose hand gasp is warm, and whose smile is