Rensselaer Union, Volume 8, Number 18, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 January 1876 — Man’s Microscopic Enemies. [ARTICLE]

Man’s Microscopic Enemies.

Eie name “ trichina spiralis” comes two Greek words, signifying hair and curled, alluding to the hair-like form of the animal and the curled position which it assumes in the cells in which it is found in the muscular system. The .male worm measures only the one-twcnti-*eth of au inch in length ± the female is a .little longer. It was discovered, by Prof. Oweß in a portion of human muscle sent i-to him from St. Bartholomew's Hospital .in I*B4. .In a few hours after the diseased meat ‘■is taken into the stomach, trichinae sepa- . rated from it are found free in that organ. Thence they pass in to. the duodenum. and afterward into the small intestine, where they are developed. On the third or fourth day eggs are discovered, these eggs being alive, as we have found to be the case in other analogous larva* of which we have specimens. From the intestines and other cavities where the young awe first produced they penetrate into the suhstance of the muscles, where sometimes as early as three days after the diseased meat is taken into the stomach they inav be found in considerable numbers. Aoa so Xar developed that the young'ento--zoa have almost attained a size equal to ithat ef.the full-grown trichinae. Theypro,gressivelv advance into the interior of the . small bundles of muscular fiber, where • tfaer may be often seen several in a file, one after die other. Behind them the muscular tissue becomes atrophied, that i is, hardened, and around them an irrita- * tiou is set up whiph m)<ls in producing a ■ cyst in about *#o weeks! TThus it will be seen that the whole muscular system is filled with these parasites, each one the central point ot inflammation, and of course of terrible suffering, until the friendly hand of death closes the scene. These cases, we think, must be more

frequent than Is generally supposed, from oui having so many brought to our notice within a sbert time, and this fact would be a good reason for entirely giving up r swine’s flesh as an article of food. But there is a sure preventive for all this. Thorough cooking will render pork abaolutely free from any injurious effects in this direction. If we give up swine’s flesh for the reason that it contains entozoa we shall be obliged for the same reason to discard all animal food. One of the same family which we have mentioned ns causing sickness among the Egyptians is of frequent occurrence among cattle, sheep and hordes, the hare, the rabbit, etc. Another species is found in the liverof the salmon, in the alimentary canal of the pike anib perch, and also many species infest the feathered trihes. We ought perhaps to say that, although the careful smoking of pork is said to kill the trichinae, it js never sale, in our opinion, to eat pork which is not very thoroughly cooked L. N. Piper.