Deadly Affect of Water Impurity.  -- according to the late Dr. William Budd, it also appears to be highly probable that, the poison of typhoid fever enters the system by drinking water, infection is more certain than when it is disseminated by the hair and is breathed into the lungs.  It's part of the statement, he instances an outbreak which occurred in Wales, where out of ninety or a hundred persons who attended a ball, fully one third was shortly afterward laid up with fever.  Although the water was not examined, there was satisfactory reason to believe it was polluted with sewage.

 

Even in public places where you would expect the aristocracy or at least the rich people together, water impurity was such a problem that sewage could be mixed into the drinking water supply at a ball.  Clearly this highlights the fact that discovering this problem was still relatively new compared to attempt to deal with the problem effectively.  This was such a new problem, that they were literally dying from it because they could act fast enough, and maybe they didn't even know that they were supposed to act fast.  For all we know looking at this account, replacing their Movado watches might have been of higher importance than investing money in improving their drinking water supply.

Additional Articles from the Book of Medicine:

• Difficulty of Obviating Lead Poisoning
  
  

  Difficulty of Obviating Lead Poisoning. — attempts have been made to obviate the danger of water contamination from lead pipes in various ways, but not as yet with complete success. In some instances the pipes have been lined with other metals, such as tin or zinc; but, at least in some instances, a galvanic action has thus been set up, which corroded the conduits with great rapidity, and probably lead, therefore, still more dangerous pollution of the water supply. Coating the pipes on the inside with coal tar, bituminous varnish, solution of gutta-percha and the India rubber, have also been experimented with, as yet with but partial success.

  Well those prescriptions sound about as useful as most prescriptions for acne treatments today.  Again, I would remind everyone that the quote above is from a 100 year old medical book and the preventative steps offered really only offer historical perspective. 

• Breathing
  
  

  Breathing.–Respiration, or the act of breathing, consists of thealternate inspiration and expiration of air to and from the lungs; in the process of which the lungs themselves are almost passive managements, since their contraction expansion takes place by means of the muscles which surround the chest. The diaphragm or midriff, which, when at rest in the lungs empty, forms a beautiful dome to the abdominal cavity, becomes depressed during the inspiratory process, and presses the walls of the abdomen outward. At the same time the ribs become elevated, thus increasing the size of the chest. Thereupon the elastic lungs expand to occupy the entire space, whilst the current of air, in obedience to a well known physical law, rushes down the windpipe and enters the numerous air cells, the result of which is inspiration. In expiration the reverse of this takes place. We bend forward, draw the abdominal walls inward, press the diaphragm upward, whilst the ribs are pulled downward. All these acts simultaneously performed decrease the size of the chest, and force or expel the air from the lungs.

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  This is another one of those segments where there are excessive number of comments, however the writing is actually fairly descriptive of the process. Today the commas are a distraction but the writing is pretty good here. It is not extremely technical nor does it get into many of the finer details of the inner workings of the lungs, but from the perspective of a person describing the breeding action of the lungs as observed from the movement of the chest this is pretty good.

  Make no mistake at this point in time scientists had often studied the lungs of animals and sometimes even people in action without the obstruction of a skin or the chest cavity. Scientists almost two hundred years earlier had performed what would be considered today fairly brutal experiments on animals and dogs in particular to gain a working knowledge of the organs. Battle field physicians also received a great deal of experience in war time and this book series actually was first published during the time of the American Civil War.

• Bones of the Spinal Column
  
  

  Bones of the Spinal Column. — The twenty-four bones of which it consists are so stiffly locked together as to form a chain that will bear and support the heaviest burdens, yet so flexible that it will bend like India rubber; within this wondrous column heights of delicate error that would thrill at the gentlest touch, yet so securely does it rests in its bony couch that it feels not the slightest jar or shock; and resting upon this remarkable pillar of bones is born the brain, without a tremor or a fear of danger; to it are found clinging to vital organs of the chest and abdomen, secure in the protection it affords.

  In this section they author makes a remark that either the brain or the other organs of the body should fear the danger incumbent upon them for having attached themselves to the spinal column. This statement just seems rather bizarre to me and I can’t make heads or tails of it.

  I think its some vague reference to the altitude of the brain suspended above the body and held up by the spinal column, but its just a strange thing to say. I bet the author would truly be hysterical if they new how incumbent their physical existence was upon the DNA of their parents let alone the design and synthesis of peptides!