Sewer Gas Poison.  -- it had obviously absorbed sewer gas, which it ascended through the overflow pipe, and that this had been the real cause of the disease was indicated by the fact that the diarrhea disappeared almost as rapidly as it had broken out, when the cistern was emptied and the pipe efficiently trapped.

Diarrhea in Country Districts.  -- Dr. Wilson declares that, according to his experience, much of the diarrhea which prevails in country districts during the summer and autumn amongst children is due to polluted water, drunk either as it is drawn from the well or when mixed with milk, fraudulently or by accident.

I combined these two sections as they are both relatively short and again lend to my hypothesis that the author was paid for not only word count, but important (and unnecessary ) ‘important’ section count.  Now , that said, I find this interesting also from the perspective that I myself in doing home improvement projects from installing PVC pipe, toilets and bathroom faucets and systems, I  have worked through problems and with plumbing systems that benefited from this knowledge.  Although when I was taught how to install pipes and instructed in things about sewer gases and vents I was led to believe that these things were done primarily to help with the pressure and dynamics of making things flush and the possibility of what the gas might do in and of itself didn’t really come up, and was treated almost like something that was obvious.

Additional Articles from the Book of Medicine:

• Stagnant Water
  
  

  Stagnant Water. — stagnant water is, from the large quantity of organic matter in a decomposing state which it holds in suspension or solution, exceedingly unfitted for drinking and culinary purposes, no matter how transparent it may appear; and it should, in consequence, he carefully avoided whenever running water can possibly be procured. Pond-water, Canal-water, ditch-water and marsh-water all come under this category, and should be scrupulously shunned, under penalty of suffering from fever and ague, dysentery, typhoid fever, and many other dangerous maladies.

  Almost as if to emphasize my last point about my distaste for the excessive use of punctuation in the form of hyphens, the author almost seems to throw it in my face with this particular section. If I were driving a car through the cornfields of Illinois where I was born, and I was hampered in my journey due to the excessive bugs that tend to plaster windshields and evening, this would be akin to what the author is doing here only if I was suddenly swatted with a car covers sized bug, which after living in Illinois for many years is something that I’m sure exists.

• How can the housewife protect her children from drinking germ laden milk?
  
  

  How can the housewife protect her children from drinking germ-laden milk?-First make sure that the dairy from which the milk is applied is clean and up-to-date and the city dealer delivers the milk at her doorstep in clean bottles.  Do not allow it sit in the sun in the early morning in warm weather, or about the kitchen at any time of the year, but place it immediately on ice in a clean refrigerator until ready to use.  When taking a certain quantity of milk out of the bottle, if for the baby use a chappen in dipper, and do not allow it to stand uncovered for flies to contaminate.  Milk may all so be contaminated by water from any source of pollution if their utensils are carelessly washed with a supply of water from an infected water supply as any dirty well or one contaminated by cesspool, outhouse, the newer pit which is infecting water to the soil or from drainage.

  It is absolutely vital to a country to protect its milk supply as two thirds of the dust under two years of age are traceable to either germ laden milk from dairies were not properly handled by dealers, nurses, mothers, etc., who are careless or too ignorant to appreciate the danger of allowing babies milk bottle nipple being dirty, contaminated by flies or who allow a milk bottle to sit in the hot morning sun,-result a sick baby, followed by death.

  Again another interesting section especially as it’s trying to convince people to keep no cold and keep refrigerated.  Possibly a new concept for this time, being the turn-of-the-century and a long shot away from concepts such as diet drugs like Phentermine.

• Purifying Ingredients
  
  

  DISEASES FROM MINERAL IMPURITIES IN WATER.

  Purifying Ingredients.-since all rivers, spring- and well-waters contain a certain amount of dissolved matters, taken up from the soil through and over which they pass, it becomes a very important consideration to determine what these ingredients are in any particular sample of water, and also the kind and degree of such impurity which will not prove injurious to health. Dr. Letheby, from investigations made in 65 English and Scotch towns, arrived at the conclusion that from 5 to 20 grains to the gallon of the compounds of line and magnesia are necessary to render drinking water in the highest degree wholesome.

  It does point I want to remark on something that is seen within the last two or three sections. The book is making references to several different doctors, apparently doctors from England, and the book doesn’t necessarily mention the doctors first names. It doesn’t mention where the doctors work, what they’re employed at or why they have the credentials to be referenced in this particular book. I’m assuming that since this is a medical book and these are doctors that these doctors have medical degrees.  That said, for all I know these could be philosophers, or professors of natural philosophy, for paella pan handlers for all I know.

  Regardless, I do find it interesting, and it do appreciate the way that we source insight articles and texts and people as sources today. Having gone through law school, I never thought I would say those words before.