A Case of Impure Ice Poison.  -- such was notably the case in an epidemic of intestinal disorder which occurred at the watering place of Rye Beach N. H.  from the account of Dr. Nichols, who attended most of the patients, it seems that, early in the season, a mild form of disturbance of the stomach and bowels made its appearance among the guests of a particular hotel at his favorite summer resort.  The symptoms were in general penis, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea and severe abdominal pain, accompanied by fever, loss of appetite and mental depression.  The well and drainage system of the establishment, which had recently been put in complete water, was found almost faultless, and the milk supply of unquestionable purity; but on the attention of the physician being directed to the stock of ice provided for the guests, conclusive proof of its dangers quality was promptly obtained.

Additional Articles from the Book of Medicine:

• The Thorax
  
  

  The Thorax.  — The thorax derives its name from the Greek word thoreo, and signifies “I leap,” because the heart leaps in it.  It is covered on the front part by large muscles; the pectoralis major, or large muscle of the breast, is observed on the left side of the chest, Wilson on the right it is removed and exposes the pectoralis minor, or small muscle of the breast.  The dovetailed muscle observed on each side is the Seratus Magnus, and is employed in expanding and contracting the chest in the act of breathing.  The muscles of the chest walls, in a deep inspiration, exert a force equal to lifting a weight of 750 pounds.

  I do not know Greek but I found it interesting to learn that little bit of Greek above about the thorax.  It’s a very descriptive word actually and I suspect if I understand it correctly preferring to the movement of the Adam’s apple?  I would use the word Adam’s apple is a form of layman term, and I’m somewhat surprised that they didn’t use a layman term in their description as the audience for this book is supposed to be house wives and mothers.

• Bed Bugs
  
  

  Bed Bugs.–The bedbug is a small but plainly visible ovoid-shaped bug, giving off a peculiar nauseous odor. It is of a reddish brown or rusty color with some discoloration on the abdomen and is furnished with a puncturing or sucking apparatus. The eggs are tiny white oval bodies. As many as 6 to 50 batches are laid in cracks of beds, furniture, picture frames, wall paper, crevices of woodwork, floors, etc. Each batch of eggs develops in from 6 to 11 weeks, and several batches may be hatched in a season. One generation succeeds another as long as the temperature remains sufficiently elevated.

  Not exactly the type of thing that many people worry about much in the twentieth century a hundred years after the writing of this article, but these pests are possible in modern times from foreign countries to Mediterranean cruises to homes and beds that are infested accidentally or through neglect.

  They hibernate during cold weather, during which season the insect is merely stupefied and renews its activities upon the return of warm surroundings. It is found in the dwellings of man, but other species of the same family have been found upon birds, as the common chimney swallow, pigeons and bats.

  The bedbug comes out at night and begins to bite and annoy. It conceals itself very cleverly and quickly in the day time or when surprised by a sudden light at night. It lives on the blood of man particularly, but can exist on food of other insects. It thrives best on filth and in old houses can keep alive without food for a year.

  Bedbugs are said to transmit smallpox. There is a possibility of their carrying the germs of typhoid fever and leprosy, but this fact has not been proven as yet. The bite is poisonous to some individuals, resulting in inflammation at the seat of the bite. This is supposed to be due to the same secretion which gives the characteristic nauseous odor.

• Infectious Diseases from Impure Water
  
  

  Infectious Diseases from Impure Water. — the principal acute diseases which are due to impure water are cholera, typhoid fever, diarrhea and dysentery; and, although it is only within a comparatively recent. That mankind has begun to realize it’s dangerous from the source of these maladies, the accumulated evidence is already very conclusive.

  It is somewhat ironic, that 100 years ago water impurity was a serious issue.  The irony today is two fold.  The types of water impurities that many people around the world faced is no different than the water impurity challenges faced by many developing countries today.  However, instead of wiping out water impurities, we have complicated water impurity issues by contaminating water supplies and water tables with both chemicals from manufacturing processes as well as drugs from antibiotics to viagra that have been flushed away at levels that now present trace levels consumed from people and cattle alike.  Instead of improving our situation on Earth, we have made it more complex and possibly more contaminated. We don’t have the option to reset our water system memory and start all over again, and so we continue to struggle with a system that is gradually getting more dangerous for all of us.