Scientific American Supplement, No. 623, December 10, 1887Various
Science
Scientific American Supplement, No. 623, December 10, 1887
Various
Science -- Periodicals
It is easy to understand what difficulties must be met with in many
cases, and so one has to be content to prescribe merely washing, and
bleaching with lime--something that is simple and everywhere accepted,
but insufficient. So, then, disinfection with sulphurous acid, which
is easy in large cities, as was taught by the cholera epidemics of
last year, is often difficult in the country. The objection has always
be made to it, too, that it is of doubtful efficacy. It is not for us
to examine this question here, but there is no doubt that damp steam
alone, under pressure, effects a perfect disinfection, and that if
this mode of disinfection could be applied in the rural districts (as
it can be easily done in cities), the public health would be better
protected in case of an epidemic.
In cities one or more stationary steam stoves can always be arranged;
but in the country movable ones are necessary. From instructions given
by Prof. Brouardel, Messrs. Geneste & Herscher have solved the problem
of constructing such stoves in a few days, and four have been put at
the disposal of the mission.
Dr. Thoinot, who directed this mission, in order to make an experiment
with these apparatus, selected two points in which cases of _sudor_
were still numerous, and in which the conditions were entirely
different, and permitted of studying the working of the service and
apparatus under various phases. One of these points was Dorat, chief
town of Haute Vienne, a locality with a crowded population and
presenting every desirable resource; and the other was the commune of
Mauvieres, in Indre, where the population was scattered through
several hamlets.
The first stove was operated at Dorat, on the 29th of June, and the
second at Mauvieres, on the 1st of July. A gendarme accompanied the
stove in all its movements and remained with it during the
disinfecting experiments. The Dorat stove was operated on the 29th of
June and the 1st, 2d, and 3d of July. On the 30th of June it proceeded
to disinfect the commune of Darnac. The Mauvieres stove, in the first
place, disinfected the chief town of this commune on the 1st of July,
and on the next day it was taken to Poulets, a small hamlet, and a
dependent of the commune of Mauvieres. All the linen and all the
clothing of the sick of this locality, which had been the seat of
_sudor_, especially infantile, was disinfected. On the 4th of July,
the stove went to Concremiers, a commune about three miles distant,
and there finished up the disinfection that until then had been
performed in the ordinary way.
The epidemic was almost everywhere on the wane at this epoch; but we
judge that the test of the stoves was sufficient.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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