FLYING BOAT MAKES [
BEAUTIFUL SHOWING
IN HANDS OF PORTE
Winimaker Hydroaeroplane Shows
Perfection In Every Details—
Carries 3,000 Pounds on
First Flight.
(Copyright by Press Publishing Company.)
Hammondsport, N. Y. Special: ,
With a sureness certainly that prom- !
teed well for the discharge of Its ap
pointed task—the crossing of the At
lantic ocean—Rodman Wanamaker’s
flying boat, America, took the air late
yesterday on the first of the trial flights
at Lake Keukn. The first time she was
driven by her builder, Olen Curtiss; the ,
second effort, which was the more
serious of the two, she was handled,
and handled In faultless manner by
the man chosen from the world to
drive her, Lieutenant Porte, of the
British navy. She answered every
question In a way that delighted those
concerned. She Is to be given several ,
more trial flights and then she will be ,
boxed up and shipped to New Found- ,
land, from where the flight Is to begin
about the middle of the coming month.
(By Lieut. Cyril Porte, R. N.)
Hammondsport, N. Y., June 24.—The ■
America flew yesterday, livery ex- i
pectatlon of her builder, Mr. Curtiss, i
and myself was equalled. She behaved
as soberly ns a woman of maturity, <
Instead of a very fresh and shy young i
debutants. She showed none of the
wild antic* that irsually go with the try 1
out of a new craft. s
She showed us speed, lifting power, i
buoyancy, rudder elevator and aileron ]
control and absolutely perfect engine I
action. And In that last factor lies our ,
greatest hope. i
With the engines throttled down we i
got 50 miles nn hour out of her. From i
the moment that sho began going ahead
• under her own power wo, getting the ■
feel of her, knew that she would rise f
at our direction and when wo tried her ;
out she did. t
It was as successful n first flight ns \
over I had a hand In and Mr. Curtiss |
tolls me that he has never turned out \
a machine that has done better on her (
first attempt. Light as she is In her
hull construction she did not make a ]
dip of water even when traveling on i
Surface at best speed. 1
The day's proceedings bognn when \
Mr. Vernon, of Syracuse, christened his (
flying boat which has been built nlong- ;
side of the America, and then made a
trial flight, after which he carried four
passengers. This was an encourage- <
tnent. It was Just 2 o’clock In the aft- ,
omoon that we got the petrol In her ,
and starting the engines to see how ,
they worked. We let them speed up to ,
1,800 revolutions per minute and their ,
action was an earnest of their boha- |
▼lour later when they were asked to do ,
roal work. i
Worth of Two Motors. I
The trials demonstrated clearly the
worth of two motors, each hitched to
a propeller. Two propellers, operated
by separato motors. Is rather an un
usual method In this country and not
often employed abroad, but It uppears c
to the the construction of the future. %
Bven when there was a slight variation
In the number of revolutions per min
ute between the two blades It had ab
solutely no effect upon the steering
controls. It was about 3:15 o’clock
when the controls, having been adjust
ed, the work of sending her off the
ways up which she had been hauled
to complete the lust few Jobs, began.
It was Just 3:30 o’clock when Mr. Cur
tiss and I took our places in the cabin.
On the top, In the engine section, stood
George Bnllett, my assistant pilot, nnd
two of the Curtiss skilled workmen,
George Robinson and Janies Lamont.
Pushed out clear Hallet turned our en
gines over. The left was stiff and took
a bit of cranking. The right started
before Its mate but even with that pro
peller going hard, we were able to keep
bar nose straight by warping the rud- •
der.
When the lert engine ceino m sue
aeemed to gather up under us like a ,
race horse at the starting post. When ,
•he shot forward, plowing through the ]
water at first, until her speed made |
her rise to the surface. At the outset
■he seemed .lust a trifle tall-heavy, but
that fault, more apparent than real,
was conquered and we found ourselves
traveling through the lake, or on It. at 1
aomethtng like 40 mllos an hour. Cur- '
tlas at the whel. Ho felt that It was l
Ills duty as the builder to see that at i
least she showed ability to perform the i
elementary part of the Job for which 1
•he had been constructed. Both he and
I were rather familiar with the type of ]
control that Is being used tin America.
I have been used to steertlng with my
feet and working the ailerons with my i
hand. In this craft I steer with my
hands and work the ailerons with foot
power. We sped along for about three- i
quarters of a mile. Mr. Curtiss made
no effort to rise although she strained l
under us as if anxious to get up in the
air. We stopped and Robinson and La- 1
mont got Into the work boat that fol- ■
lowed. Then we started ugatn. We ’
were more at home In her by now and ]
Curtiss shot her ahead at a good pace >
and at 3:38 o’clock she left the sur- <
face of the water and flew.
Skips Along Like Rock.
Like the rock of legend, she climbed
for 20 or 30 feet and then went on
about her business on even keel. Then
we came down again and she slid along
the water as gently as a bird. We went
•bout a mile further and then stopped.
We turned slowly around and picked
up quickly and flew back, making two
Jumps on tho run home.
We found her elevators worked
emoothly. Her engines were singing
truly and In unisen. The utlerons kept
her balanced to a nicety. The wings
lifted powerfully. In short she was a
success. Reaching the landing stage
Curtiss alighted and 1 took tho wheel
with Hallett by my side. We put In a
100 pound bag of ballast and took on a
*00 pound man who stood up on the en
gine section to observe tho motors in
action. Then we tried our second flight
and this time she did even more than |
was asked of her, I wore a helmet and
flying overalls and Hallett wore his
•veralls too. It was just 4:10 when wo
pushed off for the second trial. She got
under way With amazing rapidity con
sidering the stiffness of her new en
gines and In a few hundred yards she
had left the water for the air I lot
her down again and stopped the en
gines to test them out. They started
•gain easily, upon cranking and we
went ahead getting up to 60 miles an
hour when she took the air. She went
straight and true answering her helm
as easily as a toy balloon Is pulled here
•Bd there by a string We shot up
•bout 100 feet and then continued at
that elevation for about three mile?,
flying In a straight line. Behind and
•ver us the motors sung with a sure
aess of timing that delighted our ear;
If Curtiss has done nothing else he has
built two fine motors. I depressed her
and we came down as easily as a leaf.
In this flight 1 had taken her hut lit- I
tie out of a straight coarse. We tried |
mo banking but we used our wing flaps j
or nfJcrons at sufficient angles to show
us what she could do when it becomes
necessary. It Is a rule of Mr. Curtis
ind other good builders not to try sharp
turns during the early flight. The boat
i ts to first find herself before the more
iifficult manuevers are gone though
with.
Runs Easy As Liner.
We about faced nicely, the rudder
forking like a liner s and then started
iome. This time 1 put her through
wime of her paces. We flew through
ibout 40 degrees of a cycle steering
rom side to side and climbing and de
c-ending with a precision that was
food to realize.
On our back trip I saw over to one
tide of the lake a motor boat holding
ho Tribune correspondent and I laid
ny course toward him, passing about
10 feet over him and about 20 feet to
'no side. Flying around pylons takes
css accuracy than that. I mention this
° shew the finesse with which her
ourso can bo laid. On the way out I
mule the jumps; in going back I made
>ne sustained flight. She seemed to
•ejolce and was allowed to keep the air.
Sho acted quite as If that were her
i.-.tlve element. Every foot of her wing
airfares was doing its duty splendidly
ind[ carrying the weight as if it were
Certainly her lifting power
eft little to be asked for. I shut off
he motor and volplaned down to the
vater a quarter of a mile from the
ending stage and site shot ahead under
ler own momentum for a considerable
listance, showing how lightly sho sits
w-lt(;r- I opened the throttle
igaln and she speeded on the surface
ichavlng just us well as she had lif
,5® aJ,r * hen we pulled her out again
Crfi «'1S ,f.°,Und t0 be quite shipshape.
'*i„, thn* was wrong, in fact her
arlous parts Were in bettor simps after
ore Shi"* UV"?n th'-y had been be
orc sho was broken In.
Curttlaa and I have agreed upon
•ne change—one that we believe will
lid her greatly In leaving the water
vhen she carries her full load. That
?‘°,ffuvach*"? water planes to either
,.® of. her hull about amidships. This
V'Li *IV0 h®r «reater and smoother
waning surface to make her rise to
he water's top and skim along before
he mount*. Her hull is built to carry
. heavy load and offers great resist
nee to the water as site Is driven
hrough it.
The hydroplanes will reduce this re
1 stance, thus easing the strain when
he starts up. The machine weighed
ester day about 3.560 pounds. When
ho is fully equipped and has her tanks
till of petrol she will go about 5,000
lounds. That Increased weight holds
io fear for us for we did not use all
ur power yesterday.
Toduy I shall make further flights,
n fact I shall continue thorn clear
hrough the week, at the end of which
hope to be able to leave for New
"oundlnnd, although It Is qulto sure
lmt I shall not be ablo to get away
or another seven days.
We plan to have the boat follow on
uly 4, reaching St. Johns on July 3.
"hen she will he reassembled and tried
u*. under actual flying conditions. I
to not look for this to take more than
i week. I sincerely believe that we
hall be off on our trans-Atlantic voy
ge by July 15 or 1fi. The outcome Is
n the lap of God. But If the Ingenuity
if Mr. Curtiss and the confidence of
ny assistant and myself play a part
n shaping the result we shall go along
vay toward reaching England.
Davii Spots.
Fly Julius Muller In the Century.
The most Important advice that I
an give the northern stranger who
lsits the Carrlbean tropics Is this:
f you are walking along a West In
llaai road at night and step suddenly
in a warm Bpot. leap away from It at
moo. A devil has been lying there
.sleep.
The devil spots are so warm that
hey can be felt by the bare feet of
he natives, and a West Indian's
oles are a bit tougher than ordl
uiry boot soles. Even West Indian
urgcons have a mild scare some
lmes when they find how deep they
lave to cut Into a bushman's foot to
each flesh.
I.ast year we lived near a road that
cns a regular dormitory of devils.
Vhen we sat on the veranda at night
>ie could alwnys tell where they were
ying whenever a file of natives came
■addling along with their swift glide,
i’ho leador suddenly would check htm
elf, sidestep swiftly, and glide on.
Vlthout a word the rest would follow
luit. There always is a tile of natives
t night in the Wost Indian Islands,
t is ever bo much safer, If you are a
■ush dweller.
Frohman’s Advice to a Playwright.
In the American Magazine, Marjorie
teuton Cooke, writing a story entitled
Hamby," describes an interview be
ween one of the characters In her
tory and Charles Frohman, the la
nous theatrical manager. Following
s an extract from the Interview:
•' 'How long have you been at this
daywriting?'
•' 'Three years.'
“ ‘How long do you suppose it took
ne to learn to be a manager?'
•' ‘1 don’t know.’
" ‘Well, nearer threo times 10 than
hree years, and I am still learning,
fou writing fellows never want to
earn your trade, like other people,
fou talk about Inspiration and uplift -
ng the public, and all that, and you
vant to do It In six months. You go to
vork on this new idea, and come back
icre when you’ve finished It. Then It
vlll be time enough to talk about my
ind of it.’ ” _ _
44"f-M--f444+"f44-4-44-44-444-M"f4"*'
► ♦
H WORK OR FEE? 4
h ♦
4 By Ruskln. ♦
► If your work Is first with you. and 4
r your fee second, work Is your mas- 4
y ter, and the lord of work, who Is 4
4 God. But If your fee Is first with 4
4 you. and your work second, fee is 4
h your muster, and the lord of fee, 4
4 who Is the devil. 4
Father—1 suppose you know, Susie,
that in keeping you Indoors 1 punish
myself, as w ell as you.
Susie—Yes, sir; that’s why 1 don't
mind It.
Richest Woman In Kentucky
Takes Up Husband's Affairs
1
MRS. MAYO, HER CHILDREN AND HER HOME.
In the little town of Painstville,
Johnson county, Kentucky, lives a
woman upon whom the eyes of the
whole state are fixed. She is Mrs. John
Calhoun Mayo, widow of the richest
man in Kentucky, who died of Bright's
disease in New York recently.
Mrs. Mayo Is now the wealthiest
widows in the central west, and per
haps the most interesting, since she is
to tuke up the gigantic business affairs
left by her husband and carry them
out. Mrs. Mayo's wealth, consisting
principally of vast tracts of timber and
mineral lands, is estimated at J20,000,
000. Khe has two children to help her
enjoy it. They are John, aged 13, and
Mnrgaret, aged 8.
The Mayo home, where Mrs. Mayo
will conduct her business, is the
handsomest in eastern Kentucky. Its
buildings and surroundings, with fur
CAREOF BABIES.
In the last 20 years infant mortality
has been reduced in this country 50 per
cent, and it is probable that with the
spread of our knowledge concerning
babies the next 20 years will see 4tio
present mortality, which is still appall
ingly high, cut in two.
The lessened death rate has come
about not so much from improved
methods of treating disease!) as from
the successful endeavor to prevent
disease, it is by means of preventive
measures that the fight against sick
ness is to be won. It is simpler safer,
and more economical to keep the baby
well than to cure the baby. Keep
the baby well and you won’t have to
cure him. Our endeavors to prevent
disease in babies should be directed
along three lines hygiene, diet, and
protection from Infectious diseases.
The environment of the baby has
much to do with preventing disease. A
well ventilated room with an abun
dance of sunlight and protection
against sudden changes in temperature
should be provided. A daily bath with
careful drying of the skin is no longer
considered a luxury but a need. There
is a superstition that daily baths are
weakening, but the opposite is the
iact.
j.iiu uuoy s raomn snouiQ oe leu
alone until the teeth have pierced the
gums—there is danger of injuring the
delicate mucous membrane of the
baby's mouth—but when the teeth have
appeared a small tooth brush Is of the
greatest service In preserving the teeth.
The eyes require no special attention
after the first day of life, nor do the
ears. The nose should be washed
gently with a very moderate solution
of table salt in the water.
Of the greatest importance is pre
venting disease in a rational diet for
the baby. The infant has a restrictive
tolerance for food and if the tolerance
Is exceeded it is with hazard to the
baby. The one rational food for the
infant is mother’s milk and every ef
fort should be made to obtain this food.
Infants nursed at the breast have a
lower death rate than artificially fed
babies, and they resist sickness much
better.
Stated in figures, the bottle fed
baby is in 10 times more danger than
the breast fed baby. The baby should
be nursed at regular intervals. The
pursing should be continued for the
greater part of the first year, though it
Is advisable to give the baby one bottle
of artificial food about the fourth
month, not so much as a welcome re
lief to the mother as getting the baby
accustomed to this means of taking
artificial food, which may be difficult
to do at a later period.
Weaning should lie accomplished
gradually and according to the indi
vidual condition. If the baby cannot
have human milk, the greatest care
should be exercised in selecting arti
ficial food. Cow’s milk such as is sold
In this country as certified milk should
be selected and then modified so us to
resemble as nearly as possible human
milk and at the same time respect the
restricted digestive power of the baby.
Lastly may be mentioned th< preven
tion of infectious disease. Keep the
baby away from every sick person;
rigidly isolate every one suffering front
a contagious disease; disinfect all tile
fxcreta from the sick and destroy all
the effects which muy have come in
contact with the invalid.
It is not generally appreciated that
the seed of tuberculosis is usually sown
In infancy, but such is the case
Knowing that babies are especiallv
sensitive to tuberculosis, they must be
protected from every source of infec
tion. both human and bovine. It is not
possible wthtn these limits to do more
tiian to enumerate some of the meas
ures of preventing disease in babies,
but if our thoughts ran be directed to
the prevention of sickness, victory in
our fight against infant mortality is
assured.
Eleven miles of subways are being
considered to solve Liverpool's con
gested traffic problem.
nishfngs, some of which came '•om
over the sea, cost in the neighborhood
of a. quarter of a million dollars. Mrs.
Mayo will fit up offices in a part of this
big home and there, with the assistance
of secretaries and experts in the
various lines of work her husband was
interested in, will carry out what she
believes he would have her do.
Mrs. Mayo is probably 46 years old,
though she does not look it. She has
a keen grasp of affairs and her counsel
was always sought by her husband In
business deals. These confluences en
abled her to step into his business
shoes with more readiness and ability
when the time came that she must
succeed him. Those who visit her of
fices find there a calm, keen-eyed busi
ness woman, thoroughly capable of
looking after her own affairs a most
gracious lady socially, a most talleuted
woman in a business sense.
!♦ ARMY NO LONGER FACES ♦
♦ SPECTER OF TYPHOID
Jack London in Collier's.
The United States was the first coun
try to inoculate its soldiers and sailors
against typhoid, and it is safe to as
sume, no matter in what other ways
its soldiers may lose their lives in Mex
I ico, that none will die from typhoid. This
inoculation is a fairly simple matter. The
serum is hypodermically injected into the
arm in a series of three injections, the
intervals between injections being 10
days.
In a way the injectee becomes a sort
of peripatetic graveyard. The first in
i Jection puts into his blood the nicely
dead carcasses of some 500,000,000
j micro-organisms along with ail their
I virtues of doadness, which bring about
I a change in the constitution of the
blood that makes it resistant to future
invasions of full powered, malignant
typhoid micro-organisms. With the
first injection, theoretically, the man
has had reduced the 100 per cent of
his non-immunity to typhoid to 32 per
cent.
The second injection, 10 days later,
consists of 1,000,000,000 nicely dead
carcasses of the disease. Also it re
duces his non-immunity to 8 per cent.
The third injection introduces another
1,000,000,000 of the same ably efficient
carcasses and reduces his non-im
munity to zero. In short, when his body
has become the living cemetery of 500,
000,000 more dead bodies than there are
live humans in all the world, he has be
come so noxious to the particularly nox
ious and infective typhoid that he may
be classed as a positive immune.
It is very easy, the actual process of
inoculation. I have had the pleasure of
reducing my non-immunity of 100 per
cent to zero per cent. The first inoc
ulation was perpetrated in a transport
hospital, the second in a captured acad
emy turned into an army hospital. The
third in « flfdd hnenUnl Thn citnK tiia
hypodermic syringe, different from ad
ministering morphine just under the
skin, goes straight down and squarely
down into the meat of the arm for half
an inch, hut the pang of the stab is no
severer. Tho hurt of the stab ts over
the instant the skin is punctured. It is
only the nerves of the skin that protest in
either case.
After an inoculation there is no in
disposition. The arm is a trifle sore for
several days and that is all. Some in
oculatees aver that they awaken from the
first night's sleep with a dark brown
taste in their mouths. In rare cases a
mild increase of temperature is noted,
reaching its height some six hours after
the inoculation and fading quickly away.
1 have talked with a daring one who took
the total quantity at one time, and who
stated that the impact was equivalent to
a man's fist between the eyes, and that
he was not quite himself again for all
of the L’4 hours.
Hut the big thing about tho whole af
fair is the statistics. Individuals do not
count. What counts is the results
achieved by the inoculation of thousands
of men. What counts is the reduction
to nothing of typhoid cases in the army
hospitals. What counts is the reduction
to nothing of the army funerals due to
typhoid.
Foq and Sea Safety.
From the Chicago Herald.
Will it be necessary to call another
international convention for the discus
sion of safety at sea?
Fog, the most terrible enemy at sea,
has bet n teaching navigators some
solemn lessons latterly. The moral of
the disaster in the St. Lawrence has
been emphasized by the collision be
tween the Wilhelm 11 and the lnce
more in the* Knglish Channel. Five or
six other accidents, some of them ser
ious have occurred in the last few
days, and they have all been attributed !
to dense fog, coupled with overconfi-'
donee, perhaps.
The London convention on sec w»f«tv
has not yet been ratified by our Senate.
Some of the objections thereto have
been removed by a resolution reserving
i the right to impose io0u<.* m. ..
i on vessels in American waters. Other j
1 objections are still under discussion.
The fog question, apparently, has not
■> received sufficient attention Too
j much is left to the discretion of cap
j tains and other officers, and some
. take chances where prudence should
I suggest the stopping of the engines,
j Wo have had accidents enough to
make the question urgent.
I BLOOD PRESSURE TESTS
BY DR. W. A. EVANS.
" nen one puts his fingers on the
Irrist he “feels the pulse." He notices
a little triphammer stroke transmitted
to his fingers. He may notice that the
pulse is fast and bounding, or that it
is slow and soft. In thi3 simple test
he has been making a crude effort to
determine the blood pressure and to
discover the rapidity of the heart's ac
tion.
The second half of the test, deter
mining the pulse rate, developed about
as far as it could be developed when
the use of watches with second hands
became general. The determination of
blood pressure was a guessy perform
ance until a few years ago when simple
instruments for its measurement began
to bo generally used. We have learned
more about blood pressure in the last
10 years than in all the preceding his
tory of the world combined, and the
probability is that the next 10 years
will teach us more than the last 10.
The blood pressure apparatus Is a
means of measuring with a mercury
column the impulse which, when felt
with the finger, we called a bounding
pulse or a soft pulse, as the case might
be. The blood pressure apparatus con
sists of an unelastic cloth band, within
which is a hollow rubber tube, similar
to an automobile tire. The inner tube
is connected on the one hand with an
air pump and on the other with a col
umn of mercury and a perpendicular
scale.
The band Is fastened loosely around
the bare arm. The Inner tube is blown
up. As the band will not allow expan
sion externally, as the tube inflates it
must compress the arm. The Inflation
is continued until the pulse cannot be
felt at the wrist. In the meanwhile,
as the pressure on the arm increases,
the mercury Is forced up the perpen
dicular tube.
When the pulse disappears the
amount of pressure Is shown by the
height to which the mercury has
mounted. We speak of 120, meaning
that the column of mercury has risen
120 millimeters, or about 4.7 Inches.
Some of the blood pressure apparat
uses, instead of using a column of mer
cury as a recorder, make use of a dial
and hand, somewhat similar to the ar
rangement of a water gauge or steam
pressure recorder. When the brachial
artery, the artery of the arm, is pressed
on until caught between the bone and
the inner tube, no blood can flow into
the radial artery, and in consequence
the radial pulse disappears.
Blood pressure then is the amount of
pressure or squeezing necessary to ap
ply to the arm to collapse the brachial
artery. The pressure applied to the
skin is transmitted the artery without
losing force. Therefore the measure of
the pressure in the inner tube is a
measure of the tension of the blood in
the artery. The blood in the artery is
pressing out against the blood vessel
wall with exactly the same pressure as
that shown by the column of mercury
to be the pressure in the inner tube.
What makes the blood in the artery
press out? When the heart contracts
it forces the blood into the arteries.
The elastic arterial walls squeeze the
blood to keep it moving forward. The
amount of heart squeeze plus the
amount of wail squeeze is just equal to
the amount of force necessary to push
the blood through the small vessels,
capillaries, and veins back to the heart
again. If it were not for the pres
sure of the blood in th? vessels little
force would be required to collapse an
artery.
The large artery coming off the
heart is called the aorta. It is so called
because its discoverer thought it
carried air. It was thought to carrv
air because alter death it was found
to bo a great round tube nearly empty
of blood and partly filled with gas.
The aorta has a wall stiff enough to
make it remain round and uncallapsed
when empty.
This, however, is not true of the
smaller arteries. Drain tile blood out
of them and a feather's weight will
collapse them. Therefore the blood
pressure is a measure of the blood in
the artery and not a measure of the
stiffness of the wall.
If you have ever watched when the
blood pressure was taken you have
noticed that the mercury runs up with
each pulse heat and down between
tile beats. If an index pressure record
er was used you noticed that the needle
played back and forth in the same way.
What is called the blood pressure is the
highest point reached by the needle
or the mercury as the wrist pulse stops.
To speak more accurately, the exam
iner pumps up the tube until there is
no longer any pulse at the wrist. He
then permits air to escape until the
first faint trace of a pulse can be
felt. This is called systolic pressure.
He then allows more air to escape, and
presently the l’aint thready wrist pulse
is replaced by a full pulse. The point
at which the full pulse appears is read
off as the diastolic pressure. The dif
ference between these readings is the
pulse pressure.
The diastolic pressure is the measure
of tension of the blood in the arterv be
tween heart beats. When the heart
beats and throws an extra quantity of
blood Into the artery the pressure
jumps up and produees svstolic blood
pressure. Then the diastolic pressure
Is the tension of the blood In the
artery; the pulse pressure is the men
.sure oi 4 ne lorce of the heart beat
and these two added together make
ti e systolic blood pressure. This last
Is what we mean when we speak simply
of the blood pressure.
The pulse pressure is the measure of
the force of the heart beat. The dia
stolic pressure is the measure of the
blood pressure inside the vessels be
tween beats. What is ordinarily called
blood pressure, better called systolic
blood pressure, is a measure of the
pressure due to the heart force plus
the vessel force. Or, to put it again
and in another way. the pulse pres
sure shows the condition of the heart
muscle: the diastolic pressure the con
dition of the vessel walls; the systolic
pressure the maximum pressure to
which the vessel walls are subjected.
To determine what the pressure
ought to be, Faught recommends the
following formula: A normal man at
20 has a pressure of 120; a woman at
the same age has 110. To got the nor
mal pressure for a given age add 1
for each two years over 20. Accord
ing to this rule, a man of 50 should
have a pressure of 135 and a woman of
that age one of 125.
The Faught scale allows for a varia
tion of 36 between high and low nor
mal. as he terms it. A man for whom
135 is normal may have as low as 118
without being disturbed, or it may go
as nigh as >142. These would be his
low and high normals.
If the blood pressure goes more than
IB over the high normal or the same
below the low normal the case should
be carefully inquired into.
The blood pressure, the pressure that
the blood is under in the vessels, is de
pendent upon two groups of forces.
The blood is caught between these
forces like a file in a vise. Pushing
from behind is the force of the heart
anil the force of the arterial elasticity.
Pushing from the front is the resist
ance of the vessel walls everywhere
throughout the system.
Therefore what we do when we
measure blood pressure is in a wav
measuring the resistance throughout
the body. When one is young, with
elastic tissues, this resistance is at a
minimum. When one is older and with
worn out tissues the elasticity is less,
and the resistance is at a higher level.
Gibson has formulated a rough way
of estimating the force of the heart
beat from the blood pressure. His rula
is that one-third of the blood pressure,
or systolic pressure, is due to the puls*
pressure and two-thirds to the diastolio
pressure.
According to this rule, if a man ha*
a blood pressure of 150 he should hav*
a pulse pressure of 50 and a diastolio
pressure ot 100. This is the normal re
lation.
It may vary materially, and there i»
where one of the dangers from ac
cepting blood pressure on its fac*
without further analysis comes in. For
instance, there may be an increase in
resistance in the vessel walls, but at
the same time heart disease may b*
present. The resistance would increas*
the diastolic pressure, but the limping
heart would pump less effectively than
normal. In consequence the pulse pres
sure would be relatively decreased; the
normal relation of pulse pressure. 1;
diastolic pressure, 2; to systolic pres
sure, 3. would be disturbed.
Outside the variations due to age
and disease. there are variations 1
called physiological. There will be a
variation according to muscular
strength of 5 to 10 on each side of the
normal. A physically weak person
will have low pressure, and a physi
cally strong one a high one. Obesity
adds a little to the blood pressure.
Active exercise will add 29 to the
blood pressure, if the record is made
soon thereafter. A full meal will in
crease the pressure 20 during the next
hour. The pressure should be taken
sitting upright, and the cuff on the
arm should be at the level of the
heart.
A change in posture from the erect
to the horizontal causes an increase in
the blood pressure. If one lies down
five minutes and then sits up it will
cause a fall in pressure.
The pressure falls about 25 during
the early hours of a heavy sleep, and
then gradually rises through the night.
Early the next morning it is still low.
During the day there is a gradual rise,
and the maximum is reached late in
the day. The range from deep sleep
to shank of the day may be as high as
40.
Pain, anxiety and violent emotion
cause sharp rises. Excessive draughts
of water will raise the pressure 5 to
10. Large amounts of beer cause a
marked rise. Strong alcoholic drinks
cause a sharp short rise.
Habitual drinkers develop a chronic
high pressure, not much augmented by
a single drink. Excessive smoking
during a short period of time causes
a rise of 20. Habitual smokers usually
have a low pressure.
For several years we have been
hearing much about blood pressure.
Average men have heard of it. and a
fair proportion of them have had one
or more blood pressure examinations.
The insurance companies want to
know the pressure of those whom they
insure. The companies who offer their
insured a periodic examination in
clude a blood pressure examination.
Cabot is quoted by Faught as fol
lows;
ir i were allowed only two Instru
ments of precision for my aid in physi
cal diagnosis they would be the stetho
scope and the sphygmomanometer (the
blood pressure apparatus). I regard
this measurement of the blood pressure
as the most important of all the re
sources that have been added to our
armamentarium as physicians in the
last 15 years.”
We are now in possession of statistics
as to the average length of life of
select groups having certain blood
pressures. We can assume that there
is no further need of stimulating gen
eral interest in blood pressure.
The man in the street wants to
know his blood pressure. When he
goes to a physician for a general physi
cal examination he knows that, if no
blood pressure is made, the examina
tion is not complete. When he comes
up for a life insurance examination he
expects to have a blood pressure taken.
What we need now is a better an
alysis and a better understanding of
the relation of different conditions to
blood pressure. The bald fact that one's
blood pressure is 160 is not enough on
which to base an opinion.
The relation of age to blood pressure
is somewhat understood, yet some peo- /
pb* need to know about that. The re- £
lationship of eating, drinking, and 9
sleeping, of exercise, time of day pos
ture, excitement, all this needs to be
talked about more. By we I mean the
general public, who now knows enough
about the basic subject, blood pressure
to be ready for the next lesson—name
ly; the relation between systolic, dias
tolic, and pulse pressure.
Finally, it is time to begin general
discussion of the relation of different
diseases to blood pressure and of the
possibility of raising or lowering blood
pressure by changing one's mode of llfei
In 1913 Bermuda shipped more than
93,000 pounds of onion seed to the Uni
ted States.
TO HEAD DISASTER
PROBE COMMISSION
LORD MERSEY.
The news that Lord Mersey, who
presided over the British inquiry in
to the loss of the Titanic, is to be a
member of the royal commission ap
pointed to investigate the Empress of
Ireland disaster, has been received with
satisfaction by those who desire th#
inquiry to be thorough.
As Lord Mersey was president ■
the Titanic court, it is assumed thai
he will be similarly honored when thi
royal commission meets at Montreal
The Canadian members of the com
mission are Chief Justice Ezekiel Me
Leod, of New Brunswick and S:
Adolphe Routhler, of Quebec.
