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About The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 7, 1901)
THE COURIER. i r- beaded, mumbling crone, this picture shall I never once forget She stood on the wide rustic porch smiling a welcome at our approach, like some tall, white lily swaying on a frag ile stalk, her hair a fluffy mass of gold. A loose gown of blue was girdled at the waist with a chain of turquoise. She greeted us with an absolute lack of formality, even as if we were old friends. We sat on the porch, which looked down a tangled ravine on one side and away to the cool grey of the north on the other. A serving woman fetched us claret cup and wafers, and took Rob away to see the horses. Before we left Jim asked Mrs. Evend if she would sing something for us, as we would soon have to take leave if we ere to reach home before sunset. She consented brightly and led the way in doors. The interior showed the house to be a fit neat for this wounded bird. Mrs. Evend looked over her music and linally gave us a gay, rollicking drinking song in the most exquisitely cultivated soprano; then a tender lullaby with tears in it, but there were none in ber bright eyes as she turned back to us. She showed me over the house in a gay bird fashion. There were rare pictures, books, china, indeed all the beautiful externals. When we reached the front porch again, and our horses had been brought around, an irresistible impulse seized me and I bent and laid my lips upon her luminous cheek, and turned away quickly, for my eyes were full of tears. She faced me to her, and, kissing me softly, said: "You are grieving for me, dear; you must not; for 1 have much to be thankful for: my husband is coming next week. Don't, please don't, let your memory of me be a sorrowful one." At the turning south of our road, we looked back. She waved ber white hand, and then we lost her. Such radiant, ethereal beauty I have never seen. Alas! that the setting should be eo sorrowful! We rode home almost in silence, save for the crackliog under our horses' feet. Rob was tired and forbore his usual questioning. I escaped to my tent early that night and lay for hours at the door looking up the way which led up and up and on to almost incalculable heights. The woe of the world seemed to be heavy on my soul. I wondered why God had ever built these sanctuaries of nature where bodies were healed eimply enough to "'brokenly live on." Yet what was I, to question the Infinite, when that pure eouI among the heights yonder bore her cross and made no cry? Suddenly, far up the mountain side, a white form seemed to be moving down the path of the moonL a floating, unde fined, misty phantom which finally shaped itself to the outlines of a woman. On she came, a creature of the night. On the grassy plateau, a little distance from the house she paused, wringing her hand in impotent despair, then threw her head back against the broad ribbon of moonlight with a gesture as of mortal agony. 1 saw the face was the face of death, and the hair clung dank as with the damp of tombs. Oh! it was good to feel mother's warm hand, to hear her voice. "She hasn't been like herself for a week. We'd no business to let her sleep there! She shan't doit again.'' 1 crept close into Mother's wide em brace-a thing I hndn't done for years. She field me until I fell asleep. 'Ihe following afternoon Jim came to the house and asked if he might speak to me. He came in half awkwardly, holding a bouquet of yellows asters. After u few moments' conversation, during which I could tell he was nervous, ho said, "I would like to tell you some thing, Mis3 Mayfair you have been so kind to me if you feel strong enough to hear any more of my troubles." I was lying on a couch looking out at the hardy, late-blowing flowers. "Oh! I feel perfectly well; just a little nervous. What is it?" He drew a yellow envelopo from his pocket, and said, in a voice which sound ed weak and far away: ''She, she you know who I mean is dead. She she died with iny name the last one she spoke." 1 reached a hand toward him; he did not seem to see it. "But the strangest thing, Miss Penelope: I saw her quite plain. She came all in white down the mountain side. She reached out her arms and called such a pitiful crj; then I Btarted toward her and heard your cry and she had gone and you oh! we thought you too were dead!" What can be the trouble with roe"1 I wake again to find father on his knees by the couch, being altogether silly and asking if his precious darling were better. You know you always told me I was light-headed. Well, I am just a little worse now. Hope to write you next time from home. Yours, Pf.nei.oit. GERMS. ,r"V - w- TLJ va rh' 'rrir 7-Tt -Fr TTt- r r -, fc4f y ftp , , vos V rrr 2;$-S ' BR. B. P. BAILEY'S SANATORIUM. This Sanatorium has been opn but one month, jet it rapidly is increasing in popularity, and its fame has air. a ly reached bejond the boundaries of our own state. It is conveniently locateu one block from the car line, on the sito of the Lincoln Normal, and is thoroughly equipped for the successful treat ment of disease. Not a hotel, not a hospital but a hnmt. For information ad dress JLr XSoiij. 1?. Bailey, Llnooln, Xebr. With the first general comprehension of trie significance and importance of the relations between germs and disease there came also into the minds of many a genuine fear of these little parasites. As a greater familiarity has since come, there seems to be some little reaction, as is natural, in the opposite direction, and the bacteria are hardly accorded now by many the consideration they deserve. This condition of things can be attributed to but one cause, namely that the life history of the germs themselves and their action in producing disease are not fully understood. Comparatively few people know the painstaking experiments connected with the establishment of any germ as the cause of a certain disease. The impress ion seems to prevail that it is only nec essary to find the germ in the body in connection with the disease, then to as sume that the disease is caused by that germ. Such observation, however, is not sufficient. Since the first disease-producing germ was established as such, scientific men have required that in order to determine any germ as causative of any disease, four conditions must be ful filled. In the first place, the germ must be found in the diseased body associated with the disease in such numbers and in such a relation to the tissues that they may reasonably be assumed to be the cause of the tissue changes and symp toms observed. Second, that the germs shall be grown in pure cultures in nue trient media outside of and entirely apart from the diseased body. Third, that these pure cultures so obtained shall produce in susceptible animals dis ease processes identical with those from which they are obtained; fourth, that in the diseased animals and in the lesions so produced, the same microorganisms shall be found again. For each of the diseases or disease pro cesses now attributed to a germ cause, this tedious and difficult experimental process has been many times repeated and the results so verified that thoy can Preferences 9 9 J. .J. i WE long- ago learned that to argue against a wo man's preferences was a mere waste of time consequently we never tr We sell every good sort of typewriter in its best form. One of these will suit your requirements. Plenty of unbiased advice, however, if you require it. dAbJHk I. E. AXfA&OPfD. 1I06 O Street Telephone 759 xikcoxk. kebr. no longer be held in doubt. In the name connection, however, our knowledge of the ability of the human body to remove or to successfully oppose large numbers of these germs has greatly increased as has also our information concerning the processes underlying the prevention of and recovery from infectious and conta gious diseaeees. It is interesting also to note that many diseases for which as yet a germ cause has not been established, are accepted by practically all physicians as diseases due to micro-organisms; this conclusion having been reached by the same course of reasoning as that by which astrono mers are able to announce in advance the discovery of new planets or by which chemistB prophesy the discovery of new chemical elements by inference from the blanks in the table of Berzelius. For this reason diseases like small-pox and scarlet fever are ordinarily considered as germ diseases and are treated as such, even though the etiological organism has not been established. The lengthening of the average human life during the past century, a fact for proof of which the large insurance com panies have furnished abundant statis tics, is undoubtedly attributable in the main to the improved methods in medi cine and surgery due to the advancement of the germ theory of disease. This knowledge has permitted us not only to take better care of those afflicted with such disease, but so to isolate the cases and to protect those who must be asso ciated with such patients, that the rav aging epidemics of such diseases in for mer times will soon be a thing of the past. In addition to this the germ theory more than anything else has con tributed to the spread of that great pre ventative of disease, cleauliness. from which only is to bn expected our final complete salvation from germ disease?. I) In avoidiog germ infection, whether it be of a wound or of a body to produce disease, there are two things to consider, la the first place, the germs must bo kept down to such numbers that the in fected body or tissue may successfully cope with them, or, which is a physiolog ical equivalent, the tissues must be in euch good condition that they can resist more than the usual number of germs. These same principles which determine the first infection are also operative in deciding whether tie patient shall suc cumb to or recover from the disease pro cesses which are thus induced. It will be seen, therefore, how important is any hygienic measureor any procedure under the head of treatment which either re duces the numbers or virulence of the infective agent, or which increases the virility or resisting power of the patient or his tissues. It is the mastery of ;i knowledge of these things which char acterizes the successful physician; fqr it is only by such a knowledge that one can be continuously efficient in the warfare of health against disease. 'I dread to think of my fortieth birth day." "Whj? Did something unpleasant happen then'r" lit Hits. 41 X & 9 M I i vHI ! tm M V Uhtt t A. B 4 1 r? I' 'J H i w V- m . . JB ;l u r i ' H ; I 4 - Li t 18, I.T