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120 NORTH CAROLINA BOARD OF HEALTJI. "It is commonly believed that much sickness is directly caused by the emanation of gases from sewers, drains, cesspools and other receptacles for sewage and similar foul or decomposing substances. This belief even goes so far popularly and sometimes professionally as to serve as the all-sufficient explanation for the occurrence of certain specific diseases, such as typhoid fever, dysentery, diphtheria and scarlet fever. "Closely examined, the belief in the efficiency of sewer gas as the cause not only of general, but also of specific, disease appears to rest upon the idea that in some way or other poisonous gases, after having been formed in sewers, cesspools and the like by active decomposition of the foul substances therein, escape into the air, and being inhaled, either by virtue of their chemical character or by means of microorganisms, for whicli they are a vehicle, produce insidious general jioisoning or specific disease. It is very seldom, however, that the sewer-gas theory of disease is thus explicitly and clearly defined. More often it takes the form of the simple statement or belief that typhoid fever, dysentery, diphtheria or malaria are directly produced by broken drains; and it is this form chiefly of the theory or belief which requires to be corrected. 'The facts with regard to sewer gas and the part which it plays in the causing of disease appear at present to be as follows: ^'In the first place, there is reason to believe that the dangers of sewer gas have been very much exaggerated. There is no doubt, of course, that sewage is a decomposing liquid, and that it may and often does contain the germs of specific diseases. But, on the other hand, the facts that workmen frequently spend much of their time in sewers with impiinity, or work upon or about sewage in sewage-purification works or on sewage farms, seem to show that experience does not confirm the idea that the gases emanating from sewage are always or necessarily dangerous. Furthermore, careful chemical and bacteriological examinations of the air of sewers have shown not only that dangerous gases cannot ordinarily be detected in such air, but even that sewer air is singularly free from micro-organisms. little reflection will show that these results might have been expected, for decomposition of sewage in the sewers is seldom very advanced or extensive, while the air of sewers, being very quiet, ought to contain few bacteria. "If, now, we turn to stagnant sewage, such as might result from broken drains, or such as commonly exists in cesspools, we may reasonably expect to find more dangerous and more concentrated gases. "We may even suppose that these are poisonous, and that, finding their way into human habitations, they are capable of producing sickness. There is no reason to doubt that some cases of sickness have, in fact, thus arisen, and to this extent the belief in sewer gas as the cause of disease is probably sound. In such cases, however, the sickness may
Object Description
Rating | |
Fixed Title * | NCHH-01: Biennial Report of the North Carolina Board of Health [1879-1908] |
Document Title | Biennial Report of the North Carolina Board of Heath [1879-1908] |
Subject Name | North Carolina. State Board of Health -- Statistics -- Periodicals. |
Subject Topical | Public health -- North Carolina -- Statistics -- Periodicals. |
Subject Topical Other | Public Health -- North Carolina. |
Creator | North Carolina. State Board of Health. |
Publisher | Raleigh : News & Observer, 1881-1909. |
Repository | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Health Sciences Library. |
Host | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
Date | 1905-1906 |
Identifier | NCHH-01-011 |
Form General | Periodicals |
Language | English |
Rights | This item is part of the North Carolina History of Health Digital Collection. Some materials in the Collection are protected by U.S. copyright law. This item is presented by the Health Sciences Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for research and educational purposes. It may not be republished or distributed without permission of the Health Sciences Library. |
Digital Collection | North Carolina History of Health Digital Collection |
Sponsor | The North Carolina History of Health Digital Collection is an open access publishing initiative of the Health Sciences Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Financial support for the initiative was provided in part by a multi-year NC ECHO (Exploring Cultural Heritage Online) digitization grant, awarded by the State Library of North Carolina, and funded through the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). |
Volume Number | 11 |
Health Discipline | Public Health |
Digital Format | JPEG 2000 |
Print / Download PDF Version | http://archives.hsl.unc.edu/nchh/nchh-01/nchh-01-011.pdf |
Document Sort | all; group-a; nchh-01 |
Volume Link | http://dc.lib.unc.edu/cdm/search/collection/nchh/field/identi/searchterm/NCHH-01-011 |
Title Link | http://dc.lib.unc.edu/cdm/search/collection/nchh/field/documa/searchterm/NCHH-01 |
Catalog Record link | http://search.lib.unc.edu/search?R=UNCb2375274 |
Description
Fixed Title * | Page 120 |
Document Title | Biennial Report of the North Carolina Board of Heath [1879-1908] |
Subject Name | North Carolina. State Board of Health -- Statistics -- Periodicals. |
Subject Topical | Public health -- North Carolina -- Statistics -- Periodicals. |
Subject Topical Other | Public Health -- North Carolina. |
Creator | North Carolina. State Board of Health. |
Publisher | Raleigh : News & Observer, 1881-1909. |
Repository | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Health Sciences Library. |
Host | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
Date | 1905-1906 |
Identifier | NCHH-01-011-0128 |
Form General | Periodicals |
Page Type | all; report/review |
Language | English |
Rights | This item is part of the North Carolina History of Health Digital Collection. Some materials in the Collection are protected by U.S. copyright law. This item is presented by the Health Sciences Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for research and educational purposes. It may not be republished or distributed without permission of the Health Sciences Library. |
Filename | biennialreportof11nort_0128.jp2 |
Digital Collection | North Carolina History of Health Digital Collection |
Sponsor | The North Carolina History of Health Digital Collection is an open access publishing initiative of the Health Sciences Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Financial support for the initiative was provided in part by a multi-year NC ECHO (Exploring Cultural Heritage Online) digitization grant, awarded by the State Library of North Carolina, and funded through the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). |
Volume Number | 11 |
Page Number | 120 |
Health Discipline | Public Health |
Full Text | 120 NORTH CAROLINA BOARD OF HEALTJI. "It is commonly believed that much sickness is directly caused by the emanation of gases from sewers, drains, cesspools and other receptacles for sewage and similar foul or decomposing substances. This belief even goes so far popularly and sometimes professionally as to serve as the all-sufficient explanation for the occurrence of certain specific diseases, such as typhoid fever, dysentery, diphtheria and scarlet fever. "Closely examined, the belief in the efficiency of sewer gas as the cause not only of general, but also of specific, disease appears to rest upon the idea that in some way or other poisonous gases, after having been formed in sewers, cesspools and the like by active decomposition of the foul substances therein, escape into the air, and being inhaled, either by virtue of their chemical character or by means of microorganisms, for whicli they are a vehicle, produce insidious general jioisoning or specific disease. It is very seldom, however, that the sewer-gas theory of disease is thus explicitly and clearly defined. More often it takes the form of the simple statement or belief that typhoid fever, dysentery, diphtheria or malaria are directly produced by broken drains; and it is this form chiefly of the theory or belief which requires to be corrected. 'The facts with regard to sewer gas and the part which it plays in the causing of disease appear at present to be as follows: ^'In the first place, there is reason to believe that the dangers of sewer gas have been very much exaggerated. There is no doubt, of course, that sewage is a decomposing liquid, and that it may and often does contain the germs of specific diseases. But, on the other hand, the facts that workmen frequently spend much of their time in sewers with impiinity, or work upon or about sewage in sewage-purification works or on sewage farms, seem to show that experience does not confirm the idea that the gases emanating from sewage are always or necessarily dangerous. Furthermore, careful chemical and bacteriological examinations of the air of sewers have shown not only that dangerous gases cannot ordinarily be detected in such air, but even that sewer air is singularly free from micro-organisms. little reflection will show that these results might have been expected, for decomposition of sewage in the sewers is seldom very advanced or extensive, while the air of sewers, being very quiet, ought to contain few bacteria. "If, now, we turn to stagnant sewage, such as might result from broken drains, or such as commonly exists in cesspools, we may reasonably expect to find more dangerous and more concentrated gases. "We may even suppose that these are poisonous, and that, finding their way into human habitations, they are capable of producing sickness. There is no reason to doubt that some cases of sickness have, in fact, thus arisen, and to this extent the belief in sewer gas as the cause of disease is probably sound. In such cases, however, the sickness may |
Digital Format | JPEG 2000 |
Print / Download PDF Version | http://archives.hsl.unc.edu/nchh/nchh-01/nchh-01-011.pdf |
Document Sort | all; group-a; nchh-01 |
Volume Link | http://dc.lib.unc.edu/cdm/search/collection/nchh/field/identi/searchterm/NCHH-01-011 |
Title Link | http://dc.lib.unc.edu/cdm/search/collection/nchh/field/documa/searchterm/NCHH-01 |
Catalog Record link | http://search.lib.unc.edu/search?R=UNCb2375274 |
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