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MARCH

The winter is breaking but it has left its mark on all of us. For the city dweller the winter months are times of concentrated strain, hard work, and often equally hard playing, late hours, undue stress of worry and excitement. Everywhere there has been an extra burden put upon the system by the severe conditions of the season.

Too often a man or woman who feels a little out of sorts at this time turns to "spring medicines" or some other proprietary drugs. If he or she has a cough that has hung on for the winter there is a cough or consumption cure attractively advertised in the newspaper or in the drug store window. If there is an obscure ache or pain or just a general feeling of indolence and lack of vitality, the cleverly worded circular of the quack suggests cancer or kidney trouble and offers a sure remedy. Or still more boldly the fakir claims to cure any of the ills to which human flesh is heir, so that there really is no need to find out just what may be the matter.

The danger of quack medicines

There are two very good reasons why these tempting baits should be avoided; first, because proprietary medicines rarely do any good, and second, because they often do very serious harm.

Tuberculosis may frequently be cured by proper treatment in a sanatorium or hospital; cancer by a surgical operation, but neither of them by drugs. The sad part of it is that while ignorant and foolish people are trying to treat themselves by drugs, the time when a real cure could be effected often passes by and when at last they call the physician it is too late.

This is not the worst of it, however, for many proprietary medicines. are not only fakes, but, worse, they often contain dangerous poisons or habit-forming drugs. The "soothing syrups soothing syrups " are rightly known to physicians as "baby-killers" for their active principle is usually morphine or opium, and headache cures often contain such powerful and dangerous drugs as acetanilid or phenacetin. The spring medicines, tonics, bitters, sarsaparillas, etc., are often strong alcoholic drinks as harmful for habitual use as whiskey or gin. The United States Commissioner of Internal Revenue lists among others the following as "insufficiently medicated to render them unfit for use as a beverage," in other words, as essentially alcoholic drinks - Beef Iron and Wine, Blackberry Cordial, Duffy's Malt Whiskey, Elixir Calisaya, Heublein's Calisaya Bitters, Koehler's Stomach Bitters, Kola Wine, Vin Mariani, and many more.

If you do not feel well and need medicine, consult a skilled physician and don't pay tribute to the Great American Fraud - the patent medicine fakir.

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APRIL

Spring is beginning to stir in the air and to send the sap up into the young new leaves. In the swamps there are already glimpses of vivid green and in sheltered places crocuses and snowdrops are pushing up their gallant little heads.

There are rooms in town and country, however, where the fresh spring breezes and the bright spring sunshine cannot enter, for the room is darkened, the mother is kept busy all the time soothing a fretful child. Out on the streets you see children who are up and about, but who cannot play with other children because of the spasms of coughing and choking which every mother nowadays knows enough to fear.

Once people thought very little of diseases like measles and whooping cough. We know now that these children's diseases are really serious ones that there are more deaths in New York State from measles than from typhoid fever; and about as many from whooping cough as from scarlet fever.

How to avoid measles and whooping cough

The difficulty in guarding against these diseases lies in the fact that they are most "catching" in the early stages, when even the physician cannot yet be sure what is the matter. Measles begins with a running nose like an ordinary cold in the head, and at this time the discharges from the nose and throat are more virulent than even later on when the rash appears and the child is put to bed. The same thing is true of whooping cough, which begins with an ordinary cough and may go on for days without any whoop to show just what is the matter. If the child goes to school or plays with other children at this stage, they are almost sure to contract the disease if they have not had it already.

The only way to check these diseases is for mothers and teachers and medical school inspectors to remember how dangerous they are and to watch children carefully for signs of a cold or of any illness, and if there is a chance that they may have measles or whooping cough, to keep them out of school and away from other children.

It is the babies with whom measles and whooping cough go hard. So particular care ought to be taken to keep those who are not perfectly well away from their little brothers and sisters.

Special circulars on measles and whooping cough may be obtained by sending a two-cent stamp for postage to the New York State Department of Health, Albany.

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13.

Tues..

Thomas Jefferson born, 1743.

5.20 6.33

4.38

14.

Wed... An act restricting the sale of habit-forming
drugs in N. Y. State became a law, 1914.. 5.18

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15.

Thur... Cholera in Memphis, 1873....

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16.

Fri..

Beginning of pid mic of s ptic sore throat
at Rockvill Centre, L. I., 1914.

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J. Pierpont Morgan born, 1837.

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Second Sunday after Easter.

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Charles Darwin died, 1882..

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20.

Tues... Constitution of N. Y. State adopted. 1777..

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morn .02

21.

Wed...

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5.06

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24.

Sat..

John Trumbull born, 1750.

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Third Sunday after Easter.

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Plague in London, 1665.

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Herbert Spencer born, 1820.

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Sir Charles Bell died, 1842.

4.58

6.49

4.01

29.

Thur... Oliver Ellsworth born, 1745..

4.57

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30.

Fri...

President Washington inaugurated, 1789... 4.55

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