CHAPTER I Introductory How old is the problem of the Nervous Housewife? Did the semi-mythical Cave Man (who is perhaps only a pseudo-scientific creation) on his return from a prehistoric hunt find his leafy spouse all in tears over her staglocythic house-cleaning, or the conduct of the youngest cave child? Did she complain of her back, did she have a headache every time they disagreed, did she fuss and fret until he lost his patience and... more...

The character and scope of this volume render it a most useful book for the home maker. The question of sanitation is one that closely affects the life of each individual, and many of its aspects are treated here in a lucid and comprehensive manner. Designed for wide distribution, these articles have been written to meet the needs of the dweller in the more densely populated communities, as well as those living in the less thickly settled portion... more...

CHAPTER I The Eye and Ear Injuries to the Eye—Inflammatory Conditions—"Pink Eye"—Nearsightedness and Farsightedness—Deafness—Remedies for Earache. CINDERS AND OTHER FOREIGN BODIES IN THE EYE.—Foreign bodies are most frequently lodged on the under surface of the upper lid, although the surface of the eyeball and the inner aspect of the lower lid should also be carefully inspected. A drop of a two-per-cent... more...

Preface Medicine, as the art of preserving and restoring health, is the rightful office of the great army of earnest and qualified American physicians. But their utmost sincerity and science are hampered by trying restrictions with three great classes of people: those on whom the family physician cannot call every day; those on whom he cannot call in time; and those on whom he cannot call at all. To lessen these restrictions, thus assisting and... more...

The Freedom of Life I AM so tired I must give up work," said a young woman with a very strained and tearful face; and it seemed to her a desperate state, for she was dependent upon work for her bread and butter. If she gave up work she gave up bread and butter, and that meant starvation. When she was asked why she did not keep at work and learn to do it without getting so tired, that seemed to her absurd, and she would have laughed if laughing... more...

INTRODUCTION SAIL to the Pacific with some Ancient Mariner, and traverse day by day that silent sea until you reach a region never before furrowed by keel where a tiny island, a mere speck on the vast ocean, has just risen from the depths, a little coral reef capped with green, an atoll, a mimic earth, fringed with life, built up through countless ages by life on the remains of life that has passed away. And now, with wings of fancy, join Ianthe... more...

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MEDICAL AMULETS Among the various subjects which belong to the province of medical folk-lore, one of the most interesting relates to amulets and protective charms, which represent an important stage in the gradual development of Medicine as a science. And especially noteworthy among medical amulets are those inscribed with mystic sentences, words, or characters, for by their examination and study we may acquire some definite knowledge of the... more...

THE BODY-REPUBLIC AND ITS DEFENSE The human body as a mechanism is far from perfect. It can be beaten or surpassed at almost every point by some product of the machine-shop or some animal. It does almost nothing perfectly or with absolute precision. As Huxley most unexpectedly remarked a score of years ago, "If a manufacturer of optical instruments were to hand us for laboratory use an instrument so full of defects and imperfections as the human... more...

THE GUIDANCE OF THE BODY THE literature relating to the care of the human body is already very extensive. Much has been written about the body's proper food, the air it should breathe, the clothing by which it should be protected, the best methods of its development. That literature needs but little added to it, until we, as rational beings, come nearer to obeying the laws which it discloses, and to feeling daily the help which comes from that... more...