Cholera gleanings : a family hand book, enabling readers of all classes to judge for themselves of the great error into which governments were unfortunately led by men looked upon as infallible guides, who very strenuously maintained the cholera to be a disease during which 'the living shall fly from the sick they should cherish' / by J. Gillkrest.

Gillkrest, J. (James), -1853

Date:: 1848

Credit: Cholera gleanings : a family hand book, enabling readers of all classes to judge for themselves of the great error into which governments were unfortunately led by men looked upon as infallible guides, who very strenuously maintained the cholera to be a disease during which 'the living shall fly from the sick they should cherish' / by J. Gillkrest. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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81 external, as well as frictions and heat hjj whatever means produced. He permitted light covering only, as a single blanket or rug; and he said “The windows of the Cholera Hospital at Gloucester are large, in proportion to the size of the room, and the door, which opens immediately into the garden, is seldom shut [speaking of July or August, no doubt]. The windows arc open day and night* so that the patients may be considered as living in the open air ; and the fire is kept so low as not to influence the tem- perature of the room.” A practice, more or less similar to this* I had certainly witnessed with benefit to the pa- tients in the course of my frequent visits to the Greville- street Hospital, London. Dr Shute adds that, under the above system, convalescence took place sooner than under any other, and, “ in all cases,” without consecutive fever, which, however, I did not observe to he always the case in other Hospitals. It was no part of the treatment adopted by those Gentle- men to endeavour to stop the vomiting which was, as usual, of frequent occurrence. A portion only of the great quan- tities of water taken into the stomach may be supposed to have been retained ; and, wherever this practice was fol- lowed, the benefit was generally admitted to have arisen from the watery part of the blood usually lost in the disease, being made up by the quantity of fluid thus swallowed.* I have noticed at page 82, that, under any treatment, reaction, in severe cases, did not seem to set in, generally, before a certain round of time. Thus far have I thought it right to speak respecting this practice ; but, as, no doubt, the attention of the profession has been recently directed to the use of large draughts of cold water, further evidence has appeared in journals in Eng- land.—It may be remarked that cold drinks had, among * Practitioners are enjoined by Dr. Shute not to be too impatient in adminis- tering other remedies at this period, as a favorable change is not to be expected immediately, the warmth of the body and restoration of the functions not begin- ning to shew themselves till after the lapse of 24, 36, or perhaps 48 hours.

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