Medical/Nursing History

[gwenith, BSN, RN]

this is an extract from "a manual of domestic medicine and surgery" j. walsh 1875! federick warne and co: london.

sect. 1.- definition of health

in the present artificial state of society, the health, both of individuals and communities is always comparitive, none of us being free from the ill effects upon our constitutions, of excess in the indulgence of our appetites, or the influence of bad air, defective drainage, or mental excitement upon our nervous systems. just as it is almost impossible to find a perfectly sound horse in this country, because all have a "screw loose" somewhere, so a human being with a "sound mind in a sound body" is equally a "rara avis". but in common language we are accustomed to use the term "good health"as meaning that state of the system which is the average condition of those who are free from absolute disease.

i swear this is an exact transcripton from the book. i aim to go through the book and pull out any more "gems" such as the one above.

(ps. don't worry brian i am pretty sure the copyright has expired)

[Agnus]

I always have to smile at old writings like these. It is so reassuring that so little has really changed. And on the other hand frightning and sad that so little has changed.

You are right it's a gem.

[wishingmary]

I agree it is a gem and I agree it is so true especially about the part of horses having a screw loose. I enjoy the language of old writings from published texts and from my ancestors of 100+ years ago that were kept in our family and passed down. I'll be looking for your posts!