Cooley's Cyclopaedia of Practical Receipts Volume I Part 169

Mr Wynter Blyth, in his 'Dictionary of Hygiene,' recommends a coffin described by Mr Baker in his evidence before the sanitary commission. "The body being first of all placed in a common sh.e.l.l, this sh.e.l.l is placed in the coffin; the interval between the two is filled with common pitch, and then the outside coffin is coated over with pitch; so that it is as perfectly air-tight as a leaden sh.e.l.l. If desired a gla.s.s can be placed so as to leave the face exposed to the view of a jury when necessary with regard to the interment.

"The advantages of deep over shallow burying are obvious. The greater the ma.s.s of superinc.u.mbent earth into which the gaseous products of decomposition diffuse, the better the chance of their absorption and removal by the soil, and the less risk of their consequent escape into the contiguous atmosphere, as well as of the danger of contamination to the water of wells, &c. The depth of the grave varies in different countries.

In Austria it is 6 ft. 2 in.; in Hesse Darmstadt, from 5 ft. 7 in. to 6 ft. 6 in.; Munich, 6 ft. 7 in.; Stuttgard, 6 ft. 6 in.; Russia from 6 ft.

10 in. In our country the practice is generally to make the depth about 6 feet, but then coffins may be placed one on the other, so that, as an actual fact, they often very closely approach the surface. The regulations followed at Stuttgard are much to be commended. In the cemeteries there the s.p.a.ce allotted for each grave is an oblong piece of land 10 feet in length and 5 feet broad. In France the graves vary in depth from 1-1/4 metres (4921 feet) to 2 metres (6561 feet). They are 8 decimetres (2264 feet) in breadth, and distant the one from the other from 3 to 4 decimetres (11911 inches to 1132 feet.)" (Blyth.)

To render a cemetery therefore as little prejudicial as possible to a community, not alone should deep burial be enforced, but only one body should be permitted to be deposited in a grave, at least, till after the lapse of some years. Some sanitary authorities recommend the use of quicklime or charcoal, advising them to be thrown into the grave previous to its being closed. Of the two, charcoal is the preferable disinfectant, although it does not entirely prevent putrefaction, nor the evolution of bad-smelling gases. No more efficient means of absorbing organic matters, and carbonic acid given off by the decaying corpse in the earth, can be devised than that of rapidly growing trees and shrubs in abundance around the graves.

For the funereal cypress and yew, which are slowly growing trees, why should a needless sentiment prevent the subst.i.tution of the much more sanitary and less sombre-looking eucalyptus in countries where this plant will flourish?

Old burial-grounds which have become offensive may be best disinfected by covering the ground with fresh earth to the depth of several inches, and by planting it with trees and sowing it with gra.s.s seed. Twenty-six city graveyards covering a superficial area of about 48,000 square yards, and in which, according to moderate calculation, there were not less than 48,000 tons of human remains, were successfully dealt with in this manner.

In the case of church vaults they should be first opened, a quant.i.ty of quicklime thrown into them, and thus freely exposed to the external air.

The coffins should then be rearranged crossways like bricks in a building, and filled in with dry earth or masons' rubbish, mixed with about 5 or 10 per cent. of vegetable charcoal. The vaults should next be ventilated by means of an upcast and downcast shaft of the size of a rain-water pipe, and the whole should then be closed in. In 1860, two hundred and fifty vaults in seventy-one city churches were thus disinfected.[253] These vaults contained the coffins and remains of at least 11,000 dead bodies, which, previous to the adoption of the above measures, were very offensive.[253] When bodies are removed from the vaults to other places, Dr Letheby recommends them to be in closed coffins and in cases containing an abundant supply of carbonate of lime powder.

[Footnote 253: Letheby.]

The disposal of the dead frequently becomes a matter of considerable difficulty in time of war or during a siege. Under these circ.u.mstances cremation may be found the most desirable method of getting rid of them.

If the bodies are buried they should always be at as great a distance as possible from one another, and as deep as they can be. If procurable, charcoal should be thrown over them; if it cannot be obtained sawdust and sulphate of zinc, or carbolic acid, may be employed. Quicklime is also commonly used, but it is less useful.

At Metz, in 1870, the following plan was adopted:--A pit of about 17 feet in depth was filled with dead disposed of as follows:--A row of bodies was laid side by side; above this a second row was placed, with the heads laid against the feet of the first row; the third row were placed across, and the fourth row in the same way, but with the heads to the feet of the former; the fifth row was placed as No. 1, and so on.

Between each layer of bodies about an inch of lime, in powder, was placed.

From 90 to 100 bodies were thus arranged on a length of 6-1/2 feet, and reached to about 6 feet to the surface; the pit was then filled up with earth, and though 8400 bodies were put in that pit there were no perceptible emanations at any time.

Around Metz the graves of men, horses, and cattle were disinfected with lime, charcoal, and sulphate of iron. Immense exertions were made to clean and disinfect the camps and battle fields, and in the month of May, 1871, from 1200 to 1600 labourers were employed by the Germans. Wherever practicable the ground was sown with oats or barley or gra.s.s. The hillocks formed by the graves were planted with trees.

In many cases at Metz bodies were dug up by the Germans, when there was any fear of water-courses being contaminated, or if houses were near. On account of the danger to the workmen, graves containing more than six bodies were left untouched, and the work was always done under the immediate superintendence of a physician. The earth was removed carefully, but not far enough to uncover the corpse; then one end of the corpse was uncovered, and as soon as the uniform or parts of the body were seen, chloride of lime and sawdust, or charcoal and carbolic acid, put in; the whole earth round the body was thus treated, and the body at length laid bare, lifted and carried away. The second body was then treated in the same way.

Near Sedan, where there were many bodies very superficially buried, burning was had recourse to. Straw mixed with pitch was put into the graves, and was lighted; one ton of pitch sufficed for from 15 to 20 bodies. Opinions as to this practice were divided, and it is not certain how many graves were thus dealt with. It seems probable that only the surface of the body was burnt, and when many bodies were together in the grave, some were not touched at all. On the whole the experiment appears to have been unsuccessful.

The Belgian experience at Sedan was in favour of employing chloride of lime, nitric acid, sulphate of iron, and chlorine gas. Carbolic acid did not answer so well. The sulphate of zinc and charcoal, which Barker found so useful, was not tried.[254]

[Footnote 254: Parkes.]

Various statutes have been framed for the burial of the dead and for the management and selection of the burial-grounds. In the carrying out of these enactments the local authorities have only an indirect voice, exception being made in the case of a local government district in which the vestry determines to appoint a burial board. The vestry then has power to const.i.tute the local board so appointed the burial board of such district or parish, and to rule that the expenses of such burial board shall be met by a rate levied on such parish, after the manner of a general district rate.

Vict. 21 and 22, c. 90, s. 49, enacts that if such parish has been declared a ward for the election of members of the local board, such members are to form the burial board for the parish.

By Vict. 24 and 25, c. 61, s. 21, it is enacted that a sanitary authority may provide a proper place for the reception of dead bodies, as well as for those which are to be subjected to a post-mortem examination.

A sanitary authority is also empowered to make arrangements for interment.

Any urban sanitary authority has the power of regulating these matters by by-laws. When once const.i.tuted a burial board, a sanitary authority has to see to the carrying out of the Burial Acts, to repair the fences of disused burial grounds, and generally to keep in proper order and regulate all burial grounds within its jurisdiction.

The law enacts that the proper sanitary authority shall close any burial ground which is detrimental to the health of those living in its neighbourhood, or of persons frequenting any church; and throws upon such sanitary body the duty of providing a proper place of interment elsewhere.

It may be well to know that by common law it is inc.u.mbent upon any person under whose roof a death has taken place to provide the corpse with interment. Such person may neither cast the body forth, nor carry it uncovered to the grave, but he must give it decent burial. This obligation is imposed upon public bodies as well as on private persons.

Upon presentation of a certificate signed by a properly qualified medical pract.i.tioner, a justice of the peace may order, under certain circ.u.mstances, the removal of the dead body to a mortuary.

Interment within the walls, or underneath the pavement or floor of any church, or other place of public worship, built in any urban district, has since August 31st, 1848, been interdicted under a penalty of 50.

=DEAF'NESS.= An imperfection or absence of the sense of hearing. When deafness is present in infancy and childhood, it is accompanied with dumbness, or imperfect articulation, in consequence of the impossibility of conveying a knowledge of the sounds necessary for the exercise of the imitative faculty of speech. Deafness frequently arises from some imperfection or obstruction of the pa.s.sage leading to the membrane of the tympanum or drum of the ear. In some cases this pa.s.sage is totally closed by a membrane, or some malformation of the tube, which may frequently be removed by a surgical operation. Even instances of partial obliteration of this pa.s.sage have occurred, which have been successfully treated. The researches of Mr Yearsley have established the fact, that enlarged tonsils are a very common cause of deafness; and when such is the case, their excision will generally effect a cure. To this form of the affection Mr Yearsley applies the term 'throat deafness.' Another cause of deafness is the presence of foreign bodies in the aural pa.s.sages or the acc.u.mulation of hardened wax. In these cases the best treatment is to inject warm water into the ear by means of a proper syringe. When deafness arises from imperfection of the tympanum or drum of the ear, the effects of the application of the artificial membrana tympani invented by Mr Yearsley (moistened cotton wool) are generally immediate and truly wonderful. By its aid persons previously so deaf as to be incapable of bearing their share in conversation have been enabled to hear an ordinary whisper.

Insects may be destroyed by pouring a spoonful of warm olive oil, or camphorated oil, into the ear over night, retaining it there until the next morning by means of a piece of cotton wool, when it may be washed out with a little mild soap and warm water. When there is a deficiency of the natural secretion of wax, or a dryness of the aural pa.s.sage, mild oleaginous stimulants may be employed. For this purpose a little olive oil, almond oil, to which a few drops of oil of turpentine, oil of juniper, or camphor liniment, have been added, may be used with advantage.

A piece of cotton wool moistened with glycerin is an excellent application in such cases. When deafness is accompanied with continued acute pain, or a discharge of purulent matter, inflammation of the tympanum, or some other portion of the internal ear, probably exists, and medical advice should be sought as soon as possible. The deafness that frequently accompanies a violent cold is generally caused by obstructions in the Eustachian tubes, and goes off as soon as the secretions return to a healthy state. In some forms of deafness blisters behind the ears are useful. A clove of garlic wrapped in cotton or gauze, or a few drops of the juice introduced into the ear, is extremely efficacious in nervous deafness. When imperfect hearing depends upon obtundity of the auditory nerve, or an extensive obliteration or malformation of the internal ear, it scarcely admits of cure.

=Deafness, Taylor's Remedy for.= _Prep._ From oil of almonds, 1 lb.; garlic, bruised, 2 oz.; alkanet root, 1/2 oz.; digest for a week, and strain. A little is poured into the ear in deafness.

=DEATH.= In cases of sudden death interment should be deferred till signs of putrefaction begin to appear, especially when no gradation of disease has preceded, as in cases of apoplexy, hysterics, external injuries, drowning, suffocation, &c. No sooner has breathing apparently ceased, and the visage a.s.sumed a ghastly or a death-like hue, than the patient, after his eyes are closed, is too often hurried into a coffin, and the body, scarcely yet cold, is precipitated into the grave. So extremely fallacious are the signs of death that the semblance has been frequently mistaken for the reality. By prompt means and judicious treatment, many persons, when in such a condition, have been happily restored to their families and friends. The effects of sound upon animal life is astonishing. The beat of a drum, for instance, has had a very beneficial effect upon persons in a state of suspended animation. At one time a scream, extorted by grief, proved the means of resuscitating a person who was supposed to be dead, and who had exhibited the usual recent marks of the extinction of life. In cases of catalepsy or trance, having the semblance of death, the action of the lungs and heart continues, though in a nearly imperceptible degree. By placing a cold mirror or piece of highly polished metal immediately over the mouth of the patient, symptoms of moisture will appear upon the surface if the most feeble respiration takes place.

=DEBIL'ITY.= _Syn._ DEBIL'ITAS, L. Weakness; languor; feebleness. When this arises from a diseased action of the stomach, the occasional use of mild aperients, followed by bitters and tonics, may be had recourse to.

When from a general laxity of the solids, and there are no symptoms of fever, nor a tendency of blood to the head, a course of chalybeates generally proves advantageous. See ANaeMIA, ATROPHY, &c.

=DECANTA'TION.= The operation of pouring or drawing off the clear portion of a liquid from the impurities or grosser matter that has subsided. It is commonly performed, either by gently inclining the vessel, or by the use of a syphon or pump. In the laboratory it is much resorted to in the purification of precipitates, or other similar operations, where repeated edulcoration or washing is required, for which purpose it is preferable to filtration, from being less troublesome and more economical. In these cases, after a sufficient time having been allowed for the subsidence of the precipitate or powder, or for the clearing of the supernatant fluid, the latter is decanted, and its place supplied by a fresh portion of water, which, after sufficient agitation, is similarly treated, and the whole operation repeated as often as necessary.

=DECANT'ERS.= There is often much difficulty experienced in cleaning decanters, especially after port wine has stood in them for some time. The best way is to wash them out with a little pearlash and warm water, adding a spoonful or two of fresh-slaked lime, if necessary. To facilitate the action of the fluid against the sides of the gla.s.s, a few small cinders or pieces of raw potato may be used. A spoonful of strong oil of vitriol will also rapidly remove any kind of dirt from gla.s.s bottles. Decanters which have become furred by holding hard water may be cleaned with a spoonful of hydrochloric acid ('spirits of salt'), diluted with 3 or 4 times its weight of water. See STOPPERS.

=DECARBONISA'TION.= This operation is performed on cast iron, to convert it into soft iron. The articles to be decarbonised are packed in finely powdered haemat.i.te, or native oxide of iron, to which iron filings are often added, and exposed for some time to a strong red heat, by which the excess of carbon is abstracted or burnt out. The process somewhat resembles annealing or cementation.

=DECAY'.= See EREMACAUSIS.

=DEC'IMALS.= _Syn._ DECIMAL FRACTIONS. Fractions which have for their denominator 10, or some power of ten; as 100, 1000, &c.; the number of ciphers in the denominator being always equal to the number of figures in the numerator. Thus, 2, 25, 125, respectively represent 2/10, 25/100, 125/1000. The denominator of decimals is never written, the dot placed before the first figure of the numerator expressing its value. Ciphers placed on the right hand of a decimal fraction do not alter its value; for 5, 50, 500, are each equal to 1/2; but ciphers placed on the left hand of a decimal diminish its value in a tenfold proportion; thus, 3, 03, 003, respectively answer to the common fractions 3/10, 3/100, and 3/1000.

Every figure on the left-hand side of the dot or decimal sign is a whole number.

ADDITION and SUBTRACTION OF DECIMALS are performed in the same manner as with common numbers, care being taken to place the numbers under each other according to their several values; as, tens under tens, hundreds under hundreds, &c.

MULTIPLICATION OF DECIMALS is performed in precisely the same manner as with whole numbers, merely pointing off as many figures in the product as there are decimals in the multiplier and multiplicand put together.

DIVISION OF DECIMALS. As the last, but pointing off as many figures in the quotient as the decimal places in the dividend exceed those of the divisor. If there are not figures enough in the quotient, the deficiency must be supplied by prefixing left-hand ciphers. Ciphers are also added to the right hand of the dividend, or to a remainder, where there are more figures in the divisor than in the dividend, by which the quotient may be carried on to any extent.

A vulgar fraction is reduced to a decimal by dividing the numerator (increased sufficiently with ciphers) by the denominator. Thus, 1/2 = 5, 1/8 = 125, &c.

The value of a decimal, of any denomination, is found by multiplying it by the number of parts in the next less denomination, and cutting off as many places to the right hand as there are decimals, and so on until the terms are exhausted. Thus, 634 oz. is =

634 8 ----- 5072 drachms.

60 ----- 4320

or, 5 dr. 4-1/3 gr. (nearly).

The constant use of decimals in the laboratory, in the surveys of the Excise, and in numerous chemical calculations, induces us to press the subject on the attention of operatives and others of neglected education.

An attentive perusal of the above, and a few hours' application, will make the matter familiar to them.

=DECOC'TION.= _Syn._ DECOCT'UM, L. An aqueous solution of the active principles of any substance obtained by boiling; also the process of preparing such solutions.

The effect of decoction in water differs greatly from that of infusion. At the temperature of 212 Fahr., the essential oils and aromatic principles of vegetables are dissipated or decomposed; while by infusion in hot water, in covered vessels, they remain for the most part uninjured. The solvent powers of boiling water are, however, much greater than those of hot water; and many vegetable principles scarcely acted on by the one are freely soluble in the other. This is the case with many of the alkaloids, on which the medicinal virtues of several vegetables depend. On the other hand, the solutions of many substances, though more readily made by boiling, are speedily weakened or rendered inert by ebullition, in consequence of the active principles being either volatilised along with the steam, or oxidised or decomposed by exposure to the atmosphere. This is particularly the case with substances abounding in extractive or astringent matter. When the medicinal properties of vegetables are volatile, or are injured by a strong heat, infusion should be had recourse to, in preference to boiling; but when a solution of the fixed const.i.tuents is alone sought, decoction is preferable.

The substances employed for making decoctions should be well bruised, or reduced to a very coa.r.s.e powder, or, if fresh and soft, they should be sliced small. In the former case, any very fine powder or adhering dust should be removed with a sieve, as its presence tends to make the product thick and disagreeable, and also more troublesome to strain. The vessel in which the ebullition is conducted should be furnished with an accurately fitting cover, the better to exclude the air; and the application of the heat should be so conducted that the fluid may be kept simmering, or only gently boiling, as violent boiling is not only quite unnecessary, but absolutely injurious to the quality of the product. In every case the liquor should be strained whilst hot, but not boiling, and the best method of doing this is to employ a fine hair sieve, or a coa.r.s.e flannel bag. In general it is found that, as decoctions cool, a sediment is formed, in consequence of the boiling water dissolving a larger portion of vegetable matter than it can retain in solution when cold. This deposit for the most part consists of the active principles of the solution, and, unless when otherwise ordered, should be mingled with the clear liquid by agitation, when the decoction enters into extemporaneous compositions, or when the dose is taken.

The length of time occupied by the ebullition is another point demanding some attention. Long boiling is in no case necessary, and should be avoided, especially in decoctions prepared from aromatic vegetables, or those abounding in extractive. The Colleges, in such cases, direct the ingredients "to be boiled for a short time," or "for ten minutes;" or they limit the period of the ebullition by stating the quant.i.ty that must be volatilised, as--"boil to a pint, and strain." The last method is generally employed for those substances that do not suffer by lengthened boiling.