THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. MONDAY, APRIL 19, 1880.

Thames Star, Volume XI, Issue 3530, 19 April 1880, Page 2

THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. MONDAY, APRIL 19, 1880.

In the last returns of the census of England and Wales, out of the 22,712,266 persons who made up the total number of the inhabitants, only 168,895 returned themselves as possessing tank and property—that is to say, they had no professed occupation, and lived entirely on their means. This is worthy of note, as showing what a hive of industry England is, and also as indicating the importance which attaches to our modeS of life, so that health and industry shall go as far as possible hand in hand. Wtien a man who' is busily occupied is absorbed in his work he is very apt to subject himself to causes of. disease without being aware of the action, or even of the existence of such causes. He is ill, or at times feels ill, and wonders why. He attributes what he suffers to the work itself, or to something extra he has done in the way of W/?rk, and not to other influences which reallff He apart from it. For instance, injuries oocur to men of letters, and to ordinary penmen, from the position in which they sit at the desk or table. The practice of sitting at a low desk, and in a bending position, so that the front part of the body rests against the edge of the desk, m very hurtful. In writing, as in speaking, the body should be held .erect. But that which affects all classes of indoor workers most seriously is confinement in au unwholesome atmosphere in which the air is charged with the vapours driven off from the fire and gas, and where the exhalations of many persons living and breathing together mix with the other fumes of impure gaseous matter. It is difficult for a mind untrained to observe the effect of the exposures to danger, and to realise all the evil which is inflicted. Those who suffer, rarely complain, and if they do complain, it is not of the cause of their suffering, since that is to them a sealed book; and those who casually observe do not complain, for they do not see all that should be seen. It should not be forgotten that men of every occupation are very much influenced by season. We are all open to it, and in our daily lives various forms are used to express the fact. The weather is dull, it is dump, it is depressing —such are the terms often heard, and they correctly convey the impression which the speaker has in his mind. Still they do not express the whole truth. ! There can be no question that at the different seasons of the year, we are being subjected to great physical changes,

which materially affect our health and life, and are induced to a large extent independently of our will, or of our actions. We are gaining and losing weight of body, independently of occupation, at particular times of the year with a regularity which is correct as it is interesting. 'If the year is divided into quarters, there is generally a loss during the first and fourth, and a gam during the second and third—this is a directly opposite case in the antipodes. The body becomes heavier during the summer months, and lighter during the winter. The quantity of carbonic acid gas thrown off is much greater in winter than in summer. Unquestionably, variations of temperature, light, etc., are the principal agents in causing those changes which affect the physical health, but there can be little doubt that in addition to their direct influence, a periodic action occurs in the system which adds to, or diminishes these agents alone. Experience has shown, and medical science has proved, that there is a periodic ■variation in the weight of man during the year, the six summer months being a time of gain, and the six winter months a time of loss. The fluctuations begin and terminate with the vernal and autumnal equinoxes. Workers in the great human hive should never lose sight of the fact that iv addition to the other extraneous evils connected with occupation, must be added .the efforts due to overwork. There are two description's of overwork—the physical and the mental. The physical, carried to the extent of producing disease, occurs in a few occupations in which, when they are properly and judiciously carried out, the highest attainment of bodily health may be secured. Some men are kept too long engaged in what is considered ligbt work, but which, in time, tells upon the constitutional power. Other occupations are too heavy for human strength, and nothing but mere drudges of life can be called upon to carry them out. The powers or forces of the body are limited by the size or capacity of the organism of the frame, and a long continued strain upon its resources can have but one result. In three cases out of six the first indications of physical mischief are presented in the heart and circulation, two in the respiratory system in the form of bronchial disease, and one in the digestive system. The evils of mental overwork are, as. a rule, more obviously conspicuous than those which attach to the physical. The brain is taxed beyond its capacity, and ultimately gives way. But in this pushing age of competition whajt is to be done? Men and women must labor in order to live, and the line between work aad overwork cannot always be drawn with that nicety which should be kept in view if health is to be maintained.