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HOW CJ S £ ™ -.ZFt \
toi dMCK Of fro ,
Prince Oscar, Terrified by the Black-Faced African Turcos, Collapsed in a
Fainting Fit and Is Now an Invalid with Paralysis of the
Vagus Nerve and Heart Complications
THE latent rahle bulletin:' of the con
dition of Prince Oscar give tho Im
pression that the Kaisers fifth eon
Is not likely ever to resume his duties at
the German battle front. Partial paraly
sis of the yagus nerve, one of whoso
functions Is to regulate the heart's action,
1r stated to be the final diagnosis of the
young prince's malady.
This, the medical authorities explain,
is why the Prince did not speedily re
cover from tho mental shock and heart
weakness which left him unconscious
among his slain officers on tho battle
field. Hi. condition is described as «o
gr.ti> that recovery is more than doubt
ful.
The mishap to the young German prince
U interest to the medical profession,
it i ■ unusual in some respects because It
i xlt u; • tne '(implicated and far reaching
and perhaps permanent effects ol a great
i t P. is now apparently evident that
hi was literally overcome and his nerves
paralyzed by terror at the onrush of the
him k faced Turcos when they had slain
all the other officers of his regiment. He
fell unconscious in a faint, and that was
all that saved him from Turco bayonets,
as they believed him to ho dead. The
medical history of this case explains how
a person may actually be "Beared almost
to death."
It was on September 24 at Verdun that
Prince Oscar was with his regiment In a
desperate charge upon the enemy. The
Prince, much excited, was with the ad
vancing column, shouting at Ihn top of
his voice. This particular charge was
BUeceasful, but not until Turco sharp
shooters hidden In tree-tops had picked
off every officer of tin regiment except
tho Prince himself.
Hight at this critical moment, when the
young Prince mov that he alone among
the officers sttl.l lived, the murderous
looking Africans charged. Prince Oscar
•—who is uu:y r.w•■uty-aix years old —had
reached the limit of his endurance of such
horrors He dropped, fainting, among ills
ala in comrades.
When the 'rinee wa •• discovered to be
etill alive hi \vi m ihed to a hospital in
Metz, where hear! weakness, induced by
excitement ami overexertion on the bat
tlefield, was the diagnosis. The Kaiser
forthwith bestowed upon him the Iron
Cross, and in a telegram of congratula
tions for the Prince and ills regiment
wrote:
"If wo have put the enemy to flight tn
all directions, we owe It to that good old
God of ours above."
As mental shock rarely. If evsr, per
manently disables a heart that was or
Why You Can t Have Freckles and Be Unhealthy- " A. 8., M. A., M. D. (Johns Hopklno).
OVlfi w.is an ancient poet of
great wisdom. He know many
things about th«> health a* well
hr the feelings of mankind. HU
rented lea, however, were often worse
than the aliments ho aimed to euro.
The tissues of crocodiles, sold he,
are excellent to take freckles or
■pots from the fare nnd to whiten
the skin. Ovid particularly advised
those who are called “freckled faced”
to to to Pharos. an island in the
mouth of the Nile, bee a use crocodiles
abounded there, "If swarthy, to the
r: ar'an varnish flysane he.
Ov'.j, 1, uever, had never been to
Florida, where crocodile* and their
colored cronies abound. So far no
one ha* ever seen either the tears,
tbe skin or the tripe of the Florida
creatures chanter either the leopard'*
epota or the Ethiopian's skin.
Freckles, It lias been very recently
Uetcrniluc-*, are the »vfcthervanes
and ion ..nets of health. Each and
•very freckle on jour face, science
now finds, is an autograph nnd
von oner for good vermilion blood
and physically forthright tissues.
A Ferocious Group of the Allies—With Machine Gun Supported by Two Dusky Sharpshooters.
ganically sound, the Prlnre’B doctors ex
pected that he would noon he able to re
join his regiment. Then came reports of
a more serious condition, and the Prince
was removed to Hamburg, where his
young wife could be at his side. From
Hamburg he ivrote to tho widow of one
of his slain officers a letter containing
these pragraplis about his own experi
ence:
"Two minutes before his death 1 was
with your husband In the front line of
defense, lloth of us had, by God’s grace,
come through a hellish lire, which lasted
nil day. Wo were speaking together in
the full lire of shells. Then your hus
band left to try to force an advance in
order to have a view over the hostile bat
teries, w hich he wished to storm.
"It was then he received the fatal shot
and was called Into the Great Army. I
was not able to follow further what, hap
poned. as then I required to be assisted
by two of my men on account of a heart
attack, which I am endeavoring tc re
cover from here at Hamburg under the
caro of my dear wife.”
But not even with such care did the
Prince’s health Improve. The heart at
tack took on a more and more serious as
pect. At length came tho discovery that
the cause of persistent heart weakness
was partial paralysis of the vagus nerve
the nerve whose sensory fibres control
and regulate lung and heart action. It
the Prince's heart hud been sound to be
gin with, the controlling power of a
healthy vagus nerve would have caused
the chock symptoms to disappear very
shortly. Hut when that name experience
with the fierce Turcos of the. French
army caused partial paralysis of tho va
gus. the Prince's condition becomes grave
indeed.
Such a condition is so rare in medical
practice that it naturally excites wide in
terest. There is also much popular curi
osity about the mysteries which surround
the heart, and the tireless labor which it
performs from birth to death and the
perils of injury and disease which hearts,
like every other vital organ, art sub
ject -to.
And now cornea tho added mystery of
the vagus nerve, with Its overlord atti
tude which the heart seems to fully rec
ognize. What Is the vagus nerve, and
how does it carry on this overlordship of
the heart?
Stripped ns much as possible of techni
cal verbiage, here Is what the authorities
ishv: .
"The pneumogastrieior vagus nerve has
an extraordinarily wide distribution and
diversity of function. It rises from both
a motor and a sensory nucleus located
deep In the brain. Emerging from the
tikull. It passes down the side of the neck
and thence to the interior' Spaces of the
True health la of n modest nature.
It U no frleud to noisy, bumptious,
fatty countenance or body. Freckles
are the union jacks and fluttering
flags of both bashfulness and health.
To bo In good bodily vigor your dis
position must be sunny, and a sunny
disposition within is like n eun
baked glow without. That Is. It
brings out a multitude of freckles.
In tine, the strength and power of
vour body is in exact proportion to
the number of freckles on your face.
If you have your face nnd forehead
nnd the hollows under your eyes
pop]>ered and tattooed with freckles
you may assure yourself that you
have better health than those who
have only a few.
True enough, freckles, like dark
complexions, often run tn families,
too. This is to say. they are
hereditary. But even when freckles
come down to you as a rich Inheri
tance from past generations they do
not often appear until you roam
abroad In green flelds and pastures
new at the age of ten years.
Moreover, freckles In families al
ways crown wtih their golden glory,
body, where It separates Into branches,
which thus connect all the Important vital
organs with the brain.
"Motor fibres of the vagus go to the
pharynx, larynx, bronchial tubes, oesoph
agus, stomach, small intestines and
spleen. Sensory-reflex fibres go to the
lungs, heart, and stomach, and to all other
organs which the vagus supplies with
sensation. These reflex fibres / stimulate
or inhibit the respiratory rhythm and the
heart rhythm—regulate the work of the
lungs and heart.”
It Is only within the last few years that
medical science has gained exact knowl
edge of the heart’s share in the function*
of the vagus, or pneumogastrie nerve. It
had long been recognized as the “inhibi
tory” nerve —that is, that its main func
tion was to keep various vital organs of
the human body from overdoing their al
lotted tasks. Thus, stimulation of the
vagus retards the normal action of the
heart and lungs, while its partial paraly
sis produces the opposite effect —like loos
ening the brake on a revolving wheel.
Hut to trace the anatomical extension
of the vagus nerve to tne heart muscle is
a comparatively recent achievement Af
ter long, painstaking and minute observa
tion, aided by a special electrical mech
anism Invented for that purpose—one of
which is in use at Bellevue Hospital, New
York—it was discovered that tilts long
sought connection was through the
nerve’s sensory fibres.
The human heart, like that of the lower
animals, is provided with Its own inde
pendent system of control. In the case of
many of the lower animals this indepen
dent control Is etirely adequate—the heart
by Itself, dtsconected from the brain and
general nervous system, Is a complete,
self governing engine. In the case of hu
man beings all the self-governing appar
atus is there, but it has long since yielded
important functions to the brain and Its
communicating nerves.
It is through this once adequate. Inde
pendent apparatus that, the vagus nerve
has been found to do its work. The sen
sory fibre connection are with the heart's
individual brain that used to do its work
unaided. This still more or less active
organ has the form of several little “bat
terles” of brain stuff located on the upper
external organism of the right auricle
where this receiving chamber is entered
by the two large veins from the lungs—
the superior vena cava and the inferior
vena cava The nerve extensions from
the heart’s brain "batteries" to its muscle
and valves upon whose rhythmic motion
life depends-—are the terminal filaments
of the cardiac branch of the controlling
vagus nerve.
It Is this connection which causes the
heart to "Jump” and to temporarily accel
erate Its beats when the brain receives a
only the fair faces of the strong nnd
health glowing youngsters. It Is also
true that freckles are not disposed
to show In brunettes and dark
skinned members of such a tribe.
There is a curious and prevalent
mistake among many persons, name
ly, that freckles are not the badges
of bonny, good health, but something
unattractive to the eye; something
to be rid of.
T'othing Is further from the new
discoveries of science. These find
ings. however, are. after all, only
confirmatory of what most people
have Instinctively felt. Whenever
you glance intc the face of any
freckle-faced youngster or fair maid
yon are drawn to them hy the yellow
pearls nnd tissue embroidered dots
across the m>se and beneath the
eyes. The frankness and innocence,
purity and health that seem to go
hand and hand w'th freckles have an
unconscious appeal to all men which
Is now explained for the first time.
It Is. plainly, as experiments prove,
the fascination of and desire which
robust health creates. It was not
known before, but all the sick, the
ailing, and even the vigorous, have
a blind force eternally driving them
forward toward better and higher
and healthier things.
Freckles veiled In the fabric of the
flesh make this curious appeal to
every one. They are the textile mag
nets that create r. longing In others;
not only a craving to possess their
possessors as a dear friend, associate
and companion, but also as an in
centive to work and conquest
To be sure, you are not aware of
this power of freckles; Indeed, your
Impulse at first will be to utterly
scoff It down. Furthermore, many
a far from prtud owner of freckless
will resent the Idea. They have the
wrong Impression that freckles are
unbecoming, unhcalthful. unromantle,
and even shunned by many people.
Actually what happens when the
ten-vear-old youngster begins to have
freckles Is that his fine tissues sur
charged with ' hemoglobin”—the iron
red stuff In your rod blood
corpuscles are stirred to the unload
ing point by the sun.
Tfie Summer sue ;u?rttcu'nrly. tut
the sun at all times of the year, to
a lesser degree, tones up and electri
fies a freckles “ferment” tn the
Copyright. 1114. by tbe Star Company. Great Britain Bights Reserved.
(A) Show the Location of the Little “Batteries” of Brain Stuff
Through Which the Vagus Nerve Connects the Heart with the Brain.
shock through the medium of any of the
senses, or Is deeply disturbed by emo
tions of anxiety, anger or fright. But it
is an axiom of medical science that no
mental shock or disturbing emotion is
capable of creating persistent abnormal
heart conditions. The heart that Is or
ganically sound is not permanently In
jured by any such means —not while the
vagus nerve properly performs is “Inhibi
tory” function.
This comforting dictum Is so much an
article of faith with heart specialists that
when there Is persistent weakness, or
when organic heart disease ensues after
a mental shock, they assume that organic
bounding channels of health. ‘This
‘■ferment" has not yet been caught,
but its powers and effects are known.
Just ns the eun stirs a “ferment"
In green plants, which is connected
in a way with the "chlorophyl” or
green parts of vegetation, so Old Sol
does the same to the red part of the
blood.
When there is an excess of this
pigment it is seized hy the tissue
units. These “cells" gobble up this
pigment, and then apj>ears the brown,
sepia, yellow, golden, gamboges,
lemon or ptment. maxlxe, ochre,
aureoiin, saffron, topaz, tawny, sul
phur. amber, primrose, liver spotted
or Claude tints nnd speckled areas
In the face dubbed freckles.
Scholars and pundits, pedants and
dermatologists are not satisfied to
call this pigmenetd period in the
epidermis “freckles." so they have
given them a high-sounding name, to
wit “lentigo."
The cheeks and the back of the
hands sometimes are to be seen cov
ered with freckles. Nay. even the
arms, the back and the other parts
of the body may have small and
lightly tinted ones on them.
Prince Oscar, Fifth Son of the Kaiser, Photographed ,
in the Uniform He Wore at the Battle Front. i
trouble was already present, latent but
ready to show itself In response to some
more than normal strain.
It la admitted that injury to the vagus
nerve sufficient to rob it of its inhibitory
power would eventually create organic
disturbance In the heart, as well as in
other vital organs which It keeps from
overworking themselves. Its pulsations
would be too rapid and lacking In regu
larity. The patient’s own anxiety would
exaggerate this condition. Under the
strain the heart muscle would dilate and
grow steadily weaker. The circulation
would go from bad to worse—in fact. If
the vagus were not restored to health the
The disappearance of freckles Is
usually a hnrbinger of ill health, de
bility, weakness or approaching age.
In soothe, these Imperial decorations
of vitality, red blood and power tend
to fade away as old age appears.
Rarely, on the other hand, freckles
begin not at ten years of age. but In
grown-up life and In the Instances of
unusual stamina, even in far-ad
vanced years.
The demand, however, for ways
and means medicines and methods to
be rid of freckles seems never to
lessen. Of several thousand letters
of Inquiry about health and happi
ness, Inquiries as to how to be rid
of freckles same next to the highest
In number.
It is a great mistake to try to
ellmtnate these semaphores of physi
cal supremacy. Moreover, to elimi
nate freckles Is almost a hopeless
task.
A death-dealing Indoor life, tuber
culosis-breeding rooms, poor food of
bad quality, smallpox or any severs
distemper, injuries or anything which
might destroy and undermine the
health will rid you of your freckles.
Anything, in truth, which la not a
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Diagram of
the Human
Heart
Showing the
Interior of
the Right
Auricle and
and Right
Ventricle.
The Circles
patient would be In grave danger.
It Is regarded is possible, but not likely,
that any sudden emotion or mental shock,
such a® would cause the heart tc beat
faster or to “jump,” would cause paralysis
or partial paralysis of the vagus nerve.
But if the cabled reports about Prince
Oscar are true, either his terrible experi
ences upon the battlefield disabled the
“inhibitory” nerve or he was already the
victim of hidden organic heart weakness,
which required the strain of some such
experience to reveal Itself.
The wife of Prince Oscar, In whose care
he is at Hamburg, Is the heroine of the
prettiest romance In the Kaiser’s family
of six sons and one daughter. She was
Countess Ina Marie von Bassewitz-Levit
zow, maid of honor to the Empress. The
beauty and amiability of the Countess en
deared her to the German people, and her
romance with the Kaiser's fifth son cre
ated such enthusiasm that the Emperor
at length decided to overlook the fact
that she was not of royal blood. There
being four lives between Prince Oscar
and the German throne, and the chance of
his ever succeeding being virtually non
existent, the absurd morganatic marriage
device was not considered. So the pretty
Countess was permitted to become as
truly the wife of a Prince Royal as though
she had been royal herself.
fraud, which will actually remove
freckles reduces your fibres of physi
cal superiority.
There are a number of recom
mendations which doctors are called
upon to make to persistent persons
who wish to be doing something to
remove freckles. Most of these I
shall mention with the warning,
nevertheless, that they keep the skin
peeling off over the top of the
freckles —which are skin deep and
not in the outer parts of the hide —
until these would-be freckle ''curers”
rush back again for help from the
peeling.
Among the most commonly used
“freckle remover” sold by advertise
ments as well as prescribed by doc
tors Is a very weak, but still poison
ous, solution of bichloride of mer
cury. This, like the others, is ap
plied to the face, which Is supposed
to "peel” until the freckles come off.
Peroxide of hydrogen, boric
alcohol, carbonate of potash, benzoic
acid, lemon peel and Juice of fruits,
acetate of lead. salt, zinc and other 1
poisons are all recklessly recom
mended for this purpose. All should
be shunned, for they are dangerous.