e medical
inspection of school children realizes how little attention the children
themselves give to the process, apparently regarding it merely as one of
the many inexplicable proceedings of grown people. On the other hand,
children who know their symptoms are over-anxiously watched soon learn
to watch themselves and to exaggerate every little ache and pain.

Symptoms may be divided into two classes: first, objective symptoms, or
those that can be noted by an observer, like cough, pulse rate, or color
of the skin; and second, the subjective symptoms, which are apparent
only to the person affected, like pain and fatigue. The success of any
woman who cares for the sick depends to a large extent upon her
quickness and accuracy in noticing and reporting these symptoms and
their variations. It should be remembered that pronounced symptoms are
not the only ones of importance: even slight symptoms that continue over
an appreciable length of time may be of very great importance. A brief
description of some important symptoms follows, in order to help persons
without technical training to describe the symptoms as well as to
observe them.

OBJECTIVE SYMPTOMS

TEMPERATURE.--Bodily heat is produced by slow burning of food materials,
which goes on for the most part in actively working muscles and glands.
Heat thus generated is distributed by the blood to all parts of the
body, but the surface of the body is generally cooler than the interior.
In health the body temperature varies only a few degrees, no matter how
much the temperature of its surroundings varies; consequently a
temperature is abnormal if it is higher or lower than the usual
temperature of a healthy person.

The temperature is taken by means of a clinical thermometer placed
either in the mouth, the rectum, or the armpit (axilla).

[Illustration: FIG. 10.--CLINICAL THERMOMETER.]

To take the mouth temperature, first wash the thermometer, using cold
water and absorbent cotton or clean soft cloth. Next shake it until the
mercury thread registers 96 deg. or below. It is well before purchasing
a thermometer to see whether it can be shaken down easily. Next place
the thermometer in the patient's mouth, with its bulb under his tongue;
he must then keep his lips closed until it is removed. Leave the
thermometer in his mouth for two minutes. Then remove the thermometer,
read the temperature and record the result. Clean the thermometer at
once, using first cold water