eld say that "_all lewd women
are diseased part of the time and some lewd women are diseased all the
time_."

These sexual diseases are contagious--that is, transmitted by contact.
They are all germ diseases; one of them is practically local, one is
capable of spreading the infection to contiguous organs and one is
systemic.

a. =Chancroid or Soft Chancre.=--This is the least dangerous of the
venereal diseases. It is a contagious disease of purely local type,
usually acquired during the sexual act, the infection taking place
through a break in the continuity of the mucous membrane.

Chancroid may be single, though most often is multiple. It makes its
appearance in from one to five days after exposure, anywhere on the
penis, but most frequently on the under side of the glans beside the
fraenulum as a small red spot. This rapidly takes the form of a blister
containing serum and pus, and in a few days may become the size of a
ten-cent piece. When the roof is removed the ulcer has the appearance
of having been punched out, the floor being covered with pus. It is
surrounded by a zone of inflammation and is painful.

If uncomplicated the disease runs its course in from two to five
weeks. The most common complication is swollen and suppurating glands
of the groin on one or both sides. This condition is termed _bubo_ or
"blue ball" in common language.

Sometimes serious complications arise which may prove dangerous and
require the individual to be confined to his bed for weeks.

b. =Gonorrhea.=--This is incomparably more serious than chancroid.
This disease is very prevalent among the incontinent, and it is
claimed by some specialists in this field that from sixty to
seventy-five per cent. of men have had gonorrhea before the age of
thirty.

It is a contagious disease, acquired usually during intercourse,
though the individual may become infected innocently from water
closets, bath tubs, etc.

To become infected it is not necessary that there be an abrasion of
the mucous membrane.

The disease manifests itself in from three to seven days after
exposure by swelling of the orifice of the urethra, peculiar
sensations between tickling and itching, and smarting or burning
during urination. The peculiar sensations fix the attention to the
genitals, thus causing frequent passage of urine.

These symptoms increase for about a week, when the disease reaches its
maximum degree of severity, which is maintained a variable tim