cannot know of its presence. A candle will not burn in a room which
contains much of it.--_Effects_. At first there is giddiness, and a
great wish to sleep; after a little time, or where there is much of it
present, a person feels great weight in the head, and stupid; gets by
degrees quite unable to move, and snores as if in a deep sleep. The
limbs may or may not be stiff. The heat of the body remains much the
same at first.--_Treatment_. Remove the person affected into the open
air, and, even though it is cold weather, take off his clothes. Then lay
him on his back, with his head slightly raised. Having done this, dash
vinegar-and-water over the whole of the body, and rub it hard,
especially the face and chest, with towels dipped in the same mixture.
The hands and feet also should be rubbed with a hard brush. Apply
smelling-salts to the nose, which may be tickled with a feather. Dashing
cold water down the middle of the back is of great service. If the
person can swallow, give him a little lemon-water, or vinegar-and-water
to drink. The principal means, however, to be employed in this, as, in
fact, in most cases of apparent suffocation, is what is called
_artificial breathing_. This operation should be performed by three
persons, and in the following manner:--The first person should put the
nozzle of a common pair of bellows into one of the patient's nostrils;
the second should push down, and then thrust back, that part of the
throat called "Adam's apple;" and the third should first raise and then
depress the chest, one hand being placed over each side of the ribs.
These three actions should be performed in the following order:--First
of all, the throat should be drawn down and thrust back; then the chest
should be raised, and the bellows gently blown into the nostril.
Directly this is done, the chest should be depressed, so as to imitate
common breathing. This process should be repeated about eighteen times a
minute. The mouth and the other nostril should be closed while the
bellows are being blown. Persevere, if necessary, with this treatment
for seven or eight hours--in fact, till absolute signs of death are
visible. Many lives are lost by giving it up too quickly. When the
patient becomes roused, he is to be put into a warm bed, and a little
brandy-and-water, or twenty drops of sal-volatile, given cautiously now
and then. This treatment is to be adopted in all cases where people are
affected from breathing bad air,