Few subjects can more usefully employ the attention and study of
engineers than the proper treatment and first remedies made necessary
by the peculiar and distressing accidents to which persons are liable
who are employed in or around a steam plant.
These and many other things of a like nature are likely to call for a
cool head, a steady hand and some practical knowledge of what is to be
done.
[Illustration: Fig. 185.]
In the first moments of sudden disaster, of any kind, the thoroughly
trained engineer is nearly always found, in the confusion incident to
such a time, to be the one most competent to advise and direct the
efforts made to avert the danger to life limb or property, and to
remedy the worst after effects.
_To fulfil this responsibility is worth much previous preparation_,
so that the best things under the circumstances may be done quickly
and efficiently. To this end the following advice is given relating to
the most common accidents which are likely to happen, in spite of the
utmost exercise of care and prudence.
=_Burns and Scalds._=—_Burns_ are produced by heated solids or by
flames of some combustible substance; _scalds_ are produced by steam or
a heated liquid. The severity of the accident depends mainly, 1, on the
intensity of the heat of the burning body, together with, 2, the extent
of surface, and, 3, the vitality of the parts involved in the injury,
thus: a person may have a finger burned off with less danger to life
than an extensive scald of his back.
The immediate effect of scalds is generally less violent than that of
burns; fluids not being capable of acquiring so high a temperature
as some solids, but flowing about with great facility, their effects
become most serious by extending to a large surface of the body. A burn
which instantly destroys the part which it touches may be free from
dangerous complications, if the injured part is confined within a small
compass; this is owing to the peculiar formation of the skin.
The skin is made up of two layers; the outer one has neither blood
vessels nor nerves, and is called the scarf-skin or cuticle; the lower
layer is called the true skin, or cutis. The latter is richly supplied
with nerves and blood vessels, and is so highly sensitive we could not
endure life unless protected by the cuticle. The skin, while soft and
thin, is yet strong enough to enable us to come in contact with objects
without pain or inconvenience.
The extent of the surface involved, the depth of the injury, the
vitality and sensibility of the parts affected must all be duly weighed
in estimating the severity and danger of an accident in any given case.
In severe cases of burns or scalds the clothes should be removed _with
the greatest care_—they should be carefully cut, at the seams, and not
pulled off.
In scalding by boiling water or steam, cold water should be plentifully
poured over the person and clothes, and the patient then be carried to
a warm room, laid on the floor or a table but not put to bed, as there
it becomes difficult to attend further to the injuries.
The secret of the treatment is to avoid chafing, _and to keep out the
air_. Save the skin unbroken, if possible, taking care not to break
the blisters; after removal of the clothing an application, to the
injured surface, of a mixture of _soot and lard_, is, according to
practical experience, an excellent and efficient remedy. The two or
three following methods of treatment also are recommended according to
convenience in obtaining the remedies.
Take ice well crushed or scraped, as dry as possible, then mix it with
fresh lard until a broken paste is formed; the mass should be put in a
thin cambric bag, laid upon the burn or scald and replaced as required.
So long as the ice and lard are melting there is no pain from the burn,
return of pain calls for a repetition of the remedy.
The free use of soft soap upon a fresh burn will remove the fire from
the flesh in a very little time, in 1/4 to 1/2 an hour. If the burn be
severe, _after relief from the burn_, use linseed oil and then sift
upon it wheat flour. When this is dried repeat the oil and flour until
a complete covering is formed. Let this dry until it falls off, and a
new skin will be formed without a scar.
In burns with lime, soap lye, or _any caustic alkali_, wash abundantly
with water (do not rub), and then with weak vinegar or water containing
a little sulphuric acid; finally apply oil, paste or mixture as in
ordinary burns.
It would be well to always keep ready mixed an ointment for burns;
in fact a previous readiness for an accident robs it of half its ill
effects.