Salt Lake Telegram | 1906-07-27 | Page 10 | Caterpillar Fever

CATEBFELLAB FEVEB. Zeal for nature atudy and tempered by experience explains why so many country doctors doc-tors have been calld in to diagnose an epidemic epi-demic of rash whieh haa affected whole classes in some rural and urban schools. The symptoms of the ailment, wel known to doe-torn doe-torn aa "caterpillar rasa." are intense irritation irri-tation on the palms, and sometimes on tha fare, accompanied by a number of blisterlike blister-like awellings, which, when they oeeur round the eyea, sometimes have the effect of obstructing ob-structing tha vision. The preventive for the nature elaaa la to leave hairy caterpillars alone. Aa the "palmer "pal-mer worm," the hairy caterpillar of the gold-tail gold-tail moth, one of the commonest and most beautiful objects of tha country at midsummer, midsum-mer, passes from hand to hand it leavea on every palm a few of its loosely attached hairs, and those haira are possessed, for the protection of the caterpillar against birds and orowaing animals, of what scientists call "urticating properties." "Crtica" is the Latin for "nettle." Many other hair eaterplllara are almost aa bad as the "palmer worm," and aa a general gen-eral rule, the less you handle any hairy caterpillar the better. London Mail.