may be
diseased, and the tooth still be sound. In such instances, the tooth
should not be extracted, but the diseased condition may be remedied by
proper medication. There are many sound teeth, that become painful, as
already mentioned, which are unnecessarily removed.

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Why is smoking injurious to the teeth? 226. What remark respecting the
temporary teeth? 227. What remarks respecting the permanent teeth? Do
those persons that extract teeth require skill as well as knowledge?
228. Why should not teeth be extracted at all times when they are
painful?

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_Illustration._ Dr. H. M., of Belfast, Me., related to me that an
individual in that vicinity had his teeth, (all of them sound,) on one
side of the lower jaw, extracted by an ignoramus of a "tooth-puller,"
and this without any relief from pain. The disease was tic douloureux,
which was relieved by Dr. M.

229. _The preservation of the teeth requires that they be frequently
examined._ When a part of the enamel is removed, and a small portion
of the body of the tooth has become carious, in many instances such
teeth may be preserved from further decay by having them filled or
"plugged" with _gold foil_. All amalgams, pastes, and cheap patent
articles for filling, should be avoided, if you would preserve both
the teeth and the general health.

230. The practice of cracking nuts with the teeth, or of lifting heavy
bodies, and the constant habit of biting thread, should be avoided, as
they finally destroy the enamel.

231. _All acidulated drinks and mineral waters, that "set the teeth on
edge," are injurious._ All tooth-powders and washes that contain any
article that is acid, corrosive, or grinding, should be banished from
the toilet. Tobacco is not a preservative of the teeth. It contains
"grit," which wears away the enamel; beside, when chewed, it
debilitates the vessels of the gums, turns the teeth yellow, and
renders the breath and the appearance of the mouth disagreeable.

232. Healthy persons have generally sound teeth, while feeble persons
have decayed teeth. For this reason, we should try to learn and
practise the few simple rules that promote health.

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Give an illustration of the removal of sound teeth. 229. How may
decaying teeth be preserved? What should be avoided in the filling of
teeth? 230. What practices should also be avoided? 231. What is said
of acidulated drinks?