ENGLAND'S FATHER DAMIEN.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 58, 8 March 1913, Page 13

ENGLAND'S FATHER DAMIEN.

"There are few individuals whose work can be appraised like his, in actual millions of pounds: and yet that part of it is in a sense 'the least. We can appraise the material results of his career; its splendid heroism w-e can only salute and admire." So says the "Times" of a man whose name appeared in the additions to the Xew Year's list,of th.fise upon whom .the, ;*?Bpng had been pleased to bestow the honour of knighthood, a man whose name was practically unknown to the public, und whose knighthood simply caused people to wonder for a moment who he .was, and what he had done to deserve the Sovereign's recognition. Today we know that in Dr. George Turner the King honoured one who is worthy to be na-med in the same breath with Father Damien, whose story is almost a household word. Even those who do not remember Stevenson's _ famous brochure know vaguely of the'life which Father Damien devoted to the lepers of Hawaii, and of his death amongst them of their disease. Sir George Turner is the English "Father Damien," and the story of his life should be made as well known as that of hie famous prototype. As plain Doctor Turner, Sir George entered the Civil Service of Cape Colony as Medical Officer of Health in 1895. He was then nearly 50 years of age: but in the period which followed, until his retirement twelve years later, he rendered services to South Africa and to the cause of humanity at large which have never been adequately recognised except by a very few. A few months after his arrival in South Africa rinderpest broke out. Br. Koch was then at work to discover a cure, but was recalled before his work was complete. Dr. Turner, appointed to succeed him with only three weeks' collaboration with Dr. Koch before he left, finished the work, and saved the country millions of pounds.

•Dr. Turner's services were soon required in a different field. During the South African war, when the ravages from typhoid had become appallingly severe, he was sent for by Lord Roberts, and asked to supervise the military hos pitals, and afterwards the concentration camps. Lord Roberts bore testimony to the value of Dr. Turner's work, carried out in very trying conditions at the constant "risk of his life. In 1901 the rinderpest again broke out, and Lord Kitchener asked for Dr. Turner's help.

It was in the midst of "these activities that Dr. Turner devoted himself first to the noblest work of his life. There was then a leper asylum at Pretoria, with about fifty Dutch and forty native patien4s. He gave up all his spare time to work among the lepers, doing all he could to alleviate their lot, and prosecuting a tireless research into the nature of the disease. For three years he laboured at this work without receiving a penny for his labour. He saw the lepers early in the morning, and again when he came home in the evening. Saturday and Sunday he gave to them entire. In addition to this, he made as many post-mortem examinations as possible in his laboratory, rising at dawn in order to have time for the work.

On Teaching the age limit Dr. Turner retired on a slender pension, to pursue his studies into the bacteriological side of leprosy in the laboratories of this country. Suddenly, after several years' work in this country, his eye was attracted by certain marks on his hand, and he recognised them as the stamp of the disease which he had set himself to fight. His diagnosis was confirmed by specialists, and from that time he has worked unceasingly under the pain and horror of a leper's lot.

No one can foretell the course of Sir George's disease, but the stricken hero has already lost the use of his left arm. For the past two years he has been living in seclusion, and it was only recently that his case came to the knowledge of King George, on whose own initiative Dr. Turner's name has been added to the Mat of New Year's honouM.