A LEPER LAZARETTO.

Timaru Herald, Volume XLI, Issue 3302, 28 April 1885, Page 3

A LEPER LAZARETTO.

A Visit xo the' -Hawaiian Ho.fPrrAi, of ;.'!' .' "'"' KAKAAO'. ''' _ ■'.':' ; :...■. (Alta. California.) ' Of the thousands who visit the Sandwich Islands every year, not one m five have ever beon admitted to the Kakaao Lazaretto— the Oahu leper hospital. . Few desire that privilege, because they fear to encounter a horrible and disgusting spectacle,. and also through a vague dread of infection, therefore they go without having seen a leper, for , the Molokai settlement is so far away that none but those who have business connected with the settlement ever approach that melancholy island. „ „- •; Having expressed a wish to see the un-

fortunate inmates of Kakaao, the doctor m charge of the lazaretto called at my house one pleasant morning m August last, and accepting a Beat m his buggy, we drove toward the seashore. " I hope, Doctor," I said, " you have provided the necessary disinfectants. 'Twould be an awful thing if I got a dose of leprosy m return for my curiosity." The doctor laughed. " There is a lot of humbug about leprosy m the mouths of every one, not only m these islands, but elsewhere," he said, " wherever the disease is discussed. Now, the first day I met you was at the races at Waikiki, and a minute before you shook hands with me I saw you shake hands with a leper. Don't be nervous. I shook hands with him myself, and I assure you that I have as great an aversion to being shipped off to Molokaias you have." " But it is not possible that lepers are allowed to mingle with the people 1" I asked. A MATTER OF INFLTJBNCE. "That all depends upon the rank and influence of the leper. Among the common people the lepers when detected are at once parted out and Bent to Molokai or Kakaao — good-day to you, good-day," and the doctor bowed to a fine-looking man who, m a spotless linen suit, lounged on the gate of a handsome residence." "That is a member of the Legislature," he said, " and quite prominent on the side of the opposition, yet the lady who keeps house for him, for he is not married, is a leper." By this time we had arrived at the lazaretto of Oahu. It stands on the seashore and consists of several rows of whitewashed houses, enclosed by a high fence. At the southern entrance is a division some fifteen feet m length, protected only by a large wooden grating, through which, on certain days of the week, the lepers inside are allowed to converse with their friends. When we came up, some dozen or so natives were seated on the long bench outside the grating, chatting merrily with the prisoners. Where were the tears and ianientations I expected — the agonized meeting of mother and child, of husband and wife ? Certainly not apparent at this portion of my visit, for the lepers inside seemed as JOLLY A3 A LOT OF SCHOOL BOYS And girls, exchanging jokes and gossip through the play-ground gate with their friends outside. ' The porter admitted us. The square was traversed by numerous walks, trees were planted here and there, flower beds laid out and benches placed throughout the grounds. A tall, wellproportioned native, neatly dressed, a gold chain spanning his white waistcoat and a newspaper m his hand, approached the doctor. He greeted him cordially m English, bowed to me, and m reply to the doctor, stated that he was feeling much better. "Surely that is not a leper," I said. " He seems m perfect health, and shows no limb-distortion, ulcerations, or any of those signs which are associated m my mind with the disease." "Ah, yes; he's a leper," was the reply ; " every one you meet here is a leper, with the exception of the Sisters of Mercy, and Dr Van Arnim, who has been sent hither by the German Government to make an exhaustive study of the disease ; and now, before we look around the hospitals we shall visit the Sisters." What words can do justice to the heroism of those noble women who have devoted their lives to the amelioration of the sufferings of those unfortunates, stricken by this most terrible of all diseases. Day after day and year after year they remain m the narrow limits of the lazaretto. When the leper is first admitted to THIS LIVING GRAVE, It is from their lips he receives his consolation. When the disease has so far advanced that he cannot crawl beyond his ward, they visit hiß bedside many times during the day, always cheerful, smiling, and encouraging, and when the last moment, the happy moment of relief arrives, it is supported by the arras of these great, good women— rthe arms physically feeble but strong and powerful m love — that his soul passes to the God whose worthy servants these honors to humanity are. We found the Sisters decorating the little chapel with red hibiscus and the graceful mimdsa blossoms. This chapel is so arranged that the outer portion is used for Episcopal services, and the inner for the Catholic mass. As we entered, a native preacher, a leper, of course, was holding forth m Hawaiian to a dozen or so of his brethren. The Sisters, both of whom were quite comely, volunteered to accompany us through the' wards. On the shoulder of the younger sat perched a pet linnet, which she had brought to a wonderful stage of obedience and intelligence. At a motion of her finger the bird "would fly away and circle around her head, and return to its perch when she called. The Sister seemed quite proud of the accomplishments of her pet, and told, with much earnestness, the story of how it flitted over the fence one evening, and she had rescued it from the claws of the porter's cat. And now we rested under a broad veranda, where GROUPS OF MERRY LAUGHING CHILDREN Were gathered, romping and sporting m the full enjoyment, of life. It appeared to me incredible that those pretty, rosycheeked youngsters^ could be infected with the horrible taint of leprosy. They wpre as active and graceful as a lot of young fawns ; their faces were clear, their eyes bright, their figures straight and exquisitely moulded. Some of the girls of twelve and thirteen, just on the threshold of womanhood, were positively beautiful. . " Yes," said the Sister, sadly, " they are all lepers, all doomed to die within the next five, or at the most, seven years ; " and the Doctor, calling a pretty little maiden to him, opened her frock, and showed me on the shoulder-blade a dark spot, not larger than a half-dollar piece. "That tells the atory," he said ; "but see how happy they are." And he ran after one of them, who fled with shrieks of laughter, while her companions hung on to the doctor's coat tails and clung around his legs, and romped with him to their hearts-c ontent. It was a scene m the school play-ground, and not m the confines of a ■ lazaretto. In the women's wards, we found a lot of smiling, goodnatured creatures, glad to see the doctor, and with a hearty aloha for the visitor. Thero was not a melancholy face m the group | there was not one who might not be m the full enjoyment of all life's pleasures, so great and expressive of perfect contentment were their features. ' ATTEMPTED ELOPEMENT. i "Here," said the Doctor, indicating a tall, pretty girl, " >b a young lady who has given us a deal, of trouble." The girl laughed, and hid her face m her shawl. -..',' Yes," continued the Doctor, f she has a lover, and nothing would do my lady but she must ' give him a signal the other night that he might olimb over the fence and' come to, see her. The fellow did, arid when the guard came around they found my gay cavalier busily engaged m helping . this wild creature up the fence. Why, sir, they were going to elope, and then we should have had a nice hunt for them. But now when he wants to talk to his sweetheart' he comes, like a well-behaved young man, to the grating, and there they can chat just as long as tbe law allows." I inquired further into this romance of tbe lazaretto, and found that the leper beauty had been engaged and' the wedding day set, but a week before the nuptials the fatal taint made its appearance only by a Blight and almost unnoticeable deformation of one of the

finger joints, and the bride bade adieu to her lover and friends and was consigned to Kakaao, an exile for ever from the outer world. The men were quite as cheerful and contented-looking aB the women, and thrummed their guitars and aang as gaily as if they were miles away under the cocoas eating poi and watching the hulas. In those wards where the faradvanced patients were placed — those whose days were literally numbered— there was still nothing revolting to the eye. The apex of the disease was indicated by extreme emaciation — men worn to a skeleton crouched upon their matting, but had a faint smile for the doctor when he entered. In one of these wards was a white man, AW OLD MRATE, A desperate fellow, upon whose soul rested the stain of every vice m the calendar, and who had not been beyond doing a few murders m his lawless career. His limbs were swollen and the sight of one eye was gone, but the aged sinner cackled cheerfully to the doctor and protested that he was feeling better than he had done for weeks. His appetite was good, and he could yet read his newspaper. He enquired eagerly about American politics, for even on the brink | of the grave this old leper was a fierce and implacable partisan. Aa we were leaving the enclosure, the doctor called my attention to a good-looking woman of about seven and twenty. " She haß had no lees than three husbands," he said, " and the last one is so devoted to her that he never allows a day to pass without calling. His marrying a leper does not mean infection."