THE CAUSE OF LEPROSY.

Wanganui Chronicle, Issue 12145, 12 November 1908, Page 2

THE CAUSE OF LEPROSY.

IN THE PHILIPPINES

AN ARMY SURGEON'S VIEWS

Jonathan Hutchinson writes as follows to the London "Times" of September 11th:— Tho interest which the "Times" Jnas always taken in the leprosy question makes me think that you may probably consider the following cxt.acts worthy of publication in your columns They are from the New York "Times ' of August 23rd, to which journal they were communicated by Dr Isidore. Dyer, of New Orleans. They aro from the pen of Dr C. E. Macdonald, United States army surgeon, recently s'ationed in Samur, one of the Philippine Islands. I am indebted to Dr Ashmead, or Wow York, a well-known investigator of leprosy, for drawing my attention to them:— ~,.., , Many elderly people of this island ar« the subjects of leprosy. A\ h-?n asked how tho d:sease was contracted, they referred back to a time, come 30 years ago, when a ternblo. storm visited the- interior of the.island and destroyed all their vegetable food products. They were compelled tor months to live on fish and clams taken from the rive-r, and they a.l declared that tho disease at that time and season, arid, that the fish and dam diet was directly responsible for it. Durimr all these veara these people have lived mmisablo panitary conditions, in crowded, small huts, and the d:seas3 has spread but little, if any. The general impression is that it is not contagious at all, and cnlv very slightly infectious. The fact that they have raised children and grandchildren and that thcro is no lenrosy among the younger ones seems to verify their belief. Dr Macdonald appends to his report & series of conclusions, among wincn are the following:— First— Sanitation has little, it anything to do with the contacting or spreading of the disease. Second.—The disease is not conttißious. and only slightly infectious. Fourth—The eating of fish and ssheMish plays an important part in the etiolopv of the disease. He adds:—"There is no,fear among the natives.of -contracting-tho disease except through food. •«,„„+ I will leave these extracts without comment, but may add that they mention nothine that h m the least novel. The • records of leprosy in all parts ot the world afford similar . tacta. '» India it is a matter of Sequent observation that the occurrence^ famine in a leprosy district ha« an immediate result in considerable diminution ot. th^ disease, since tho poor impoverished lepers are the first to die. AfW an interval, however, a fresh and large, cro^ is urodueed, and it often includes some of those who during Proswroiw times would have shunned all fish tood religiously. -**