THE VACCINATION "HUMBUG."

Wanganui Chronicle, Issue 12889, 22 July 1913, Page 3

THE VACCINATION "HUMBUG."

(To the Editor.) Sir, —With the present smallpox epidemic pervading New Zealand, it is r.uito refreshing to read the opinion of Dr. H. Dundas McKenzie, of Auckland, on tho subject. The doctor describes the practice as "the. worst of two evils," and severely criticises and denounces the action of the Health Department in this conection. Certainly tho attitude adopted by the Vjfficer.s of tho Health Department, tho Government and doctors, is to be condemned. Tho following from the pen of an eminent doctor and other unquestioned authorities, will doubtles3 prove of vital interest at this juncture:— "I am now fully and firmly convinced that vaccination not only utterly fails to protect its subjects from smallpox infection for any namable period of time, but that, on the contrary, it renders them mot-e liable to attack by that disease, as well as by other diseases, by impairing their health and diminishing the vigour of their vital powers of resistance. In support of my unavoidable convictions that vaccination tends rather to increase than to diminish the liability to variolous infection, •umav C- lto tho Tecor(led testimony of tho distinguished vaccinologist and epideraioloeist, Dr. Charles Crpjghton. A.M., M.D.. Emeritus Professor of Cambridge University. London, England. In his classical work on "History of Epidemics in Britain." IV Oreighton tells us that in all the errs at epidemics of smallpox, winch "have scourged civilised nations since tho adoption and establishment of vacriiuition, it has been the vacciinted,' rot tho unvaceinated, who were first sofzod by smallpox, which disease subwy/'ienilv spread from them, as foci of infection, to tho unvaccinated." I am, etc., "COMMON-SENSE."