A diary kept by one of the Franciscans, Sr. Straw mattresses, each more or less covered by a dirty blanket, lay upon the unswept floor. . . . Blankets, mattresses, clothing, and patients all supported an ineradicable population of lice. In January, the sisters began their work at Kakaako. Mother Marianne required stringent handwashing and other sanitary procedures and promised that no Franciscan Sister would ever contract leprosy.
None ever has.
Of all their tasks, the most difficult was dressing the lepers' sores. Lawlessness prevailed at Kakaako. With a diagnosis of leprosy came the abandonment of hope. Rape and other types of violence were a way of life. Men, women, and children lived together, and the children ran in packs.