The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1869-06-19
LcpcrS mud twu.

Mr.. tpIToE As the lcpeTS ! referred 10 IN a
former communication have not been returned To my
care, - that l might test the matter Of their cura-
bility 10 the satisfaction Of all concerned. l desire TO
make a lew farther observations On the subject.
With respect TO the origin Of the disease, l doubt
the correctness Of the common belief that it was in
trcluccI from China, as | never knew 4 case of a
Chinamau having the disease, and also, rs l under
stand, that it Is prevalent in other islands farther
south where they have little, If any, communication
with China. believe that a great deal, II not the
whole Of it, arises from 81 s~yFLiitic faint running
through successive generations, aggravated or moli-
hGl according 10 circumstances. Il Is doubtful
whether It i infectious or even very contagious. rs
eases occur which do not appear 10 have been sub
jected to the c~ontagion and there are other cases Of
women living for years with husbands who have the
disease, and yet exhibit no symptoms OF it themselves.
Now, believing rs l do that this so-called leprosy
Is Of Syphilitic origin, l also believe, and have proved
by experience, that it Is durable like other diseases.
That il properly treated in time. a large majority of
the cases can be permanently cured. OF course,
like most other diseases, if permitted to reach a
certain stage, it gets beyond the control of medicine.
1t yields more readily in young persons and in its
earlier stages though l have effected q perfect cure
in II ease 50 far advanced that the toes began to drop oil.
My motto is-deeds not lor3s. | wished to cure
my patients quietly, and place the subject beyond
controversy, but this par Mobile tratrum who have
charge Of the lepers became alarmed, lest if the
lepers should be cured their occupation would be
gone. l have not the least doubt that if there had
been no prospect of my being able to cure the pa
tents, l might have had them as long as l pleased !;
but when their Improvement could no longer be
doubted, of they were shipped. Now, it is almost
impossible to conceive how any one possessing the
smalles, spark of humanity-who is paid out of the
taxes of these same poor k~anakas-should consign
them TO 4 miserable doom, whilst there remained the
slightest prospect of their being cured. For my
part l would rather work for a living, and if unable
to perform hard labor, TO become a barber, than TO
live ON monev obtained under such circumstances.
am constrained to believe that the other c~onfrere
in this noble brotherhood, whose duty it is to gather
the lepers into the hospital, does not even know a
case of leproSy when he sees it. \ poor woman
called on Inc a few weeks since, who had been sent to
the leper hospital, who had not the slightest symptom
of the disease, and who had to return to her home in
Hamakua, Hawaii, L presume Ut her own expense,
though | am not quite positive of that. On another
occasion, when asked if a certain kanaka had the
leprosy, he replied, No-that is not the leprosy-
that is a most rare d~isease-that's the-Sca6uiouS.'
Shade OF Cullen, how you are eelipsed by this modern
nOsologiSt He is an advocate for dispensing with
the hospital at kalihi altogether, and for sending all
those even suspected of having the leprosy to Molokai
for life. What 4 philanthropist TO have charge of
the bodies and souls of his fellow men
Z L DO not presume to set myself up as a Mentor to
the government but | cannot help thinking that
better means might be devised for preserving the
native population of these islands than those relied
upon at present. An act ought to be in force CON-
pelling every one TO show an honest means of earn
ing n livelihood for g the devil finds some mischief
still for idle hands to do and if people were CON-
PEELED TO work all day. they would not feel so much
inclined to spend their nights in drinking ava and
i%ndulging i'll every other species of debauchery. On
one land in kOolau, where ava drinking is INDUCED
i'll almost every night to excess, there were five
deaths within the last few weeks, and, l need not
say, not one birth. Now what effect, or if any, ava
drinking may have in producing or aggravating
leprosy, is q subject worthy of further investigation.
That 1t is one fruitful source of mortality | have no
doubt. Rum drinking, against which there is such
n hue and cry throughout the country, is bad enough,
and demOraizing enough but it is not a drop in the
bucket when compared with ava drinking, either in
its extent or its evil effects. know the house of a !
so-called prophecies, in the country, to which the
ava is packed on horses and nightly, for weeks,
bacchanalian orgies and denominations are INDUCED
in,-countenanced and participated in by the authori-
ties in the neighborhoOd. Here in town, when n
kanaka buys his fish, he gets his bunch of ava, which
has become almost as indispensable as his daily food.
Now as ali ava is consumed in the country, the pro-
duction and sale of it does not add one cent to the
wealth of this nation but it adds materially to its
Incidence and demoralization,/ 1t appears to me
Inconsistent or mistaken policy to compel plantations
to throw away materials that would make rum
enough to bring hundreds of thousands of dollars
into the country, and to encourage the natives to
cultivate and drink ava, which impoverishes the
p~roitably expended, encourages immortality, and
hastens the extinction of one of the noblest races of
a%borigines to be found ut the present day. For
where is there a people that can surpass them for
hospitality, honesty and general kindness of heart?
Mr.. Editor, | have no desire to acquire notorie,y,
but the contrary. l did not come to this country
sounding my own praise, or seeking favor from any
one, and if / am not permitted to try to benefit my
fellow men gratuitously, L am no loser by being pre-
vented from doing so. 1t is for the public to say
whether they are satisfied with the present state of
affairs. Everything necessary is done for the lepers
TO smooth their way to the tomb, but no friendly
hand is extended even to attempt to save them from
their miserable doom.
\. KENNEDY, A. NJ, VI. D., VI. G..