Saturday press. [volume] (Honolulu, H.I.) 1880-1885, 1883-02-17

ping the life blood Of your people Unless
strong hand and radical measures grapple with
it, few more decades Of time will see once
happy and powerful people eradica,ed from the
face Of the earth.
The report has been sent forth that seggre.
CATION is carried out, that lepers are sringently
separated from their fellow beings, and the
eyes Of the scientific world is intcntly turned
this way to await results. But they are misled
1t requires hut few DAYS residence among YOU
to see that segregation as practiced here in
these Islands is dangerous farce.
To debate what leprosy is and wha, relation
II bears to other diseases, Is out Of the question
here, suffice it to say that it is the same lepro-
Sy which pervaded the Orient thousands Of
years ago, it is the identical disease which
spread over Europe in the dark ages when the
sanitary conditions Of that continent was horri.
bic in the extreme, il is the genuine form Of
eprosy foitfhdandHS c,,cco,nm) which
through all ages has bafiled the skill Of the
physician, which when once it had seized its
victim, its hand could not be stayed; symptoms
may be relieved, life heightened and suferings
aleviated, but the scientific physician reads in
the name OF the disease the unalterablc doom
Of the leper.
From time immemorial has been established
the fact OF the contagiousness of leprosy Even
the ancient Jews had the most stringent laws
TO send all lepers from camp and their clothing
and effects were ordered destroyed by fire. In
the desponding cry approach no, for am
leper and unclean," the law OF segregation
received its first plea. Even at that early day
when but crude knowledge Of disease pre-
vailed, the law Of selfpreservation made the
leper as much an exile as the dangerous out,
| law. II was the same law which, carried out
in more modern days, has confined the disease
to the outskirts Of most civilized communities
Some, even among those who class themselves
as scientists, would stop and argue the question
Of contngiousncss and the fact that we do not
understand how it is always accomplished.
II is enough that we know that it is con.
tagious, for there has never yet been a leprous
neighborhood but what it surrounded an i'm.
ported indus from which all the cases had be.
come infected. The very fact that this poison
| is subtle in its nature should make us the more
wary to avoid it. Think of an epidemic, a
disease invading any nation or community and
attacking per cent of its people.
In London it would PROSTATE 10000 per.
sons, in New York city 10000. Would there
be any doubt as to the question of contagious
nessp The first duty of such city would be to
adopt every precaution which would prevent,
the further progress Of the disease. There Is a
law here to seggregate lepers. The trainers of
that law have recognized the danger, but the
way the law is carried out avails nothing, and
is standing reproach to those who have the
power to enforce it. On these islands are fully
1000 pronounced lepers. Scores more are
walking the streets Of Honolulu in all the
forms of its incipient stages How many more
carry the seeds of the dreadful curse, the dark
future alone can reveal. lfleprosy is contagi-
Gus and segregation is the remedy, it must be
carried out in all cases and at the very earliest
stages, and furthermore, their clothing and
t6tcts sAonhi be destroyed.
Blu, is it surprising that even bad cases of
leprosy refuse to be segregated until forced to,
or that cases are hidden and people flee to the
mountains to escape the searching officials3 1t
is no small sacrifice for any one to part with
home, friends and the associations of a life
time to go into exile to await the approach OF
death. To such should be offered at least the
common inducements of a comfortable living.
They should be surrounded with all the atten.
tons, all the comforts that the sick demand
But where in this enlightened nineteenth cen
fury, among the civilized nations of the earth
will you find another example Of such brutal
leprous people, subject to all the other ills and
ailments common TO the human family, are left
for months at time without the constant at.
tendance of at least one physician. And ye,
by the report ofthe Board Of Health that "for
eleven years out of twelve the leper settlement
was without physician"
There is not hospital the world over, con.
tanning capacity for 900 patients tina, hasn't a
staff of a dozen physicians constantly attending,
and great many more trained nurses, and YET
here 500 sick are not allowed one physician
When we see what thorough system of dis
trict physicians this government provides fol
the treatment of the INDECENT sick in all part.
; Of the kingdom, the inconsistency OF its actor
at Molokai can hardly be explained. II is
black spot in the lustre Of the administration
and the sooner il is removed the better. Thes.
: people ought to have the constant attendanc,
Of at least one capable physician.
We mus, also call attention to the great neg
lect displayed at the branch hospital in allow
ing friends Of the sick to approach close t.
them and kiss through the paings, to pass tn
pipe from mouth to mouth, and to shake hands
Let segregation be made reality The fac
is, the eyes Of the other nations are turne,
4 this way to see il the government can demon
E stra,e its power of dealing with its deatllies
foe. The true state Of affairs will soon b
A known to them, and we venture to predict tina
ifthey once conclude that segregation is bu
indifferently carried out, and that foreigner
are rapidly becoming infected, every pon vii
/, be closed to Hawaiian products, and stric
quarantine will be declared against this king
dom. II remains for the government to hee
S this warning, that as passing stranger, W
give. The glorious opportunity Of cur,ailin
this frighiiul curse is rapidly slipping by. Fac
week, each month, each year narrows the pros
pect Of its eradication and adds vigor to |,
growth. Will YOU wait until it is too late
Must history record in the future the obl,eru
+ ton Of once noble race because Of the stupid
$ iiy Of its ulers' II the newly crowned kin
c would come to the relief Of his stricken peopl
( LILY lncinn This mala1y with The finn AMI hi