The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1885-05-28

earthly happiness to minister to the
wants of poor outcasts from society,
in whose bodies death works by slow
advances, and not, as in the common
lot, by a sudden and vigorous stroke
extinguishing the lamp of life. It's
experience is of interest to US, who
have to deal with this terrible scourge
of the human race in its varied types.
The medical officer in charge of the
lazarettO at Tracadie, n. B., reports
to the Dominion Government that
during the past year two leprous
patients have died, while one new
case has been admitted to the institu-
ton. The small annual grant allow
ance by the Government does not
admit of any expenditure being in
CURED with view to applying the
most modern treatment of these I'M
fortunate beings. Several cases have
been reported at Cape Breton, and as
the Government do not appear willing
to defray the cost of an investigation,
DR.. Smith states in his report that he
will shortly visit the affected locality
at his own expense. If a similar re-
! port could be made of the Hawaiian
| Government, what an cutlery would
| be heard; but as it is only in an old
established British community where
this has happened, the neglect of the
Government passes without COM
ment.
The King and Queen, as we'll as the
present Administration, should feel
encouraged in their noble and
humane efforts to ameliorate the con-
ditiOn of the lepers of this Kingdom,
and to esta blish a school at which
female children of Ieprous parents
will be isolated and properly cared
for by the report of the Canadian
medical officer. It will be seen from
the following summary of it, which
has been published in the Canadian
and American press, that the disease,
under proper treatment and cOndi
tions, is durable, and if durable, there
fore preVentible. The Canadian eX-
pertinent is on a sufficiently large
scale to make a satisfactory test.
There are at present twenty-five pa
tients in the Tracadie lazaretto-
twelve females and ten males. DIR.
Smith reports to the Government
that short time ago he visited Cara
quet, village twenty miles from
Tracadie, to examine a supposed case
of leprOsy-a female who was at one
time a resident of Tracadie, and
descended from leprOus parents. He
found her in all advanced stage of the
} disease, and steps are now being
, taken to have her removed to the
lazaretto. He also reports the dis
, covery of two pronounced cases of the
disease in the village of Tracadie,
: both heads of families, one family
consisting of five, the other of six
r young children.
DIR. Smith urges that these cases be
at once admitted to the laZaretto, but
; adds that the severing of family ties
is painful in the extreme, although
: lepers belong to u dangerous class o.
, the community which require per-
petual confinement, and the sooner
this remedy is applied the less seem
? ing cruelty will attach to it. T.,
| states that the average length of !.
: of the inmates is greater under the
} present management than in former
years. If it were otherwise the mum
Der in the lazarettO would be much
, smaller than it is to-day, which fact
leads him further to believe that the
I disease is decreasing. He further re
, ports that male patient reported
: last year as having been freed from
all outward trace of the disease re
mains in the same sati sfactory con
, dition. One of the female patients
f he states, is also losing external
traces of the disease, one discOlOra.
! ton of the chest alone remaining
, He, however, will not recommend
the discharge of these patients, as toe
hasty removal from the institution
he believes. would in all probability
q be followed by a return of the disease
In this connection we may state
, that Japanese physicians claim to be
? able to cure leprosy at certain stages
, their treatment being founded upon
an entire change of regimen. May il
not be that the fish and poi diet OF
! Hawaiians is promotive of this ter
, rible disease? And is not possible
that a more generous diet, both OF
solids and fluids, would so strengthen
the physical constitution as to
enable it to throw off the disease
where it's germs have been planted
and to render its communication i'm
possible? We are not now consider
ing the question as to whether it is
infectious or not. That lies wholly
outside our present field of discussion.
REWRITING to DR., Smiths report to
the Ottawa Government, we find the
following encouraging statements
Since his first connection with the
lazaretto in 1865 he says he has never
observed so marked an absence of the
distressing symptoms associated with
the disease as at present. This he
largely attributes to the devoted at
tentions of the Sisters of Charity,
who have charge of the institution.