The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-03-22

face SCARED and scanned, the brow and
! lower par a dingy brown, while from the
/ ewes to the lips he was as white as if busted
with -four The eyelids were gone and the
eve seemed covered with a film without
| color or expression. He was dressed in the
usual CO tonade shirt and trousers and the
reporter noticed that the hands we're wasted
away to semblance of claws. Not word
did be peak and the reporter told the black
to ask if he wa ted anything. He muttered
something in reply. Hypolite shook his
| head.
'Miche, can't understand, but 1 think
he says he'll take something TO eat"
The reporter fastened back to the boat
ard getting some coffee. sugar and bacon,
with quart bottle Of whisky, returned
and laid them on the ground. But the poor
creature never stirred and the party came
away.
"(Vell, there's davis forgetfulness in the
liquor any way, Niche" said Hvpolite,
'that Cadiun don't live yer, he's beea
driven ouren the swamp by high watah."
Mex day the party passed Havang's cut
off and saw good-sized sloop made fast to
the bank. There were number of people
about the vessel, which Hypollte recog-
nized as Capt. Vances trading boat. The
captain was a rawboned six-footer and tow
cred above the shrunken "Cadjuns" like
lighthouse. He gave the reporter a hearty
IAN right, come aboard, and we'll go
into the cabin and have a talk When
seated, he said: This is the real 'Terre des
Lepreux,' and | reckon has been for 100
years back. The disease il in families, aud
is, beside, catching. knew an American
from Georgia to die from it. When it
comes to one of these Cadjuns he generally
leaves his people and goes to the swamp
ard lives alone. Game Is plenty, and his
friends keep him in rice and groceries. 1
handle their peltries. They leave them on
the bank, aud | exchange goods for them,
but there is little Ss.tleme of Lspreux
M the bayou that runs past Oucblance's
place. I'll lend you my dugout and YOU
can paddle there tomorrow, Their priest
lives there. | am no Roman, but l reckon
if here is plain christian in this world it
is Father Villeve."
There was a row of live oaks along the
bayou and several small huts bnilt on piles,
as the ground was scarce a foot above the
river, ami walking down the bank the re-
porter came to grove of low pecan trees.
A human figure came forward carrying a
few sticks. The reporter at once detected
an indeScribable and horrid odor, and then
saw that it was a girl leper! One side of
her face was cash d hid ouSlv and her eyes
were hidden by blue swelling. The reporter
got close to tree trunk and watched the
poor creature limp past and noticed that
one foot was q mere stump. This was
settlement of three families, aud five of
their members are afflicted with leprosy.
Early next NOR ing, with the two boat
men, the reporter started for the place in
dicated by Capt. Vance. The bayou was
easily found and tie party turned north.
In some places it was not over ten yards
wide. The water was Shiny and dead, and
almost every stroke of the paddle turned
up snake, to the extreme terror of the
boatmen, and Cor two miles the channel run
through a treeless prairie, and then the
party came in sig ut of cluGp of live oaks
AID saw the low huts. This was the home
of the lepers.
1t was a mere shelving bank of white
sand, gil tenrng in the hot SUM- There was
no shade save the low live oaks, and these
were so twisted and torn by the fierce winds
from the gulf that thew looked like Twin.
creatures 10 pain. Here and there low
bushes crawled along the sands like ser
penis, while as far as the eye could see lay
the dead marsh. On ltndlng the reporter
went towards the huts, aud again noticed
the dreadful odor Huddled on the ground
by a small fire was a woman, ap-
parently old and wasted. She turned
her head and for the fir,t time
the reporter saw the traditional leper
"white as snow.n The face was gone all
but the lips, which were blue and swollen,
and the wasted hands had shrunken into
claws AMI looked as if they mad Teen painted
white. She was utterly Indifferent to the
visitors presence, and her mind was no
doubt gone. Under the trees party of five
men were working on a small bateau. They
were all lepers, with faces horribly gashed
and scanned. One man had a skin like a
turtle, hanging in gray folds, and he could
only see the reporter by raising an eyelid
with the finger.
Despite breeze from the gulf fragrant
with the smell of the sea the odor was
dreadful, and as the men worked it was
cay TO see the scales dropping from their
hands and arms on the ground. The pres
ence of the strangers made them nervous
aud appreheusive, especially when the re-
porter took out his sketch-book. All
showed plainly tie MARKS Of the disea e
aud one seemed to have lost his arm Hyp-
olite declared that the sight and smell
made him sick, ard no wonder. The re-
porter learned that Father Villeve was alb
sent and that he lived on the suth sids of
the island, which is half a mile away.
There were fifteen huts in all, but Hypo-
lite could not learn how many lepers were
on the island. Once every two weeks some
one came to them from the mainland, but
otherwise the place was as desolate as if in
midocean.
GA the return to the vessel the reporter
all the Cadjuns, was reticent about speak
log of the leprosy, but said that he had seen
three Cinnamon who were ath cted with it,
There are quite a number of Chinese settle
ments along the gulf, and they are by their
industry aud clsverness gradually monopo-
lizlng the fishing trade. Returning up the
BAYOU La Fourche the reporter passed a
Malay settlement, and saw two young girls
who were very beautiful, graceful and
quite light in color. The men wear hats
like bowls and are peaceable and indus-
triouS in their mode Of life.
In 1879 the louisiana Health Society
made an investigation and found six lepers
in New Orleans. One of them was north
err American, another al Italian, another
Russian. None of them had inherited the
di ease, but caught it by contact with
other lepers. So far the only guarantee of
safety against the spread Of this dreadful
mala iy is absolute isolation of the suffer
ers, for all the palliative resources Of
modern medical sciences have failed to ar
rest or cure the disease when once thor
oughly seated in the human system.
THE SONG OF THE SHIRT.