The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1891-03-28
MY WORK AMONG THE LEPERS.
BY Sister Rose Gertrude.
(From the Ladies h ONE Journall

IF have not before taken no the rem
L foeomment on or answer the charges
and alta, ks made upon my work in con.
rection with the lelers on Molkai and
npon my personal motives and my own
character. il ia because know ing, a. I
did, that they emanatpd fr' m unreliable
sources, | believed they would moi find
credence with the great general public,
have all along considered these re-
ports and attacks a. henetah INV ccn.
tempt, ard hence unworthy any public.
notice. But
Magma est veritas. ct prevalent"
And now, for the sake of the lepcrs
whose tears cry TO Heaven for vengeance.
will acrept the offer of the editor of the
Ladits' Home Journal to speak, aimost
in the !N gnage OF the l-pers themselves,
and, without comment on my part relate
some Of the events which took place
since my arrival here.
When arrived ut Honolulu, In tho
month Of March, 1890 to drvot,, mveelf
TO the care OF the 'rpers at Molukai, the
Board Of Health informed me that they
had great need Of q trained nurse NJ tho
kalihi Hospital, and asked me If would
rrlinqui>h the idea of going to Molckai
for the present at least, aud remain 1t
kalihi. three miles distant from Homo.
lnln. DR.. Lniz, the German specialist.
who had come ont TO care for the lrpers,
was stationed a, Kalihi, hut had no one
to help him in his all important work,
and had asked the Board OF Health II I,
as trained nurse, would not be the bert
person to work under his instructions.
AS my intention was 10 help The lepers
in the best way could. ! assented.
The Hospital and Receiving Station
consisted Of several cottages, enclosed In
about eight acres of ground, built on the
hard coral rock, where nothing viii.
grow hut grass and alvrroba trees. Tho
ground was divided into three parts one
for suspects "-tha. IL, p-raons whom
the doctors are not sure havinv the dis
ease one for the lepers under DR.. Lu,s's
treatment, and the third for the persons
brought In for examination, aud the nm
foriunates waiting IT, be shipped to Molo-
| kali
The Board of Health vested the entire
control of the hospital, apart from the
medical and surgical work in their agent
who also acts as sort of policeman to
catch the lepera, and bring them up for
examination. He in his turn gave over
the authority 10 the luna sort o, gem
eral overseer-one of the leper patients.
a man OF no education, who confessed
himself that before he got the disease"
he was fond of drinking, and often " had
the devil This overseer retained all
the keys Of communication until the day
/ left, even OF the suspect side hich
he ought not to have entered, az he was
a confirmed leper. He kept the furniture
/ <ffh x, sH.,l s.>,- A.
| (Which was also against the rules for
lepers,, made the people work, and, in
fact, occupied position very similar to
that Of the Master OF q Work-houee in
England. Besides the agent, the presi-
dent of the Board of Health made fire..
| quert Visits to the hospital going ronnd
With this Luna, and approving or dieap-
prnving everything he did, as the Luna
told it TO him
Now, when I entered the Hospital,
among the Suspect patti nts there WAS q
white man of respectable family long
established in Honolulu. How he con.
,ractrd the disease no one knew. In
these islands there are many such cases
some Of white people some 4 hall castles
who have never TO their knowledge seen
lep-r in their livps and yet who develop
livnant form. This man Api, as tie ma.
tives rallied him, had been three years al
Mol, kai, hut had been brought down by
the former President of the Board oi
Health 10 Kalihi, to be treated by DR.
uiz. and had vastly improved during
his stay in the hospital.
At Last came The examination day. In
the morning he was going about in I'm.
hi ~f1 nd n IN o.
ing, and telling everyone he was sure Il
he allowed TO 20 home. az mort Of the
sympt, ms of he disease had disappeared
ana many .u-peri.d lep If, with so little
on them as he, where allow ed 20 g(
ont ard report at the Government is
pei sary Yer, Friday, in case fresh >iYnl
OF the disease should break ut. The tx
animal ion took place in little room se
apart for that putp' Sc; all the paiie"tl
TO he examined sat outside in the yard
their friends remained weeping ant
trembling without the gate, until tn
people had been examined. and thel
the decision in each care was mad
known by the policeman OF the Board {
Hralth.
THAT afternoon I waited in the Dir
pensary, making medicines and prepal
|
al anxious heart. Api had talked G
aboui goi' out, had said over and eve
again that he would rather 20 to q dur
yeon than go back 10 Molokai. where
had no occupation, no friends, no chang.
no society no'hiny to make life bearabl
to a man of edncation.
Suddenly, hearing loud and angr
) voices without, oper ed the door, IN
saw Api. tho Agent of the Board
Health. and the native Luna. engaged
lively dispute. Api had been pr,
nounced "lep-r" by the examiniu
doctors, and wss, therefore either to
detained for treatment at Kslihi in II
, Leper Hospital. or to return TO Mole ~
j. He was declaimirg agains, the injusti,
of his detention when others were z
free, and the agent and Luna were IT.
z ing him that it was ineviiahl
He became more and more exrite
poor fellow, he was 80 dissp,oinie
Is and, moreover, he SO keenly 4
the degradation of being subie
to the orders of men beneath himeelf
the social grade. The agent threaten
Se to have him put in prison. the cells
IL x-h;..h more, t.,x {,,,,. fn.< ~~,,..- q.