The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1895-11-21
Imperial Health Officer of Japan
Discusses Cholera.
Does Not Deny the Responsibility of
steamship BeIgic-CannOt Consider
Ships Surgeon at Fault-Five Days
Incubation Theory-Awana Doubted

The following letter received by
the last mail was written in reply
to request made by r. w. Irwin,
Hawaiian Minister to Japan:
R. w. IRWIN, Esq, Minister of Ha
waii.
DEAR SIR:-As you have asked my
opinion, as an expert, with regard to
the recent outbreak of disease in HO-
nolu, have the honor to reply as
follows:
Judging from the data at my dis
pOsal, chiefly the material published
in the Honolulu newspapers, there APP
pears to be no doubt that the cpl
demic is one of true cholera; although,
so far as 1 have been able to ascertain,
the crucial test of meteorological eX-
animation, with cultures, had not
been made up to the time of the leav~
ing of the Coptic. Still, the symp-
toms of cholera are very distinctive,
and, when, to these special symptoms
we find added strong epidemic tend
ency, with a death rate such as has
been the rule in Honolulu, the dag
nosis of cholera becomes, practically,
which at all resemble cholera do not
tality anything like as great as that of
this pestilence.
AS to the possibility of tish-pOisOn-
ing having caused the epidemic, it
could easily be proved, by similar
train of reasoning, when dealing with
a fish eating people, that the preVa-
lence of corns or tOOthache Is due to
ichthyophagy Qish-eating).
Granting the outbreak to have been
s nl,< 90 70,
origin arises. Certainly everything
points to it's introduction by the 5. S.
Belgic; but, it by no means follows
that the officers or surgeon of that
vessel were in any way to blame in
the matter, or that its importation
could have been prevented by any
measures short of absolute interdic-
tion of landing or communication.
The facts, as understand them, and
/ have taken pains to secure infOrma-
ton, are these: The Belgic left this
port, for San Francisco, Via Honolulu,
on the 3Oth of July. immediately be-
fore her departure L personally, on be
half of the United States authorities,
and under the strict provisions of the
United States laws of quarantine and
emigration, inspected the ship and
every person on board, crew, Chinese
and japanese passengers and their ef-
fects, and with negative results. The
first death on board, that of Chinese
passenger, occurred seven days after
leaving Yokohama, and this was fol-
lowed by two others, also of Chinese,
before the arrival of the ship at HO-
nolulu, on the 10th of August. So far
as known, neither of these cases show
ed any symptoms of choleraic charac-
ter, for the appearance of which among
the passengers special watch was ell
Joined and kept. Had even one of
these Chinese suffered from cholera
an extensive outbreak of the disease
would certainly have occurred in that
crowded steerage, and this despite the
strictest precautions that could be
taken.
Note, too, that the first death did
not take place until seven days after
leaving this port. Now, five days is
universally acknowledged to be the
utmost limit of incubation of cholera,
or the period during which the infec-
tion can lie dormant in the human
system, without the appearance OF
symptoms. So well is this truth
recognized that upon IL are based the
quarantine regulations of all the
greater nations, so far as they apply
to cholera. This point is of great lm-
portance also in connection with the
called "gastrO intestinal disease, !
among the Chinese landed from the
Belgic, and in quarantine at Homo |
lulu, which was on the 18th OF August,
or less than eight or nine days after
their arrival. The injection then was, |
evidently, not transmitted in the !
usual manner from case to case; how, |
this being so, are we to account for
the Outbreak of the cholera in Homo |
lulu?
There are several we'll known me-
thods of transmission of infection /
which may have been responsible, !
excluding the cases of illness on board I,
the Belgic from the consideration. /
The virus may have been brought in |
sOiled clothing or infected food from |
HoDgkong, where more or less true
cholera occurs every year, but it is
not reported officially unless severely |
epidemic; or contaminated food may |
have been smuggled on board at 1oko |
hama. The latter appears to me the
most probable explanation OF the
facts.
am rather surprised that so much
weight should, apparently, have been
given to the declaration of an Ignorant
Chinese steerage passenger with re-
rH 70 ha of fhn illness from /