The Brunswick times. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 188?-1900, 1898-02-06
CENSUS OF LEPERS.
TIE MARINE HOSPITAL SERVICE AR
RANGING TO TAKE ONE.

Seneraily supposed Obscure Forms Of
the Disease incubation Experiments.
Uncle Sam is arranging for the first
counting of lepers ever made within our
boundaries. He has received informa-
ton warning him that leprosy, the most
terrible curse of ancient and modern
times, is on the increase in America
and that danger threatens us from neigh-
boring countries surrounding us on this
continent.
The senate bill authorizing Surgeon
General Wyman, in charge of the ma
rine hospital service to form a commits
sion to count the number of cases and
report upon their origin is being put
through congress, where il appears to
have no opposition.
Surgeon General Wyman lately dis
patched to the international leprosy CON
ference at Berlin his chief bacteriol-
ogist, DR.. J. J. Kinyoun, who has re-
turned laden with many fresh facts con-
corning the dread contagion. DR.. kim
youn recommends that we count our
.lepers at once before taking further steps
to stamp oHt possibilities Of their spread
ing their misfortune. No one knows OK
aetly how many leporNhAero are in the
Unibed States. 1t has f'simated.
chat there are from 200 toy
marked symptoms Our national quar-
antiae laws provide for the detention Of
leprous lAnmigrants knocking at our
gates
DR., Kinyoun learned, hQR@E. while
abroad that leprosy has ~ been dis
covered to exist in number of forms
in which it is difficult to recognize it.
Several obscure nervous and skin dis
eases known by other names have late
ly been attributed directly to the deadly
microbe Of leprosy. A malady hitherto
known as Moryan's diseasee.is caused
BY that bacillus Suifeges from it are
lepers, Of course, sgs do not
suffer from the extcA sores
rosy
These Interval forms Of IL
now known abroad to be as 5hgasa.
and infectious as the we'll &Aown form,
and their results are even more violent
Theyare common to localities inhabited
By 1epers OF the ordinary type, but I'M
suspected sufferers have thus far been
spared isolation. Other diseases hitherto
known as syringomylia and airhum
have also been found to DO forms Of Iep-
rosy in-whioh the germs attacked the
nervous system 1t is very possible that
these unsuspieious forms havo entered
from abroad and that we have
sueh cases propagating among our
healthy inhabitants.
New Orleans is the most serious I'M
telnal focea Of leprosy upon which Un-
clio Sans has his eagle eye The number
4 cases are reported TO DO increasing i'll
that city, although Louisiana now has
q law for Tho isolation Of lepers. As
last reported, they number about 81,
and isolated in homo ON what
is called the old Indian Camp planta-
ton, in Iberville parish.
Key West is suspected as another TO-
Gus Of leprosy, the disease being import
ed there and the climate being particu-
larly favorable, it is alleged, for its
san Francisco is counted as close
second to New Orleans ia the relative
scale Of this same danger. Leprosy Is
known to exist there among tho Chinese
population. Some authorities would
look with suspicion upon all thickly
settled Chinese quarters as promising
fields for search after the contagion.
Minnesota offers additional danger
points whence the infection might
SPREAD. A number Of cases isolated
there wero originally bgought to the
state by Norwegis igrants 1t has
also been esNSfod that in Iowa and
.ENiscon1e theea may be many persons
tainted with leprosy brought froia Nor
way, those states being populated with
many Norwegian immigrants Leprosy
has wouned ite way in receI,tsg @
ahi New York,
Three years ago two girls wssn found
to be suffering from leWg New
Lexington, @. CuuWas ars I'D
and tho ether, her sister . Though
the older had shown synp Us of the
disease since an infant f41Qnrger
child was allowed to sleep nm Ter. It
was believed that the father Of the sub
iects had contracted the disease in the
late war.
Would we be exposed to increased
dangers from leprosy through the an
nexation Of Hawaii or Cuaa2 just now
these arc mooted question: There are
2, 800 known cases Of leprosy in Hawaii,
but according to the present law in
vogue there each case when discovered
must be isolated in the famous leper
colony on the gloomy island Of Molokai,
one Of the Hawaiian group. The Ha
waiian law is SO severe against the UNI
fortunates that it reacts to great ex-
tent against it's own enforcement Asa
result many lepers ON the islands are
purposely concealed from the authori
ties by relatives and friends. As far as
Cuba is concerned, leprosy is known to
be dangerously rampant upon that IS
land. It is said that lepers are frequent-
~ seen in the streets Of Havana. Near
our border lines we are still further en-
dangered by its existence, not only in
Cuba, but in Canada and the United