The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1899-09-14

s1clan. So FAR as known no qualified
woman physician is connected with any
proprietary medicine establishment
turned to water from long lack OF nutrition
and III spite of the food that came too
late soon slipped into the eternal Silence
The place is in charge of a woman and
her two daughters, who are cooks, seam
stresses, teachers, laundresses; in short
the whole hospitsl staff condensed, like
the crew of the Nancy Jane
he dishevelled and slip shod matron,
though leaving very much to be desired in
the way of that virtue which said to be
next to godliness,' and sorely troubled
with the landlady's customary loquacity
concerning better days, is undoubtedly
worthy soul; for the poor thing gets no
pay whatever and is herself in need of
everything. How can one possibly keep
clean in house crammed with four times
its acknowledged capacity, with the work
of a dozen on the slender shoulders of
three, and water SO scarce that every drop
must be paid for, at the price of from five
to ten cents the bucketful? child of
three OF four years, running about naked
as the minute it was born, elected the
| apologetic information that there were no
changes of clothes for the children. and
when dress OF pair of trousers must be
washed its owner had to stay in bed I'M
til the garment was dried.
That night through Jealous Quarter
master Bean, Miss Barton called Il meet
ing of the ladies of Santa Clara to devise
ways and means of sustaining the Bene-
ticencia. The first idea of the Santa
Clara ladies was the common one in Cuba
viz, that rich ''American pigs might
be generously allowed the privilege of
squandering their surplus millions in the
Red Cross Of Geneva, with unlimited
means at its back, be condescendingly
permitted to carry on the work in its own
way. When we run up against such
cases, which not infrequently happens
Miss Barton's opinions as to the true
state of affairs are never long shrouded
in obscurity; and during the next half
hour those ladies received more whole
some enlightenment than ever before in
the course of their lives. The outcome
was that the Red Cross gave little judi
cious help to the Beneficencia, enough to
place it firmly on its feet, together with
the clear understanding that no more as
sistance would be given and that it must
henceforth be locally maintained. And
then Miss Barton rented another house,
had it cleaned and disinfected, established
therein three of her nurses and relieved
the over crowded Beneficencia of half its
children.
Next we drove by winding road to the
edge of the town, to the Lepers Home,
opposite the cemetery, on top of a breezy
hill. The long, one stored wooden build
ing, painted sky blue, with the legend
"Hospita de San Lazaro" in black letters
over the wooden arch of it's gateway,
looked very bright and clean amid the
surrounding vendur. Its apartments are
ranged around wide central patio, open
to every breeze-male patients on one
side, females on the other, office in front,
kitchens and store rooms in the rear. A
surprising number of lepers are here,
almost as many as in the big San Lazaro
hospital Of Habana. The majority of
these are negroes, and, as always, the
worst cases are Chinese. Whyi is it, |
wonder, that the loathsome disease finds
its most congenial ground in Oriental
bodies? One smiling old fellow, who in
spite of his infrmity retains scanty
remnant of precious pig-tail eked out
with braided shoe string, lost his eyelids
long ago, together with most of his fea-
lures. The curious thing about the case
is that kindly Mother Nature fastened to
supply substitute for the missing eye
lids, in the shape of a thick film which
shades the tender orbs, something as an
owls eyes are protected. Others have
lost hands and feet ears, lips, noses, suf-
fering no more pain when the scaly mem
bers dropped off than a snake does in
shedding its skin.
l was particularly Interested in young
mulatto woman, tall, slender and appar-
emily in perfect health She sat in dark
ened corner, with eyes downcast and
hands hidden in the folds of her gown,
livious of present surroundings as if
wrapped in cloud of memories. cts
her hands, said the brusque attendant.
''Tbe fingers are falling off. Come, show
them, Isabel" | refused the heartless
invitation to look, but dropped my bunch
of roses in her lap and turned away. At
sight of the flowers her slumbering soul
seemed to suddenly wake up and look
through its darkened window Sits. She