The sun., 1899-09-17
IMPORTED LEPRoSE.
Great Danger in the Presont Negro lmmi-
rration from the British West indies.


rratiop from the British West Indies.
To THE EDrroR OF TIE suN-Sir; In to-
days Sun 1 nnd an extract from the Chicago
Record, which asserts that the ranks OF Amer
ica's millions OF negroes are being daily swol-
len by an exodus from the British West indies
in slight degree from Jamaica. but prin-
cipally from st. Kits, Montserrat and other
Leeward Islands.
As the negroes OF the British West Indies are
most foully leprous since the days OF Hawkins.
who introduced the disease with hs 6O0.O00
slaves from Spain and Portugal. IL behooVes
our immigration authorities to ses to II that
Great Britain. which 10 opposed TO the isolation
OF lepers from utilitarlan considerations. ana
believes In the on-contaglon OF leprosy
because the maintep ance OF her 200. 600 Indian
and West Indian lopers would be an enormous
expense. docs not unloai lepsrs on US as Nor
way and Russia have done.
Hansen. the Inspector General OF Leprosy
for Norway. admits that 2s7 Norwegian lerers
have emiRrated mostly here. and DR. Won Berg
mann. Of the Riga Leper Asylum. Russia. when
consulted by the offlolals OF the German Health
Department tDr. K0hler and others of Berln)
declared that a largo number OF the Russians
who enter Germany with the intention OF
proceeding to America. are afflicted with
leprosy. He warns the Commissioner OF I'm
migration Of this country to be especially vigil
liant In the examination OF Russians who come
to the United States.
Several months ago. In an open letter TO
Roger g. Chow. II. D.. editor Of the Indian
Journal Of Pharmacy. Calcutta. India. l COM
batted the views OF an article py him In favor
Of non con ntaeiousness. speaking as a repre-
sentative OF a number OF leproRtsts in every
country; who are GEhtinx the non ,ooltagion
leadership made the same fight before the
Berlin Conference. before this conference pro-
Is % ra has an
49, 1857; tor the simple reason that she has
In letter written in Dscem ber. 1897. to Dr..
William Munro; formerly ~ ,,; charge , 9i tn the
notified him that should continue to advo-
cate cat on al occasions and ip all manners an
%ed 9 ony
laws the latter to prevent contaminated or
tries. stopping them. of course. especially In
the mel lheT6Srs q OF emharSation. or sending them
Here. TT tod fdfSo hlm. we "s' are % free from home
trouble. but we havs to- guard against trouble
coming from abroad Therefore we are mind
upon England, Tor instance. To solve her Indian
and West Indian .t, prob,.m; We have some
Hansen's mixed law does not protect us. and
o%nly trsns'eIs the trouble from Norway to
MlnnesOta, Wisconsin, 10 our NOrthWeBtern
States In general. We have int crested ad vice to
give 70 China. to Japan. to Hawaii. to the South
America States. Suppose that about the year
1865 A when the mixed Norwegian law began to
be strictly enforced, this International law
had been put into action instead. What would
have been the resut2 The liz. 900 Norwegians
Of leprous ancestry who have brought us
leprosy and whom we have now anflously to
watch. would have been kent in their own
country The British West Indies would. un-
der the benencent rule OF this law. be free to-
day from leprosy introduced by Hindoo and
spanish immigrants
The conclusions OF the Berlin Lepra Confer
ence that loprosy is contagious. incurable and
que to an organism existing only IN man, that
II 10 propagated by human currents. and that
Isolation is the, only, remedy, takss the prob
lem from medical hands into Government
hands The problem is. therefore. for the pub
lie press. not for the medical press.
merely add. that In my opinion, our own
most dangerous focus OF Ieprosy is Louisiana.
where the authorities are doing their utmost
to prevent the CONTAMINATION OF our Southern
negroes, II now Great Britain Ia permitted to
send us her infected West Indian negro popu-
lation,, we sha very eoon have 1O0.Ot0 lepers
from the seed they viii SOW among the seven
states ALBERT S AsHNFAp NJ d
New YORK. Sent 10