The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1900-10-19
TROPICAL DISEASES.
BY PATRICK MANSON, C. NJ G.. Md. LID

sion OF DIR. Mansions popular treatise on
Tropical Diseases appeared. The fact
fhat "a new and enlarged edition is al
ready called for shows how well appreci-
ated by practitioners and the public this
work has been. AS the author. in his
Introduction states, his book is not in
srerded to compete with large or fun
II. atises dealing with Eastern diseases.
such as Davidson's and Hirsch's are. but
N we may be allowed to criticise very
able and useful book, we would say
that IL is too much of a compendium.
book to he recommended by 1.-The cram
mer' to be got. up for examination.
Undoubtedly 1t is this very quality which
mas made the treatise so popular, but we
cannot fail to remember that the practi-
ticner, for whose use and benefit 1t is in
feD&ed. Is not a raw student straight
from the lecture-room and hospital
whose sole ambition is not to be plucked.
MT a fully qualified medical man who
let US hope, has made the most of his
ttme in special hospitals, or assistant
70 private practitioners. or in taking out"
extra courses, and whose ambition scars
beyond "A third-rate practice in country
-fcixn or mining district, and who Is deter
framed 10 seek TOT ndnle anu idH1c III INC
sEorgeous East. For such, i cannot help
thinking. a larger and more ambitious vol
sume would have been more appropriate
and given greater scope to the author
wtIi-known talent and evident industry.
As might be expected. owing to the in
tcrest Of the subject, and widely dispersed
nature of the malady, malaria occupies
nearly third part OF the book, and II Is
in the chapters devoted TO its considera-
ton that most of the new matter intro
.1ucsi in this edition is found. The whole
question OF the genesis and mode OF In
lection In malaria has been accurately
and persistently studied during the past
Two years, largely due to the impetus Civ
zen by the newly started schools of ''tropi-
cal medicine" which have sent forth COM
missions to Africa. South America, Italy,
etc and have thus gathered valuable IN
formation. the gist of which our author
mas embodied In his work. In the writers
student days tropical medicine" was as
nrkKown n region to the average student
as the North Pole or Saturn; now every
up-to date medical school has its lecturer
on tropical medicine" London and Liv-
-srpooi have their postgraduate courses
-fsu the same subject. Much of the credit
ror this advance Is due to our author
Who. through his official connection with
the Colonial Office, has been able to infiu-
.ei,ce the ruling powers.
Some thirteen pages. pp.19-33. of new
matter are introduced, giving more minute
directions for preparing and staining
slides OF malarial blood. Strangely Trims
hsematin and alum stain. used by tn
West African commission. Is not men
toned. A very full description OF tn
plssmodium In its various forms Is given
together with the mode of transfer by tn
mesquite to the human body. and the de
we1opment OF one of the phases of tn
parasite In the stomach OF the anophele.
An anophele. we must explain. Is tina
species of mosquito which, as far as ca
be ascertained, acts as host to the plas
rodium, and may be recognized, as Nigh
be considered natural In such a yiciou
animal. by standing on its head when a
rest. In contra distinction to it's quiete
brethren who. in like circumstances. US
their legs like ordinary individuals. AT
other point of interest Is that the femal
mosquito Il alone the 'blood-sucker,' nj
s1rfike It's human prototypei
Its favorite habitations are those nj,
little puddles which Chinese like to lea,
around the back premises OF houses,
those neat quiet pools which the enthus
attic amateur gardener keeps IN fropt ,
nis drawing-room windows for ornafnei
use The Japanese are more sensibl
They also have their landscape gardel
and miniature lakes but In the latter the
cultivate gold fish. deadly enemies of q
mosquito larvae. This may quite well a.
count for the immunity of many malar
ous-iooking places In the fowery lar
Hrtm paludism.
Dr. Manson states %. 2s) that the mo
quito II not a mere carrier of malaria bl
Is necessary for its development. so tn
II there are no mosquitoes there should
no malaria. but we know that malaria
just as active when man Is not preser
There are many districts in India al
Africa uninhabited, not to mention q
uell-known case of the Roman Campaign
where the population is about nil.
which the malarial germ. to use the o
fqf m 10 m Han fa nd .
only explanation given Is that bla'
spheres exist in the SOIL and that thes
though long defunct. are liberated by di
ging Why, then. does malaria disappe
after cultivation? Stephens and Christ
pher Ton malaria I'm Freetown) state tn
there r. a marked concentration of an
pheles wherever n clearing with huma
and especially native. dwellings Is made
which leads TO the spread of malari
They point out a still more potent IA
rtI that anopheles swarm in the dir
nntfve quarters and aggregate In dir
native villages" when the Europe
houses VIII be almost free. and combat I
popular theory that natives are IL
prone to malarial disease because tn
are not so frequently bitten" showi
they are as liable to attack by mosquito,
MT do not show II. their skin being ID
Irritable. From these various statemer
u may safely be concluded We have mu
stfh TO learn about the genesis of malar
"A point In this connection OF much int,
est TO jewellers in Hongkong Is that m
iaria ~ undoubtedly rampant in just su
places "a the African Commission
secribes. The nullahs at West Poi
down the Peak Road, between Magaz
Gap and Aberdeen, at Quarry Bay
East Point behind the old Police Stati
now the Bay View Hotel. are just
typical breeding places of anophel
which are invariably found i'm mounts
streams and pools left by the subsider
OF the water" and IL Is further sta
that the danger of subsoil water Is Il
u leaves pools which become breedir
places for mosquitoes. IL has long b,
recognized that these conditions exist
rahrough the West Point which. since
sds1iers encamped there in the fort
were decimated by malaria down to
present day, when every house has so
or all of its occupants down with fe,
has been VIGOROUSLY malaria-infect
surface and deep drainage and
training OF such water-courses are 8
en- as prophylactics. recommended
made bv the Hongkong Commission
1850. Perhaps the p. w. ID. viii now q
note and exert themselves.
ON y. ii5. in favor OF the mosquito the
~ IL noticed that Nautilus previously