The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1901-06-18
KOBE AND
THE PLAGUE
A Vigorous War
Made Against
Rodents.

Chronicle says. The SERIOUS t''
crudesccnce Of plague In H1ugkunl
and Formosa has naturally led the au'
thorlties In Japan TO take precautinn.
against the Introduction Of the disease
from obroad or It's outbreak here. with
this In view the authorities In Kobe
have commenced an examination Of all
the rats captured and brought 10 the
local police stations or TO the city Of
flee. Previously such examination was
only made In the case Of rats found
dead, but now the examination Is made
in every case where rats are caught
alive or dead. with this object DR.,
Murata formerly an assistant In DR..
Kitasato's laboratory in Tokyo, has
been engaged, and the examination Is
conducted under his superintendent
The number OF rats arriving every day
at the laboratory, which Is situated at
the central police headquarters in
Shimoyamate-dori, is very large. Since
the 9th of May a reward OF sen has
been paid for every rat brought in,and
the rise from sen to sen has evi-
IDENTIFY encouraged n vigorous hunt,
for arrivals have numbered between
seven and eight hundred per day, the
actual number received at the labora-
tory from the police stations between
the 9th and 27th of May being 4S.922
The rats are usually brought alive to
the various police stations In cages. but
the fact of their being living or dead
when purchased is noted. They are
then killed and a wooden tag attached
to the neck. giving the name of the per-
son bringing the rat, the house where
it was caught and other particulars of
,...1 tl,A
laboratory the rats are first stepped in
a solution of carbonic acid, and then
the assistants take each rat and cut
from it certain of the internal organs
placing the parts removed into glass
receptacle together with the wooden
tag. Thence the glass re -eptacles are
taken to another table, and after GER
tain preparations their contents are
placed under powerful microscope
and closely examined. If any doubt re-
mains, culture is prepared, and
further test is the incubation of white
mice numbers of these poor creatures
in various stages of experimentation
being kept in cages round the walls as
well as guinea pigs and several beauti-
full white rabbits, the latter. however
only being employed as subjects of eX-
pertinent In the last resort.
Dr. Murata, who is in charge of the
precautionary arrangements in Kobe,
has had considerable experience as as
sistant to the Institute for Infectious
Diseases at Tokyo. where the famous
Professor Kitasaro is director, and was
chief physician of the medical commits
sion sent by the Japanese Government
to Newchwang at the time the plague
- Il
Murata readily gave all the information
in his possession, and II is quite clear
from the energy which he devotes and
the interest he displays in the whole
question that HyoEo prefecture is ex-
tremely fortunate in securing his SER
vices.
IdARK TWAIN'S POSITION.
YOKOHAMA, June 5.-Whatever one
may think of the logical force of Marx
Twain's arguments In the attack he |
is making upon the mission boards, /
there can be no gainsaying the fact /
that his word has tremendous weight /
with the American public, and that 1t /
is destined to exercise a momentous |
influence upon that popular feeling up |
on which the boards have been Obliged |
to rely for funds to carry on their /
work. 1t is not simply that with his |
HS lHt greatest hulllbl lSN VI
the day, with his trenchant wit, and
powers OF keen sarcasm. lie appeals 10
the American sense of humor, and
thereby puts i'm force the very strong
est lever to mould public opinion, but
IL il with a distinctly moral power
that he influences popular sentiment. II
The extreme conscicntlOusness evil
denced by him in the wreck OF his
financial fortunes, when recently, IN 4
nj a ua his ]
away. he insisted upon paying by his
pen huge debts OF the firm by which ne
was wrecked, although under no Legal
or even constructive obligation to do
SO, has endeared him TO the American
heart as perhaps no other man or the
day, and has lent weight TO his ut 4
upon moral questions which
certainly no other individual can WELD.
when therefore, In his whimsical way,
he says OF the' American Board that
though Il means we'll IL Is destitute
of moral sense, the American people
VIII, ~ course, while making an due
discount Tor the eNaggeration ~ the .
utterance, inevitably be led into a se-
Tious ana searching discussion upon
the morals of missions
That Il is subject upon which regard
has not heretofore been popularity be-
slowed IN very naturally 10 br ace
counted for hy the simple fact tnat In
the public mlnd religion has been IN.
dishuluhly connected win morals, uul I
therefore tho fact that au enterprise .
la carried nu Ia The uamr of religion .
creates ihe pfefumpluu lhai "a must .
urrih D. "a moral enterprise TNg large .
radluH uf thr history uf tNWuuH tu /
Nhlph modern Intelligence has ~ lAfr I
3raW devoted liarlf has duur much .
10 Nprn mems minds iu mo lHfh ~ .
my nfffHfHfN connection between iIr .
1870 bui lhr result w such HtulY uu .
lhf pHfi ~ "A privileged ffW NJ aa moth I
lnN NnWpHfri Niih ihr sturly iHrlsi
once ~ "A man whose uHmH n nos uHt .
nhlf hlnhNhail NHfd throughout iHr I
lHnhih ana hffallh M hlf miNp lHu T
hAl tls1 ffuNrfm faF ihn kHHu.Hl .
hgnlr ~ hHnnf HnH WaNIf NYHlHs .
- W. NlifftnHfa iHfu aII IHNtIIHNIt .
Aiir Hfhffl fllNk pHUlIHT W4NIfE nHi /
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mo- ihs f4n4Hinfma. fHnup umn'
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