Custer County Republican. (Broken Bow, Neb.) 1882-1921, 1904-07-28
BATTLES ALL SKILL
PLAGUE IN INDIA THE BANE OF
MEDICAL MEN.


ease Have Been Futlle-Natives
Cannot Understand Necessity for
Remedial Measures.
The years come and the years
go, but the plague In India
shows no signs OF material abatement,
says the Boston Transcript. The
dreadful malady is becoming the de-
spair Of scientific investigators. They
cannot stamp 1t out and they cannot
account for its freaklsh manifesto
tons. The Pioneer Mail. published
in Allabahad, says they cannot say
why 1t takes hold upon one district
and passes by another, why in one
year and place on epidemic will begin
and subside months earlier than In
another; least of all can anyone ven
ture to prCphesy when the country or
any part of 1t will be free of disease"
Nowhere, it is said, have preventive
measures met with less success than
In the Punjab, though nowhere else
has the government attacked the
problem with more energy and de-
termination. ut must be admitted
that the people were not overwilling
to accept the good Offices of the gov
eminent, but that is a condition of
things existing everywhere In India
and it constitutes the chief element in
the continual spread of the plague
epidemics"
incubation has played an important
part in the fight against this disease
end with results that were very prom
lsing. Between May and September.
1910, nearly quarter of a million peo-
pie were inoculated. The percentage
of attacks among all such was 1882, as
compared with $3.50 among uninocu.
lated persons, and the mortality in
cases of the latter were 5215 per
cent as against 1880 among the in
oculated. Encouraged by these fig
ures, in 1902-1903 the Punjab govern
ment undertook to inoculate 100000
of people, practically the whole popu-
lation of the thirteen districts most
seriously affected by previous cpl
denies. This necessitated a daily
supply OF 10000 doses of prophylactic
fluid, which the Bombay research lab
oratory agreed to furnish. But in
stead OF this number of doses daily
1t was thirty-one days in supplying a
little over twice the amount, and then
It was announced that the fluid would
be supplied by a different method
from the one previously followed.
On certain day number of per.
sons were inoculated with the new
preparation and all of them developed
tetanus ard died. That wrecked the
whole scheme. Instead of the 6,000.-
600, only about 100000 had been inocu-
lated, ana the results of the tainted
serum had so impaired the confidence
OF the natives that they could not be
persuaded to submit to incubation
with the pure mixture, and the gov
eminent Is now at its wits ends. The
authorities have practically acknowl-
edged their helplessness by saying:
| THE measure on which most re-
lance has been and must be placed is
evacuation"
That is, the people must desert their
villages and remain away till the dis
ease has died by lapse OF time or been
killed by disinfection. But that would
seem to be rather a means OF carrying
1t elsewhere, because all germs of it
could hardly be left behind A curl.
GUS fact Of its manifestation is that
In the large towns, where the people
are less amenable to preventive meas
ures, there is comparative immunity,
though the plague has been many
times introduced among them. This
is one of the most serious of Eng
lands present domestic problems. in
cident to Ter far-seeing battle line and
earth-girdling possessions. She has
here an evil to deal with that defies
her, the more so that the afflicted ma
tives do not take kindly to the means
employed for their relief.