Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-07-13

but the fact remains that majority
are saturated with malaria and capapie
of transmitting to foreigners, some
what after the fashion of the apparent
| " healthy Texas steer afflicted WIN
Texas fever, the disease. 1t Is pro-
posed, therefore. to take these people
under hospital treatment until they are
rid of malaria. 1t will be the most
UNIQUE and wholesale piece of SANTA
ton. or whatever it may be called. III
the history of the world, and Colonei
Gorgas gives some of the details as
follows:
| These people are all more or less
suffering from malaria. The anopheie'
MOSQUITO. which is the malaria mos
nuito. bites them. becomes herself in
fected, and when she In turn dues -
newcomer. conveys malarial fever u
him. If we introduce 1000 unacclifnat-
ed people into these villages, intimate
Nv associated with the present in1ecteu
population. our condition in the course
of a wear or two will be about as pau
as it was under the French. Inc i''os
uuitoes that become infected from 'he
present population would soon nave pi'-
ton most of the newcomers, and. IN
few months, they would all be SUFFERING
from malaria. Now, we propose u
ganize. as we did in Havana HOS
onto brigaies in all these villages, WHO
will destroy the breeding places OF the
MOSQUITOES and thus keep the insect
down to it's lowest numbers. At the
same time we expect to take I'LL the
present population in these villages
find ont who have malaria, make a
record of each individual case, and
keen them under daily treatment till
the malarial parasite has disappeared
from the blood.
Tho course of treatment for the ma
tives at the hospitals will amount to
little from n medical standpoint, but to
much in the way of a preventive. 1t Is
eliminate the malaria germ from the
natives. But the really effective part
of tho hospital treatment will be with
a mechanical device and not with medi-
cine. The hospitals will be hedged Off
from the world with close woven Wire
screens so that no mosquito can enter
and bite a patient infected with ma
laria. 1--WE hope" says Colonel
Gorcas. that with this treatment, in a
year from now, when our unaccilmated
population comes. it win be to clean,
urinfected villages, with all the pres
eut native population: free from ma
larial infection, and that there Will be
left very few malarial mosquitoes. ana
that these few malarial mosquitoes, not
being able to bite any human being in
fected with malaria will be. harmless.
In Havana yellow fever was cared for
in lust this way. At the end of about
eight months of work it was found
that the number of yellow fever mos
uuitoes had been greatly decreased,
land those that We're left could hnd no
human being infected with yellow fever,
whereby they, the yellow fever mos
uuitoes, might become infected, ana
thus convey it to other humans. For
nearly three years Havana has been
entirely free from yellow fever. An
unacclimated human can go to Havana
now. and though he may probably be
bitten a good many times by yellow
! fever mosquitoes, these mosquitoes
have had no opportunity in the past
three years of biting a human infected
with yellow fever and, therefore. are
themselves entirely harmless"
Colonel Gorgas is perfectly sure that
his plan will work if he can find means
to carry it out as intended. The
scientific phase of the matter is settled
beyond all doubt, but it will be no
small or simple matter to get, say
Il. 900, natives infected with malaria
under hospital treatment, as must be
done if the disease is to be finally ban
ished. The ignorant everywhere have
a horror of hospitals. Some of the ma
tives may hide themselves away and
prevent an early elimination of the
disease. And here we have cause for
ratulation in the act Of Congress
esta blishing a military government
over the canal zone. The military cam
handle this question as civil govern
mcnt could not do. and We have faith
that the plans of the medical officers
will be carried out to the letter
Buying a Mountain Of Sulphur.