The San Francisco call., 1905-08-24
SAYS CANAL MAY
SPREAD DISEASE
GRAVE FEARS
Eminent Physician Thinks Ships
May Garry Yellow Fever.

germ, whether in man or mosquito, that may
have started from the West Indies Rio de Ja-
metro or Panama, has not succeeded in surviy-
ing the long Journey. We now approach
ing a point IN the history OF ocean travel and
commerce when all this will be changed In a
very few years the Panama canal Will be an
accomplished fact. A continual procession Of
ships WILL after trayersing the yellow fever
area, stream from Panama, and. rapidly pass
ing through the warm Pacific seas. carry
freight and passengers to all parts of what
is (as regards the West Indies the Gulf
East, but which then will be the near West.
Years ago the slow sailing ship managed TO
carry yellow fever many times to Europe;
well. then, may the fast travelling steamer of
our day carry yellow fever to Asia. If step
ping stones are needed there are Honolulu and
the Philippines
but big, ugly fact looming in the near fu-
ture. 1t is difficult to imagine the extent of
the calamity to Asatic mankind that would
follow the successful introduction of an in
fected stegomyia mosquito into such huge dis
tributing centers Hongkong or Singapore.
You in America know full we'll what havoc
yellow fever wrought in some of your own
cities, and that. too, in defiance of all the ap-
pi!ances Of civilization and of the co-opera-
tion of educated population What would
he ppen the Introduction of this disease into
thoroughly n-immune. uneducated unsan-
itary superstitious and oyercrowded Eastern
city. into such place as Canton, or into any
of the great centers of population in tropical
Asia? The immediate calamity would be ter
rible, but, worse than this, the East would be
permanently contaminated.
We can with justification. anticipate such a
calamity. Can II be prevented? The failure of
France to carry through the Panama canal
scheme, and the opportune discovery OF the
part played by the stegomyia mosquito in the
diffusion OF yellow fever. before America took
over the task, look like correlated and provi-
Dental occurrences.
CANAL A DANGER POINT.
I believe that serupulously administered
quarantine on the Panama canal. a quarantine
which need not be irksome to human beings.
but which would be absolutely fatal to stegom-
via would effectually protect Asia against yell
low fever. The United States must carry this
out II is one Of the responsibilities Of which.
in my opening lecture. / spoke that your ex-
panding influence has brought on you. 1t Is
not the least or the least important.
These and other sanitary and medical prob
lens that the construction OF the Panama ca
nal will bring up are likely to make that
great undertaking historical in the develop
ment of tropical medicine. As an engineering
work the undertaking is colossal, but so faf
as I know II involves in this respect no new
piishrnent. so far as piece OF canal making
goes. is simply a question of money, mere
application of well-known methods and applf-
ances. But from the sanitary point OF view 1t
is otherwise. No such gigantic work has been
carried through in similar climate; NO such
opportunity for the application OF the new
discoveries in tropical pathology has arisen
From this standpoint its progress will ba
watched with intense interest by all students
OF tropical medicine Great Britain has slowly
learned by long and life-bought experience
how. in her tropical possessions and depend
encies to protect, in measure, the health Of
her administrators and soldiers her mission
aries her engineers and her merchants. This
she did long before much was known about
the etiolosy OF tropical disease; even before its
cardinal principles were apprehended. Her
methods were the outcome of experience. hard
ly of science. The makers of the Panama
canal have a great pull in this respect over
the old country; for not only are you the well
come heirs to all this hard-won experience,
but you are to-day in position never. until
recently enjoyed by Great Britain About to
enter on this undertaking. you are in full pos
fact-that most tropical disease is insect
borne I sincerely hope the authorities appre-
ciate this II is the erux of the situation 1t
means treasure: ID means more than this-it
means thousands of human lives. And when
You have made this canal. nay before and
so un-Christian as to reciprocate her gift to
you of cholera by return gift in the shape of
yellow fever. -