The Columbus journal. (Columbus, Neb.) 1874-1911, 1908-09-02

The. sleeping sickness of Africa is
one of the diseases which not only
menaces the black man, but the white
man as well. 1t has claimed its vic
Tins by the thousands, and has re-
manned up to recent years disease OF
great mystery. and one battling the
skill Of the physician to successfully
treat. Scientific men have made
study of il and have about come to
the conclusion that il is caused by
the bite OF the tsetse fly.
England, because of her possessions
IN Africa, has been specially active
in Investigating the disease and en-
AS evidence of this the government
established in London last May ma
tiOnal sleeping sickness bureau, which
should act in cooperation with the
SOudanese government and the Royal
society. This bureau undertakes the
collection of Typographical. statistical,
pathological and other Information re.
garding sleeping sickness. and ar
ranges for its prompt distribution
among those who are engaged in COM
batting the disease, as well as for the
circulation Of publications designed
for the use and guidance of govern
ment officials and missionaries abroad.
Ii is contemplated, also. to prepare a
map of tropical Africa on as complete
scale as possible. with the view of
indicating the distribution of the NAL
ady and of the species or kinds of
blood-sucking insects which may be
concerned in the causatiOn of the dis
ease i'm infected areas.
But more important by far is the
recent decision of the British govern
inquiry TO resume the investigatOry
work i'm East Africa. which was sus-
pended in 1906. following the fatal con-
traction of the sleeping sickness by
Lieut.. Tulioch.
The commission is to be charge of
Col Sir David Bruce. F. X. s., of the
Royal army medical corps upon
whom the king lately conferred the
honor OF knighthood). and that officer
will be accompanied by Capt. A. f.
Hamerton. X. A. NJ. c.. and Capt. H.
X. Bateman. II. A. NJ. G. They will
proceed in September next to Lake
Victoria. on the northern shores of
which. in the province of Chagwe, Sir
II. Hesketth Bell, X. c. NJ. G.. gov
ernor and commander-in-chief of the
hnnn
thorized TO provide 4 suitable labora-
tory station
Sir David Bruce has had special
training and varied experience in
treating tropical maladies which mark
him out as one eminently qualified
for the task at hand.
Twenty-fOur years ago as an army
doctor ne began the study OF Malta
fever. and in 1887 discovered and
isolated the offending microbe. Two
wears of work in Zululand, from 1894,
enabled him to determine the parasite
land hence the true nature) OF the
Magma" disease of South Africa. so
fatal to horses. donkeyS, and other
,iomesticated animals. Moreover. he
proyed eyperimentaily that species
of tsetse fly transmitted the particu-
lar infective micro-organism-cal
in the terms of science, "trypano-
some" Thus he was the first to DEM
onstrate that an insect-a biting fly
could promote disease by harbonng a
blood parasite capable of being passed
as a poison into the circulatory sys-
TEN of animals.
In 1903 occasion served for the
further study of sleeping sickness in
Uganda. and before long he was able
TO show that here, too, a species of
tsetse fly acted as the carrier of a