New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-04-13

lions svo. pp. xvi. 2s7. f 2. Dutton
& Co
EXPERIMENTS on THE GENERATION
OF INSECTS. BY Francesca Redi, OF
edition D Of less Ss'f by Nab Y Rireiow. svo,
PIP. 100 Chicago: The open Court Pub
fishing Company.
While Mosquito or Man" is primarily
history Of the beginnings. development
and victories Of tropical medicine dts
author claims with 5ustihable pride
credit for his participation in more than
one campaign. the book serves also as
practical guide for lsymen in the tropics.
telling them what 20 do and how 20 10
il. each for himself. the protective meas
ures 20 be taken being. on the whole. eN-
tremely simple While the author is
mainly concerned with the work and til
umphs OF tropical medicine as they az
feet the future OF the British in the
tropics. he gives a fun share Of scientific
attention 10 the labors Of other nations.
most OF all 10 the proud record OF the
United States in Cuba. Psto Rico and
the Philippines and in the Southern
states once subject TO yellow fever. He
describes at length the fight with this
disease waged in New orleans in 1903.
and refers TO the results obtained In
Brazil and Central America. The case
Of Sumatra is a curious one. for there
the requirements OF the tobacco plant
first led to drainage. forty years ago. the
extinction Of malarial fevers being an in
cidental result in the days when the
MOSQUITO was as yet hardly inspected
l,o
To he sure. there appears strong evil
dcnce that the danger OF flies and mos
ouitoes was known in very early times
Thus Sir Henry Blake. in speaking AT
q BANQUET in connection with the Liver
pool School Of Medicine in 1905. men
TONED how when he was Governor OF
Ce,lon. he had been shown medical
work written 400 wears ago. in which
The mosquito was stated to be carrier
Of disease. and malaria was described
as being transmitted by flies or mos
ouitoes" But the father Of the modern
doctrine Of fnsect-borne disease was Dr.
Louis Daniel Beauperthuy born IN
Guadeloupe in 1903. who made spe-
cialtv Of the study Of yellow fever ana
IN 1853 published a paper on the SUB
sect in the "Gaceta Official de Cumans,"
in which he pointed 10 the mosquito as
the carrier Of the disease, adding that
marshes do not communicate to the
atmosphere anything more than hu-
nudity. nor is It the putrescence Of the
water that makes il unhealthful. but
the presence Of mosquitoes" His papers
indicating that he had planned a Work
ON the subject # insect-borne diseases,
were not published until 1891. In le+S
= Or. Mott. Of Mobile. Ala, published a
work UNFOLDING the mosquito origin of
yellow fever. and four years lster
surgeon General Daniel Blair Of British
Guiana reported that the fever 'sug-
sests 10 the imagination the attributes
Of insect Hfe" The names Of Pasteur,
Koch. Ross and Sir Patrick Manson
must suffice here. tho history If the
birth ~ tho theory. the methods Of fits
ascertainment and the measures To
which IL has led are reviewed at length
.r the book. tho heroes 81 medical science
not being forgotten.
Malaria. yellow fever and sleeping
sickness are the three tropical diseases
chiefly dealt with. the three great enc
mics to be Vanquished. But there is also
charter on plague. tick fever. leprosy
and tuberculosis. While leprosy is di-
rnirishine. tho white plague appears to
l,s sp~ea ding I'm the tropics. owing. as has
been often said. 20 the changes brought
into the WAYS Of living Of the natives.
.hieav To their tendency to herd to-
petnor ia centres where labor is needed.
tuberculosis is not the only white
mans disease which shows signs Of IN
crease in the tropics" says the author;
there are also others. Thus We are
brought face 70 face with the curious
fact that whilst man Is steadily stamp
i,,o orr certain diseases which for the
,aosr rart interfere with his commerce,
tl,..re are a few diseases associated es-
peciaIy with his comparatively luxurious
May Of living which are not kept under
and are especially likely 10 spread
a5ii~l-lz- among the native races who
-o,la in contact with us and copy our
,1arrods~ The authors jubilant pro-
pbacy Of the white mans increased DO
uiuior oyer the tropics rs result ~
frc extinction Of tropical diseases Is
omen 10 question: however. the native,
too viii profit BY il and gain in energy.
IA power 10 progress and I'm power 10 re-
sist The exploiting invader. The IN
ferior races" are awakening.
hts a long step backward IN the his
tony OF biology from Pasteur and Tynda1l
10 Francesca RedL yet his memory well
deserves the honor that is paid him in
Kab Bjgelow's admirable translation of
mis- "Fxperiments on tho Generation OF
Insects" Aristotles theory Of the $pon-
taneous generation Of the lower forms Of
animal life still survives as vague but
firmly rooted belief in the minds 81 the
uneducsted. who continue 10 consider
clth snd putrefsction Is the direct crea-
tors Of insects and worms. instead of
IS the favorable media for the deposit
and Matching Of eggs, which they are in
reality. This theory was Still accepted
5v tho scientists and philosophers 81 the
ssrIv seventeenth century as an article
~ faith Harvey did not contradict 81.
80 FAR A. the lowest forms Of life were
concerned. even though he had expressed
his belief Ia 'OInne vivum * ovo.' Aro-
u,atsrI. % Assist, was the first 10 give
oppression 90 an actual disbelief ia the
creek philosophers theory, IN 1925, In his