The Detroit times., 1911-05-03
BY CAPTAIN WALTER klRToN.

Tor The Times.
BY CAPTAIN WALTER kiRToN.
SHANGHAI, China, via Siberia,
April SILT appears that the plague
first started In the vicinity OF Man
chouli on the frontier between Rus
sian Siberia and Manchuria. From
thence II spread TO Khailar and Har-
bin, or IL may be that certain Of the
surviving trappers made their way TO
those places. At any rate, people be-
| gan TO die in numbers which at least
struck the Russians as being abnor-
NAL
Amongst the class OF people affect
ed, knowledge OF sanitation or any
/ thing else pertaining TO health rs ex-
| tremely elementary II not altogether
non-existent. In case OF sickness
they rely on alleged curative meas
ures and methods which are essential
| IL ludicrous. For instance, common
| cure" for stomach ache Is TO run a
needle into the part affected, on the
| theory that IL let's the pain out. At
Fuchiaten there Is sill living the an
| Client Chinese ''doctor"-of the old
| school-who was In charge OF the To-
cal hospital when the plague broke
out and who actually treated some l.
coo plague patients In this fashion. IL
may be unnecessary to say that all the
old doctors" patients are now dent
zens OF the Elysian Fields.
AS may well be imagined, under
such circumstances the disease spread
with lightning swiftness and when
people had at last been hurried to the
scene by the Chinece government they
found themselves confronted with a
state OF affairs calculated TO arouse
despair In the heart OF even the most
stoical
II will be obvious that no curative
measures were of any avail. Opin-
ions as to the efficacy OF incubation
still differ among the medicine men.
A practical safeguard against conta-
gion is furnished by the sterilizins
mask, which Ats over mouth and nos
trils and is charged daily with aseptic
cotton and various kinds OF stariliz.
Ing liquid. Nearly all the savants
have talked with state that II IL were
possible 10 keep everyone in the open
air the plague would vanish.
AS far as we have got at present
II appears that no definite symptoms
are present In the early stage OF the
disease beyond rapid pulse. but the
rapidly OF the disease Is so marked
that even II these symptoms Is absent
In the morning the patient may be
dead before evening. The only posi-
tive sign Is a bloody expectoration,
and that is followed. invariably, by
death within twelve hours at the
most. The majority show little or no
inconvenience from the sickness until
the last three or four hours, and there
does not appear TO be any pain worth
, talking about. In some cases. termed
Septicaemic, there Is not the definite
bloody expectoration of the pneumonia
type, and really nothing to indicate II
except sudden death.
The majority at present surround
, ing this epidemic Is emphasized by
the wide divergence OF views amongst
those who have come into close con-
, tact with II. In the meantime the off,
Ciai records show that deaths occur
mainly In punches. oblterating entire
, families and occupants OF hongs
| (offices. or places OF business) and
that after the plague has run its
course for few weeks in any particu-
lar locality segregated from outside
contagion the bacillus becomes atten.
uated and loses its virilty or venom
How venomous IL can be was dem.
, onstrated In one village only few
miles away from here. A coolie man.
aged TO evade the railway guards and
reached the village inn. The man
crawled onto the k'ang Ga raised
sleeping platform) and died Before
morning dawned the other twenty or
more sleepers were dead also.
LONDON. May 3.-Secretary OF the
Navy McKenna In the house OF com.
mons today said he was in receipt
OF message from the commander OF
/ the Chinese squadron at Canton that
/ the rebellion had been crushed.