The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1913-10-23
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from that time forward numerous writer's have
described the symptoms of this disease without
appreciating or understanding its cause AS
we have mentioned, Dubini undoubtedly deserves
the credit of first associating Miners Anaemia
or Tunnel disease with the presence of a para
site worm One Of the many troubles which
has for more years than cares to recall,
veXed the economist of the southern part Oh
the United States is the existence of large
population of degraded white people, sometimes
referred to by the black citizens as Poor mean
whites" or Poor white trash" About the be-
ginning of the present century Professor Stiles
of Washington was able to show that the de-
plorable condition of this degenerate people
was due not so much to original sin as to the
fact that they were infested by a worm which
was thought to be identical with the Ancylos-
toma doudenale we have described above. But
ten years ago Stiles found out that the worm,
although its effects identical with the An
cylostoma, was Of different species 'and even
genus, and this he named Necator amerlcanus
1t was for some years thought that this N
americanus was peculiar to America, and the
uninformed labeled it the 'Germof-idleness.
Schoolmasters and college presidents looked for
ward to virus weakened under cultivation until
inocuaton would confer immunity TO laziness
on schoolboys and college students A little
later some pigmes from the Semliki Forest,
who were brought by some enterprising 1mpre
sario for exhibition in music-halls passed down
the Nile, and, on reaching Cairo, were inspected
by Looss who discovered in them Necator amer
canus. Probably this was introduced some CEN
turies ago into America from Africa with the
slaves and is part Of the debt the New World
has had to pay for the institution of slavery
Since then Leiper has shown that Necator
americanus is almost as widely distributed In
the Old World In the New.
There are many details about the tunnel worm
which are i'll adapted for newspaper discussion;
but one may at least point out that with proper
provision, it may be controlled To a great ex-
tent it is controlled in the Panama canal region
and other districts by the American sanitary
officials To take but one example In Porto
Rico the deaths caused by Ancyostomiass were
placed at 80 per cent of the local death rate;
but by assduous and most careful treatment
the authorities in that island managed to cure
26 per cent. Of the inhabitants and practically
cured another IT'S per cent, while 40 per cent
of their patients we're still under treatment at
the time of writing. The remaining 16R per
cent ceased to return, and only or per cent
died This admirable work effected without
any great cost.
The triumph of the Americans in making the
Canal zone" health resort is summed UP
by Mr.. James Bryce. late British ambassador at
Washington, In these words: "Its success in es-
Gaping all charges of partiality or corruption,
well as in producing efficiency In the work and
contentment among the workers, has indeed been
such as to make some persons draw from 1t an
argument in favor of state control of all great
enterprises To the unbiased observer it is rath.
er an instance Of the efficiency obtainable by
vesting full administrative control In men whose
uprightness and capacity have already been
proved beyond question, who have not risen by
political methods and who have nothing to gain
by any misuse Of their powers. So far as any
political moral can be drawn from the case that
moral recommends not democratic collectivism,
but military autocracy.