United labor bulletin., 1913-10-25

!
the disease is believed to have been ~
known the ancient Egyptians un- NV
der the term "heltp." which is men
toned In the Ebers papyrus. written n
some thousand hye hundred an ~
nifty years b. C. In the papyrus the
disease called AAA and certain
remedies suggested. Another an
Client reference occurs In the Sanscrit -
Harita Samhta. where 1t Is recorded TDDrcr, rd
that the trouble due to swallowing 6x0ofSH
clay. But whatever the ancients knew
about the ancylostoma soon disappeared from the
stock OF common knowledge. and II only in
1888 that Dubini rediscovered the which IL
responsible for such widespread distress. Some
years later Gresinger associated the presence OF
the worm with profound anaemia In Egypt Later
on II was discovered TO be the cause OF tropical
anaemia in Brazil But II not TIL the boring
OF the St Gothard tunnel in the early eighties that
the disease attracted general attention among the
medical men of Europe. The Italian excavators
suffered much from this parasite that increAs
Ing interest as taken In II. and now, for the first
time In mo, tmedical history. Il was recognized
as causing sngerous and not infrequently IA
tai disease.
Our knowledge OF the geographical distribution
OF the has within tho last rs years increased
amazingly. and Il has at the present time been
found in 90 many countries that one may almost
state that aneylostomA or an allied genus is gen
orally endemic (if one may apply this word to
worml all over the globe between the parallels
81 degrees 81 minutes north and 80 degrees south.
wherever the character and the moist condition of
the soil favors It's presence. In Egypt IL is found
in nearly all the natives In parts OF India 75 per
cent infected. and It seems to be equally com
mon In Ceylon. the Straits Settlements. Java
China Japan. the Philippines. the farmer parts OF
South America and the West Indies. and In the
warmer parts OF Europe and North America In
1902 ahcyostoms was discovered In the tin mines
of Cornwall England. probably introduced by the
return OF miners from the Transvaal or other sub
tropical districts. and It has caused infinite harm
in the coal mines OF central Europe especially In
westphalia. Once established in its larval state
In moisture
difficult to eradicate
As is usual with parasitic worms. the male Is
comparatively Insignificant in number and size
compared with the female. There seem to be
about three times as many of the latter as of the
former. and whereas the male measures from six
TO eleven millimeters In length. the female meas
ures from to fifteen millimeters. Like all
animals that live in the dark these little creatures
are without pigment and are grayish white. but
sometimes they stained red with the blood
they absorb from their host Ancylostoma cannot
shut its mouth IL is perpetually open inside IL
10 provided with certain strongly recurved hooks
Into this mouth and, indeed. quite n long way in
to the gullet is dragged portion OF the soft mu-
membrane lining OF the aiimentary canal OF
the host and II is the cells covering this that
the worm lives. Occasionally blood-vessel ts
ruptured and then pinkish tinge Is given to the
parasitic worm but according to Loose the blood
corpuscies not digested It Ia believed that
from time to time the worm shifts its position.
and that tho abandoned bite continues to bleed
and certainly there are some large glands opening
into the mouth OF the worm like those that exist
in tho pharynx OF the leech which nay very well
secretc some anticoagulating secretion.
A female ancylostoma produces never-endng
stream OF eggs oval transparent. delicate-lookng
structures wiich do not develop very far unti
they have passed away from the body of their
host. Should. however they reach warm. moist
spot in mine tunnel. or on the ground the de-
velopment is rapid that in one or two days
young larva ie hatched out very hungry and very
vigorous devouring whatever organic matter II
can ind, that within week II trebes Its size.
but then II Is very minute. BY the end or its
hrst seven days OF free existence the embryo has
twice cast Its skin. and after its second moult 1t
undergoes "restcure." passing stage compar-
able with tho chrysais in insects. In this cond-
ton It will live for weeks and months. moving. II
at all. but languidly In mud or damp earth
The question now arises. How do these larvae
nnd their way into the alimentary canal of mani
Till few years ago It was always thought that
the trnnsfcrence direct either by means of
drinking infected water or by means of tho per
verted tnstincts which tho worm induces, for their