Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1922-01-07
LEPROSY CURE
FOUND AT LAST
IN HONOLULU
Sixty Patients Discharged
From Leper Colony Since
Discovery.
INJECT OIL INTO FLESH

HONOLULU, T. H, Jan. 7.-on the
"a outskirts Of Honolulu, set well apart
Tfrom all residential districts, is a little
oasis Of green lawns and spreading shade
trees beneath which stands a group Of
plain but scrupulously clean and rather
attractive buildings. No wall shuts out
the outer world, no signboard Identifies
the place. 1t might be school or even
a group Of private buildings fenced off
from the public only by an ordinary wire
fence.
This unpretentious nameless, out-Of-
the-way establishment is the Kalihi re-
ceiving station, where victims or suspect
ed victims of the worlds most ancient
sconurge, leprosy, are sent upon appre-
hension by the public health authorities
Two years ago this pretty spot was
place Of tragedy. At its gateway wives
parted from husbands, parents from
children and friends from friends, never
to be united this side of the grave. For
from KaIihi it was but a step to the alb
solute isolation Of Molokai, from which
in those days none returned, and but
few ever returned to their loved ones
from Kalihi.
DISCOVERY OF
TREATMENT.
Then from the laboratories Of the Uni
versity Of Hawaii in Honolulu came word
Of a new specific for leprosy, derived
from the chaulmoorga oil, which for
years had been the only known weapon
against the dread disease, but which in
It's form as then applied was unbearable
to the patient in effective quantities. Sci
entists searched and awaited word Of
another nature in the long record of at
Attempts to find a cure for leprosy. Heed
s%less of these skeptics DR.. Arthur l.. Dean
Of the University of Hawaii, discoverer of
the new chaulmOorga oil derivatives, as
he called his specific, and DR.. j. I. Nc
Donald, physician in charge of the Kahhi
receiving station, went to work to test
the discovery.
Difficulty was encountered at first in
finding volunteers who would srmit the
authorities to experiment with the new
treatment on themselves, such the new
treatment on themselves, such was the
evil reputation of the old oil treatment
Some were found, however, who were
willing to sacrifice themselves for the
possible good Of their fellows, and the
work began. From the first the symp-
toms of extreme nausea which had been
pronounced in the patient from the old
treatment were noticeably absent witt
the new derivatives, which were applied
by injection into the flesh. This en-
couraged more patients to volunteer, IN
surfing to the experimenters more def
mite results.
SEVERAL
PATIENTS CURED.
Then to an astonished world came
news that several patients at Kaltht
known victims Of the disease, were Il
be discharged, cured of the disease a:
far a smedical skill could ascertain. Th'
world still doubted. The idea Of th'
incurability of leprosy was too firmly
implanted to be thus easily rooted out
More patients were discharged from TIM
to time, but not until early in 1921 were
the skeptics finally put to rout. At thai
time some sixtyseven patiens were dis
charged from the Kalihi station with {
clean bill of health, all through treat
\ ment with the new derivatives of tht
~ chaulmoogra oil.
On the day OF this great event Kalihi
ceased TO be a place of tragedy and be
came instead a place of good cheer anC
hopefulness. Suspects consigned to tn
station went not as men leaving tbs
world but as men going to be cleanset
of a disease as they might go to AM
hospital On Sunday afternoons par
ticularIy is the place bright and cheer
full, for on that afternoon the member
OF various cnurc0eS 20 10 the StdLlOl
to meet with the patients in an in
spring outdoor service. At these serv
ices well-known musicians perform, ant
are entertained in return by the choruse
glee cIubsan orchestras Of the sta
ton, of which a number have been or
ganized by the patietns. There is min
imum of preaching, maximum o
cheerful music, and the entire atmos
phere is one Of brightness.
HOPE TAKES PLACE
OF DESPAIR.
No visitor having seen the former trag
edy and tears of Kalhi could visi
there on Sunday afternoon now withOu
marvelling Separated only by a Low
wire fence and a few feet of ground
two groups face one anOther-one 0
townspeople, one Of patients at the sta
ton. The latter for the most par
Hawaiians, range in age from tots o
three and four to middle aged men ant
women. On the faces Of ALL young ant
old, is the CHEEKY stamp of we'll ground
ed home, and no one hearing their splen
did singing and watching their joy Il
it could doubt that to them life is M