The following interesting letter, which recently appeared in the "Times," should be an encouragement, as the writer suz-gests, lar in countries subject to wal Mr. Stanley, we know. has done good work locally in this direction, ut there is still more to do:—[To vx Eprror or rae Trees,]
—More than s year ago I had the privilege of reporting in your columns the remarkable success against malaria which had just been achieved by the Suez Canal Company at Ismailia. I now have the pleasure of reporting a similar and equally brilliant victory, obtained this time in British possessions, at Kiang and Port States appears to me to be of Swettenham in the Federated Malay such importance that it should be brought ntly to' the "attention, not only of ical profession, bat of the public at large. The fall details, as given by Dr. Malcolm Watson, District Surgeon of will be found in @ report which been kind enough to send me, xnd which is appearing in the current issue of the "Journal of Tropical Medicine"; but I think that the leading facts concern all those who take an interest in the welfare of our tropical empire.
Kiang isa town which had " population of 8,576 in 1901; and Port Swettenham, situated only five miles away, on the mouth of the Kiang River, is con-ceted with Kiang and contains a population which appears to be mostly oficial, and to number about 700. In the yeat 1900 both were hotbeds of fialaris. Dr. Watson doubt whether more than three
{tion with malaria during the last four utof 293 houses in, Kiang escaped infeemonths of that year. Ho says:—"Inquiry at almost any house elicited the fact that some one was ill. Indeed, 80 serious did the matter become, that the Chinese held three days? chou-chou,' during which the devil was exorcised and was duly witnessed by several believers to take his fight in divers guises." Port Swettenham was opened in September, 1902; within two months of which date 41 out of 49 Government quarters became infected, while 118 out of 196 Government servants were attacked before the end of Owing to the recommendations gly ssu by the at once ved to carry out ens Statenurgeon, De. Travers, the Government measures of similar to which this school has long recommended, and which have proved so beneficial in Havana and Ismailia. Swamps were fi led up, jungle and undergrowth cleared, and '8 contour drain constructed round the declivities in order to intercept incoming springs.
This and much similar work has been continued up to date, the total expenditare amounting to 26,000 Mexican dollars ($1 equals 2s.) for Kiang and $59,000 for Bort Swottenham—this comparatively mitted ig that the we of reels:
rge expenditure being purposely pertion should be as permanent as possible, and should provide good building aites in both towns.
Dr. Wateon's analysis of the results is very ably snd carefully performed. The admissions to hospital for malaria fell toa very considerable extent. Only two out in and Port Swettenham were of 260 children, or 0-77 per cent., residing
found to contain the parasite of malaria in November and December last, as against 91 infected children out of 298 residing in the surrounding district, or 348 per cent. The following table shows the fall in the amount of sick leave granted to officers at the two towns during 1901 to 1904 inclusive, and demonstrates that the expenditure for drainage has its econ-comical as well as its sanitary advantages 1901. 1902. 1903. 1904. Sick Certificates 236 40 23 14 Days of Leave... 1026 198 73 71 the worst malarial season.
fered since July, 1904, that is, during Watson adds that no officer has
Perhaps Dr. Watson's most convincing statement is one which he sys he cannot help recording with less satisiaction— ni ly, that the fees resulting from his private practice in connection with malarial fever have fallen to zero. He suméup by saying:—"In whatever direction one turns it is plain that the two areas which were so malarious in 1901 are now practi: cally, if not absolutely, free from the dis. esse, and that the district these two areas remains much as it was"—similar measures not heving been undertaken in the district. He also states that 99 per cent. of the breeding places of Anopheles have been removed - but, hag wisely, does not attempt the very difficult task of estimating the numerical reduction of the insects themselves. It is important to note that he can find no evidence of any considerable immigration of Anopheles into the drained areas from the extensive breeding grounds just outside. The possibility of such immigration has always been an excuse for neglecting anti-mosquito work, although, as I have long maintained on mathematical grounds, immigration is unlikely to compensate for the reduction due to local drainage, This piece of work, reported as excellent ly as it has been carried out, will do much to encourage the lagging efforts made in other parts of the British Empire.
Iam, Sir, Yours faithfully, Roxaxp Ross.
The Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, 4th April.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.