SCOURGE OF SOCIETY.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 969, 9 November 1910, Page 4

SCOURGE OF SOCIETY.

1 . A PREVALENT AMD CROV/INQ EVIL. REMEDY URGENTLY NEEDED.. •; In moving the second reading of th« " Contagious Diseases Act Repeal Bill in ." the Legislative Council yesterday, the Attorney-General. (the Hon. Dr." Find-, lay). said the repeal of this . Act. had .' been favoured-by the great mass of- - tlio people of this country. AYhile ita ;'.: repeal was favoured" there was a : .wkhW', spread feeling that .something must, be' " . done to check the increasing .prevalence, / of the evil of these contagious diseases.'.' -'■. .He desired to take, this - opportunity of '■■':•■ emphasising the growth and intensity;-' of what is known as the "social evil," ..'! and the urgent call that exists for some' '■[• active remedial . measure. The first ; duty was to ascertain-the -facts. If ~- this evil was, as he had reason to be- - lieve, not only shockinglv prevalent, but increasing, -then some direct and effective remedy .-must bo found. He was-' not wedded, to-any. special, proposals;'-..-■ but .that something more than cduea- ••'-. turn; and moral :suasimv was iramediateJ >' -necessary as a check he at least was ; ■- satisfied. -. These. evils_were: .anxiously ;. -' kept underground—hidden ; with.. tho : . • utmost care by tho . the ■ --. extent of the evil could not be judged- ■ • from what we saw and learned. The evil he spoke of; was kept secret: by .■- those infected, .because it was discredit- -" able-to them when they became so ■' through their own- misconduct.*.' Such data as we had did not afford a measure of tho real prevalence.'-- No.-means indeed existed now of ascertaining this ■:■: prevalence. - What was known,,-how- :.: ever, left no doubt-as to the: peril': - which was now. threatening the:health and physique of the people..--■.-Figures■>■ furnished by the hospitals'rtoH-v that' ••' about 35 per- cent, of-all" outdoor! ■ patients were affected .by.: one. .or. .other' ■ of these diseases. These sufferers did , • not readily go to the medical .superintendent .of a public institution" like a . " hospital for remedy. More frequently/.i they sought,. with the utmosti.privacy,,-'- ' a doctor or a chemist.■" Thus.the -hos- ■ pital figures could not exaggerate the inferences as' to the general:prevalence': ■;. of the malady." Ho-had information,-::-.from the. prisons, .- from ■' several'•■":■'■women's homes,: from the police; and '■'' from medical, practitioners. This--he : -- s knew was far from complete, but it was sufficient to .demand definite remedial isteps.- The extent of the evil was perhaps-no greater here than-in other Anglo-Saxon countries. The state -" of things recently revealed in Victoria" gave one a shook, but they were, he'"' believed, as bad here. - Dr. Findlay r ; Went' on to quote the extent'-' to which , tho evil had reached '■•" in America. The gruesome percentages ■ disclosed, said Dr. Findlay, indicated ' ' not only the character of these fearful ailm.ents,'but also impress-" ed the humanitarian with the'serious ■' need of supervision over diseases capable of making such appalling injury to the race.. It was-through the police and' prison sources that tho most' ghastly.' evidence had reached him - as-Minister of Justice. ■ Ho proceeded to give some-: - information as to the results.of the :-"■ disease .which had been furnished him :- bymedical practitioners and private in- '.: dividuals who had suffered. Similar'• victims, existed in thousands; - "At the" '■'' proper time and: in the'proper place he • would - produce police reports which '■ would, lie believed, leave no doubt that ■we required,:and required at once, some- ' thing more than education and moral, ■ suasion..He did not in'any way under- •■" _estimate""their "value." In his' dpin-*'"-ion, much' could be done by frankly warning and impressing on lads- the,'■ peril that lies in the path of vice.- He ■■'-• would exhaust all 'the;influences ! ofcation, warning and moral suasion,' but ' •' more 'was needed. Wo were repealing ■ the Contagious Diseases Act,''and with? nothing .to take its place. "'-He-prbpos- ' ed to deal with-the matter by making - the ' Public' Health Act: applicable to'-' certain contagious diseases (as already ■• outlined).. No novelty -was- claimed : for these proposals—they had been advocated elsewhere.- The base of the scheme, was compulsory notification, and '"' this was supported by some of'the-most eminent medical, 'authorities in the"'- 1 ■ world; In New Zealand, he believed; ■. the great majority of' doctors were in favour of it. The main objection of those who opposed was really one of professional etiquette. But' this' could not be allowed to stand in'the'way of ■ public health and-common "justice. ,He - had received the' greatest- ■ .ment from the leaders of the'profession,' particularly the Hon. Dr. Collins, Dr. '•■ Ewart, and Dr. Cahill. "As the. lawstood to-day it. was a disgrace to' our' civilisation, and yet women, who it was " sought to help,-were dominated by pre- .' judice, and offered the most'resistance'. '•'• If ho did not get the support of - the medical profession, all his efforts would; he.was afraid, be in vain. "'Next year. '■' a committee—perhaps of both Houseswould' bo set upland he' believed 'it ' - would be possible to prove to the "people of New Zealand that -we have already de-' layed too long. He would .persist to the end, and would do'his'best to have his proposals made"law: If" he failed" he would fail-trying to do arid--trying to check.' a great' evih- •'• (An-' ' plause.) ; .-. .:. :...-,.: .-.■.- :•..-.-: .-- *-~

■'The-Hon: :AV. Beehan" (Auckland) remarked on the need, for legislation'in the direction indicated bytho'Hon Dr l'indlay. .The present Act "had failed' and .he thought if should be repealed, but it should not bo taken off without promising something else in its ■ place. ■ ■ lhe-Hon. C. ; M.Luke (Wellington) said ho would give his whole-hearted support to any reform -'along .-the lines indicated by the Hon; DrrEindlay.- His ■ only regret.was that ibwas not possible ■to do something right- away' Side by sido with t'ho repeal of this-Act. Thepositiort was, so grave that it "would be best-to do-something this.session. In his opinion it would-Tje wise to inaugurate lectures iirtlio' public'-schools by' medical men. (Hear, hear.) He hoped that the wiping out of this-.8i11.-would-bo the stepping-stone to a great reform. Tho' Hon. Dr. Collins (Wellington)agreed that there was .need for, something being done to.cope,with.the evil. He recognised to the full- tho (great evil that lay hidden.in- those conta"iou? diseases. .Tho great difficulty' was "that it was almost impossible to trace.'the person:who. spread tho ! disease. He thought Dr. Eindlay would get the support of the medical profession when they thoroughly recognised- what he meant. The new system of examining young men for the Territorials would, he believed, enable us to arrive moro clearly at the extent of the. diseaso .in our midst... Anything that could be done to prevent the spread of tho disease would receive his 'heartiest sup-; port. . , -

Tho Hon. Sir Geo. M'Lcan (Otago) thought that in pursuing tho shadow the substance might-be lost. This was not tho first; time a purity committee had been set up. : They- had had it all over years ago, and yet nothing had been done. He had hoped against hope tteit tho CD. Act .would bo- made to apply to men and women.- Ho_ thought tho Attorney-General was striving after too much and 'that the result would prohably ho that nothing would be done. The Hon. Geo. Jones (Otago) spoko strongly against the, CD. Act. Ho thought what, the Attorney-General had. suggested was a wiso scheme- and ho hoped it would-bo carried out-next ses The, Hon. T. Kelly (Taranaki) thought something might bo done to protect tho. feeble-minded. The Hon'. R. A. Longhnan (Welling ton) also supported the.proposals .outlined by tho Attomay-General.