Great Work of Mission to Lepers

Manawatu Times, Volume 62, Issue 30, 5 February 1937, Page 8

Great Work of Mission to Lepers

ENCOURAGING IKOGKESS OF MEDICAL TREATMENT.

An insight into the great work that is proceeding in the care of persons unfortunate enough to contract the dread disease, leprosy, and the heartening progress in the medical world in curing the trouble, was given to a “Times” reporter yesterday morning, by Rev. F. G. (Jrawshaw, formerly of Palmerston North and now general secretary of the Mission to Lepers, stationed in Melbourne. Mr Crawshaw is paying a short visit to the Dominion to fulfil a three weeks’ itinerary lecturing in various centres in the North Island.

Since leaving New Zealand, Mr Crawshaw has made a farther trip to India, where he visited many of the Leper Homes. Missions for lepers to-day were caring for 17,000 lepers he said, but it was estimated that the leper population of tho world was approximately three million. No country was free from the disease, but the majority were found m India, China, tho East generally and Africa. It was in these countries the mission did its main work in co-opera-tion with all the protestant denominations, the speaker said. New Medical Treatment. During his recent visit to India, Mr Crawshaw was impressed with the great success of the new medical treatment. The treatment consisted of injections of chaulmoogra oil or its derivities given weekly plus attention to diet, exercisd and cleanliness. Tho lepers in the early stages derived a good deal of benefit from this treatment. Last year over 12,000 were treated and of that number not less than 1700 became symptom free and more than 1000 were discharged from the Homes to go out and livo healthy lives amongst healthy communities. As a result of the success of the work, lepers were coming in increasing numbers begging to be taken into the homes. The saddest sight to be witnessed in India to-day Air Crawshaw commented was to see lepers being turned away tlirough lack of accommodation. The cost of supporting a leper for one year was only £5 and Mr Crawshaw intimated that the purpose of his visit was to enlist the support of many more people throughout New Zealand. Care for the Children. Tho most encouraging phase in the mission’s work Mr Crawshaw considered was among the children. Leprosy was not hereditary he stressed, but was a contageous disease and those most likely to contract it were the children of leper parents. The mission had to-day under its care approximately 1450 leper children and about 1400 of what were called untainted children, (healthy children of leper parents saved from the disease). There were hundreds of children uncared for, however, a remark which gave the reporter “furiously to think.” The spiritual side of the work had also been most successful, said Mr Crawshaw, in the last year over 1000 inmates of the Homes becoming Christians. At the present time about twothirds of the inmates were members of a Christian church. Mr Crawshaw will be preaching at St. Andrew’s Church on Sunday morning, at Queen Street Hall in the afternoon, and at the Baptist Church in the evening. On Monday evening he will lecture in the Baptist Church and show 100 splendid new slides depicting the work carried on by the Mission to Lepers in 25 countries at 112 different places.