THE INFLUENZA EPIDEMIC

Taihape Daily Times, 28 January 1919, Page 4

THE INFLUENZA EPIDEMIC

AN AMERICAN THEORY. In the latter part of 1910 the pneuj monic-influenza first appeared in ! Harbin, a town in Manchuria, under Chinese control, says the New York World. Harbin is on the Trans-Siber-ian railroad, and was the original hot bed of disease. It was believed that influenza was carried into Harbin by the fur dealers, and by Chinese labourers returning to their homes to celebrate New Year's Day, a custom universally observed in China. From Harbin the disease rapidly spread in alt 'directions, usually (following the lines of traffic along fcho rail j roads. By January 24, 1911, a total of 1500 Chinese and 27 Europeans, two of whom, were physicians iand one an assistant had" died, and nearly every case proved fatal. Wherever the Chinese coolies from the north have travelled they have carried this disease From 1910 up to 1917 China has not Been free from it In the early part of 1917 about 200,000 Chinese coolies, collected from the northern part of China, where pneumonic-influenza has raged at intervals since 1910. were ;sent to France as llabourers.. ,Thjey ; made splendid labourers in France and were in back of the lines during the German advance of March, 1918, No doubt many of them were captured by the Germans at that time. Hence the outbreak of the disease in the German Army. The disease first broke out last spring in the Germany Army, where it is said to have been very serious. We next heard of it in Spain, hence j the name Spanish influenza. The name is really 1 a misnomer, but it has stujfck, probably because it is the first epidemic of influenza- Spain has ever had. - '"■'■■