A WHITE LEPER.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1166, 27 October 1883, Page 3

A WHITE LEPER.

I Notwithstanding the oft-repeated assertion that leprosy is not contagious, ■nv\ that white people rarely, if ever, become affected with the disease, the fact remains that the dread scourge is becoming mor; frequent among Caucasians on this coast, and that the suggestion to declare the Hawaiian Islands infected, and prohibit all trade and intercourse with them will soon have to be carried into effect. Those who still doubt that leprosy finds lodgment in Caucasian blood have now the opportunity of convincing themselves and watching the progress of the disease as it slowly conquers its victim and leads him step by step to a horrible death. The pesthouse recently received a new inmate, a nailer—Erick Eriekson—39 years of age, and a native of Sweden. He'came from Merced, whers for some time he has been engaged in farm labor, his last work being that of a woodchopper on Ingoldby's farm, in that county. Upwards of a year ago he noticed & peculiar swelling of the hands. Next, large red blotches and pustules, similar to those on persons afflicted with tertiary syphilis, made their appearance on his arms and legs. The physicians at Merced treated him for the above-named complaint, but all the remedies which were applied seemed to aggravate the disease, and when his face finally began to exhibit the telltale yellow spots and the flesh commeuced to swell, the conclusion was forced upon them that the man was a leper. Eriekson had formerly sailed in China and Indian seas and also visited Honolulu several times. Realising his position and knowing well that the only place of release for him is death, he n.arle up his mind to como to San Francisco. On Tuesday he presented himself before Dr Meares, who at once pronounced his case leprosy and caused his removal to the Twenty-sixth street Hospital. There a reporter of the Chronicle saw him, it being quite safe to call at the institution, for the last small-pox patient was discharged some time before Eriekson was brought into the office. At the first glance he looks just what he pretends to be, a sailor, and uo one who is not acquainted with the symptoms of leprosy would ever suspect that the man before him was doomed to rot piecemeal into his grave. The face is red and slightly bloated, just like those of many old shellbacks who haunt the water front; but a second and closer look shows that it is not alcohol that has colored and swelled the flesh. It appears hard and crusty, lying in ridges and forming nodules, with deep intersecting wrinkles, according to the play of the muscles. There exudes from the affected parts a watery substance. On the forehead the tell-tale yellow spots, which looks as if they were made with tobacco juice, are plainly visible. The hands are swollen to almost double theit size, exactly as if they were frostbitten. Eriekson can still use his fingers to some extent, though only with difficulty. The swelling in,turns comes and goes, but they also always discharged moisture. But all these symptoms might still escape all except the most observing man, nor did the reporter fully realise the horrible nature of the disease until Dr. Foye told the afflicted sailor to roll up his sleeves. He did so and disclosed arms upon which there waR sore close to sore, some as large as half-dol-lars and others as large as a half-dime. But there was not a sound spot upon which a ten cent piece might have been laid. It was all a festering, rotting mass. Eriekson himself does not believe that he is afflicted with leprosy. He can give no account of how he could possibly have contracted the disease, asserting that he has never suffered from syphilis. He does not know how long ago the disease first declared itself. The red spots on his arms first attracted his attention about a year ago, since which time his condition has been getting rapidly worse. Dr Foye gives him about five or six years to live. In order to show the full ravages of the disease, Dr Foye next caused a Chinaman, who had been in the hospital but three months, to be brought in. The appearance which this unfortunate presented was appalling. The head was swollen to about twice its natural size, closing the eyes, hiding the nose and leavingjnothing of all the features, but an opening into bis month. The hands of the leper were covered with crusts, which looked as if they were sprinkled with flour, and between the rottenirig stumps of the fingers he held a rag. with which he was continually wiping the exuding water from his face. When his slippers were removed and his feet exposed, it was seen that his toes and feet and legs wero rottening as far as tho knees. The former were a living mass of sores, apparently ready to fall off at the slightest touch. The unfortunate beiug could hardly walk. There was still another leper,who had lost all his fingers up to the last joint,yet strangely enough the stump* do not appear sore. Dr Foye explained that the limbs were shrivelling up—a phase of the disease which is not uncommon. There are now 16 Chinamen and one white man affiicted with leprosy at die pesthonse. The east end of the ground is assigned to them, a high broad fence dividing them from the small-pox part of the establishment. They pass their days in gazing stolidly upon a bleak hill and no other comfort except to sun themselves, awaiting death with stolid indifference.— American paper.

THE DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE ON

THE ARMY.

The Duke of Cambridge was present the other evening at a banquet which was rriven by the Lord Mayor at the Mansion House, and in responding for the Army said .—' J. have now been for a lonir time? at the head of the army, and I must any that the changes which have taken place in it dining that period have quite overwhelmed me with astonishment, and sometimes with surprise, However, 1 confess there is one confort I have stillthat is, that the spirit of the nation peems to remain very much what it was in its former days. 1 believe, fsrther, that so long as the spirit of the nation is represented in the army and in the navy it does not much signify what sort of service you have, whether it be long or short or anything else. It is, in fact, the nation which sustains its high and noble reputation on occasions such as the recent service upon which the srmy has been engaged. We hear now and then—too often. I am wry to say—that sentiment and old-fashioned notions are to be discarded in our time. The fact is people nowadays say that there is no such thing as sentiment in the army, and that

if there is it ought to be put on one sidi. Now, I entirely disagree with that. I consider <hat sentiment in the army, as seDtimeDt in many other things, is very important. In all these matters, if you put sentiment on one side the important services on which I have commented would be very different from what they ara now. What is discipline, what is esprit de corps, but sentiment 1 We are told that there is uo sentiment about color in the dress of tho army, and I see that, the British Army is no longer to be dressed in red. I am not one of those who think it at all desirable to hide ourselves too much. I must say I think the soldier had better be taught not to hide himself, but to go gallantly to the front, for depend upon it that in action the man who does that Ims a much better chance of succeeding than the man who hides himself, t, for one, say that the ted line which we have heard of before (and I think it is not at all a bad line to look at when we have an enemy in front of us) will carry a groat deal more weight perhaps than a line in grey which no one could see, and no one probably would cure about.