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THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE. 2ND SEPTEMBER, 1899. 1445
13. In view of the change of opinion which is embodied in the recent report of the Royal College of Physicians, it is impossible any longer to press upon any Colonial Government the policy which has hitherto prevailed.
14. The principle of restraining lepers from following various callings which may bring them into direct contact with the public has already been recognised, and a suggestion to that effect is con- tained in the Report of the Indian Commission of 1891: but when it is proposed to enfore a system of compulsory seclusion, it will readily occur to you that a great number of difficult questions will arise, and that no measures directed towards that end should be adopted without the most mature considera- tion.
15. I am aware, for instance, that in some Colonies leprosy is by no means confine I either to the native races or to destitute members of the community: it may attack persons who enjoy every means of securing for themselves proper isolation and medical treatment; and it would be a grave offence against public liberty to enact any law which did not safeguard all such persons against an inquisitorial interference with their homes.
16. In this connexion it should be remembered that whatever may be the opinion as to the contagious nature of the disease, there is no question that it is fostered or ameliorated according to the conditions of life obtaining in any particular community. It may be permissible to apply to a community of low intelligence herding together in insanitary conditions a regulation which would be intolerable amongst persons who can sufficiently prevent themselves from becoming a public danger.
17. It seems to me, therefore, that in any law embodying the principle of compulsory segregation there should be provisions based upon Section 124 of the Public Health Act of 1875 (England), which requires that the compulsory isolation shall be on an order of a justice, to whom is submitted u certificate signed by a qualified medical practitioner (now invariably the Medical Officer of Health) to the effect that the person in question is suffering from the disease in question and is "without proper lodging and accommodation," and requires also the fulfilment of certain other conditions before the Act can be put in operation in any particular case.
18. It is further admitted that leprosy is in its earlier stages exceedingly difficult to diagnose, and it will be most necessary in considering any compulsory legislation to introduce effectual safe- guards against the law being put in operation in cases of mere suspicion of disease.
19. I do not propose in the present despatch to lay down any hard and fast rules which should guide Colonial Governments in dealing with this very delicate matter, but no legislative action should be taken without the Bill being previously submitted to the Secretary of State with full explanations which will enable him to examine into all its details, and, if necessary, to consulting the leading experts on the subject.
20. As at present advised, I am inclined to favour the plan of regular leper communities where, as far as possible, family life can be enjoyed, an 1 the atmosphere of home may prevail over that of the prison such settlements appear to afford the best chance of arriving at some sort of satisfactory solution of the main difficulties which beset the question of compulsory segregation, although the question of providing for cases of healthy children börn froin leprous parents might occasionally have to be faced,
I have the honour to be,
The Officer Administering the Government of
Sir,
Your most obedient, humble Servant,
J. CHAMBERLAIN.
HONGKONG.
ENCLOSURE No. 1.
At the close of the debates of the International Leprosy Conference, Berlin 1897, the Secretaries have the honour to present the following short report of the general conclusions of the Conference.
They believe that such a resumé will be especially desirable for those members who have been delegated by their respective Governments, and who have to make reports on the results of the Conference.
As might be expected, a considerable portion of the discussion has related to the bacillus Leprae. which the Conference accepts as the Virus of Leprosy, and which for upwards of 25 years has been known to the scientific world through the important discovery of Hansen and the able investigations of Neisser.
The conditions under which the bacillus grows and develops are still unknown, as well as the way of its invasion into the human system; but from the discussions of the Conference, it seems probable that an unanimity of opinion will soon prevail in reference to its modes of subsequent dissemination within the human body.