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31903
SIR,
(No. 179.)
No. 90.
GAMBIA.
THE GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE.
(Received 24th August, 1914.)
Government House, Bathurst, Gambia,
4th August, 1914. I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch, No. 128, of the 4th June last, enclosing the report of the Inter-departmental Committee on Sleeping Sickness.
2. A copy of a minute by my Senior Medical Officer on certain points dealt information. with in the report is enclosed for your
3. The Legislative Council will, I feel sure, readily vote the requisite pro- portion of the extra expense involved in securing the services of a second entomo- logist.
4. Dr. Horn mentions the action which has been taken in connection with the question of clearing referred to in paragraph 2 of your despatch under acknow- ledgment.
5. My own experience is insufficient at present to enable me to usefully make any observation on the desirability and possibility of extended action in this connection, but when visiting the Protectorate next year the matter will not be lost sight of, and in the meantime the attention of the Travelling Commissioners will be specially called to it.
C. S.,
I have, &c.,
EDWARD J. CAMERON,
Governor and Commander-in-Chief.
Enclosure in No. 90.
THE Report of this Committee, before which I gave evidence myself, is of considerable interest, especially to this Colony, from which the infection of the trypanosome in man was first described.
2. It will be remembered that a close investigation of the extent of the infection amongst natives of the Gambia was made in 1911 by Messrs. Todd and Wolbach, who concluded that" at least 0.8 per cent. of the population of the Gambia are infected with trypanosomes," and made certain recommendations as to the exami- nation, isolation, observation, and treatment of cases (see Annals of Tropical Medi- cine and Parasitology, Vol. V., No. 2/11). Considerable correspondence followed their report, and certain recommendations have, I understand, been put in force, such as the clearings in the neighbourhood of settlements and roads to which the Secretary of State refers in paragraph 2 of this present despatch. These will be maintained and extended as found desirable, but it was, I believe, decided that there would be but little advantage in changing the sites of villages which showed a larger percentage of infection than ordinary, and that it was not desirable at the present stage to provide an isolation camp for the treatment of cases.
3. Subsequent investigations by the Medical Officer travelling in the Protec- torate and by the Travelling Commissioners have not shown that there is an appreci- able tendency for the diseases to increase or assume epidemic form.
4. Dr. Simpson, the Travelling Entomologist, has already examined the insect fauna of the Gambia, in relation particularly to biting flies, but there is undoubtedly room for further work as regards the bionomics of the tsetse fly, and I think the employment of an additional entomologist for this purpose, as suggested by the Secretary of State, is very desirable in the interests of the West African Colonies.
A. E. H.
31st July, 1914.
37166
SIR,
(No. 690.)
No. 91.
GOLD COAST.
THE GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE. (Received 29th September, 1914.)
Government House, Accra, 8th September, 1914.
I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch, No. 348, of the 4th June,* forwarding two copies of the Report of the Inter-departmental Committee on Sleeping Sickness,† and I herewith enclose, for your information, copies of two minutes on the subject by the Principal Medical Officer.
2. I greatly regret that, in existing circumstances, it is not, in my opinion, immediately possible to do more in the directions indicated than is at present being done; and I fear that much difficulty will be experienced in securing the services of the additional Medical Officers whom it was hoped to employ in North West Ashanti and at Annum during 1915.
I have, &c.,
Enclosure 1 in No. 91.
HUGH CLIFFORD,
Governor.
MINUTE BY THE PRINCIPAL MEDICAL OFFICER (Dr. F. G. HOPKINS), HONOURABLE COLONIAL SECRETARY,
As far as it is possible we have clearings made round villages, settlements, and river crossings, but with regard to the latter, owing to the scarcity of water, they must be of limited extent.
2. There are four village overseers (Item 35, XVI.), who work chiefly under the Executive Officers of the Ashanti Districts, and who superintend the carrying out of clearing work and sanitation in villages, &c.
also.
3. In addition, money is provided for labourers and tools in this connection
4. To clear along roads would be well nigh impossible, owing to the expense involved.
5. Medical and entomological research is carried out at Sunyani and Kintampo
in so far as the other duties of the Medical Officers permit.
6. In 1915 I hope to have a travelling Medical Officer for North-western Ashanti, who will do work in connection with general medical work and sleeping sickness.
7. In addition, another Medical Officer will be stationed at Annum for the same purpose on the Togoland frontier and the Volta River.
8. As far as extended entomological work is concerned, it cannot be under- taken by this Department.
14th July, 1914.
Enclosure 2 in No. 91.
F. G. H.,
Principal Medical Officer.
MINUTE BY THE PRINCIPAL MEDICAL OFFICER (Dr. F. G. HOPKINS). HONOURABLE COLONIAL SECRETARY,
I THINK it would be advisable to have the services of another entomologist under the same conditions as Dr. Simpson.
24th July, 1914.
F. G. H., Principal Medical Officer.
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• No. 79.
• No. 79.
↑ [Cd. 7349], May, 1914.