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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

mmimmim C.O. 885

22 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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renewal of the grant, amounting to £350 in all, asked for. The grant to the Pro- fessor of Protozoology of £750, which had already been promised for five years, was formally agreed to by the Committee. These grants allocate £2,300 out of the income of £3,100, and there is also a balance of rather more than £1,050, and Mr. Read intimated that when the position of the Schools became clearer it would be possible for the Committee to consider whether they could send out an expedition of their own to settle some important point of tropical medicine.

8. Mr. Read enquired from the Committee whether or not it was desirable to correct a statement which had been published in the organ of the Imperial Depart- ment of Agriculture for the West Indies, and which had attributed pellagra to the use of a maize diet. The members of the Committee were not, however, prepared to say that the cause of the disease had been definitely established; although the cases which had been found to exist in Scotland threw doubt on the maize theory, the disease might, nevertheless, be not an infective one, as suggested by Dr. Sambon, but one due to food starvation.

9. The question of vomiting sickness in Jamaica was then considered, Mr. Grindle, as head of the West Indian Department of the Colonial Office, being in attendance for the purpose of taking part in the discussion. Sir R. Ross under- took that the Liverpool School would withhold their proposed expedition if that were the desire of the Committee and the Colonial Office. The Committee, however, agreed that the researches of Captain Potter, whether correct or not, could not be ignored. Sir J. Rose Bradford pointed out, with reference to the criticisms con- tained in the despatch* from the Governor, that, as he understood Captain Potter's report, that officer had deliberately considered the theory that the disease might be cerebro-spinal meningitis, but that he had been led to abandon that theory as a complete explanation of all the cases, by the results of post-mortem examinations, which appear to be inconsistent with that theory as explaining all the instances of the disease. The fact that no bacteriological examination of cerebro-spinal fluid had been made by Captain Potter, was undoubtedly inconvenient, but, nevertheless, it was impossible to ignore the total effect of his evidence, which showed that there was cause for further investigation into this view. The Committee fully con- curred, and it was agreed that it would be well if the Liverpool School proceeded to send Dr. Seidelin to report confidentially on vomiting sickness, peripheral neuritis, and cerebro-spinal meningitis. They observed that the Government, though it was not prepared to give financial assistance, would be prepared to afford all possible facilities for the advancement of the operations of any expedition sent out by the Liverpool School.

Mr. Grindle asked the Committee whether they could favour the Secretary of State with an expression of their opinion as to the action of Captain Potter in not reporting on peripheral neuritis. It was pointed out that Captain Potter's action had been decidedly careless and that his explanation had been perfunctory. On the other hand it appeared that there was some reason to suppose that Captain Potter's position in Jamaica had not been altogether easy, and the Committee unanimously agreed that it should he left to the Army Council to deal with the complaint made against Captain Potter, and that it was not incumbent upon the Secretary of State to express any opinion on the question.

30473

SIR,

No. 50.

COLONIAL OFFICE to THE UNIVERSITY OF LONDON.

Downing Street, 18 December, 1912.

I AM directed by Mr. Secretary Harcourt to inform you that the report of the Professor of Protozoology of the University of London for the year 1911, which was enclosed in your letter, No. 63, of the 26th of September,§ was laid before the Advi- sory Committee for the Tropical Diseases Research Fund, at their meeting on the 29th of November, and was read with interest.

No. 46.

Appendix H. to [Cd 6669].

† West Indian No. 187. 30173: not printed.

See No. 49.

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2. Instructions have been given to the Crown Agents for the Colonies to pay to you the sum of £750, being the contribution from the funds at the disposal of the Advisory Committee to the Professorship, on your application at any time after the 1st of July, 1913.

35334

STR,

No. 51.

MEDICINE.

I am, &c.,

H. W. JUST.

COLONIAL OFFICE to THE LONDON SCHOOL OF TROPICAL

[Answered by Nos. 62 and 72.]

Downing Street, 18 December, 1012.

*

I AM directed by Mr. Secretary Harcourt to inform you that the reports of the London School of Tropical Medicine for the period ended the 31st October, which were enclosed in your letter of the 8th of November, were duly laid before the Advisory Committee for the Tropical Diseases Research Fund, at their meeting on the 29th of November,† and were read with interest.

2. The Advisory Committee have recommended, and the Secretary of State

has approved, the grant of £600 to the School for the year 1913.

3. I am to explain that the reduced amount of the grant is due to the fact that the Advisory Committee have been informed that the London School will benefit very considerably under the Mansion House Fund which is being raised for the purpose providing an endowment for the School.

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4. It will be open, however, to the School to raise the question of a further grant should it be found in the course of the year that the benefit to be derived by the School will not actually be realised in the year 1913.

5. The Crown Agents for the Colonies have been instructed to pay the sum of £600 to you on application at any time after the 1st of January, 1913.

34504

SIR,

No. 52.

I am, &c.,

H. W. JUST

COLONIAL OFFICE to THE LIVERPOOL SCHOOL OF TROPICAL MEDICINE.

[Answered by Nos. 56 and 77.]

Downing Street, 18 December, 1912. I AM directed by Mr. Secretary Harcourt to inform you that the reports of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine for the six months ended on the 31st October, which were enclosed in your letter of that date, were laid before the Advisory Committee for the Tropical Diseases Research Fund, at their meeting on the 29th of November, and were read with interest.

2. The Advisory Committee have recommended, and the Secretary of State has approved, that a grant of £600 should be made from the funds at their disposal to the Liverpool School for Research Work during the year 1913, being the same amount as that assigned to the London School of Tropical Medicine.

3. I am to explain that the reduction in the grant is due to the fact that the Advisory Committee understand that the Liverpool School is likely to benefit largely at an early date under the terms of the will of the late Sir Alfred Jones, and that in these circumstances they do not feel able to recommend a continuation of grants on the same scale as those given in former years. It will be open, however, to the School to raise the question of a further grant should it be found in the course of the year that the benefit to be derived by the School from Sir Alfred Jones's benefaction will not actually be realised in the year 1913.

4. With reference to your letter of the 27th of November, § I am to state that the grant is made solely for research work, and not for teaching.

33411

No. 2 in Appendix IV. to [Cd, 6669].

No. 2 in Appendix V. to [Cd. 6669].

† See No. 49.

37704 not printed.

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