THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 14TH MAY, 1870.
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to me that the questions of most importance to be answered are:- Syphilitic disease left unchecked inflict serious injury not only on the individual infected, nerations unborn?
1- it possible by any legislative means to check the spread of this fearful scourge? How far can legislative interference be applied to the male as well as to the female sex? What has been in this Colony the sanitary result of such interference?
will not be necessary to dilate on the first point. It is unfortunately too well known how the this loathsome disease are lowered in their moral and physical condition, how from symptom o they may, after years of misery, sink finally into a premature grave. But it is not per well known that the wide spread scrofulous and consumptive taint of the human race is traced men of science to a syphilitic poison. Nor is it sufficiently recognized how such a poison coursing the system, renders the infected person immeasurably inore liable to and less able to resist of other diseases. This is a subject particularly important to the Residents of tropical : for could the united experience of medical practitioners in the tropics be reduced to a l form, it would prove not a little startling, to find how large a proportion of the mortality aliding could be traced directly, or remotely, to syphilitic disease.
That it is possible to a great extent to reduce, if not entirely prevent, the spread of this disease ative measures is a fact generally admitted by all unprejudiced persons. A most notable of this power was seen some years ago in Malta, where up to 1859 a strict system of super- and personal inspection was maintained and the disease was in consequence almost unknowa.
66 રી traditional abuse of power," which at last stem was then abandoned as it was found to be isted by the peculiar class of persons concerned, and Malta, for a time and until the passing of linance, became as bad as any other garrison town in respect to contagious disease. The same cannot be shown in Hongkong, but I shall be able presently to point out the great improvement is resulted from legislative interference, not only in reducing the extent, but also the malignity
discase.
The great outery against the Contagious Diseases Acts now (for the old plea of the immorality Densing vice has been partly abandoned) is that they deal unfairly in the case of the two sixes, the present opponents of these Acts say, punish the comparatively innocent female and let her guilty partner in iniquity go free. This is a great mistake on their part, for these Acts are not iced for the purpose of punishment, but with the sole object of restricting the extent of con- a and curing the disease. Moreover, in this Colony at least, the Acts are as far as practicable Hed to the male sex equally. This before leave is granted to seamen of the Royal Navy they all rgo medical inspection and are detained on board if found diseased. By a very slight outlay a ar inspection might be mele of all aerebant seamen, and I hope still to see that this will be con
The whole of the Police red to be one of the duties of the Health Officer or Officers of the Port,
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e undergo a similar examination once every month, and certainly the soldiers of ale garrison At be equally examined. Lastly, as if to meet the objections of those who consider these Acts sided, it is especially provided in our local Ordinance, that all seamen known to be disusel. ing in any boarding house, must under a heavy penalty be reported to the Harbor Master for the
of transference to Hospital. There only remain therefore the higher chess of
st whom it is more difficult to proceed, and as if to balance this, the numerods Poraguise and pean prostitutes who now frequent the Colony appear to be equally exempted from all interfors on the part of the Executive. And here a very important question presents itself. viz: wàvher se has increased among the class of young men who formerly frequented the natis
y own part I am inclined to the opinion that it has so increased, but I am not prepared with isties on this subject.
Lastly, I come to consider the question of the sanitary result of legislative interference in this by-and I am glad to be able to point to some very substantial benefits.
In 1859 I wrote: "Both among Naval and Military invalids the syphilitie amount to marly 25 cent of the whole, and this is very nearly the sane proportion in the Government Civil Hospital. one ship numbering in all 523 hands, of which 300 had been on the sick list, during the lat marter, 77 of these were for venereal disenses, being at the rate of 25.66 per cent of the notal sick
14.72 per cent of the total strength, and that be it observed in one quarter.
In the Gene Puta unt
vil Hospital the proportion of veneraal cases was 138 out of 591 admissions, being in the propor- 3 of 23.18 per cunt." Now if the Returns accompanying this Report be contrasted with that ner state of matters, it is seen that during the year 1869, as the result of the working of the Con- Coats Diseases Ordinance, that disease has greatly decreased. In the Government Civil Hospital, in spite of the great number of cases sent by the Harbor Master, the per centage of syphilitig was reduced to 15.82. In the garrison, the per centage of primary disease to the total strength only 6.83, according to a Return compiled from data furnished to me by Dr. Hoffernan, the Deputy retor General. † In the Police, it was 16.66 against 31.00 per cent in 1862 as shown in Table and in a most interesting letter ↑ addressed to me by Fleet Surgeon, Dr. Maccoun of the United
Die H. Siorks recommends that the ten should be examined at least once in seven days,
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↑ Sec Appendix Á. 4 See Appendis B.
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