OCR Text |
Show THE HOOK WORM. Ii is becoming increasingly evident that the "world at last has come to a realization of the seriousness of the "hook worm" disease. Not since tlie affliction first attracted attention has the campaign for its control been so widespread or so determined. The annual report of the inlerua tioual health record of the J o eke foil or foundation says that requests for aid ' have been received from Colombia, South America; the Bavbadocs, Curacao ainl Santo Domingo, West Indies; tlie Madras presidency, India; Kjdatan, in ' the Federated Malay Slates, and Mauritius. Mau-ritius. One of the most significant developments develop-ments of the 'last year is reported to have been the increased financial participation par-ticipation of official healf h agencies in tho anti-hook-worm war. In the United States there were added to the list of states actively engaged against the disease Alabama, Arkansns, Georgia, Geor-gia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Vir-ginia. In the West Indies, British Guiana, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and Trinidad were enlisted in the work; in Central America, Costa Ilica, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Nica-ragua, Panama and Salvador; in the far cast, Ceylon, China, .Fiji, Siam, Seychelles and Queensland, Australia; in Rrazil, the federal district of Sao Paulo and Rio do Janeiro. Tests of thousands of victims of hook worm wcr? made last year, the report says. Kaminatiou of 10,000 soldi era at Camp Travis, Texas, who had the disease showed a deficiency of 3'i per cent, in mentality. Similar tests among 040 children of Queensland fehowed a retardation of about two years in mental growth. In Costa Rica, sixty-six laborers cultivated cul-tivated JS7 acres more a mouth after treatment than before. From this and like- instances, it is clear that the world war on this enervating ener-vating malady is making headway. Iu many localities the porV'jlago of efficiency, ef-ficiency, both mental and physical, has risen notably as tlie result, of proper medical attention, and there is no doubt that good effects are following upon intelligent effort to cuiiquer the disease. '' . |