220 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



Art. XVII. — The Fight against Tuberculosis in the Austra- 

 lian Colonies and Neiv Zealand. 



By John P. D. Leahy, M.B., D.P.H. 



[Read before the Hawke's Bay Philosophical Institute, 19th May, 



1902.] 



Though I realise that possibly at first sight this question 

 might be considered as one of interest rather to the medical 

 profession than the public at large, yet, as I hope to be able to 

 point out, the question at the present time is very greatly one 

 for the public, and our strongest hope for effectually crushing 

 this formidable foe lies in an intelligent understanding by the 

 people of the nature and magnitude of the evil and its remedy. 



Doubtless many of the things I shall bring under your 

 notice are already known to you, owing to the active and 

 increasing interest taken by the Press and public in questions 

 of public health. Tuberculosis is a question receiving world- 

 wide attention, not only of scientific men but of educated lay- 

 men. The scientist knows the cause of the evil and the 

 means of combating it, but the public must be the conquering 

 army laying that evil low. 



This paper is intended to show not what is being done in 

 the world generally to combat tuberculosis, but to point out 

 what is being done nearer home — namely, in the Australian 

 Colonies and here in New Zealand. Before doing so, how- 

 ever, it would be well first of all to state briefly a few facts 

 concerning the causes of tuberculosis. These are so well 

 known that my excuse for mentioning them here is solely 

 that your memories may be refreshed on the subject. 



In 1882 Koch demonstrated that tuberculosis in every 

 form was due to a minute organism which he named "the 

 tubercle bacillus." Bacilli, as you know, belong to the lowly 

 form of vegetable life known as the fission fungi. Eeproduc- 

 tion occurs with great simplicity and marvellous rapidity. A 

 rod-shaped organism or bacillus splits into two halves, which 

 rapidly grow to full size, when each splits again into two, and 

 so on in a geometrical progression until in a very short space 

 of time, under favourable circumstances as to food-supply, 

 &c, a single bacillus will give rise to millions. The individual 

 bacilli are microscopically minute, much smaller than the 

 dust-specks seen floating in a sunbeam, so that if the bacilli 

 are present in the air nothing is easier than to fill our lungs 

 with such air containing large numbers of these organisms 

 ready to attack us and establish the dread disease. Should 

 the tubercle bacillus lodge in a part of the body — say, for 



