180 SCIENCE PROGRESS 



Sleeping Sickness. A Record of Four Years' War Against it in Principe, 

 Portuguese West Africa. By B. F. Bruto da Costa, Licentiate First 

 Class and Chief of the Mission, J. Firmino Sant' Anna, Licentiate 

 First Class, A. Correia Dos Santos, Licentiate First Class, and M. G. 

 DE Araujo Alvares, Licentiate Second Class. Published in Portuguese 

 in " Archivos de Hygiene e Pathalogia Exoticas," Vol. V., March 30, 1915. 

 Translated by J. A. Wyllie, F.R.G.S., Lieut.-Colonel, Indian Army 

 (retired). [Pp. xii -f 261, with 68 illustrations and 2 maps.] (Published 

 for the Centro Colonial, Lisbon, by Bailliere, Tindall & Cox. Price 

 7s. bd, net.) 



War against disease is a legitimate form of warfare which, like most other 

 profitable and legitimate things, is neglected by humanity. Probably the 

 whole sum of money ever spent by mankind to get rid of the diseases which 

 destroy them by millions would not equal the sum spent every day by the 

 British Empire for the purpose of killing Germans — a good purpose, it is true. 

 Nothing convinces me that mankind in the mass hasinot even yet reached the evo- 

 lutionary stage of a completely reasoning animal more than this fact. He imagines 

 that he is a god already ; but I suspect that when he will come to make this 

 claim before the Throne the answer will be, "What did you do to organise for 

 your advantage the beautiful garden in which I gave you to live ? " Poor man- 

 kind before that Judge will have little to reply. Half the world is a beautiful 

 garden, but one which is rendered almost uninhabitable and useless by diseases. 

 Science has found the cause of most of these diseases and how to prevent them ; 

 but the curious people who rule us do not possess the intelligence to use the 

 information which men of science have obtained. That is the truth and the 

 entire truth. 



The Portuguese Islands of San Thome and Principe off the West Coast of 

 Africa were known to be hotbeds of sleeping sickness since 1871, when Dr. 

 Ferreira Ribeiro discovered it in them. The disease has remained principally in 

 the latter island, where it has often reached alarming proportions — so much so 

 that, according to certain political agitators, it has been accused of being the 

 focus of the spread of the disease to West Africa. This is something like 

 accusing Hammersmith of being a focus for the spread of measles in London — 

 since sleeping sickness is fairly prevalent roughly all through West Africa. The 

 accusation may be right in one respect, since any focus of high intensity of any 

 disease is, for mathematical reasons, likely to be a danger to areas where the 

 disease does not abound so much. At all events, we are glad to be able to record 

 that the enlightened Portuguese medical authorities of this book have, together 

 with their colleagues and with the warm support of their Government, long carried 

 out a laborious campaign against sleeping sickness in Principe ; and this book 

 is an admirable record of their doings, admirably translated by Colonel Wyllie, 

 F.R.G.S., and most beautifully illustrated with numerous full-page photographs 

 of the island. As everyone knows, the Glossina palpalis which carries the disease 

 breeds chiefly in proximity to water, and loves the shade of a luxurious vegetation, 

 conditions which abound in Principe. I have no space to describe the scientific 

 and sanitary work explained in the book, but these will interest not only the many 

 medical men who have made a particular study of sleeping sickness, but also the 

 general reader, who might like to keep this beautiful record of a good work. 



The translator has interleaved a note by himself on the politics mentioned 

 above. I have no knowledge of this matter. He attributes the attack upon the 



