INDIA. -.'I'm 



entirely satisfactory and lias been a source of no incon- 

 siderable income to the asylum. The report of the 

 asylum shows about the following proportion of the 

 various religions beliefs of the inmates : 



Percentage. 



Hindus (Mahrattas) 66.43 



Mohammedans 9.32 



Christians 10.61 



Hindus (low caste) 13.41 



Other castes 23 



There are about twice as many men as women, and 

 the children constitute about 2.51 per cent, of all the 

 inmates. One of the touching instances among the 

 many I saw in visiting this great institution was a 

 group of children, numbering about 15, who had just 

 left the schoolroom and had congregated near the gate 

 of entrance to the grounds to bid the visitors good-bye. 

 They ranged in their ages from 6 to 12 years and were 

 all lepers. 



The anesthetic and tubercular forms of the disease 

 are about equally represented, and the mixed form 

 affects about 12.63 per cent, of all cases. The dispen- 

 sary is well supplied with medicines, the hospital is 

 scrupulously clean and supplied with comfortable cots. 

 A physician visits the asylum every day, and his assis- 

 tant resides in the institution, always ready to render 

 necessary medical and surgical aid. 



THE PLAGUE RESEARCH LABORATORY OF THE GOVERN- 

 MENT OF INDIA, PAREL, BOMBAY. 



This institution owes its origin to Mr. W. M. HafE- 

 kine, CLE., a Eussian scientist, who has rendered India 

 such signal service since 1893, first by his prophylactic 

 treatment of cholera by serum inoculations and later 

 by his discovery of a serum against the plague. I was 

 very anxious to meet Mr. Haffkine, but unfortunately 

 he was absent on a visit to" Europe, but I met in his 

 place Lieut. Col. W. B. Bannerman, M.D., B.S.C., 

 I. M.S., who temporarily filled his place as director-in- 

 chief of the laboratory and who holds the permanent 



