ROUGHING IT IN SOUTHERN INDIA 145 



Notwithstanding all this, the poor creatures linger on for 

 years. One cannot but wonder what purpose in the general 

 scheme of things such martyrdoms can serve. 



I have said that this almost grotesque disease is attributed 

 to bad water, but as every one drinks the same water, and 

 only a small proportion of the people are so affected, the 

 explanation seems inadequate, taken by itself. All Euro- 

 peans have their drinking water filtered, as a matter of 

 course, or even distilled, as we did when at Coimbatore. 

 Some few advanced natives do so too, but the filtering 

 is very commonly only nominal unless personally super- 

 vised ; yet, as far as I am aware, no European was ever 

 known to contract elephantiasis, and the cause, I fancy, 

 is to be sought in the blood, and most probably a leprous 

 taint in those who become its victims. 



Salt-fish, eaten in the large quantity it is by natives, is 

 said to be the contributory cause of elephantiasis, and also 

 the origin of guinea-worm — another repulsive disease that 

 afflicts the inhabitants of India, and other tropical countries 

 as well. I have known two instances of Englishmen in 

 India suffering from this scourge. 



The guinea-worm is a parasite that burrows in the flesh. 

 Usually, in the beginning, a slight uneasiness is felt, say on 

 the instep ; then the skin breaks, and the head of the worm 

 appears. The way to deal with it is to wind off daily as much 

 as can be drawn from the place upon a reel which is kept 

 bound to it, taking great care not to break the length, for 

 if broken it would start back, and all have to be done over 

 again, perhaps in some entirely fresh part ; whereas, by 

 good fortune and the exercise of care and patience, the entire 

 worm may be thus removed. Even then the process may 

 sometimes extend over years. Happy is the victim of this 

 malady if it occur on a part of his body that he can reach, 

 for then he is able himself to give it the unwearying atten- 

 tion required in order to get rid of it. It does not necessarily 



