Filaria loa 35 



infection was Old Calabar, in the last it was the Congo. Aus- 

 tralia has had one case (No. 46) in a host who had resided 

 previously on the Gold Coast. 



Regarding the presence of Filaria loa in the western hemi- 

 sphere Clemow (1903:610) writes that "formerly it was said to 

 have been seen from time to time among negroes in America, 

 but since the slave trade from Africa to the New World has 

 ceased this parasite is no longer found on the other side of the 

 Atlantic." This statement holds good for the West Indies and 

 South America, where, as already noted, no- cases have been 

 recorded since 1845. But as regards the northern hemisphere 

 it is doubly incorrect, both as to former times and as to present 

 records. On the one hand, it is noteworthy that no cases are 

 listed on the North American continent from the days of the 

 slave trade. One can hardly believe that such did not occur, 

 but they seem to have escaped record in the literature so far as 

 I have been able to follow it. On the other hand, there are not 

 wanting recent cases in North America. The first case which 

 actually occurred within the United States (No. 31) was 

 reported in 1890. Here the host had sheltered four of these 

 parasites, three of which were removed in this country. There 

 are, to be sure, earlier records of Filaria loa in American litera- 

 ture, for Leidy had examined and reported briefly in 1877 on a 

 specimen sent IVIorton from Gaboon by Rev. Dr. Nassau, an 

 American missionary. Also in 1880 Dr. Bachelor reported on 

 a specimen he sent from Gaboon, said to be the first perfect 

 specimen of Filaria loa seen in the United States. 



The second specimen reported in this country was that of 

 Milroy which I recorded in 1902, and previous to the appear- 

 ance of the present paper no others were found on record as 

 having been removed in the United States. In the preceding 

 pages (p. 3. fif. ) I have discussed two specimens of Loveland, one 

 of Friend, and one of Vail, which must be added to the list. Of 

 these six specimens the first was probably acquired in the French 

 Congo and the other five in Kamerun where the hosts had been 

 resident. Two cases (Nos. 68, 69) have been recorded from 

 Canada in 1903 and are fully discussed in the preceding pages. 



305 



