The Spread of Leprosy. 77 



joyment of British protection. Among these unsus- 

 pecting children of the forest, the colony cast its load 

 of disease. The Indian tribes at the time were Carib- 

 bees, Accawois, Arrawaks and Warraus. Mr. ZIMMERMAN 

 was the Protector, and he used to include in his account 

 for the Indians those pertaining to the maintenance of 

 the lepers. Soon after, we read in one of his reports 

 that " the Indians manifested an inclination to leave the 

 Post." Certain tribes did go away, and refused al- 

 together to associate with the lepers ; but one tribe, the 

 Warraus, who are lowest in the social scale among In- 

 dians, remained, ate, and drank with the lepers, and 

 mingled too freely, alas ! with them ; for shortly after, 

 leprosy broke out among the Warraus, and to this 

 day they are the only tribe among whom cases of 

 leprosy may be met with. It certainly is a fact that no 

 one has ever met with leprosy in any other aboriginal 

 tribe of Indians. Mr. McCLINTOCK, for years a magis- 

 trate among them, states*: — "On taking the census of 

 the whole Indian population (1842), although many 

 cases of leprosy of both sexes came under reporter's 

 observation, every case was confined to the Indians of 

 the Warrow nation.'' 



In 1858 the lepers were located at the present insti- 

 tution at the mouth of the Mahaica creek, which not very 

 long ago was enlarged to meet the ever increasing de- 

 mand on its accommodation. On 31st December, 1859, 

 there were only 105 inmates at the Asylum. In 1869 

 they had increased to 300, and the place could hold no 

 more. Increased space was provided, and in 1889 we 



* Leprosy in British Guiana, p. 160. 



