14 



THE CUBA REVIEW 



TUBERCULOSIS IN CUBA 



THE PRESENT SITUATION NOT SO BLACK AS PAINTED — DEATH RATE 

 AS LOW AS IN OTHER COUNTRIES — DECREASE IN CHILDREN'S DISEASES 



Regarding tuberculosis in Cul)a, Dr. 

 Juan Guitcras, Director of Public Healtb 

 in Cuba, says the press of the island, '"has 

 gone a little too far in painting with black 

 colors our present situation." He says the 

 government has not been indifferent to 

 anti-tuberculosis work, but on the contrary 

 has been working on the matter for the 

 past ten years and gradually developing its 

 plans. He says further : 



"There was a considerable fall of the 

 death rate from tuberculosis during the 

 earlier years of the tir.st .American inter- 

 vention. Hut this was due simply to the 

 fact that the enormous mortality during 

 the last years of the Spanish regime had 

 done away with much of the material that 

 furnishes the usual contingent for the tu- 

 berculosis death rate. This was followed 

 by an apparent increase. It may have been 

 also, in part, real and due to the arriv- 

 ing at the tubercular age of a group of the 

 po])ulati<)n that had been subject to the 

 miseries of the reconcentration instituted, 

 with all the horrors of a huge experiment 

 on human cattle, by General Weyler." 



Comparing Cuba with France, Ireland, 

 Norway and portions of Austria- Hungary, 

 he linds their control over tuberculosis is 

 less evident than in Cuba. Statistics give 

 the death rate per 10,0(10 of the population 

 as 21.42 in lUOO, and 14.90 in 1909, showing 



a pronounced reduction in the disease. 

 Taking the entire island, this rate puts it 

 in the same class as England and Wales, 

 Scotland, Norway, Denmark, Italy and 

 Holland, the death rate in tiiese countries 

 ranging from 10 to 20 per 10,000 inhabit- 

 ants, and above Ireland, Sweden, Switzer- 

 land, Russia and part of Austria, where 

 the death rate ranges from 20 to ;{,") per 

 10,000 of the population. The doctor in 

 conclusion says : 



"The data are not yet complete for the 

 year 1909, but we have reason to believe 

 that the mortality from tuberculosis, to- 

 gether with the general mortality, continues 

 in the remarkable line of descent, that had 

 its lieginning witli the specialization in pre- 

 ventive medicine during the lirst American 

 intervention, and with the nationalization 

 of the sanitary services and with the crea- 

 tion of a secretary of public health as a 

 member of the president's cabinet." 



In the great work of sanitation which 

 has decreased not only tuberculosis, but 

 eradicated yellow fever and borras fever 

 so fatal to Cuban children and largely de- 

 creased the infant mortality from tetanus 

 and other diseases, Dr. Guiteras says that 

 "to Americans we are debtors in great 

 measure for this great achievement for this 

 regeneration."— -From the official publica- 

 tion of the Dept. of Sanitation & Charities. 



Race-Track and Casino Plannecl 



.\ casino and race-track costing more 

 than $1,000,000 may be one of the Amer- 

 ican improvements at Havana in the near 

 future, says the Atlanta (Ga.) Jounml. 



Some time ago an effort was made h\ 

 parties owning a large tract f)f land just 

 outside the city of Havana to secure a 

 franchise for an immense racing plant and 

 L. v.. Ruff, civil engineer, of .Atlanta, was 

 asked to visit the island in the interest of 

 the project. He found perfect conditions 

 for one of the greatest tracks in the world. 



The Journal says the privilege to build 

 a race-track has been secured, and the pre- 

 li'rinary plans may be soon acted upon. 



The site for the proposed casino and 

 race course is on the top of a large hill 

 just west of Havana. 



Investigations of the Royal Prussian Geo- 

 logical Institution of Berlin, has lately 

 .solved the prolilem of the complete and 

 rapid softening, on a large scale and at 

 slight expense, of even the hardest waters. 

 It consists in a rapid filtering of the water 

 tiirough a composition named "permutit," 

 by which the calcium or lime, manganese, 

 iron, and magnesium compounds, which 

 render the water hard, as well as the mi- 

 crobes it may contain, are. it is claimed, 

 wholly removed, a result hitherto unattain- 

 al)le outside of the laboratory of the chem- 

 ist, all ether processes having left 2 to 3 

 ner cent of these substances in the water. 

 Full particulars of the process are given in 

 Volume I, No. 4, 1910, of the U. S. Weekly 

 Consular and Trade Reports. 



German Water Softener 



A German chemist. Dr. R. Cans, profes- 

 sor and chief of the Laboratory for Soil 



Consideration is being given to Guanta- 

 namo, Cuba, over Key West, Fla., as a 

 probable war base in connection with the 

 Panama Canal, and it is likely that the 

 administration will advocate that site at the 

 present session of Congress. 



