288 STRONG AND CROWELL. 



At the same meeting Davis ^^ presented a paper which lent 

 evidence favoring the infectious theory of the disease. The pri- 

 soners in the Shanghai Jail at one time suffered severely from 

 beriberi which diminished, it is true, with a change in diet but 

 again reached a high figure when the improved sanitary condi- 

 tions due to a coincident occupancy of a new jail had in time 

 deteriorated. When steps were taken to overcome infestation 

 with vermin, the incidence of the disease again diminished 

 markedly. 



To enter into a discussion of the literature regarding epidemics 

 of beriberi among people who never eat rice would lead us too 

 far astray in our argument in relation to the etiology of tropical 

 beriberi. 



However, in this communication attention may be called to the 

 investigations of Axel Hoist ^^ in relation to the occurrence of 

 beriberi on Norwegian ships. This author points out that the 

 frequency of beriberi, under these conditions, coincides with 

 certain alterations in the food during long voyages, and he re- 

 ports the production of polyneuritis gallinarum in fowls by feed- 

 ing tinned meats, which have been boiled for one-half an hour at 

 a temperature of 110° C, and even sometimes by feeding salt 

 meat, somewhat tainted, boiled for one hour at 100° C. 



It is not our intention to criticize here the conclusions reached 

 by these investigators from their experiments which we have 

 quoted, but merely to call attention to the fact that considerable 

 evidence has been presented by various authors against the 

 idea that the continuous consumption of white rice as a staple 

 article of diet is the cause of beriberi. In fact, in a number of 

 other outbreaks of beriberi which have occurred recently, the 

 evidence submitted has been entirely opposed to the idea of the 

 rice causation of beriberi. However, it must be admitted that 

 in regard to the cause of these outbreaks the evidence is no 

 more complete or convincing than is that given in the articles 

 already referred to and therefore it will not be quoted here. A 

 number of physicians in Manila and elsewhere, who have had a 

 wide experience with beriberi, still decidedly oppose the idea 

 that the disease is due to the prolonged consumption of polished 

 rice as the staple article of diet. 



From the consideration of the literature on this subject, as 

 outlined in this article, it will be clearly seen that no experiments 



" Quoted by Joum. Am. Med. Assoc. (1912), 58, 1859. 

 '*Joum. Hyg. (1907), 7, 619; Trans. Soc. Trop. Med. & Hyg. (1911), 5, 

 71. 



