GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIB UTIOX OF B UBONIC PL A G UE 111 



a temporary immunity, which, however, did not last longer than 

 twenty days. The mortality in cases not treated by Yersin's serum 

 was 70 per cent ; in those treated with it, 13 per cent. 



The inoculations made by Haffkine in Bombay appear to have 

 been quite successful. In his first experiment 8,142 persons were 

 inoculated. Of these 18 subsequentl 3^ contracted the disease and two 

 died. Among 4,926 persons inoculated a single time at Dharwar, 45 

 were subsequently attacked and 15 died, while among 3,387 persons 

 in whom a second inoculation was made onl}^ two were attacked. 

 Haffkine uses in his inoculations a sterilized culture of the plague 

 bacillus. The inoculation is followed by slight fever and enlarge- 

 ment of the nearest lymphatic glands. All symptoms disa])pear at 

 the end of two or three da3''S. 



Tlie figures just given are from the report of Mr E. L. Cappel to the 

 Plague Commission. In this report Mr Cappel says : 



"If this experiment had failed the results, judged by the actual mortality 

 among the non-inoculated, would have been appalling. All sanitary measures 

 in the shape of disinfection, unroofing of houses, and segregation were applied 

 concurrently with inoculation, as the government is already aware; but the 

 rate of mortality among those who held back from the inoculation rose at one 

 time to a height which I believe has never been approached elsewhere, stand- 

 ing in the third week in 8epteml>er at the figure of 057 i)er thousand per week." 



Another form of treatment used in Boniba}^ hospitals is the " Heil- 

 serum," also prepared under the patronage of the government, at the 

 Parel govermnent house, by the assistants of Professor Lustig, Avhose 

 name it bears. The serum has not been extensively em)ilo3'ed in 

 India because of its scarcit3'', and also on account of the prejudices of 

 the natives. It has, however, been used in some 500 cases, with 60 

 per cent recoveries and 40 per cent mortalit3', while the death rate 

 in untreated natives may run as high as 80 per cent. Those who are 

 engaged in making the serum maintain that much better results than 

 those indicated in the above percentage can be obtained 1)3' increas- 

 ing the number of healing units in the serum. In one of his articles 

 Lustig states tiiat he succeeded in curnig completely 26 out of 30 

 cases of ))lagne with his serum. 



The ap[>earance of a plague-stricken cit3'' at the i)resent day is de- 

 })icted in a graphic way b3'^ Doctor \j. V. Barker, of Johns Hopkins 

 University, wlio recentl3' visited India as a jnem])er of the INb'dical 

 Commission sent out under the auspices of tlie University. Doctor 

 liarker says : 



