ANTHROPOLOGICAL RESULTS. 39 1 



that this disease, after having been imported, has spread enormously by the peculiar customs 

 of thèse people. 



Another skin-disease, I thought having found, is leprosy. Twice I met with an indigène 

 with a face, so affected by ulcération that I had to think of that sickness. The first time I 

 doubted the diagnose, the second time the proceeding of the infection on the eyeball and the 

 changes in muscles and nerves of the right hand established leprosy. 



Among the exterior diseases, affections of the eye may not be forgotten, though it 

 must be stated for them as for ail other illnesses that they only were of moderate occurrence. 

 I treated some cases of conjunctivitis, but I could not make out if there was any trachome. 



Farther it must be mentioned that goitre was often stated, but exclusively among the 

 women. So it appears that this disease, characteristic for the Swiss mountains, exists also in 

 the „Alps" of New-Guinea. 



My médical practice — be it one on a very modest scale — existed principally in 

 dressing wounds. It speaks for the already praised cleanliness of thèse primitive people that 

 they had nearly alvvays covered their wounds with a bandage. And it was well-done. Some 

 soft fresh leaves covered the wound, then dryer and more solid material was put on as a 

 support, while the whole was tightly fixed by split rattan, applied as a bandage. For smaller 

 wounds some smooth leaves, fixed by a cord, were considered to be sufficient. In this way 

 I saw for instance dressed a recently cut-off finger. Many of the scars I examined, appeared 

 to be quite lose from the bone and proved that this way of treating wounds was fairly good. 

 My dressings, nearly ahvays consisting of a Priessnitz-bandage or of some ointment, were 

 always highly estimated and properly taken care of. The purifying povver of the wet dressing 

 was duly appreciated and a few times I got exubérant thanks for the healing of a couple of 

 great dirty wounds, caused by those bandages. After some very cordial shakehands, I was 

 not even spared a complète embrace! After that my practice grew considerably, and then it 

 appeared, how among children wounds were not scarce. On one of thèse little patients it was 

 seen, that sirih had been applied as medicine for a swollen knee. On open wounds I never 

 found a single drug. 



From what I hâve told it appears that some of my patients often came back to 

 receive new bandages. On the other hand others did not show haste to repeat their visit. 

 Without doubt this indifférence was partly due to their indolence, but it did not escape my 

 attention that for the other part it was founded on a certain degree of soberness of mind 

 that made them consider the external application of my medicine as quite an ordinary matter. 



Sometimes I was asked to give advice for internai diseases. Thèse appeared to be 

 always connected with affections of the bones or joints, which in their turn must probably 

 be considered as conséquences of the reigning framboesia. Jod. kalic. was the appointed medi- 

 cine, but I did not succeed in persuading the patients to take it. I don 't know if they had 

 a treatment of their own; once I noted a little cord round the ankle that, relying on the 

 vaguely given information, might indeed be applied to obtain a cure, when we compare the 

 analogue customs of other peoples. However it was not the rule to apply such a cord. 



The way, in which this people dénote médical treatment, proves that disease and cure are 

 supposed to be accomplished in a supernatural way. Their request for treatment consists of 

 blowing interrogatively on the sore part of the body; so evidently they contribute a healing 



