CHAPTER VI 



FITNESS FOR TROPICAL LIFE 



Preliminary— Examination — Women — Invaliding — Natives — Life assurance 

 — Expectation of life in tropical natives — References, 



PRELIMINARY. 



The selection of European and American men for service in the 

 tropics, the fitness of European and American women for tropical 

 life, the question as to how long white children should remain in 

 warm climates (Chapter LXXXVL), the invaliding of sick persons 

 of all races, the selection of natives for employment under Govern- 

 ments or in mercantile houses, and the problems of tropical life assur- 

 ance, are all matters of great importance to the tropical practitioner. 



He may have nothing to say in regard to the selection of persons 

 for tropical service, but he has very considerable knowledge of their 

 after medical history. 



We are unable to allow much space in the present book for the 

 consideration of these questions, but we will endeavour to touch 

 upon such points as appear to us to be of importance, and to leave 

 the elaboration of the same to the reader, and for this purpose we 

 give references at the end of the chapter. 



EXAMINATION. 



We presume that every medical practitioner appointed for the 

 purpose of selecting men for service in the tropics will go faithfully 

 through a routine examination more or less based upon that adopted 

 by the best type of assurance companies, and therefore we need not 

 lay stress upon such an examination; but there are certain points 

 to which we desire to invite especial attention. 



First-Class Lives. — Every selected candidate be a first-class 

 life and free from any trace of albumen in the urine. 



Venereal Disease.— The examining physician should make it his 

 duty to exclude gonorrhoea, not by mere question, but by actual 

 examination, and the same is true for syphilis. No one should be 

 allowed to proceed for the first time to the tropics with an uncured 

 gonorrhoea or with an imperfectly treated syphilitic infection. 



Further, we are of the opinion that it is the duty of the examiner 

 to warn all selected candidates as to the dangers of infection with 

 venereal disease in the tropics, and at the same time to give and to 

 read to him printed instructions, similar to those provided to-day 

 for soldiers, detailing methods for prevention of infection. 



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