300 Proceedings of Royal Society of Edinburgh. [sess. 
interior, except towards tlie northern part of the empire. In Japan 
leprosy is very prevalent, only the Loo-Choo Islands being free from 
it. It exists in New Zealand, in the Hawaiian group, and some- 
times in Tahiti. 
In Europe leprosy only occurs endemically, in small and, for the 
most part, clearly defined areas; in Spain it is confined to the 
provinces of Catalonia, Andalusia, Galicia, Asturia, and Granada. 
In Portugal it is met with in the provinces of Beira, Estremadura, and 
Algarve. In Italy it is endemic in two places — viz., at the Riviera- 
di-Ponete and at Comacchio. It is also found in Sicily. In the 
Balkan Peninsula leprosy still exists in small centres on the coast of 
the Ejalet of Salonica (Thessaly and Macedonia), and a few cases 
occur in Constantinople, which are probably imported. In Greece 
it is sometimes seen in the neighbourhood of Parnassus, and on the 
islands of Samos, Rhodes, Chios, and Mitylene, hut the chief seat 
of leprosy in this region is Crete. In Roumania and Hungary 
occasional cases of leprosy occur, hut it has ceased to he endemic 
there. In Sweden leprosy is met with in the districts of Anger- 
manland, Mendelpad, Helsin gland, Upland, and Bobus, hut it has 
diminished very greatly in recent years. The most considerable 
area of endemic leprosy in Europe is the west coast of Norway, from 
Stavanger up to Tromsoe, most of the cases belonging to the depart- 
ments of Sondre and Nordre Berghus. The disease is also met with in 
Iceland. Turning to the western hemisphere, there are three endemic 
areas of leprosy in North America — Mexico, Louisiana, and New 
Brunswick and Nova Scotia, and it is found amongst the Chinese 
immigrants in California. It also occurs in Costa Rica and in the 
West Indies, particularly in Cuba, Jamaica, St Bartholomew, St 
Kitts, Nevis, Antigua, Guadaloupe, St Vincent, Barbadoes, Trinidad, 
and the Bahamas. Leprosy is endemic in the elevated regions of 
Ecuador, and in various parts of Guiana, but its headquarters in 
South America are undoubtedly in Brazil, the provinces of Maranhao 
and Rio Grande being almost exempt. Erom the southern pro- 
vinces of Brazil the area extends over Paraguay and the northern 
parts of the Argentine Republic, especially throughout the pro- 
vinces of Entre Rios and Salta, and it stretches across the continent 
as far as the eastern frontier of Bolivia. 
Remarks . — There seems to he no doubt now that leprosy is 
