H.—3l

124

Diseases of the circulatory system give 1-294 per cent, of all the cases seen. Of 55 cases, valvular diseases supplied 12, varicose veins 4, and 32 cases were not differentiated. Order £. — Diseases of the Respiratory System. Number of Cases. , Wellington, Hawke's Bay, . ~ , Diseases. East Coast, and 0 Total. South Island Dlstrlot - Districts. Nasal catarrh ... ... ... ... 102 42 144 Epistaxis ... ... ... ... 6 0 «6 Polypus ... ... ... ... 2 0 2 Laryngitis ... ... ... ... 7 1 8 Bronchitis ... ... ... ... 300 193 493 Asthma ... ... ... ... 36 15 51 Emphysema ... ... ... ... 3 3 6 Pneumonia ... ... ... ... 69 17 86 Pleurisy ... ... ... ... 26 6 32 Colds ... ... ... ... ... 82 2(1) 84 Haemoptysis ... ... ... ... 16 0 16 Totals ... ... ... 649 279 928 Diseases of the respiratory system formed 21825 per cent, of the total cases seen. Out of a total of 928 cases, bronchitis furnished 493, or more than a half of the cases, or H'596 per cent, of the total cases seen. Nasal catarrh came next with 144, pneumonia with 86, simple colds with 84, asthma with 51, pleurisy with 32, and haemoptysis with 16. The Maori's respiratory system suffers more from disease than any other. This is due to the altered conditions of life which I have already exhaustively gone into in previous reports. Adding consumption to these figures, we have a grand total of 1,052 —that is, 124 cases of phthisis out of 1,052, or 1T787 per cent, of the diseases of the respiratory system, or 2916 per cent, of the total cases seen. A great many cases die unseen by the medical eye. It is quite a common thing to hear the expression "Te mate o ana tupuna " ("the disease of his ancestors"), and there is no hope. The disease has been handed down through generations by a powerful curse. Order s. — Diseases of the Digestive System. Diseases. Number of Cases. Wellington, Hawke's Bay, East Coast, and South Island Districts— Stomatitis ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 11 Glossitis ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 1 Dentition ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 44 Caries of teeth ... ... ... ... ■ ... ... 4 Bad teeth extracted ... ... ... ... ... ... 75 Pharyngitis ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 6 Tonsilitis ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 21 Dyspepsia ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 100 Gastric enteritis ... ... ... ... ... ... 40 Gastritis ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 23 Gastric catarrh ... ... ... ... ... ... 15 Haematemesis... ... ... ... ... ... ... 1 Vomiting ... ... ... ... ... ■•• •-■ 9 Constipation ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 37 Colic ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 31 Appendicitis ... ... ... ... ... -•• ... 7 Hernia ... ... ... ... ... •■• •-■ 9 Intestinal obstruction ... ... ... ... ■•■ ■■■ 3 Fistula in ano ... y '' ... ... ... ... ... 3 Cancer of liver Tumour of liver (undefined) ... ... ... ... ■■■ 1 Liver-complaint (undefined) Peritonitis ... ... ... ••• •■- ••• ■■■ 5 Enteritis ... ■•• ••■ •■• ••■ ••• 7 455 Auckland District ... .. ... ... ... •■■ •■■ 162 Total ... 617 Diseases of the digestive system furnished 617 cases of the total seen, or 14-511 per cent. Of these, dyspepsia, gastro-enteritis, constipation, colic, and gastritis were the more common, in the order named. There were also 9 cases of hernia, 7 cases of appendicitis, and 5 cases of peritonitis. Irregularities in eating—gorging at times, insufficient food at other times—sameness of diet, indigestible and unsuitable food, are the chief factors in the causation of the diseases of the digestive system. The Maori should be encouraged to grow other vegetables besides the potato and kumara. Generally speaking, it is either a feast or a famine, in the Maori kaingas. Whenever there is a tangi or a hui there is a feast, then the unfortunate hosts have to starve for the rest of the year.