From Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

I'm writing this from the Coliseum Cafe and Bar, one of central KL's old and distinctively “worn" colonial landmarks recommended as “a must experience" for a cold drink. So in I came and immediately worked out why the recommendation. Memorabilia of Malaysia under British administration was framed and hanging on all the walls. One news item seemed particularly worth sharing. A framed clipping from The Malay Mail on 5 October, 1921 warned its English readers:

"When Your Servant Has Malaria", the caption read, “he is infective to the anophalines around your house, and therefore a source of active danger to everyone in the house. You should immediately notify the Health Officer who will search for the breeding grounds of anophalines in the vicinity with the object of destroying them. You should also persuade the patient to go to hospital where he will receive proper treatment, and where, too, he will not infect your anophalines. Failing that, provide him with a mosquito net (and see that he uses it) and give him quinine. The normal dose for adults is 30 grains."

"Your servant should continue to take quinine, grains 10, regularly for 31 days after he has apparently resumed normal health. Quinine will so act upon his blood cells as to make him less liable to infect anophalines. At the same time, use smudge sticks freely in your house to keep away the anophalines that he has infected. Be particularly careful that your mosquito curtains are free from holes and properly closed. And as a precautionary measure, take 10 grains of quinine every day yourself for one week after his apparent restoration of health. Even if this does not ward off an attack of malaria, it may reduce what would otherwise be a serious infection into a comparatively slight one."

Cultural Images Frame the Kuala Lumpur Skyline

So there you have it. A curious bit of trivia to add to your store chest of digital treasures! As I left the Coliseum Cafe and Bar and carried on up the street, I suddenly found myself amongst a crowd of Chinese Malaysians who were milling about talking animatedly amongst themselves. Then I noticed the convoy of police vehicles, and plainclothes Malay policemen carrying unlicensed gambling machines out of the upper floor of a building I was standing beside. As the only European face in the whole neighborhood, I prudently exited by the most direct means possible!

Anophalines live in the Storm Drains of this Modern City

Reflecting back on that old newspaper health notice now, 80 years later, I can certainly vouch for the mosquitoes in this part of the world! Everyone treats potentially germ-carrying mosquitoes with respect since they represent a very real health hazard for dengue fever as well as malaria. It's scary thinking that 80 years later, in 2001, there are children in many parts of the world who still do not receive the basic standard of primary health care recommended for English-speaking people living in Post WW I Malaysia.

The moral: Watch out for anophalines in your part of the world!