“Sick people have but a single wish–that they may get well…” William Francis Hutchinson of Rhode Island starts his Under the Southern Cross: a guide to the sanitariums and other charming places in the West Indies and Spanish Main with a clear indication of his intended direction and audience: having benefited himself from travel in southern hemisphere, he intends to provide guidance for others. The title page provides Hutchinson a boost by adding, after his name, a list of memberships: the American Climatological Association, the American Medical Association, and the American Public Health Association.
Hutchinson makes a point of mentioning how many conditions can be helped by tropical travel including simply exhaustion — but doctors are too prone, he feels, to prescribe such travel to anyone who can pay for it: “Careful and thorough consideration should precede decision where to send invalids for climate treatment.” (17)
Despite this demurrer, Hutchinson writes as one in love with his surroundings, describing beaches, hotels and quiet nights with the pleasure of the true convert. He illustrates his book, too, both with photographs and personal sketches of plants and places.
Flip through the pages of Hutchinson’s book below or follow this link to read Under the Southern Cross.