The Sun.
London, England, 1855-08-14 00:00:00

THE CHOLERA EPIDEMIC.

Yesterday was issued the report of the Committee for
Scientific Inquiries in relation to the cholera epidemic,
which reached its height in 1854. This, like the pre-
vious epidemic, extended over portions of two years, and
the deaths in London, which were not very numerous in
1853, slightly exceeded the deaths in 1848. The deaths
by cholera and diarrhcea in 1854 were, however, 5,000
less than the number that would have been told had the
e?idernic been as fatal as the epidemic of 1849, allowing
ten per cent. for the increase in the population. In 1849
Cie deaths from cholera were 14,137 ; from diarrhcea,
3,899 ; making together 18,036. In 1854 the deaths
from cholera were 10,806 ; from diarrhcea, 4,000 ; toge-
ther 14,806 ; showing that the reduction of mortality in
1851, as compared with 1849, was 4,781 deaths from
cholera, and 299 from diarrhoea. The second outbreak
began later in the season in the last epidemic than it
did in the epidemic of 1849, and the diminished
figure of the mortality arises from the smaller number
of deaths in the months of July and August. The
disease had lost none of its virulence, and the deaths by
cholera in September, 1854, being 6,084, exceeded the
deaths in September, 1849, by 1,053. The danger of an
attack of cholera varies with age ; thus, at the age of
15.25, out of 100 persons attacked, 34.9 die ; at the age
of 25-35, the deaths to 100 cases are 35.4 ; at 65-75, the
deaths to 100 cases are 58.2. The mortality of cases of
diarrhcea also varies at different ages. The mortality
among the male population was at the rate of 47, among
the female population at the rate of 45 in 10,008. The
council are of opinion that the public apprehension for
the sanitary state of the metropolis should suffer no abate-
ment, but that the most active and complete measures
should be adopted to prevent the approach or to miti-
gate the violence of impending visitations. The council,
in closing their report, suggest that these inquiries, to
be useful, ought to be continued in the absence of the
disease, which they aim at elucidating. It seems cer-
tair, they add, that in the chemistry of organic decom-
position there is concealed a large share of the mystery
to be solved, and it is impossible yet to say how much
of the remainder may belong to undeveloped branches
e
of meteorological science. Opportunities, therefnor,
ought nut to be lost for establishing a better !loniam%a.
,1
standard than is yet discovered to measure the cr%d 81
and meteorological anomalies of an epidemic pe i

intheleaifra'clat attilhailtthanc.
and A
Co . correspondencean d the Post-officeb etwee n2sf eesl
iscrsi
t.eSd
hip that may leave this country
by any foreign private s
cording to a standing regulation mailsare notdespatched
office should decline to accep p 11y ni sending
even although the senders matyrdesesiornesiitb..rTtha.t the Post-
letters by vessels over whiboubt
ittheisyhave no. jurisdiction
ee as
es reason
efaosre denying
Messrs,
can be easily understood,.
.t in the present
age of mercantile competition between all the nations of
our people the
thehporrose to avail
eoet yha
tece d several letters, prepaid, to the Cape
themselves of it at their
Hamilton, Sin-
taohdwevnawn4gd. 0
Co.ti ofl ntephe
Clair, au
" per Mascareignes, at Swan-
of Good Hope, ospueb,sealddureenstsleyd
discovered .
Swan-
sea,"
correspondence of other London
firma that,had
a lbteheonu ge ha r
ri theed
by that vessel, and had reached the Cape in 47 days,
their own had been kept back and despatched by another,
a notoriously slow sailer, which occupied 99 days. After
a persevering inquiry, the answer was obtained that the
letters of the other firms had been forwarded by acci-
dent, and that the whole should have been detained, the
Mascareignes being a foreign ship. The result of the rule
is that any persons, in cases of this sort, evading the
ship postage by sending their letters to be put on board
by an agent enjoys a means of communication which is
denied in a regular way.
RIVER PLATE AND BRAZILS.—SOUTRIAMPTON, Aug
14.—The Avon has arrived with the Brazil and River
Plate mails. Her dates are from Buenos Ayres to July
2 ; Rio, 15 ; Pernambuco, 22 ; and Lisbon, August 9.
She brings 100 passengers, 3,0001. in specie, and 16,0101.
in diamonds. At Pernambuco business was firm, at
Bahia the markets were dull, and at Buenos Ayres pro-
duce was high and American provisions in great demand.
SCOTCH COAST DEFENCES.—PIans are at present
under the consideration of Government for fortifying
the island of Inchkeith. It is proposed, we learn,_ to
erect a battery just under the lighthouse. The Mar.
tello Tower at Leith has recently received its fall com-
plement of guns ; and the other works, which we far.
merly enumerated, for the protection of Aberdeen, Dun-
dee_, &c., are being carried into effect.—Scotsman.
CRYSTAL PALACE.—SHILLING DAY.—AUGIInT IL—
Admissions on payment,l4,2l4 ; ditto by Nowa tioketo,
6U.—Total, 14,796.