The Sun.
London, England, 1846-12-26 00:00:00

absent, soon sent a protest against my theory, hence we
have a parochial division, and I am sorry to say that
there is no immediate prospect of the removal of the
source of the malady. Since I first addressed you I have
i had important additional confirmation of the views we
both entertain. Wherever this earth has been taken
fever has followed. The patron had some taken to his
garden, and the only son of the gardener near was
attacked. The result at the rectory you are already
aware of, and there are two ar three more instances. A
young man who paid his addresses to a young woman
living in the street between the rectory and the heaps, went
home a distance of three or four miles, sickened with fever
and died.
"Children living at a distance, who attended on Sun-
day and day schools, went home, sickened, and fell vic-
tims to the malady. Yet in no instance has it been
communicated to the remaining family ; but when all
fear of contagion and a certain time had elapsed, chil
dren of the same family were again admitted to school,
and in a short time they sickened and were sent home ;
this had been the case in many instances ; in none have
I seen it communicated by contagion.
" Again a young girl is seized with fever severely, I
attend, she recovers ; while in a weak condition she at-
tends her school, a few days after she is seized with low
fever and sinks. Many slight cases have occurred, such
as rigors, headache, and sudden and great prostratio❑ of
strength, which have continued only a day or two. Two
or three instances I have seen more resembling a parox-
ysm of insanity. Take the following instance :—I was
called to a lady of a most amiable disposition ; in the
niorning she had been seized with rigors ; I found her
with slight congestion of brain, pulse quick, tor.gue
clean, head cool ; I found her throwing objects at her
husband, and she accused me of robbing her of her
child. I attributed this state of mind to the poisoned
condition of the blood, that is, the brain, I considered
being supplied with imperfect blood, rendered the func-
tions of this organ imperfect also. The patient re-
covered in a few days under my simple treatment.
"One of the most leading symptoms is excessive pros-
tration of strength. I nearly lost a lady by the applica-
tion of four leeches to the forehead, and was compelled
to give her wino liberally ; also another young person
nearly sunk from the same cause. I ordered two, and
four leeches were applied ; she became insensible for
hours. Also the eldest son of a gentleman, who lost a
dessert spoonful of blood from the nose ; the tongue be-
came dry, and insensibility followed ; wine only saved
him. In all cases the blood is very dark, I presume from
excess of carbon. I could generally foretel the condi-
tion of my patients by walking late at night on my ter-
race (an elevated position). If I found a warm, close,
moist atmosphere, with no wind, so that the exhalations
remained in the lower stratum of air, the delirious symp-
toms were generally aggravated, and vice versa.
" I sincerely hope that the ensuing Parliament will
provide some legislative enactment so as to remedy such
a dangerous state of things ; for it is a lamentable fact,
that the cause of epidemic is not likely to be removed. I
have already brought upon myself severe obloquy and
prejudice. I hope the time is not far distant when every
county will have its Sanatory Commissioners, to visit
and report periodically every town, and who can always
be accessible as reference and authority.—Believe me,
Sir, with much respect, yours faithfully,
(Signed) " D. SMITH."
(No. VI.)
" 38, Finsbury-square, Dec. 21, 1846.
" Sir,—lf any parson of ordinary intelligence were
told that a thousand loads of earth saturated with ani-
mal matter were exposed to the atmosphere close to a
town heretofore proverbial for health ;. thet not a
single case of fever had previously existed in this
town at least for fourteen years ; that on diligently
searching for the common causes of fever, such as
accumulations of filth within the town, or stagnant
pools and ditches without it, no such causes could be
found ; that soon after the exposure of this earth, in a
season favourable to its decomposition, fever broke out
and became epidemic ; tkat • wherever this earth was
taken fever followed ;' that wherever it was placed
M the greatest quantity fever prevailed in the
greatest degree, and was most severe and mortal ; that
wherever the atmosphere as warm, close, and moist,
with no win!, so that the exhalations remained in the
lower stratum of air, the delirium and the other symp
toms of the malady were greatly aggravated ;' and that
in no instance did the fever appear to spread by commu-
nication from person to person, but always in conse-
quent:, or at least in the degree of exposure to this
earth, as illustrated by several remarkable individual
cases—lf any person of common sense were told these
things, even if there should exist in his mind any doubt
as to the real relation of cause and effect in this case, he

would surely think it pruclont, as a meae matter of pre-
caution, to remove these thousand loads of earth. After

the
_part taken by your patron and your rector, in pro-
ducing the calamity that has befallen your town, though,
no doubt, quite unintentionally and unconsciously, they
can hardly be expected to become at once advocates for
the obvious remedy ; but it is to be hoped that the in-
habitants in general will not be so slow to profit by the
lessons of experience. Physicians of all ages, who have
paid attention to the subject, nave been of opinion that
the very symptoms observed in your patients, namely,
those denote a highly typhoidtype, are produced mainly
by exhalations arising from the decomposition of aaimal
matter. Thus Dr. Mead, writing more than a century
and a half ago, in assigning the reason why Grand Cairo,
in Egypt, is the birth place and the cradle of the plague,
which is nothing ,but a severe form of typhus fever,
says :—" The city is situated in a sandy place at the
foot of a mountain, which keeps off the winds that might
refresh the air, consequently the heat is rendered ex-
tremely stifling. A great canal passes through the
midst of the city, which, at the overffow of the Nile, is
fitted with water. On the decrease of the river this
canal is gradually dried up, and the people throw into it
all manner of kith, carrion, offal, and so on ; the stench
which arises from this and the mud together is intolera-
bly offensive, and from this source, the plague con-
stantly springing up every year, preys upon the inhabi-
tants, and is stopped only by the return of the Nile
the overflowing of which washes away the load of filth
In Ethiopia, the swarms of locusts are so prodigious,
that they sometimes cause a famine, by devouring the
fruits of the earth, and when they die they create a pes
tilence by the putrefaction of their bodies; this patrefac-
Lion is greatly increased by the dampness of the climate,
which during the sultry heats of July and August is
often excessive ; the efflnvia which arises from the im-
mense quantity of putrifying animal substance, combined
with so much heat and moisture, continually generate
the plague in its intensest form; and the Egyptians of
old were so sensible how much the putrefaction of dead
animals contributed towards breeding the plague, that
they worshipped the bird Ibis, from the services it did
in removing great numbers of serpents, which they ob-
served injured by their stench when dead, as much as by
their bite when alive.

" A quarter of a century ago there were indications
in this country of a disposition to call in question the
correctness of the view taken by this distinguished phy-
sician and philosopher, of the origin of the plague, and
of analogous diseases ; but the evidence of the truths
since adduced has commanded almost universal assent,
and the most striking and irresistible confirmation of it
is afforded, among others, by the Commissioners ap-
pointed in 1844 by the French Government specially to
investigate all the varied questions connected with the
plague, and who, in the early part of the present year,
give in an elaborate report, the result of these labours, to
the Royal Academy of Medicine in France.

" Tliere is a growing dislike in the people of this coun-
try to have their places of burial desecrated by common
and daily traffic, and by rude and low sports, and those
who can afford it, now seek to bury their dead in public
cemeteries wretchedly pcor and inappropriate as those
cemeteries are, compared with what national places of
sepulture might and ought to be made. In the meantime
the Ecclesiastical Ccmmissioners, Including the Arch-
bishop of Canterbury and the Bishops of London, Lincoln,
Durham, St.Asaph, and Bangor, have reported against the
practice of burial in the church and chancel, a prac-
tice,' theo say, which appears to us to bo in many re-
spects inj:rious, in some cases by weakening or deterio-
rating the fabric of the Church, and in others by its ten-
dency to affect the lives and health of the inhabitants.
We are of opinion that in future the practice should be
discontinued.' One distinguished member of the bench,
indeed, is of opinion that there is no evil in this prac-
tice, provided it is not carried to excess : that poison in
itself is not hurtful, but only an extreme dose of it. It
is earnestly to be wished thst the Ecclesiastical Commis-

sinners had reported against the practice of burial near
the church as well as within it, were it only for the rea-
son assiffaed by Sir Christopher Wren, already quoted,
that if the churchyard be close about the church, the
ground being continually raised by the graves, occasions
in time a descent by steps into the church, which renders
it damp, and the walls green, as appears, evidently, in
old churches."

" I am, Sir, your faithful servant,
(Signed) " SOUTHWOOD SMITH."

,
PONDEROUS LOCOMOTIVE LOAD.—Last week —a
very heavy locomotive engine, belonging to the South
Eastern, was transported by the turnpike-road from the
terminus to Deal. The unwieldy machine was placed
on a strong truck, and required no fewer than 30 power-
ful horses to draw it up the Castle hill. The novelty of
the sight of so numerous a team drew together a large
concourse of persons, some of whom, notwithstanding
the inclemency of the weather, accompanied the truck,
with its ponderous load, several miles on its way towards
its destination. The engine, we understand, was about
20 tons in weight, and the truck 6 tons. On the previdus
day the tender, drawn by 25 horses, was also taken to
Deal.

CHRISTMAS DINNER CLUDS.—Experienced sales-
men at Leadenhall-market state, that the demand for
Christmas geese has this year exceeded that of any pre-
vious season, and that the establishment of clubs has,
within the last few days, brought upwards of 20,000
geese into the market. The plan is, for a certain num-
ber of subscribers to a club to a pay sixpene or a shil-
ling per week, for some time previous to Christmas day,
to receive a goose and a bottle of spirits. The publican
holding the club generally enters into a contract for
geese some months before, propoi tionate in number to
his anticipated demand, and each vies in producing birds
of the largest size and best breed. It has been stated
that, from this competition, the quality of geese has
been very much improved, from the greater attention
which the extra demand has caused to be paid to the
feeding and fattening the birds. In some parts of the
metropolis " plumpudding clubs" have been established.
lltGu TIDE.—On Wednesday afternoon the tide
rose so high as to overflow the banks of the river. The
lower part of Retherhithe was in many parts uncler
water, and several of the houses near the river had their
basement floors completely inundated. A groat part of
Battersea-fields, in the neighbourhood of the Red-house,
were under water, and impassable till some time after
the tide had subsided.

Lord John Russell has received the remaining
halves of a 501. and two 10/. notes, transmitted to him
on account of income-tax. The amount will be paid
into the Exchequer.